Hero Factory 2014 Discussion

[Sir Brickalot]

What about my beast- Vulture Beast?

[korpen4444]

My problem with the IFB special was the story. It's name is "INVASION from Below". There was no invasion. Only the heroes infiltrating the cave of Kaiju. The ideal plot would be this:

Years after the Brain Attack, all the villains were locked up. The Heroes think the war is won. Then attacks are made on Makuhero City. Attacks from the Invaders. They sought to takeover the world. Some of the heroes fought back. Now, Alpha Squad is one of the few teams that survived the destruction. And they're taking back the planet. They're sending the Invaders home. No matter the cost.

Then they could say what happened to Nex and Stringer, they could introduce more beasts, they could use the art that's on the package of the IFB sets. The plot would be a little better at least.

PS: I just saw PR online tonight. It was awesome! But then again, isn't everything?( )

[3rdeye88]

Tentacle Beast? Saw Beast? I'm just stealing ideas from my signature here. Explosion Beast? Nah.

Which of the following ideas seems best to you guys?

Tentacle Beast

Saw Beast

Explosion Beast

Fire Beast

Runner Beast

I'd love to try building a long-necked beast of some kind, as well as some aquatic beasts, and maybe a centipede-like beast. There are all kinds of directions you could go with this series's aesthetics.

I see a lot of similarity to the Alien spinoffs that came after the first few Alien movies. More specifically what came out in the action figure lines. There were all kinds of "animalistic" aliens. I assume the concept behind that was what if those kinds of animals were attacked by face huggers and implanted with aliens in them thus taking on the characteristics of those creatures like aliens do. It certainly translates to Beasts I think. A this beast, a that beast everywhere a beast beast. =P

[Sir Brickalot]

My problem with the IFB special was the story. It's name is "INVASION from Below". There was no invasion. Only the heroes infiltrating the cave of Kaiju. The ideal plot would be this:

Years after the Brain Attack, all the villains were locked up. The Heroes think the war is won. Then attacks are made on Makuhero City. Attacks from the Invaders. They sought to takeover the world. Some of the heroes fought back. Now, Alpha Squad is one of the few teams that survived the destruction. And they're taking back the planet. They're sending the Invaders home. No matter the cost.

Then they could say what happened to Nex and Stringer, they could introduce more beasts, they could use the art that's on the package of the IFB sets. The plot would be a little better at least.

Yeah, but the beasts did invade the city of Antropolis before the heroes ventured into the caves.

[DraikNova]

So, having gotten all of the mechs, with the exception of the XL Machine, I can say that they seem...sub-par. They are all great parts packs, with Evo's Walker (which I've rebuilt into a two-legged mech thing with a robot arm) being a pleasant surprise. The Jumpers, while kind of cute, are really hard to use, but are pretty reliable when it comes to landing on their feet, if they jump far enough.

Also, 3rdeye's comment makes me want to build a facehugger beast, with a bunch of tentacles enclosing a minifig's face and the rest of the body being huge compared to the fig.

[Lyichir]

So, having gotten all of the mechs, with the exception of the XL Machine, I can say that they seem...sub-par. They are all great parts packs, with Evo's Walker (which I've rebuilt into a two-legged mech thing with a robot arm) being a pleasant surprise. The Jumpers, while kind of cute, are really hard to use, but are pretty reliable when it comes to landing on their feet, if they jump far enough.

Also, 3rdeye's comment makes me want to build a facehugger beast, with a bunch of tentacles enclosing a minifig's face and the rest of the body being huge compared to the fig.

Personally, I love the jumpers. I wouldn't say they land on their feet all the time (or even 50% of the time) but they are JUST SO FUN to launch. And they work a lot better than the old mini-Visorak—you can easily get them to jump a foot in the air and a foot forward, and when you get that kind of air you don't care how they land.

[ShadowWolfHount]

I am getting the new sets slowly but I just got the Rocka Stealth Machine and it not a good set, there isn't any new parts, only the cockpit and canisters but I do like that we get more black Size 5 Armor and that there are less gold, the look of the set is just bad.

So right now I have Rocka, Furno and Evo Mechs, I am going to try to find Stormer Mech and hopefully one of the Beast (mostly Jaw Beast).

[Aanchir]

So, having gotten all of the mechs, with the exception of the XL Machine, I can say that they seem...sub-par. They are all great parts packs, with Evo's Walker (which I've rebuilt into a two-legged mech thing with a robot arm) being a pleasant surprise. The Jumpers, while kind of cute, are really hard to use, but are pretty reliable when it comes to landing on their feet, if they jump far enough.

I find that the determining factor for whether the jumpers land on their feet or not is whether the plastic outer shell or the rubber legs is the first thing to hit the ground. If the rubber legs hit the ground at any angle, they tend to bounce back up slightly, flip around, and then land on their feet. If the plastic shell hits the ground first, they don't bounce high enough to flip over and they land right back on their backs. Still, I find they work a lot better than the old mini-Visorak because their legs are thicker, so there's more "bounce" when you first launch them. They're also a nice size and weight, which helps them seem reasonably formidable compared to a mini-hero.

