Being One of the Cool Kids, Finally

Rhyfler Merch. The first Quar

Quar! What are they good for?

1st generation metal Crusaders

4th generation siocast Crusaders

Well... absolutely everything!

1st generation metal Royalists

3rd generation plastic Royalists

The plastic Quar from Wargames Atlantic have certainly created quite a stir. YouTube channels devoted to 40k content have done episodes about them. Painters on Instagram have discovered them. People in the Hot Lead community keep sending me links (I enjoy them, keep them coming!).

Their kind of silly, but deadly serious, often satiric, grimsical aesthetic has exploded upon the Tabletop Gaming scene at a time when,  it seems, a lot of voices have finally said "enough already!" with regards to Games Workshop's continuous new editions, overpricing, and artificial supply shortages driving FOMO. Consequently, the Quar Discord has exploded with a lot of people who have walked away from 40k. Whether they leave 40k because of  the exploitive pricing, the oppressive grimdark of the universe, or toxic fans. But for whatever reason, they've come to Quar and are feeling the energy I remember from the old Rogue Trader days in the 80s, which many of them are  too young to have experienced the first time. 

Part of that energy and enthusiasm comes directly from Joshua, who encourages and celebrates kit bashing, and repurposing models from other sources. Certainly I've found new uses for abandoned models from the lead pile.

Repurposed Boer War 1 pdr "pom-pom" gun

Kit bashed field gun 

Yes, that's a WW2 Soviet artillery tractor

The success of the first set though means that Zombiesmith and Wargames Atlantic are working on three more plastic releases. Plus an entire faction that will be released as .stls later this summer. Joshua Qualtieri is hinting at a completely new faction too.

So it seems that Quar are the Hot New Thing. The current wargaming zeitgeist, as it were.

I like to think that I was into Quar before they were cool. 

DH2 with Quar pilot

My excitement for all things Quar has certainly held on. I can use them for any First or Second World War scenario that captures my imagination really,  without having to paint a new force, or any SS. There aren't really any bad guys, or any Over the Top heroes or monsters. Every quar is just a dumpy, kind of sad, little guy, doing his best to survive in a big, scary world. 

I think I just described myself really. 

Which is part of the appeal. 

There's also the satire, and silly names, which I can indulge freely, without the worry about making fun of real, historical people.  A worry that deflated some of the fun of Colonial games for me. Concerns about Imperial expansion and oppression took the rest of the fun, but that's beside the point. 

Plus the goofy whimsy of the bizarre war machines. They're Quar, so they look at things differently, so maybe make different design choices. Which is a hurdle I could never get past with Victorian Science Fiction games, where I was always "Yeah, but that wouldn't work."

Fiat 2000 tanks. Goofy, awkward Interwar designs are very Quar

Or maybe I've finally matured enough as a gamer that I can tell nagging logic and reason to just shut up for once?

I've gotten so enthused about all things Quar that I've gone way out of my Comfort Zone and actually backed Joshua Qualitieri's Tribe on MyMiniFactory. But for USD$10 a month there's .stls, including tractors, so the extra arms and stuff to accessorize the plastic figures are just a bonus. Practically free. So actually, I'm being very economical with my hobby dollars.

Which is what I tell Mrs. Rabbitman. 

As some one who is traditionally very tight with my money, doesn't back Kickstarters, and is suspicious of anything that seems too good to be true, joining a Tribe like this is huge.

But how can you not like an army that has Messenger Squirrels and Cooks with herds of pigs?

So it's the First and Second World Wars, without the Nazis, and Death Camps, and the atrocities. Which is nice. The tactics are serious, but the characters are comic. Which keeps it fun.

It helps that I'm rather fond of both sides, and aesthetically like them equally, for different reasons. And some of the other factions are starting to appeal as well. The comic opera bicornes on the Gwyntish uniform will make for amusing auxiliaries for the Royalists. 

To be honest there's a not very small voice in my head telling me I should convert all my 15mm WW2 stuff in to 15mm Quar and play a Quar version of I Ain't Been Shot Mum or even Epic 40K.

Of course, it seems that I'm amassing enough 28mm that just getting a bigger table might be the more economical plan.