February 2025 Loot

Last post for this month! Pound by pound, this gotta be the most massive Haul that ever come in a single month and the concentration of Mecha related stuff in this batch are no slack either! When It comes to value and bulk, this one gotta be the massive one so far. While Riobot SRX still remains the most expensive single item, I think Metal Build Billbine and SOC Tryon which is the main star of this haul can easily match up to be on par. My Chinese model kit collection got some addition on Heavyweights as well with Hemoxian Lone Shadow and Star Eternal boast a massive Box Size that can give Bandai's Gunpla a run for their money. Interestingly I also got myself a Sembo Brick Model for J-20 which is probably the cheapest among the batch but can still pull its weight. At this rate I think my backlog size is getting quite out of control already despite I already finished on some Chinese Model kit. Should have picked up the slack during the CNY Holiday period. Perhaps I should start workin on the Mecha Musume model kit that I got recently.
 

Sluban Super Mecha Champions Qbrick - Trio of Enders Review

It has been a month since SMC officially closed its server but my homage process for this Mecha series that had its Potential wasted by Netease will not end. Around December last year, I have been acquiring some SMC Qbricks to see what the worth of this particular lineup that managed to run for 2 Waves.

All in All, I managed to acquire 5 of these SMC Qbricks which have some merit for its value and I will be presenting the first out of the five which is Trio of Enders which is one of the better specimen from the lineup. Till the end of SMC Run, Trio of Enders remain my favorite Mecha in SMC with its utilitarian Kit that offers respectable Firepower and Burst damage capability when required. Not particularly flashy, but It will get the job done. I will promise that SMC Qbricks review series will make its regular appearance likely until April 2025.

Vintage Toys - B-Daman Bakugaiden I Super Bomber Armor

 
 Apart from Saint Blaster, there were couple of noteworthy B-Daman toys that made it overseas and In fact even I have one in my possession. One of this notable B-Daman Toys is called Super Bomber Armor which is derived from the first Bakugaiden series. Released back in 90s this one is sold for 3800 Yen being one of the more deluxe category of B-Daman series.

B-Daman Super Bomber Armor consist of 3 B-Daman Bakugaiden vehicle toys which are: Bomber Soarer, Bomber Diver and Bomber Lander representing Sky, Sea and Land vehicles respectively. Together these 3 vehichles can combine to form a Mecha called Super Bomber Armor. When I was a kid I used to have Bomber Soarer and Diver which obviously broke down due to being a shitty brat. Then during my Study in China, I managed to get a complete set which still sat down gathering dusts since I have some plan for repaint. 

While Bakugaiden I are predominantly having assorted variations of Bomberman. Apparently Bakugaiden I did have some more cool Mecha stuff which never caught my attention until my recent research for Bakugaiden series like the Gatling Armor or Blizzard Bomber Armor which perhaps I will discuss on another day. Perhaps I could consider making the mechatalk article for it despite the Roster size will be way smaller compared to Bakugaiden III and IV since I will filter out the non mecha stuff.

Rance 03: Fall of Leazas

Back in 2020, I played and finished Rance 03 Remake during the period of COVID isolation and even did make an article for the game at some point. At the time, I did promise to make full article for this game. But the plan ended up never materialized since I thought I accidentally deleted the in-game assets I collected to make the full article of Rance 03 which totally killed my motivation. However in a strange turns of event, I managed to retrieve the Assets that I thought had been long gone. Thus, just like Sakura Taisen 2, I will make an amend even if it has been overdue for 5 year. Therefore I proudly present Realm of Darkness Rance 03: Fall of Leazas full article!

This article will feature Safe-for-work Rance 03 Storyline overview which will be mostly done through covering the main factions, characters and points of interests in this game. The aim of this relatively lengthy article is to hopefully get people interested with Rance 03 and might as well delve further into this legendary High Fantasy series. Because among many Visual Novel Titles, Rance series are one of the few that can be actually successful without relying on their R-18 contents. Lastly this article revival also owed to the enthusiasm of this Blog’s visitors who seems to show quite an interest with past Rance series articles that are written in Realm of Darkness. This is one of the longer article that this blog had even compared to Kannazuki no Miko mechatalk part 2, so enjoy the read.

