As the title says, I purchased one of the most recent batches of mystery boxes from Warlord Games. For those who have not seen these before (and because the description is no longer on the Warlord Games store), these are boxes filled with random miniatures, books, items, and whatnot from Warlord Games. You will roughly get about twice the value of the box (these were sold at 120$), but you get a random assortment of items, so it may or may not be useful to you.
For me, personally, I don't really own that much in the way of Warlord Games product. I own a couple of Bolt Action armies, the start of a Konflikt '47 army... and that is about it. However, I am pretty interested in quite a number of their games, including their various naval games. Heck, maybe I'll get something for one of those games. All part of the excitement!
I didn't have any particular expectations of the box. I assumed I would end up with some Bolt Action stuff, a random hobby item, and a book of some sort, but the rest... well, the rest was a mystery. So, let's see what came, shall we? In no particular order...
Oooh, a Marder III Ausf. M for Bolt Action! Off to a great start, as it is not only a model for a game I play, but an army that I have miniatures for already. Very exciting.
Six Humbrol Acrylic paint pots. This is not a brand I have experience with, or know anything about. It looks like the brand is well regarded, however, and these paints can be thinned and used in an airbrush (which I don't have). They do not seem to list the colors on the pot itself though, which seemed atypical.
The pots have an identifying number on the top, however, and these correspond to a chart (here). The chart also contains color matching information with other brands (starting on page 8), and provides information on the top of finish, which I really like. Heck, I am impressed with this brand, even before I've opened one of these pots up. Pretty fantastic for something I had not heard of prior to opening the mystery box.
A Nachtalben Squad box for Konflikt '47. More details for this can be found here. Again, these are miniatures I do not own for a game and army I play, so this was an exciting find. Having a unit of Tough, Elite, and Fast troops available to add to my force is fantastic.
Another Bolt Action selection, this time a Belgian Chasseurs Ardennais FRC 76mm Infantry Gun (more info here). I don't play Belgians (yet!), but this is still a fun inclusion, because artillery pieces seem like they would be quite enjoyable to paint and base.
A pack of eight metal Hittite Levy Spearmen (more info here). Now we are looking at some product for games I do not play. Hail Caesar is a game I have purchased the rules for, but the rules did not have any army information included (these were included in a separate supplement), so I just didn't end up getting into it. I believe they just had a second edition come out, however. This is a game I would certainly try, as I love ancients, and I enjoy that rank and file look in my miniature game, but armies look to be upwards of a hundred miniatures, and without a committed opponent, I just can't muster the enthusiasm to get into it on my own. Maybe I just need more historical gaming friends. Anyway, I am not sure I have a current game where I could make use of these guys, but I am sure one of the Osprey wargames probably would give me a place to put them, as they make a number of skirmish-sized games. They will just have to wait in the 'someday projects' box for now.
A pack of three Law Enforcement models for Strontium Dog. I have read that Warlord has ended this line, and I cannot seem to find anything but the rules for it on their website, but I did find an older article with these models painted up here. Sci-fi cops won't be too hard to find a use for, since I could probably use them in Rogue Stars or Stargrave or something. I cannot quite tell if the scale of these figures matches anything else (although the game is referenced as 28mm heroic scale), but assuming they match some other lines, I am sure they will hit the table at some point.
A box of Samurai Horsemen for Pike & Shotte (more details, and pictures of the minis here). I have heard good things about Pike & Shotte, but don't own the rules, or really know too much about it. I certainly didn't know they covered feudal Japan. I am not sure where I can use these miniatures yet, but I am certain I have somewhere they can go, although maybe I will get into Pike & Shotte at some point. One never knows. Regardless, this was a fun inclusion, so I am pretty happy about it.
A Promo Aztec figure for the Mythic Americas game. I think this is just a version of the Warlords of Erehwon game (listed on the blister as well), but I cannot actually find a picture of this miniature anywhere. The range looks pretty cool and colorful, and a random Aztec figure almost certainly has some random games where it can be used. In addition, it is a metal miniature!
Next up is a box of Macedonian Pezhetairoi for SPQR (28mm plastic models). There will be quite a number of places I could use these miniatures, but I have also heard quite a lot of good reviews for SPQR. I think I would have to buy another unit and a hero in order to play? And the rules, probably. Anyway, until then, I may just assemble these because I like the way they look.
Next up is a sandbag wall. I can always make use of more terrain.
This is actually the February purchase promo, which was not part of the mystery box, per se, but since he arrived due to the order of the mystery box, I will include him here. This is Eisensturmtruppe Kühn, a replacement NCO for a Wehrmacht Heavy Infantry Squad for Konflikt '47. More info here. I own Germans for Konflikt '47, and the miniature looks nice, so this was a nice bonus.
I vaguely remember a mention in the description that each mystery box would contain something that was about to come out, or newly released. For me, that would be these guys, an Italian Bersaglieri Sniper Team for Bolt Action (more info here). Very nicely detailed, although I wish they would have included at least some hint in the box what these were- it took me a bit to track them down! The much-maligned Italians are not an army I play in Bolt Action, but they have a lot of fun looking vehicles, so these may see the table in the way they were intended someday.
And finally, a book- Wildcat Aces of World War 2, all about the history and pilots of the F4F Wildcat. Lots of color plates in the book for whenever I have a need to work on some Wildcat models, and the book has a lot of period photos. This is going to be a nice read- I love military history books, and I am not overly picky about my topics.
So, there you have it. My mystery box has arrived, I have opened it, and I have showed you the contents. Is it worth it? Price-wise, absolutely, they advertise that as part of the draw. Past that, it is going to depend more on what you're expecting. There is a lot of different genres and eras covered in this box, and that certainly isn't going to appeal to everyone. On the other hand, I enjoy the variety, and even though I don't have an immediate use for every item in the box, not a single inclusion is worthless to me, as I can see at least *some* case where I would make use of it. So it's definitely a win as far as I'm concerned.
Sadly, no boats in this box. Maybe you'll have better luck!
