Small Scale Military Headquarters

Marauder just sent me an update for folks that backed their kickstarter project:

We plan to have the Backerkit site ready for launch by the end of next week. All backers at the $20 or higher level will receive invitations to complete the backerkit registration where you tell us what you want for your pledge, your shipping information AND can add additional items to your reward package. During the Backerkit registration you can add to your reward packages, but you can't change your participation level. The "Special Value" Kickstarter levels are no longer available and only those supporters that reserved those levels during the Kickstarter event will have access to those levels. All the items released in the Kickstarter event will be available to add to your reward packages....we are also working to have SEVERAL new items available for order in the Backerkit that were NOT in the Kickstarter event!

Thanks again for your support!

MJ & MGR Crew

Can't wait to see what other items they added.
For those of you that backed the project, which figures were you planning to select?
Razor

I think I'm one of the few, but I'm hoping Marauder decided to include the solid color figures.

I'd be shocked if they don't because some interest was there and the toolings are done, it's just a matter of cranking them out which is a cost so I'm sure they'll be weighting demand for them to some degree.

All,
Got an email to tell Marauder which figures I wanted. Very simple and easy to do. For those you that backed their kickstarter project, which figures did you select?
Mine were:
Regular British Infantry
Russian Tanker
Russian Heavy Machine gunner
Regular Japanese Infantry
US Marine Code Talker
2 Navy Corpsman
German Infantry

Razor

Looks like the all grey soldier (German) was added, but not the tan (Japanese) or any other solid colors, unless I'm missing something.

I backed at the 12 figure level and added on as stuff got unlocked. Too many great allied and axis troops not to. My figure picks are:

German Army Officer (Early War Uniform) - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
German Army Rifleman (Early War Uniform) - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
British Army Bren Gunner- 1:18 scale MTF WWII Acgtion Figure
British Army Officer- 1:18 scale MTF WWII Action Figure
British Army Rifleman- 1:18 scale MTF WWII Acgtion Figure
German Army MG42 Machine Gunner (Late War Uniform) - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
German Army MP44 Gunner (Late War Uniform) - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Russian Army Officer - 1:18 scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Russian Army Rifleman- 1:18 scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Russian Machine Gunner - 1:18 scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Russian Tanker - 1:18 scale MTF WWII Action Figure
US Navy FMF Corpsman - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
US Army Thompson Gunner - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Japanese Army Rifleman - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Japanese Army Type 99 Machine Gunner - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
Japanese Army NCO Officer - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
German Panzer Grenadier (Late War Uniform) MP40 Gunner - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
German Panzer Grenadier (Late War Uniform) Officer - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure
German Panzer Grenadier (Late War Uniform) Rifleman - 1:18 Scale MTF WWII Action Figure

Hopefully at a later date they will do another kickstarter for all the Airborne and desert troops that never got unlocked.

Any updates on these figures and what will be offered to the public?

Normandy, the last update I received was in a December 13, 2018, message from Marauder that said the following:

Hey "Marauder Fighting 783!"

Please disregard the "confirm shipping address" email several of you just received. The WWII items are still shipping next June. The notice was intended for some backers of the MTF K9/ExoSuit/Contract Ops Kickstarter backers. Those are the packages shipping soon. There will be plenty of time next spring to update any shipping changes for the MTF WWII event. Thanks again and sorry about the error!

Take care!

MJ & MGR Crew

Looks like we can expect these figures in June.

Thanks Tman things had gone quiet for a while.

No problem, Normandy! I got in on the kickstarter right before it closed, ordering some of the British and Russian figures, since I don’t really have any of those in 1/18. In December, right before the above message was received, I had gotten an email saying the figures were ready to ship. That was a mistake on their part.

I believe I read that they were on track to ship this June/July.

Anyone get their figures? If memory serves me it was supposed to be this month? Curious if the final product lived up to the expectations.

Axis Nightmare wrote: Anyone get their figures? If memory serves me it was supposed to be this month? Curious if the final product lived up to the expectations.

IIRC they were in final phase of production for the batch for backers

Axis Nightmare wrote: Anyone get their figures? If memory serves me it was supposed to be this month? Curious if the final product lived up to the expectations.

The planned date was at the end of June to ship to the backers.
Late August will be the new target date.
I am a backer of this project.
Anybody else?
Razor

Late August now?

I'm not in on this but I'd be furious. That's a real kick in the shorts. They've had a year and a half to get these in your hands. Curious what excuse they are using for the delay? The standard one is always problems with the Chinese manufacturers or customs issues.

I warned of the ponzi scheme characteristics these kickstarters use. If the backer's money was really being used for YOUR project, they would be delivering on the date promised. That far future date was the first red flag I saw in the program. I'm betting the delay is them waiting for funds from their future projects to finance fulfilling yours. If anyone can give a different logical excuse, I'd love to here it. I hope they come through for everyone in August. Those figures are vastly superior to anything before them.

Razor17019 wrote:

Axis Nightmare wrote: Anyone get their figures? If memory serves me it was supposed to be this month? Curious if the final product lived up to the expectations.

The planned date was at the end of June to ship to the backers.
Late August will be the new target date.
I am a backer of this project.
Anybody else?
Razor

I am a backer too, I backed for $117

Axis Nightmare wrote:Late August now?

I warned of the ponzi scheme characteristics these kickstarters use. If the backer's money was really being used for YOUR project, they would be delivering on the date promised. That far future date was the first red flag I saw in the program. I'm betting the delay is them waiting for funds from their future projects to finance fulfilling yours. If anyone can give a different logical excuse, I'd love to here it. I hope they come through for everyone in August. Those figures are vastly superior to anything before them.