The mini-heroes themselves are fantastic. Great proportions, great articulation, and great molding. Aesthetically, compared to BIONICLE minifigures from any playset series, these figs win handily. The angle of the shoulders is more natural and the stance isn't as bowlegged. The heads and torsos are more appropriately proportioned and detailed (not awkwardly tall like the 2006 minifigure heads, nor lacking in detail like all the BIONICLE minifigure torsos or some of the 2007 minifigure heads).

The legs and arms are the main place that the mini-heroes don't look accurate to the typical full-size heroes, but arguably they look better than if typical hero legs were just scaled down and reduced in detail. That's one of the advantages of single-piece legs and arms compared to legs and arms with working knee and elbow articulation — the knee and elbow joints can be a lot more decorative, resulting in a more mechanical look. The same was true of the classic Toa Mata legs compared to, say, Toa Metru legs. The Toa Metru legs still had pistons, but they were meaningless decoration, since they didn't actually connect to the knee joints in any useful way. Contrast the Toa Mata legs, where it was very easy to see how the pistons would theoretically move in tandem with the rotation of the joint.

It's true that they have one point of articulation fewer than the 2006 and 2007 BIONICLE minifigs because they don't have articulated wrists. Swapping the arms with Exo-Force robot arms works reasonably well, but it increases the overall length of the arm, makes the forearm seem a bit awkwardly beefy compared to the legs/feet, and removes the ability to clip equipment to the wrists. The ability to clip things to the wrists and ankles is a great feature, by the way. At one point my brother set Furno up so he was dragging Evo by the wrist. Neither of us knew exactly what was going on in that situation, but it was quite funny!

There are a few nice details I didn't anticipate. In particular, the circular shape of the knee and elbow joints has about the same size and appearance as the clips for the hip and shoulder joints, resulting in some nice stylistic consistency.

The fact that the helmet and armor fit perfectly on classic minifigures is just the icing on the cake. I've had a lot of fun putting Evo and Furno's armor and helmets on my sigfig, and then occasionally putting my sigfig in the cockpit of one of their machines And I'm sure sci-fi MOCists will love getting such versatile new minifig body armor.

I'm very glad my brother and I chose Evo XL Machine and Furno Jet Machine as our first purchases, as they're definitely my favorite sets of the first wave. Evo XL Machine is remarkably beefy with lots of mechanical flair, and Furno Jet Machine has a brilliant torso construction that helps keep it from looking too humanoid (its shoulders, for instance, are a beefy twelve modules wide, and set back from the torso beam). Of the summer sets, the ones that I can count on being must-buys are Breez Flea Machine and Bulk Drill Machine.

I'm a bit uncertain what my family's other purchases for the year will be. Of the machines, I'm cautiously optimistic about Surge and Rocka Combat Machine, but I'll want to see reviews before I settle on it. And I'm not in love with either of Rocka's other machines, even though they're both rather nice designs. Stormer Freeze Machine is probably the only machine besides Evo Walker that I really, truly dislike, but it's also the only set with a Transparent Light Blue storage cylinder, and I'd really love to complete the trifecta. It also has some decent parts, including two Titanium Metallic feet and two Titanium Metallic paws. I'm not a huge fan of revamps, but maybe I could get Stormer Freeze Machine and use some of its parts to beef up Surge and Rocka Combat Machine.

I want to get a few of the beasts for their parts' MOCing potential, but the only one I really definitely love is Tunneler Beast, which has a great, creative design and great parts. In contrast, Queen Beast includes duplicate Furno and Evo mini-heroes, a creative but somewhat bare-bones beast, and a second machine for Evo which I don't know that we really need (although it does have some good parts and a beautiful design). And Crystal Beast, Flyer Beast, Jaw Beast, and Splitter Beast are fairly mundane humanoids (though Splitter Beast, at least, would be a fantastic parts pack, and Jaw Beast would be the only way to get Stormer if I skip Stormer Freeze Machine and Queen Beast).

Overall, the cheapest way to fill out my hero roster in tandem with my current list of must-haves would be to add Tunneler Beast, Rocka Crawler, and Jaw Beast. But the cheapest solution is not necessarily the best. It'll definitely take some thinking...

[Leewan]

I am getting the new sets slowly but I just got the Rocka Stealth Machine and it not a good set, there isn't any new parts, only the cockpit and canisters but I do like that we get more black Size 5 Armor and that there are less gold, the look of the set is just bad.

At the moment it's the only one Machine I own, and... I love it. And don't forget it has 6 of the shortest bone in black. As a MOCcer, I never have enough of these. And... yeah, I like the overall look of the set.

[ShadowWolfHount]

At the moment it's the only one Machine I own, and... I love it. And don't forget it has 6 of the shortest bone in black. As a MOCcer, I never have enough of these. And... yeah, I like the overall look of the set.