30 Minutes Fantasy - Rosan Wizard

30 Minutes Fantasy Lineup is back with something this month and a Fantasy series is never complete without the Wizard Class! Releasing in Liber and Rosan variant as usual, Bandai have unveiled 30 MF Wizard class. This time the Rosan Variant arguable have the better Class up item so it is the one to be featured. Scheduled for September 2025 release, 30 MF Liber/Rosan Wizard will be sold for 2000 Yen along with 700 Yen Class Up item.

Front Mission Structure Arts Plus 1/48 Zenith 30th Anniv Edition

 
 Time goes really fast and never expected Front Mission series has reached its 30th Anniversary! While Square enix no longer make any game for this renowned Mecha Strategy RPG series apart from remaster,  they are releasing Front Mission Model Kits with the help of Kotobukiya! Released as 1/48 Scale under Structure Plus lineup, the Front Mission will start with the Posterboy of FM series, Zenith and this one will come with tons of weapons. Scheduled for July 2025 release, Structure Art Plus Zenith will be sold for 12800 Yen.

Super Mecha Champions Mechatalk: Part 3

 Super Mecha Champions have officially closed down but I haven't forgotten my Promise! I have gathered the necessary assets for SMC Part 3 before the game closed down, but due to unforeseen circumstances, I don't have access with the files until now. SMC Part 3 will feature the Mechas in the game that I was unable to obtain when the game closed down and in terms of roster number, this one will be easily the biggest one which consist of 19 Mechas. Back then I was only able to secure 18 Mecha which is only half of the playable rosters as I only have less than One year worth of time to farm for in-game currencies. While this part will conclude the Mecha side of SMC Mechatalk, I will also commit for the Pilot side as well since I want to do a proper send off for this underrated series that had misfortune being owned by a Soulless Corporation that only cares about profit.

Warhammer 40k Tacticus: Blood Angels Lord Dante LRE announcement

It has been more than a year since my first Warhammer 40k Tacticus post and surprisingly I still survived in this Gacha Game which is quite particularly difficult. I have to say the Requisition rate aka the Gacha from Tacticus gotta be the worst one as your money spent could easily plunged into bottomless pit that nets you nothing valuable. But my attachment toward Warhammer 40k still prove to be stronger and decide to endure the nonsense to see if Tacticus could be a worthy representation for one of the ultimate Male Power Fantasy Sci-fi series on Mobile game platform. In any case, I am using this post to discuss the recent news announcement from Snowprint from Tacticus.

Robox Animation 1/100 Test-70 Bailu Air Combat Review

 
 Bringing up Review section once again after One month of Inactivity! This time I will be going for a Hattrick and review Chinese Model Kit after strings of related Posts. Robox Animation Bailu is not exactly my first acquisition for this category, but I decided to give this particular Model kit a priority boost because it is a good example for Chinese Model kit. Compared to Model kits that I gave a try 10 years ago, the quality of the Present Chinese model kits are not to be trifled with despite it still have its share of Hit or Miss. 

In terms of Aesthetics, Bailu had this kind balanced type Air Cavalry type that got overall parameter of Firepower, Durability and Mobility relatively balanced all over the board. Bailu's sleek design reminds me of Gundam Exia/Astraea line and Bailu could sort of passed as the Flight variant of those two should it be incorporated to Gundamverse. Just like many Chinese model kits, Bailu do come with 4 Jet-fighter type Drones which are stored at its back and waist armor which could have seen some cool dynamic action if the Kit had better Action base.

The very reason I pick Bailu as this time's review, because it is one of the great gateway I come across should anyone interested to get into Chinese model kit. For a 200 RMB price, this kit will offer Solid Value that can easily surpass its Japanese peer. If you are lucky, you can find this one around 40 USD which scores you 24 cm Mecha model kit with Diecast Frame that you can feel the weight. For a Single Bandai's 1/100 HIRM aka High Resolution Model price , you can get 3 of the Chinese Diecast frame counterpart which is definitely a irresistible temptations. While Chinese Model kits still have some flaws like Snapfit issue, given the current quality of their Products available in the market, it is just a matter of time before Chinese manufacturer's collective effort will close the gap. But seriously go give some time to take a look at these Chinese Model Kit lineups.

