This might be an odd question, but it seems like I've had one or two of my D&D minis sport a gray-green tinge to the paint job, with a haze of similar, sometimes blotchy discoloration on the base. When I apply a dry tissue to the base, this stuff wipes away cleanly like dust that's too translucent or light to show on the tissue, (except between the toes of barefoot sort, where the tissue can't quite reach.)
The minis seem dry, not damp, so I wouldn't think it's mildew or anything, and it (fortunately,) doesn't seem to spread to any of the other minis stored with them under the same conditions. So far, one of my Carnage Demon minis from Night Below and Verdant Reaver from the same set seem to exhibit this.
Is it a bad paint quality on the minis breaking down or... oh, frankly, I just don't know what to think it might be. I'd like to ask the advice of anyone with more expertise than I. I'm pretty sure it's not all in my head, but I hope it's something harmless. I also wouldn't mind hearing from people who've experienced the same thing.
Also the Kuo-toa Hunter, also from Night Below, come to think of it... so maybe it is a problem with that set.
I've never noticed this on any of my D&D minis, and I have a lot of the same sculpts you are referring to in your post. YMMV, though. *shrug*
I do recommend keeping plastic minis in a temperature-controlled environment with low humidity whenever possible, however - hot cars are a terrible place for them, as I discovered with some Star Wars minis from the Wizards line that got too warm and started looking a bit malformed as a result.
Tackle boxes make great storage carriers for plastic minis, because you can easily separate them by type or alignment/faction, and the drawers will protect them from exposure to dust and moisture.
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I've got minis from the first set that still look fine and I just throw them in a cracker tin for storage. The only issue I've ever had is with arms and weapons falling off due to some inherent flaws in the plastic and design of certain minis. I have a bunch of gimped goblins and dismembered skeletons from the early sets.
Chief Technical Officer
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I have seen this with some D&D minis (and a lot of vintage Star Wars action figures). Certain mixtures of plastics can, in high humidity, encourage the growth of some types of fungus. As far as I know, they're harmless to people, though they can damage the paint on the figure over time. (Note that other figures that have different mixes of plastic will never be affected. Either the plastic is a potential nutrient source or it isn't—it's not communicable.)
The good news is that there's an easy fix: place the affected figures in direct sunlight (or some other source of UV light) until the spores die. (Be careful not to leave them out so long that the paint starts to fade, though.)
The bad news is that that particular plastic will continue to attract that fungus indefinitely. If you want to avoid regular sun baths, you'll need to find someplace less humid to store them.
That is a good news bad news thing overall; I do keep my miniatures in tackle boxes, (and the huge ones in sealed storage tubs.) However, the whole humidity thing is tough to control short of
. I live in the underground apt of an apartment building, and my roommate and I need to run dehumidifiers constantly. It is interesting all my affected pieces are from the same set, though I have two carnage demons and only one has ever been affected, despite same storage.
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That is a good news bad news thing overall; I do keep my miniatures in tackle boxes, (and the huge ones in sealed storage tubs.) However, the whole humidity thing is tough to control short of
. I live in the underground apt of an apartment building, and my roommate and I need to run dehumidifiers constantly. It is interesting all my affected pieces are from the same set, though I have two carnage demons and only one has ever been affected, despite same storage.
There are various small-scale dehumidifying products on the market, typically for the storage of firearms or for RVs or boats. Goldenrod is a popular brand name. You could also try silica packets, though those need to be replaced periodically. Cost effectiveness depends on how much stuff you have to keep dry, I guess.
...short of moving, is what I meant to say.
That said, thanks, guys, I appreciate the tips and info.
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...short of moving, is what I meant to say.
That said, thanks, guys, I appreciate the tips and info.
it seems like night below is the only set affected, I've seen it with the wood elemental-like guys from that set too... I think they were experimenting with packing and plastic materials during that set, I'm guessing they didn't work out.
I have a ton of D&D and Star Wars minis and I've definitely seen where some of them have a film of sorts on them that seems like dust. I can't say whether it's something to do with the paint or plastic or if its fungus but it does seem to wipe off easy enough. It definitely seems to only effect certain minis although I can't say at the moment which ones. But in the same container one will be very dusty looking while the ones next to it are perfectly clean. I keep mine in plastic hardware/craft cases in a relatively dry basement.
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The fungus theory was a new one to me so I tried leaving a figure out in the direct sunlight. No change.
From what I've read on the various miniatures boards the dust shows up on miniatures from a couple of DDM and SWM lines due to a plastic WotC's manufacturer used for about a year. Something to do with a plasticizer, IIRC. Nobody has figured out how to prevent the dust although I do remember a recent unverified report that cleaning the figure with soap and water then applying a sealant works.
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Chief Technical Officer
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The fungus theory was a new one to me so I tried leaving a figure out in the direct sunlight. No change.
From what I've read on the various miniatures boards the dust shows up on miniatures from a couple of DDM and SWM lines due to a plastic WotC's manufacturer used for about a year. Something to do with a plasticizer, IIRC. Nobody has figured out how to prevent the dust although I do remember a recent unverified report that cleaning the figure with soap and water then applying a sealant works.
The plasticizer is the food source for the fungus. Sealing it could theoretically prevent the fungus from getting at the food source.
To be honest, I've never tried the sunlight trick with D&D figures, but I know it works with vintage Star Wars figures from the early 1980s; it's a tip I learned from a professional toy dealer. (He actually uses a UV light.)