30 Minutes Missions Alto Option Kits by Bandai - First Impressions

This post continues a look at 30 Minutes Missions. The previous post with my first impressions of the Alto itself can be found by clicking this link. Here I'm examining two of the options kits available for the Alto.

Original recipe Alto compared with optional face plate, shoulder armor, and chest armor.

The option kits came as a bundle when I ordered the Dark Gray Alto on Amazon. Frankly, I'm not sure if I would go that route again. The cost of the bundle was only slightly cheaper than ordering the items from an import site like Hobbylink Japan. It also took about the same amount of time to ship. On the other hand, the bundle did have matching colors for the Alto and Option Armor kit, so that's nice.

Both kits are made specifically for the Alto. This makes sense for the armor, since the parts have to fit the shape of the model. However, I'm not sure why the weapons wouldn't work with other models. They are mostly handheld or fit on parts that should be universal within the 30MM line.

As before, I cut the parts off the runners and assembled them without any further tidying up.

Rosie examines the Alto's knee while Sarah looks on.

Option Armor for Long Range Sniping (Alto Exclusive/Dark Gray)

This kit comes in a bag containing the instructions and a single runner. A little disappointing, but the kit is only a couple of bucks USD before factoring shipping costs. Given the prices I've seen for a similar amount of plastic in the form a single miniature, that's not bad.

Shield option attached to the arm and shoulder.

The runner has parts for:

• A replacement face plate. It pulls off the appearance of some kind of telescopic sensor array, which fits the "Long Range Sniping" theme. A sticker for the lens would have been nice - I'll have to see about painting it sometime.
• Replacement armor plates for the chest and shoulders. These are more beefy than the ones that came with the Alto. I'm not sure why a sniper would need additional protection in these areas. The shoulder parts don't seem to have the snug fit of the originals - they pop off more easily.
• A shield that can attach to an arm or shoulder. I'm not sure why a sniper mecha would need a shield that looks like it could double as a melee weapon. Maybe I'm not part of the intended market for these things?

The chest and shoulder armor, combined with the shield, offers up the appearance of a brawler rather than a sniper. The original Alto face plate works to complete the close in fighter look. The sniper face plate works well with the Alto's original armor plating.

Roy Roy drone undergoing trials while an evaluation team in light duty vacc suits looks on.

Option Weapon 1 for Alto

This kit comes in a small box holding a pair of runners. The variety of parts offers a satisfying selection of firearms and melee weapons.

Submachine gun, assault rifle, and long rifle with telescopic sight and grip.

The choice of firearms starts with a duplicate of the submachine gun included in the Alto kit. The other firearm parts attach to the pistol grip/receiver of the submachine gun, replacing the short submachine gun barrel with one resembling an assault rifle with an underslung grenade launcher or a long barrel suitable for precision shooting. There are also two sights available - the one that come with the submachine gun (resembling a reflex sight) and a larger one that looks like a telescopic sight. Finally, there is  grip that can be attached to the side of either rifle.

Empty hand, stabby hand replacement, axe hand replacement. I tried the sword, but it just looked silly.

The melee weapons are based on the knuckle weapon included in the Alto kit, using it as a handle/hand guard. A duplicate of the knuckle weapon appears in this kit, allowing for dual wielding. The melee options include a combat knife, axe, and sword. They can be attached to the knuckle weapon or to a part that replaces a hand. There is also a shaft that can be combined with the melee options to create a variety of polearms.

Axe and sword attached to the polearm shaft.

Something I Forgot from the Last Post - The Roy Roy

This is a small robot that comes with the Alto kit. Not including it in my previous post was an oversight on my part. It works as a drone for either 15mm or 28mm scale. The body of the Roy Roy can be attached to the top of the Alto as an insectoid looking head alternative.

Roy Roy and Roy Roy head.

The option kits make the Alto more versatile, allowing it to be customized to better fit a particular role or setting. Combining the chest and shoulder armor with a submachine gun and melee weapon makes the Alto into a nifty close combat unit. Of course, outfitting giant stompy robots with pointy and stabby things doesn't fit every setting. In Battletech, for example, melee weapons for 'Mechs exist, but are an unusual design choice compared with guns, energy weapons, and missiles. However, 30MM is clearly more inspired by settings like Gundam, which feature melee weapons as standard issue for mobile suits. It really depends on the game - a giant robot with an equally big sword fits right into some, but is over the top for others.

I wasn't kidding about the look of the sword hand replacement.