Jingzhuo She 1/100 Mandala

Another upcoming Chinese Model kit! This time is less spiky than its usual brethren but still got some gimmick worth a merit. Created by a manufacturer called Jingzhuo She, Mandala is yet another Gundam-esque Model kit. While it doesn't come with Diecast Frame, this one is relatively cheaper compared to its peers. Scheduled for March 2025 Release, Jingzhuo She 1/100 Mandala will be sold for 139 RMB.

On first glance, Mandala looks like a Real Robot type Gundam but personally I feel that the design resemble quite closely to Wildschwein from SRW OG mostly due to the Backpack proportion and curvy legs. Despite its plain looking real robot appearance, 1/100 Mandala do come with a neat gimmick to pull off some Itano Circus Missile Barrage and the manufacturer do provide the effect parts for the Preorder bonus. Personally the downside from Mandala is the color scheme that is difficult to make this guy look like Protagonist mecha though Wildschwein color scheme will look pretty good for this guy considering we never have any 1/100 representative for this fellow.

Mechatalk: B-Daman Bakugaiden III Bomber Fighter Armor Model Kit List

 
 With Takara Tomy re-releasing their Bakugaiden IV Mecha products starting with White Bros, I got myself motivated and dig further their past B-Daman Toy lineup once again. What captivated me the most from B-Daman lineup was the Bomber Mecha like Saint Blaster which made me a big sucker for Mecha Toys with Pilot Gimmick. But back then I did have a particular B-Daman Model Kit that had slightly different aesthetics with the former and features a B-Daman Mecha Design with Semi-transparent Head cockpit that comes with Mini B-Daman as Icing on top. 

 Upon further digging, my search lead to B-Daman Bakugaiden III which is the previous B-Daman Generations that came before Bakugaiden IV which Saint Blaster belongs to. Released around 1997-1998, those B-Daman Mechas with Semi Transparent Cockpit is called Bomber Fighter Armor. As expected, these are some Pretty good stuffs which lead to products that lead me being a fan of Cockpit gimmick for Mecha toys. While my search doesn't lead me to the exact Model that I had which was probably bootleg version of Type-90 Bomber Fighter, this particular endeavor lead me to quite a Vintage treasure trove! And I would to use an opportunity in my blog to make people have easier time to reconnect with their Childhood nostalgia involving B-Daman.

This article will serve as a repository list for Bomber Fighter Armor products that I come across. Due to the archive nature of this Article, it will be relegated to Mechatalk category. On average these Bomber Armor Model fetched around 500-1300 Yen Price tag back in 97-98 save for the extra large one which costed 4000 Yen. Nevertheless those very cheap B-Daman Mecha toys that still comes with good quality. Perhaps Takara could consider re-release some of the Bakugaiden III Products should the Toysrise Saint Blaster being well received. You can check this Japanese Website for the Cross reference used for this article.

Cang Toys War of the Gods 1/100 Fu Xi

 It is Year of the Snake and China hobby manufacturer strikes hard right after CNY holiday ended! Coming from Cang Toys, we got ourselves a Snake Chinese Gundam Mecha named after Male Progenitor Deity Fu Xi! And just like other previous Chinese model kits, this one will apparently come with Diecast frame! Cang Toys 1/100 Fu Xi will be scheduled for Q4 2025 release with 188 RMB Price tag.

 Seriously Chinese Manufacturer really try to outdone each other! Not long before we were getting a Mecha Model kit with 70 cm Mecha Dragon that tagged along, this time we got a 70 cm Mecha Snake that can turn into Fu Xi's lower torso. Cang Toys 1/100 Fu Xi is a dedicated Melee Mecha that definitely use Altron Gundam as its base and jacked it up to suit Chinese myth aesthetics. Obviously Fu Xi is just one half of the famed Chinese Deity pair and his Consort, Nu Wa will eventually follow up. In terms of Aesthetics, Nu Wa will heavily resemble Shiranui from Super Mecha Champions whether it is coincidence or not.

Sword of Convallaria - Dungeon Meshi Collab

 
 Dungeon Meshi being a Top Tier Fantasy Manga series are very generous for some reason when it comes to lending out its IP for Gacha Game collabs. We have gotten 2-3 Gacha Games last year that had Dungeon Meshi collaboration notably Arknights which Global Server should be having in March next month. Then out of nowhere another Chinese Gacha game called Sword of Convallaria got the Dungeon Meshi collab in which the CN server of the game will get it in 21st Februar 2025. For some reason Convallaria Dungeon Meshi collab does not feature Laios as playable apparently and will have Marcille and Farlin as the Target gacha along with Senshi tagging along.