Mainly the set shoulders killed it with me. but having 6 Super Short Bone is awesome plus I love using those for my Matoran MOCs.

[3rdeye88]

I don't have any of the sets yet. After seeing the photos my impressions of this year's lineup wasn't exactly stellar. I had a little bit of money saved for a 2014 lego purchase and I chose two Legend Beast sets instead of a HF set. If money wasn't so tight I probably would have gotten Jaw beast and Evo XL looks pretty good from a parts acquisition standpoint. That new gear piece in his his is actually the most intriguing new part for me. Then I wonder if the Mini-Hero arms work well as fingers, like the exoforce/bionicle arms do. Beyond that my interest in anything else in Wave 1 of IFB is somewhat tepid. Some interesting parts here and there in the beast sets, but nothing I can't wait until funds are more abundant or they go on sale later in the year or next year.

If you guys had to recommend one set to me with the knowledge that money is tight and I'd have to spring for it, which set do you think might be worth the money for what you get?

[WARHEAD]

Jaw beast. Set of the year, IMO.

[ShadowWolfHount]

I just made my 3 new Mech with the HF sets I gotten, the mech are for my Delta 47 Team, right now they are called, Riaso Sonic Machine, Manix Scout Machine and Alex Gun Machine (may change the name later on). So the new Parts for MOCs are really good, like that the printed piece I do love using for my MOCs but I don't like that they are Silver (plus I think they should have made Rockas Black), the Cockpit is really good but I wish they made one in Black and one in Blue.

Also the Furno Jet Machine gave me a lot of ideas for Riaso and Manix Mechs.

Jaw beast. Set of the year, IMO.

I %9000 agree with that.

[DraikNova]

I agree 9001% with WARHEAD. Jaw Beast is probably the most fun of all the Beasts to mess around with and build slight variations of, and you get 4 tr. light blue bones, several purple spikes and one of the most plain head prints of the year, right after Crystal Beast. Plus, you get three of the new claws, which, if you're not going to get another HF set this year, you'll need to get at least one of, as they're highly useful for pretty much all organic or even slightly bestial MOCs.

[Leewan]

Yup, if you have to choose only one, buy Jaw Beast. He's really great, and he's one of the cheapest set, which is good for your wallet.

[VBBN]

Furno is a slightly more inspiring build than Jaw Beast(but of course is higher in price) and is the best of the first wave of Mechs, I don't know if you are leaning toward beast or Mech but those would be the top two contenders in each slot for sure. Both are good builds and parts packs in my opinion (but I like red sets so that may be a bit biased on my part for Furno)

[exxtrooper]

What is the easiest way to get a hold of the whole gang, as in all the minifigures? Both waves.

[korpen4444]

What is the easiest way to get a hold of the whole gang, as in all the minifigures? Both waves.

Jaw Beast, Splitter Beast, Flyer Beast, Rocka/Surge combiner, The smallest set with bulk in it.

[DraikNova]

I think Crystal Beast and Bulk's Drill Machine are both $15 sets, so you have a choice to make there. I'd go for Crystal Beast if I were you. More translucent pieces, and with the Drill Machine about one third of what you're paying for are Technic parts rather than HF stuff.

Edited February 28, 2014 by DraikNova

[Karateduo1]

Jaw Beast, Splitter Beast, Flyer Beast, Rocka/Surge combiner, The smallest set with bulk in it.

Actually, you can get Tunneler beast and Rocka climber for cheaper then the combiner.

[Leewan]

Or you can get them separately on Bricklink, or even directly through Lego I just tried, arms are unavailable right now, and they ask 2,55€ for a Furno without the arms, shipping not included. So it would be better to get the sets, you would have some parts for MOCcing, and you'll get your figs cheaper than if you buy them separately.

Edited February 28, 2014 by Leewan

[exxtrooper]

Wouldn't it be easier to get the queen set somewhere in this?

This was more of just a question that randomly came to mind, but I might consider trying to get a hold of the lineup, for collectors value i guess.

I'm still curious as to what the fate of HF is next year, its three outcomes really. Either they'll stick to minifigs, stick to big figures or the theme will be replaced altogether.

Tension is killing me.

[Mesonak]

Wouldn't it be easier to get the queen set somewhere in this?

Easier, sure, but $5 more expensive for the included figures. :P

I'm very curious about the theme's fate as well; I'm hoping for another minifig year (if we get another year at all), but I'm skeptical if they can give a believable reason for it two years in a row.

[exxtrooper]

Easier, sure, but $5 more expensive for the included figures. :P

I'm very curious about the theme's fate as well; I'm hoping for another minifig year (if we get another year at all), but I'm skeptical if they can give a believable reason for it two years in a row.

Maybe bring it up in an episode or something debating what'd be the most probable outcome, that is if it hasn't been brought up yet.

[Mesonak]

Maybe bring it up in an episode or something debating what'd be the most probable outcome, that is if it hasn't been brought up yet.

An episode of the podcast? Sure, I don't see why not. Would probably be an interesting topic.