Dropfleet Commander

Construction Guide
Contributors
Chris “PsychoMIME” Visser

Layout
Doby Young

All Trademarks including Dropfleet Commander, Dropzone Commander, faction and unit names
are property of Troll Trader Ltd. and used for non-profit purposes with their permission.

Table of Contents
General Advice
Introduction
Tools Required
Sprues, Flash and Mould Lines
Assembly
Working with Resin
Drilling and Magnets
Magnetisation Examples
United Colonies of Man
Frigates
Cruisers
Scourge
Frigates
Cruisers
 Construction Guide
General Advice

Introduction
In this guide, we will give you advice on assembling Tool Purpose
and magnetising your Dropfleet Commander Small side cutter Cut model pieces from the sprue and
fleets. We start with some general fleet building remove larger pieces of flash from resin
models.
advice, before diving into some basic guides for each
faction. Hobby knife Clean up mould lines and remove
small pieces of flash.

Your starter box included instructions on assembling Needle files Clean up mould lines and remove
small pieces of flash.
the recommended cruisers and frigates for your
faction. If you are completely new to wargaming Plastic model glue Use on plastic models e.g. starter fleet
models.
and assembling plastic and resin models, we suggest
you assemble your fleet as indicated in those Superglue Use to glue resin models and magnets.
instructions.
Modelling Putty (Optional) Commonly called Green
The following sections will further help you in your Stuff use to fill gaps in larger models.
endeavour such as what tools will prove useful and
what to do with them. Table 1. Basic Tools

Additional tools for magnetisation:

Once you move beyond the starter fleets, most ships
will be made from resin. Some players find resin Tool Purpose
daunting in the beginning, but it is an easy material Modelling pin vice or Drill holes in plastic or
to work with if you know how to. drill resin.*
1.2mm drill bit Used for fine parts.
You will also find that the Dropfleet Commander
models lend themselves to easy magnetisation
should you feel up to it. Some Admirals magnetise 2.2mm drill bit Used for small parts e.g.
every class of vessel in their fleet, while others prefer turrets.
to only do certain models. How far you want to take 3.4mm drill bit Used for larger parts e.g.
this, is entirely up to you. ship prows.
1mm x 1mm magnets Used for fine parts.
You can find detailed Construction Guides for every
class of ship on the TTCombat site under Resources 2mm x 1mm magnets Used for small parts e.g.
in the Dropfleet Commander section.
turrets
3mm x 2mm magnets Used for larger parts e.g.
ship prows.
Tools Required Some modelling paint, To mark connection
You are going to need some tools to build your models or marker points.
and a few more if you plan to magnetise them. If you are A sewing pin, or (Optional) Used to
just starting out, we recommend you speak to your local thumbtack create guide holes to
hobby shop on where to acquire these tools. drill.
Table 2. Magnetisation Tools
Do not feel the need to buy the most expensive tools
available, consider your budget and skill level. As your
skill level improves, you can slowly upgrade your tool * We recommend a manual drill for more control.
collection and replace pieces as needed.
You can find these tools at your local hobby store or the
Basic tools to assemble your fleet: TTCombat store.
Sprues, Flash and Mould
Lines
Your plastic models come on a frame referred to as are working on to the part it needs to connect to judge
a sprue. You can remove the parts from the sprue by if you need to remove a little more. Always remember to
taking your side cutters, placing the flat part as close cut away from yourself, a hobby knife is sharp and can
to the part as possible and comfortable for you, and seriously hurt you.
snipping it loose from the frame. Remember you can
always trim more of the frame off.

Figure 3. Cleaning flash

The thin line where the two parts of a mould meet is
Figure 1. Remove a part from a sprue referred to as a mould line. These lines can be quite
We recommend that you only cut the part from the unsightly on a completed model and even harder to
sprue just before you plan to work with it. Accidents remove then. Try to remove as much as possible of the
happen and a lost part can be very frustrating. If you mould line with your needle file or scrape with your
prefer to work with multiple parts, however, you can hobby knife before assembly. Be careful around fine
always use a container with multiple compartments or details when you clean your mould lines as you might
an egg carton. accidentally remove those along with the line.

Each part on a sprue is numbered and the instructions It is good practice to go over the cleaned pieces again
in your box and this guide will reference these numbers before glueing to make sure that you cleaned up the
during the assembly instructions. mould lines properly.

Figure 2. A close-up of a part number Figure 4. Clearing a mould line

Both plastic and resin models will have pieces of extra

material referred to as flash. You can trim the flash with
your side cutter and then use a needle file or a hobby
knife to remove the last bit. You can dry-fit the part you
Assembly each different variant within that class e.g. Moscow and
Osaka. Always start by assembling this base model and
Now that you know how to clean your parts, we can
then by adding the parts that define the variants after.
assemble them.
If you plan to magnetise the model stop at the base
Before you glue two parts together, dry-fit the two
model and refer to the section below.
parts together to see how they fit together and where
you need to apply the glue or in some cases hold parts
If you do not want to magnetise this model continue to
together without glue or magnets.
glue the parts for your intended variant as described in
the Construction guides.