For this collab announcement alone, I give Sword of Convallaria a try to see what its worth. From what I grasp over one day worth of playtime, Sword of Convallaria is a turn based Strategy Gacha game reminiscent of Tactics Ogre. But the streamlined gameplay mechanics feel like Mercenary Saga. Overall I find the decision for Dungeon Meshi to choose a collab with Convallaria to be a peculiar one since with its popularity, I believe it can choose more popular Gacha game to do collab with. Nevertheless I suppose Dungeon Meshi IP Holder had a reason of its own and put enough faith with Convallaria. Considering the collab announcement are just for CN server so far, I think the Global server will get the collab within few months considering Convallaria just had Half year anniv.

 To me if a Game like Convallaria could secure a collab with Dungeon Meshi, I don't see any reason why Wizardry Daphne unable to get one in the future considering Dungeon Meshi origins are deeply tied with Wizardry. Nevertheless I am hoping the best future for Dungeon Meshi, Convallaria and Wizardry Daphne.

Arknight Nendoroid Mlynar

 
  Looks like the first Arknights Nendoroid for 2025 is here! Unlike Mihoyo with their Genshin, Hypergryph do give their best for at least more consistent output with Arknights. After Silverash representing his Bloodline coming in Nendoroid format couple years ago, Mlynar the representative of Nearl clan now have arrived! Scheduled for June 2025 Release, Nendoroid Mlynar will be sold for 7400 Yen.

Mlynar despite being depicted as burnt out Former Kazimierz knight who gave up his pride and become corporate slave is a worthy Candidate to enter Nendoroid. He is one the best Burst Guard Operator who can give Silver Ash's True Silver Slash a run of his money with his S3 that unleash Wide Range True Damage AOE that will shred anything barring the toughest opponents. The accessories is bare minimum as usual just like previous Arknights Nendos but Mlynar do come with interesting Faceplate choice befitting his circumstances. Too bad I only strictly collect Waifus for Arknights Nendoroid, but I wouldn't min Mlynar's Figma if there are ever one and I will look forward for the rest of the Nearl Bloodlines to join the Nendoroid since Blemishine and Nearl have a good shot to get one with their 6* Operator status.

Wizardry Variant Daphne : Port Town Grand Legion 2nd Abyss 1st run Clear!

 One month to go before the Blade & Bastard collab hailing Wizardry Daphne and New Abyss Dungeon appear to be coming up soon as well. Over past two weeks, I have been grinding my way up to the Second Abyss which is Water based Dungeon filled with Aquatic Deathtraps and Sahagins Fish Demi Human. Overall with proper preparation I have overcome the tribulations that this Dungeon had to offer and managed to clear my first run even if it is not a perfect one which is very acceptable since you need another run for the True Ending anyway.

B-Daman Bakugaiden Toyrise White Bros

 

 After 30 long years, we finally get a revival for B-Daman Bakugaiden mechas by Takara Tomy! The prototype for Saint Blaster have been revealed for quite some time but Takara feels that they are now ready to open the curtain for Bakugaiden Revival toys. At first I thought the Iconic Combiner Saint Blaster will be released in one go but Takara prefers to release it piecemeal starting with the White Bros! Released under Toyrise lineup, White Bros will be sold for 12000 Yen with September 2025 release schedule.

B-Daman Bakugaiden Saint Blaster always had a special place in my heart because I did have a full set of this fellow when I was a Kid and this is one of the first fews that kickstart my passion toward Mechas. For over 10k Yen Price tag, I wouldn't expect this guy will come with any Diecast parts considering Diaclone didn't have any for this price range but for a reunion that took 20 years, the price is the least concern. I expect Blue Braver and Yellow Crusher will be sold within similar price range which make the complete set for Saint Blaster fetch for 36k Yen. I hope Takara Tomy will be interested to make the Black Dragon as well. To wrap up this post I will leave the reference pics for the Saint Blaster which will consist of the current rendition of White Bros.