The various guns should fit into a wider variety of settings. There are enough parts to build a pair of submachine guns, if dual wielding isn't just too much for the game in question. The assault rifle is a good choice to give the Alto the look of an infantryman. The long rifle with the sensor face plate sends the message that something in the neighboring time zone is going to get an unwelcome surprise. Again, it depends on the game.

Brigade Models B15-1001 15mm SF Bunker

This is another product that I bought ages ago, stored away during my tabletop gaming interregnum, and rediscovered while looking for something else. I decided on a paint scheme just in time for weeks of rain and humidity levels too high for spray painting. My patience was rewarded once I was able to get started - the work was quick. Unlike much of my unfinished product pile, this is actually still available for purchase from the manufacturer.

The curved appearance of the bunker puts certain Star Wars visuals in mind. Not the sharp edges of Imperial design, of course. Rather, the rounded architecture seen on some planets away from the core - places like Tatooine and Naboo.

This product comes in two pieces - the main body and a cover. The main body includes a sculpted interior including floor grating and steps down to the entrance. The other piece is a simple round cover for the interior. The two pieces do not lock into each other - there is nothing holding the cover on the main body.

Sanding
The bunker is cast resin and needed some sanding to remove some rough edges and flash. There is also some chipping near the bunker entrance, but it's not particularly noticeable when the piece is sitting on the table. Besides, it adds to the worn look I was going for. I also roughed up the surfaces of the piece due to concerns about the paint bonding to the smooth resin. I wore a respirator during the sanding process, having been warned about inhaling resin dust awhile back.

Cleaning
The next step involved soap, warm water, and a brush. Taking the time to clean what I'm working on is a habit for me at this point.

Spray Painting - First Layer
I sprayed the underside of both pieces and the interior of the main body with Krylon COLORmaxx Paint + Primer in Flat Black. I was planning on a dark gray or metallic for the interior, so black works well as an undercoat. The goal of painting the undersides is simply to put down a layer to protect the resin.

Spray Painting - Second Layer
The base color for the bunker is Krylon Camouflage Ultra-Flat Khaki. A sandy color isn't unusual for a concrete surface, especially one that's been exposed to the outside for awhile. Besides, I've been on enough military bases - mostly American - to know that khaki is a common color for buildings like the bunker.

Interior
The floor got a coat of FolkArt 2561 Steel Gray brushed over the black Krylon. I applied some Craft Smart Premium Wax Silver Metallic Finish over the gray paint to give the floor a hint of metallic shine.

Wash Layer
I still have a bottle of black wash that I mixed for a long-ago project. It's come in handy for terrain projects like this one. I applied a layer of wash over all of the interior surfaces and allowed it to pool. The floor is deeply textured with a grate pattern and I wanted the wash to settle into it. I also brushed a layer of wash over the exterior of the bunker, but I wiped off the excess to prevent pooling on those surfaces.

The bunker is a hefty piece of solid resin. It will likely hold up well to handling, but I'm reluctant to subject it to an unplanned drop test. The interior is a nice touch and holds a fair number of 15mm miniatures - the exact count depends on the size of their bases. It was a good value at $12 USD when I purchased it and is a better deal now, although shipping costs may offset currency exchange rates.

30 Minutes Missions EEMX-17 Alto (Dark Gray) by Bandai - First Impressions

I purchased this model kit to see how it looks with 15mm scale miniatures. Also, building scale models is something I've been wanting to get back into and big stompy robots are as a good place to start as any. This is an initial look with general product information, a description of the build process, and a few comments on its potential for tabletop gaming. I also have a couple of accessory kits for this model that I plan on featuring in a follow up post.

Alto covering 15mm "Earth Exploration Team" members.

Bandai's 30 Minutes Missions (30MM) line is intended as a starting point for getting into Gundam models. The kits in this line are priced lower than comparable Gundam models since they aren't tied to that franchise and its associated licensing fees. A selling point of 30MM is the relative speed and ease of assembling a kit without sacrificing quality.

Bandai created its own lore for 30MM, based around an alien invasion. I'm not versed in Gundam lore, but I have picked up the broad strokes of the franchise over the decades it's been around. Even I can recognize that the Alto is loosely based on the concept of the GM - a mass produced unit deployed in quantity by an Earth-based military against a threat from space.

30MM is named for the amount of time it's supposed to take to assemble a kit. I took closer to an hour. Inexperience played a role, but I also found myself going slow to savor the process. Note that I still need to clean up the nubs left from clipping off the parts.

