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Disciple of Nagash

Oldblood
Staff member
Feb 12, 2008
27,732
Hello again!

Here I am with another review on Mantic’s products, namely their Zombies in this case. Those lovely chaps sent me some more freebies bless their hearts, so I said I would write another review.

However like last time I would like to make one thing very clear:

This is an unbiased review, as I advised Mantic Games when I agreed to it.

For the purposes of this review I will be comparing them to GW’s equivalent, as most of us either have them or have seen them, and so provides a good basis for comparison.


Step One: Purchase

So how much are these going to set up back compared to the GW equivalent?


Mantic

Mantic Zombie Horde – multi part plastic kit - 60 Models: £30.00 (consists of 2x Zombie Regiments)
Mantic Zombie Regiment – multi part plastic kit - 30 Models: £18.00


Games Workshop

Games Workshop Zombie Horde - multi part plastic kit - 20 Models: £18.00 (includes Musician and Standard Bearer).


Again Mantic blows Games Workshop straight out of the water. The same price gets you an extra 10 zombies. If you wanted to try and get 60 zombies with GW that would set you back a hefty £54.00, the same with Mantic is £30.00 – that’s £24.00 cheaper! Or put it another way:

£54.00 at GW = 60 Zombies
£60.00 at Mantic = 120 Zombies

Mind boggling xd But, let’s hold our horses before we all go rampaging to Mantic’s Store – are these Zombies worth it, or is it the case we are paying less because they aren’t as good?


Packaging

I don’t feel it is necessary to go into this section again, if you want indepth details check out the review on the Skeletons and Ghouls found here, as the packaging is the same:

https://www.vampirecounts.net/Thread-Review-of-Mantic-s-Skeletons-and-Ghouls-by-Disciple-of-Nagash

Bluntly put, Mantic’s packaging is far better and can be re-used can well if you have the mind to.

Inside the Box (Regiment)
So inside we have:
Foam Packing (sounds silly to list it, but I think it is good to show your figures are being well protected)
30 Undead Zombie figures
1 Undead Poster Guide and Sticker Sheets
2 Mantic Points (these are stickers that work a little like a loyalty scheme)
30 20mm bases

Pretty much the same as the Ghouls and Skellies, good thought and looks artistically better.


The Sprues

So last time this was where GW started to claw back some points….and this time round it is no different.

ai282.photobucket.com_albums_kk241_MrandMrsGoth_DSCF0235.jpg

Mantic seem to have followed a path more similar with the Ghouls than their skeletons, in that their sprues can be found a little lacking in extra’s or versatility. They have a few extra heads, an extra arm here and there but that is really about it.

There is enough difference to create a small unit of different looking models, but in a unit of 30 there will definitely be some repetition, and in the 60 man horde, well you will have to accept a lot will look exactly the same. Finally they do not have an option for a Standard Bearer, it’s not a huge loss as you would have to be insane to be using one and giving easy VP to your enemy, but it’s still something to bear in mind.

This is a bit of a blow, as against GW’s Zombies they do loose out, as the GW does have a lot of options with weapons, guts and extra bits etc. I would have hoped that Mantic would have progressed from their Ghouls and tried to put a bit more into the Zombies. I should note however, there is a good chance of kitbashing between the Ghouls and Zombies, though I have not yet tried it.


Construction

Easy peasy. I put the ones pictured together in a couple of minutes. They use almost a ball/socket affair, with the arms and waist having dips that the torso easily glues onto. The heads go on nice and easy as well.

Some of the arms are already set in place on the torso however, and the heads fit on a flat piece meaning they can be turned left and right, but not up or down or rotated. So comparing to GW, they are a little more restrictive, however anyone with a bit of effort can twist and tweak if necessary.

Personally I like this easiness, like I said about the Ghouls and Skellies, if I have loads of them to put together I want them to be as easy as possible. So in this case Mantic gets my vote, purely because I can see myself putting a full 60 man horde together very easily. For those who do like to adjust every little aspect of your many models however, again bear this in mind.

ai282.photobucket.com_albums_kk241_MrandMrsGoth_DSCF0236.jpg

But….and this is a big BUT…..the waist joints do leave a bit of a gap in some areas. They do not fit flush and after examining them, if I was to use them I would have to do some green stuffing into those gaps. Personally I think it is needed, however the best way to describe it to the rest of you is this:

When putting together GW Ghouls, all of you should have noticed the torso and the legs had gaps / did not fit flush – did this bother you? Did you greenstuff it? If so, it will be the same with Mantic Zombies, if not, you probably won’t be bothered here either.