Konosuba Season 3

 It took 7 Years for Konosuba anime series to get a continuation of with a full 3rd Season with a filler Movie slipped in and after finished watching it, now I get why this once popular Fantasy Isekai series took such a long time to be continued. Back then Konosuba aired as one of the forefront to the Isekai era and soon it gained popularity due to the hilarious comedic tone that the series had with the shenanigans by Kazuma's party of misfit overpowered adventurers, But unfortunately lightning does not strike twice at the same place for this instance.

Konosuba 3rd season continues Kazuma's adventuring story with introducing Princess Iris and a major arc revolving around Darkness. The main plot is executed just fine but the process getting in between is rather painful to watch. In order to overcompensate with the barebone in-between storyline, I feel that Konosuba 3rd Season make the jokes become way over the top and we are seeing Kazuma sunk even lower more than before. Kazuma is designed to be a hikineet character that often gave in to his deprived tastes but he went abit too far for a few times on the third season. But Darkness Fans will definitely get some really good fanservice treat and I still believe she is the best fit out of the three original Main Heroines with her strong maternal quality if not for her masochist fetish. Despite Konosuba 3rd season felt Lackluster compared to the previous seasons, we can still likely expect another season for Konosuba for the sake of wrapping up the story properly as long as nothing drastic happened to Japanese economy.

Moshow Progenitor Effect Illustrious Class 1/100 Tryant [Fox Hound]

 Moshow is back again with their 1/100 Illustrious Class and this time it comes in a squad of Real Robots!  After making several Knight and Samurai themed Mecha, Moshow decided to flex their Real Robot skill and we got something in line with Gundam series Nero/Messer/Jesta dubbed Tyrant Fox Hound. Scheduled for Q2 2025, Illustrious Class Tyrant Fox Hound will be sold for 358 Separately or 999 RMB as a set.

Surprisingly for a Real Robot Squad design, 2 of the 3 Tyrant Fox Hound variants are melee focused coming in light and medium-heavy variant and one ranged focus. The Light Melee variant comes with a pair of Gauntlets and Heat Blades as its armament while the Heavy Melee is armed with Battle Axe, Mace and Pilebunker Shield and lastly the ranged variant comes with Rifle and Bazooka. Personally if i have to pick one, I obviously lean with the Ranged variant of the Tyrant Fox Hound, but It would have been nice if it had also come with the Pilebunker and Twin Heatblade. Personally I don't think we will see the last of these Real Robot Diecast by Moshow.

Capcom Fighting Collection 2

 
 Another upcoming Capcom Arcade game collections that caught my interest after Marvel vs Capcom and this one looks promising. Dubbed simply as Capcom Fighting Collection 2 and consisted of 8 Capcom Arcade Games from 1998 to 2004, this is likely the first Capcom Compilation that include SNK Collab with Capcom stuff back in the period. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 will be scheduled for May 2025 Release.

Compared to Marvel vs Capcom fighting collection, I only played 3 out of 8 Games from this collection which are Power Stone 1&2 and SF Alpha 3 which were available on PSP. Rival Schools and Star Gladiator also got included in the collection with their western versions. Capcom Fighting Evolution which is Capcom Exclusive all stars crossover fighting game also included which never caught my attention until now. The Star of the Collection is obviously SNK Vs Capcom 1&2 which I never played either since I directly jumped into SVC vs Chaos.

Even with the second Iteration, I don't think we have seen the last of Capcom Fighting collection yet since they still have several Titles in their Disposals if they want to come up with another one like Mech Romancer, Rival Schools 2 and SVC Chaos if Capcom can get the technicality issues stemming from the game being developed by SNK cleared. One even could hope that we can get Tatsunoko vs Capcom someday in the Capcom Fighting Collection since that game deserves to spread its wing beyond Wii Platform. The only obstacle is Tatsunoko who are quite notorious when it comes to screwing other People's IP.

Wizardry: Blade & Bastard

Considering that this particular Wizardry Spinoff Manga & Novel getting a collab with Wizardry Daphne within a month, might as well talk a little bit about it. Given Wizardry popularity in Japan, the series is kept alive quite well for more than 40 years beyond the shelflife of its original counterpart. One of the recent medium for this Classic JRPG series is a Light Novel called Blade & Bastard released in 2022 and this one is written by the Author of Goblin Slayer, Kumo Kagyu Sensei.