Close up of backpack. Note the holes where accessories can be attached and the melee weapon in the left hand.

The sprues (or runners) are laid out intuitively. Each runner holds parts of a particular color or type of plastic. Parts that go together on the model are grouped together on the runners. This reduces the need to squint and hunt for parts spread around a runner.

I choose the dark gray and black color scheme as something that would be plausible for a unit with a low observable coating. Military colors - green and tan - are available. These also come in brighter colors. I'm tempted to get the Alto's counterpart - the Portanova - in red or blue. I may see how well the plastic takes spray primer and paint sometime down the road.

Trying a more daring pose to test the articulation.

Although the Alto is a 1/144 scale model, it works well enough with 15mm miniatures using an eyeball comparison. It looks like there should be just enough space for a cockpit big enough for a 15mm scale pilot in the chest. It might be a tight squeeze, though - certainly not as roomy as some mecha cockpits I've seen in various media. I'll have to dig out more of my 15mm collection for further comparison.

Of course, the whole issue of "where's the cockpit?" can be dodged by declaring it a remotely piloted or AI controlled drone. That might be enough justification to make it work with 28mm scale miniatures. It might work as a major threat to a band of adventurers in a sci-fi RPG game.

The Alto is well articulated and stays in a pose without "drooping" - at least, when the joints are new. There is a good amount of detail, considering that this is supposed to be a starter model. The holes are attachment points for additional parts. That offers the ability to customize the model for a particular role - sniper, command vehicle, close combat variant, etc. Two option kits came in the bundle that I ordered - I'll post a follow up after I get a chance to assemble and play around with them.

Out of My Wheelhouse - Bandai Hobby HG 1/144 #39 Ptolemaios Arms "Gundam Build Divers"

This kit caught my attention while shopping around on Amazon. It looked like it had potential as a "ship of the week" for games like Star Trek Adventures and as a miniature for spaceship combat games. Eaglemoss Star Trek ship models look great on the tabletop, but the price tag means that I only use them for the player characters' ship and those operated by major gamemaster characters. Wizkids offers less expensive options, but I've run into scaling issues. This model would fit a lower technology culture - either pre-warp or early warp drive. For spaceship combat games - well, it's always nice to have more variety on the tabletop.

I'm not familiar with Gundam or Gunpla, so I have no idea what anything on the box means.

I'm not a Gundam fan, but I gather that this ship - the Ptolemaios or Ptolemy - is a mothership that first appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam 00. The ship also made a cameo appearance in Gundam Build Drivers. This model kit is part of the Gundam Build Drivers line. And that's a far as I'm willing to research. The last thing I need is another long running series to binge watch while painting miniatures.

Ptolemaios encounters USS Thunderchild. The Starfleet crew advises caution around cube shaped spaceships.

The main selling point of this kit is how it can be broken down into its components. These are intended to be attached to other 1/144 scale Gundam models to customize their appearance. My interest is using them to depict smaller spacecraft on the tabletop. There are four easily removed components on the main body that resemble shuttles or transports. The completed model is about four inches long and the shuttle components are about an inch in length. I'll need to experiment to see how the engine sections and main body can be reconfigured.

Shuttles detached!

Building the kit was a pleasure. Everything in the box came neatly sorted and bagged. The instructions were clear enough, but I did end up squinting at a couple of things until what I was supposed to do finally clicked. All of the parts fit smoothly and cleanly. There was no need to force or "convince" them together. I completed the build in about 45 minutes, but that's largely due to my taking my time and my inexperience with this kind of model kit. There are even a few unused parts left on the sprues - additions to my bits collection are always welcome!

Still a few morsels left on these bones.

Ptolemaios is shown here without paint, wash, or panel lining. I also have to go back and clean up the bubs left from cutting the parts off the sprues. Spray priming and painting will have to wait until the humidity dies down around here.

The one thing I don't like about this kit is the lack of a stand. I'm aware that this is common to Gunpla, but it's still annoying. I had to improvise a stand with a clear plastic cup for the photos in this post. Maybe I'll hunt down a compatible stand for Ptolemaios sometime.

Ptolemaios encounters a cube shaped spaceship.

The cost of this kit varies. It retails in Japan for the equivalent of about $8 USD. However, importing the kit adds considerably to the overall price - doubling it in some cases. I opted to pay $15 USD on Amazon, but that's with free shipping.