Quality and Detail

Probably the deciding category – do these models cut the mustard when it comes to detail?

Yes.

The detail on these guys is good, in fact not is not, it’s superb. From the shrivelled skin with bones underneath, to guts hanging out, they are at least equal if not better than GW’s in this regard and I have no problem saying you are definitely getting value for money. Even down to the fingers it is very impressive, and I mean the hands are actually scaled right, unlike GW’s clown hands.

In this section Mantic in my opinion has probably taken a step further than GW, and easily win over GW.

Design
This category is really based on opinion, i.e. do the Mantic Zombie’s design look the part more that GW’s?

Well the only opinion I have is my own, so as far as I am concerned, yes they do. GW’s models, whilst ok when they were released are looking dated.

It’s like comparing a 60’s zombie, to one out of the movie 28 Days Later. I love the old zombie films, but they are a bit comical compared to today’s zombies which can scare the crap out of you, and that’s how I feel about GW’s.

Mantic’s on the other hand look more up to date, and like they do actually want to come along, tear a chunk out of you and feed on your brains. They are posed better, either shambling or limping along, and just feel more at home in the dark gothic Vampire Counts army.


Final Decision

In some ways this decision is easy. Mantic’s Zombies are far cheaper than GW’s and are actually in some ways much better with a bit more detail and better design in my opinion. They will look great painted up and lurching across the battlefield and so I would suggest any VC player to seriously consider getting them.

The only downside is as I said before, their lack of different models and extra bits, combined with the extra work needed on the waist joint. It is something that needs to be thought about before buying, and it is something I will actually be mentioning to Mantic in hope of finding out if they are going to produce additional sprues.

Should it put you off though? No, not really. You are going to have loads of the Zombies (well you had better if you want them to actually do anything useful!), and in this case the downsides don’t come anywhere close to beating the upsides.

You get loads of detailed zombies for a fantastic price and in the end they will look good, so once again Mantic gets a thumbs up from me.

Hope this has helped you all, and as usual any questions just ask.

Cheers

Disciple of Nagash
 

Santawraith

Master Liche
True Blood
Jun 6, 2010
7,453
Wyoming
I love this article same as your one before.

If adding the zombies and a ghoul reigment for change of variety mix them with the gw version, Or if my army mixed with any zombie thing I can find come up with be it reaper gw or mantic. You get a good looking zombie hoarde.

Mantic does a great job But I agree I wish they would add variety in more.
 

Irisado

Ancient Vampire Lord | Siphoner of Spammers
Staff member
True Blood
May 22, 2010
718
Nottingham, UK
They look like a pretty good shambling horde of Zombies to me. I think that with larger infantry units being in vogue in eighth edition that the lower price is a very significant factor here.

I don't feel that a lack of variety really matters all that much with a horde of Zombies. They are a horde of shambling undead after all, not glamour models ;).

If I were still playing, I would definitely be tempted to buy a boxed set of these. Thanks for the review.
 

Cobra7

Grave Guard
Jun 3, 2010
251
Couple questions:

My understanding is the ghouls and zombie bits are interchangable, is this true? If so how do they look?

Also size wise, are they the same size next to GW zombies or are they like the skellies and very slightly smaller?
 

Disciple of Nagash

Oldblood
Staff member
Feb 12, 2008
27,732
In regards to size I am not sure as the GW Zombies I had a good while ago are long gone. All I can say is they will not look out of place in a VC army.

In regards to your other question, well I have some great feedback from Mantic:

"......... we deliberately took the measure to make them fully compatible with the ghouls to expand the amount of variety you could make across both kits."

"What might be interesting to you is we are doing a small metal upgrade kit in Jan with some new arms, heads and a command group"

So it looks like the two could have much more variety than originally anticipated. If that is the case I will wait to see the upgrade kit, and also do some kit bashing between the Ghouls and Zombies. It could end up meaning that this could fix the variety issues between the two meaning they do beat GW's offering in pretty much all areas.
 