Blade & Bastard is a story of a Wizardry Dungeon adventure featuring a Male Samurai named Iarumas with mysterious past who got resurrected recently after ended up as a Corpse for a long time in the Dungeon. Accompanied by a young girl Fighter who simply called Garbage, Iarumas explore the Dungeon while retrieving Adventurers corpses as a part of recovering his Memories. 

So far the Blade & Bastard Manga only have 10 Chapters and nothing much going at the moment. but since we have Goblin Slayer author at the helm of this work, we can expect a good Dark Fantasy series as the Author had quite an expertise on Old School RPG and the manga perfectly encapsulate the Sombre Dark Fantasy Atmosphere that Wizardry had. 

I suppose Wizardry Daphne Dev picked this particular series as the first collab material because the close Resemblance of Iaruma Archetype with Daphne Main Protagonist who still have many secrets yet uncovered after being resurrected as Ghoul with plenty of Godlike ability and it would be a good timing to release Samurai Class in Daphne. If the collab is successful enough perhaps we could even get Goblin Slayer Collab which is a perfect fit for Wizardry Series apart from Dungeon Meshi. 

Warhammer 40k Joytoy 1/18 Alpharius

  Joytoy is back from their CNY Holiday and now for their first move they pulled a rug out of 40k Fans with a Primarch! Of all Primarchs they could announce for release, Joytoy decided to do a random stunt and release the Primarch for Alpha Legions, Alpharius! Schedule for May 2025 release, Joytoy Alpharius will be sold for 139 USD.

 Alpha Legion is not exactly the most popular faction as First Founding or Chaos Space Marine, but I suppose Joytoy decided Alpharius to be the first Primarch released in 2025 as good candidate for some warmups. Alpharius is one of Twin Primarchs that commanded Alpha Legions along with his twin Brother Omegon, a very secretive Space Marine chapter that are good at Clandestine type operations which makes them good at Deceptions and Misdirection. During Horus Heresy event, Alpha Legion officially side with Traitor Legions until the present setting to 40k. Even so some of their subterfuge actions do benefit Imperium somehow which makes them a secretly Loyalist faction. Alpharius himself had quite popular meme in 40k Fandom where every single of Alpha Legion Astartes claiming to be him which I admit to be my gateway to know this 20th Primarch as well. Nevertheless Alpharius is a welcome addition for Joytoy 40k collection and I would expect the next Joytoy Primarch to be likely from Traitor Legion which either be Fulgrim or Konrad Curze.

Kyokai Senki - AMAIM Warrior at the Borderline

 
 Another Mecha anime backlog that I finished recently and this one yet another of those Sunrise's failed potential. Back in early 2020s, I recalled this series called Kyokai Senki was one of the more ambitious project by Bandai and Sunrise studio, as the former invested quite a lot on Model Kits for this particular series. Overall I felt that Kyokai Senki failed to realize its potential despite having solid mecha designs due to severe Mismatch of Characters/Setting/Mechas.

On Hindsight, Kyokai Senki premise is a mix of Code Geass and Full Metal Panic featuring a setting of alternate Modern Japan which somehow got itself annexed by Multiple nations and have the populace live as 3rd class Citizens akin to Code Geass Elevens. The main protagonist is a Japanese Teen who had a fateful encounter with a powerful Prototype Mecha that comes along with Top of the Line AI and join the effort to liberate Japan from foreign military invaders while also fighting against mysterious Rogue Mecha that inflict many destructions on everything it came across.

Just like Muvluv series, Kyokai Senki competence at the Geopolitics department are abysmal and have too much wishful thinking, which is one of the main cause of the failure of the series to become a mainstream success. The series supposed to convey its main audiences which are Japanese Youths to keep persevere despite Japanese constantly declining overall presence and importance on global stage. Obviously given the how Kyokai Senki was poorly executed, it absolutely missed the target while also failed to appeal Global Audiences which are crucial for Bandai's Model Kit sales. I recalled the company I worked for which served as the local Distributors was forced by Bandai Gunpla Division to purchase large amounts of Kyokai Senki model kits which end up as Dead inventories until now. 

Given the failure of the main series, Bandai actually still had a chance to salvage Kyokai Senki given that the short OVA which I probably will cover in the future showcase how the series could work out if executed properly. But I would say Kyokai Senki would be off better to start with alternate gritty settings which have no ties whatsoever to real world to have better shots for proper execution.