There has been a rising issue of video game developers pushing back release dates and asking for more money on various projects recently. I know not everyone is a scammer, but the idea of being able to fleece people through these type of fundraising systems has become the new 'ebay scam' except now they don't even have to have an actual product to sell; just the promise of one. There have also been a few starting projects promising great rewards for the backers, and then selling the project off to a bigger developer who refuses to fulfill the promises the original crew made.

You would think Kickstarter, Patreon, and so forth would have some way to enforce that these companies actually produce something or refund what monies they can if they have to admit the project is not feasible any longer.

Axis Nightmare wrote:Late August now?

I'm not in on this but I'd be furious. That's a real kick in the shorts. They've had a year and a half to get these in your hands. Curious what excuse they are using for the delay? The standard one is always problems with the Chinese manufacturers or customs issues.

I warned of the ponzi scheme characteristics these kickstarters use. If the backer's money was really being used for YOUR project, they would be delivering on the date promised. That far future date was the first red flag I saw in the program. I'm betting the delay is them waiting for funds from their future projects to finance fulfilling yours. If anyone can give a different logical excuse, I'd love to here it. I hope they come through for everyone in August. Those figures are vastly superior to anything before them.

I also would like to state I have watched their other kickstarters and they always seem to deliver a good product. I trust MGR when it comes to being legit or not.

No one should worry about MGR not coming through. They have always come through AND find someway to make up for any delays. They are a class act. I’ve backed all their Kickstarters including the WWII Kickstarter without hesitating. I’ve made several purchases from their online store and never been let down there either.

Their Vietnam era Kickstarter is up next at some point this year. Looking forward to that one.

Their business model is quite successful. I don't think anyone has to worry....this time. They've had similar delay issues going back to 2015 where they had promised delivery before Christmas only to announce in December it wasn't going to happen. They blamed "shipping errors" and color confusion. Wrong, non matching accessories, etc. Everyone's fault but their's of course. I'm sure these people eventually got there stuff O.K. and I've read no complaints about quality. I know if it was me and they've held me and my money hostage for a year and a half only to announce waiting a few more months, they'd be getting some serious WTF e-mails. You guys have bestowed upon them a lot of money. They'll continue doing things at their pleasure unless their customers step up and start demanding they come through on commitments or stop doing business with them. My decades in customer service taught me never to commit to something I wasn't personally prepared to fulfill and the last thing a customer wants to hear is lame B.S. excuses like here:

https://news.hisstank.com/2015/12/08/57554-57554

It's all about follow-up which they don't seem to be very good at.

Axis Nightmare wrote:Their business model is quite successful. I don't think anyone has to worry....this time. They've had similar delay issues going back to 2015 where they had promised delivery before Christmas only to announce in December it wasn't going to happen. They blamed "shipping errors" and color confusion. Wrong, non matching accessories, etc. Everyone's fault but their's of course. I'm sure these people eventually got there stuff O.K. and I've read no complaints about quality. I know if it was me and they've held me and my money hostage for a year and a half only to announce waiting a few more months, they'd be getting some serious WTF e-mails. You guys have bestowed upon them a lot of money. They'll continue doing things at their pleasure unless their customers step up and start demanding they come through on commitments or stop doing business with them. My decades in customer service taught me never to commit to something I wasn't personally prepared to fulfill and the last thing a customer wants to hear is lame B.S. excuses like here:

https://news.hisstank.com/2015/12/08/57554-57554

It's all about follow-up which they don't seem to be very good at.

Axis if I recall correctly they are a extremely small team and are hobbyists just like their customers. Though I do agree some companies bite off more than they can chew I trust them more than I trust video game companies like Bethesda Software (look up their shady stuff) or Electronic Arts (what they did to the Norsk Hydro Raid, writing real heroes out and putting a teen girl in her mom as the heroes for “woke” points) in fact I trust most smaller game companies more than the big ones now. I would bring up concerns with MGR maybe if I were you. But like it was stated they always come trough with the product.

I think three going on four successful Kickstarters should speak for itself. All of their product has legs. Figures from their first Kickstarter years back are still being produced and sold due to demand while they continue to produce new product. Each Kickstarter they do compliments the products from Kickstarters before. You have to own their product to really appreciate what's gone into making these a reality. From the different figure types to all the accessories that have been and are being produced to go with them, no other manufacturer has come close to offering what MGR has for 1/18 scale action figures.

If you really take in all the different figure types and accessories they provide in one Kickstarter and consider the number of runs it requires to produce them, delays are bound to happen. No one who owns their product gets bent out of shape over delays experienced because they know the quality product they will receive is worth it.

I've seen samples of their WWII line in person and they are going to blow the doors off of anything that has been done for 1/18 WWII to date. There were several stretch goal figures that were not unlocked, but knowing MGR, they will find a way to get them produced.

If they would only do 1/18 aircraft and armor........here's to hoping one day...

The only Kickstarter that I was skeptical of from any person or group that was 1:18 was the MARV from Wayward Goat. As much as I wanted to see it succeed I think he asked for too much and had too many variations.

I agree with what has been said from Marauder.
I backed one their earlier projects and it was a little delayed, but they came through.
Axis - I think with this type of project and as many figures as they are creating, there is bound to be delays. But what I like about them is they communicate with the backers.
There is nothing more frustrating than not hearing from anyone.
I would much rather have an email explaining than silence.
I have waited this long, one more month won't hurt.
I am excited to be able to see them in person.
I will share pics of them when they arrive.
I will have to say that I have NEVER paid this much for figure before.
Razor

A combination of old school thinking and my customer service background have contributed to my skepticism over these new-fangled kickstarters. I don't even like "preorder" sales where you only wait 3 to 4 months. I've seen where some don't get the hoped for response and get cancelled. The 1/6 Dragon Sherman Firefly comes to mind.

Good to hear success stories. Glad everyone is happy with the company.

Looking forward to some photos in August!