Clayman66

Zombie
Dec 22, 2010
13
I'm quite impressed with Mantic, in my experience getting relevant feedback isn't always easy or possible from a lot of companies, so a relatively swift and useful reply says some good things about them.

I'm also dead chuffed you've reviewed their models! Two friends of mine converted their Imperial Guard armies using non-GW kits and saved quite a lot of money. Even better still, a good proportion of the models look equal to or superior to GW ones. However, GW staff told one of them he would not be unable to play in-store with non-GW models which put me off the idea a little bit - until I realised I almost never play in-store anyway!

Methinks I shall have to acquire a couple of Mantic Ghoul/Zombie kits, especially since you found out they're compatible with each other! The savings alone on these kits are excellent, and with the cross-compatability its quite possible the variety issues will be no more....after Xmas I'll order a couple of kits and find out if no one else has already by then.

Great post DoN, really useful for me at least :thumbsup:
 

Gombol

Skeleton
Nov 6, 2011
51
Great review, thanks a lot. =) I'll definatly be buying Zombies from Mantic from now on, honestly. ^.^
 

tinfish

Skeleton
Apr 12, 2012
80
Just a heads up, the zombies are £34.99. The 50 Ghouls set is £30.
Wayland aren't offering them yet, so I can't find them cheaper.

This is just an observation btw, they are very much worth what they cost.

Just to clarify 20 GW zeds will knock you back £20.50.
60 Mantic Zeds will set ya back £34.99.

So 60 GW models cost you £61.50. Almost double the cost.
 

Pezza

Zombie
Apr 29, 2012
1
I'm a big fan of the Mantic undead.
I've used them for the core of my VC army for a while now.
Total wargamer do a cracking deal on the army set
clicky

A few pics of some of mine painted up

aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v668_Peznatch_DSCF0077.jpg
aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v668_Peznatch_DSCF0072.jpg
aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v668_Peznatch_DSCF0067.jpg
aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v668_Peznatch_wraith.jpg

Ben
 

Daoshi

Grave Guard
Mar 27, 2012
207
I thought I would throw in my 2c considering I have 310 of them :slapface:

The models are great, no issues but if you want to save doubling up a lot if you have huge numbers, spend that little bit extra and get the GRAVESTALKER set instead. This provides you with tombstone unit fillers and ghouls which you can mix and match their parts on the zombies to add more variety :thumbsup:
 

Drathys

Skeleton
Nov 1, 2011
82
the waistjoint does annoy me as it seems they just didnt put the effort in. however i still have 30 and will get more. they look a lot better in reality too
 

iLLiTHiD

Zombie
Mar 6, 2012
33
Nice review!

I'm an aussie wargamer, and as such I suffer under the insane embargo that GW has placed on us, charging anywhere from 30% - 100% markup just because I'm living in Australia (and don't try to tell me shipping costs are *that* expensive!).

So whilst some of the more impressive special models I will be forced to buy at a premium, I certainly will not be forking out $41.00 AUD per unit of 10 skeletons. With my current list I'm theorycrafting on, would set me back $328AUD just for my skeletons! :swear:

Seeing mantics range before had me interested, but reading reviews of fellow gamers is always appreciated. I'm sold. :D
 

Bounce

Varghulf
May 3, 2012
746
I felt like the potential variety of the manic zombies is actually pretty good.
6 heads by 4 torsoes by 4 bases gives you a lot of differences if you add in a few spare bits from other kits you have lying around such a high elf spear arm or a goblin head they can go even further.

It is also worth noting the horde box of 60 zombies can actually make 70 zombies as you get additional rising from the ground and spinal bits. Granted it is not much of a model but still counts as a zombie if you want to save money and have a huge horde.
 

camarodragon

Zombie
Apr 6, 2012
7
I myself am a fan of mantic zombies. I don't like my zombies to have weapons like the GWs do. Just as a note there is an upgrade box of zombies you can get with command (champion,musician and standard), if you want to fill that need. Im not a fan of the mantic ghouls though, well, because they look too much like zombies. So all of my ghouls have become zombiefied. Mixing the two sets together, it works awesome.

I bought the mantic Black knights as well. I cant remember what the real name of them was. They on the other hand are not as nice. THey were cheeper overall by quite a bit than GWs but they lacked the sharp detail that GW has on theirs. My other bigger issue with them was they were considerably smaller than Gw's. So much so that they looked like a pony when standing side by side.
 

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