Hawk Widgets
You will notice that included in the box are clear plastic
caps referred to as Hawk Widgets. They allow you to
place your model on its flight stand for your game and to
remove the model again for easy transport.

Remove any flash on the widget, and glue the small end into
the model after you have painted and varnished the model.

Working with Resin

Figure 5. Dry-fitting two hull pieces Resin can be unfamiliar to some players and sometimes
requires a little more work than plastic.
Always use the correct glue for the material type you are
assembling: Plastic model glue for plastics and superglue Wash your resin parts with a little bit of soap and
for resin. Apply glue to the areas where the two pieces lukewarm water, either in a container or with a cloth
come together and hold tightly while the glue sets. Try placed over the drain to catch small parts that fall while
to not hold too close to the area where the two areas cleaning.
meet because each type of glue has its own problems
when it gets on your hands. Always wear a mask while filling or drilling resin.

If you think you might apply too much glue, put a small We suggest using a needle file when you remove the
amount on a pallet, and use a cocktail stick to apply to mould lines or flash on resin models.
the model.
Resin sometimes warps and bends slightly in transport
and in hot climates. To straighten these pieces take
a bowl of near boiling water and a bowl of ice-cold
water. Submerge the warped part in the hot water for
a few seconds, remove the part, and bend straight.
Immediately submerge the piece in the cold water to set
the part. Repeat as necessary.

Sometimes a resin model can contain a bubble from the

casting process. Place a little bit of superglue on a pallet
and use a toothpick to fill the hole with super glue. If
the hole is a bit bigger you can mix a tiny amount of
bicarbonate of soda into the superglue to form a paste to
fill the hole up. You can also use Green Stuff in both the
Figure 6. Applying glue to a part putty and liquid varieties to fix any holes.

You will notice in the Construction Guides that each Furthermore, look out for light colored areas, this might
class of ship e.g. cruiser or frigate is based around the denote an air bubble just beneath the surface. Drill
same base model. Along with optional add-ons to build these out and then fill as above.
If you feel the bubbles are too big or troublesome for 1. Carefully drill a shallow hole into a protruding bit
you to deal with please email info@ttcombat.com with and dry-fit a magnet into the hole and continue to
a photo, the code in the package, and proof of purchase. make the hole deeper until the top of the magnet is
They will help resolve the issue for you. flush with the hole. Use super glue to glue the magnet
in place and leave it to dry properly. You can mark
Always use super glue to glue together resin parts. You the depth of the hole with a little bit of paint on your
can also very lightly score the areas where parts join with drill bit.
a crosshatch pattern as it will increase the surface area
and form stronger bonds between the parts.

The colour of resin can vary between batches, which

sometimes leads to the colour of some parts of the
model not matching. This is normal and does not affect
the parts in any way.

Drilling and Magnets

If you plan to magnetise your ships, you can use a pin
vice to drill the shallow holes required to install the
magnets. We do not recommend using an electric drill to
make these holes as an accident can ruin a part. Figure 8. Fitted magnet

Each part contains a protruding bit or an indentation 2. Place a second magnet on top of the fitted magnet
that aligns the parts when glueing them down. When we and put a bit of paint on top of the second magnet.
magnetise we use these points to place the magnets. While the paint is still wet, align the part with the
corresponding indentation and press down gently,
this marks where you need to drill and will help with
the polarity of the magnets.
3. Once the parts fit flush with the second magnet
in place. Apply a little superglue to the top of the
magnet and slide the first loose with the second
magnet in place, and let the superglue dry properly.

Figure 7. Protruding bit and indentations

There are small e.g. turrets and weapons batteries, and

large connection points e.g. ship prows. For the small
connection points, we use a 2.2mm drill bit and 2mm x
1mm magnets. While for the large connection points we
use a 3.4mm drill bit and 3mm x 2mm magnets. Drills
closer to the magnet size exist, but remember that 3mm Figure 9. Both magnets in place
drilling hole might not fit your 3mm magnet, due to If there is a second connection point repeat steps 1 to 3
machine tolerances. until the part is completely magnetised. The two parts
should hold tightly and come apart with ease.
We recommend that you start magnetising the parts
containing large connection points first and then move To magnetise a second piece to attach to the base part
on to the smaller parts. e.g. a second prow attach a magnet to the magnets in the
base part and repeat steps 2 to 4.
Continue as needed for all the remaining parts you want
to magnetise.

Figure 10. A second magnetised component.

Your magnetised ship should be ready to paint.

Magnetisation Tricks
When you start to magnetise your next ship use an
already magnetised piece that can attach to the base of the
new ship and follow the steps above from step 2. In this
way, you keep the polarity of the magnets in your fleet
consistent and you can use the parts from different ships
on each other.

Another useful trick to help with magnet polarity is to

make a small tool:
1. Take two 3mm magnets.
2. Make a disc roughly 10mm x 3mm diameter out of
modelling putty
3. Gently push the magnets into either side of the putty.
4. Make sure that the poles of the magnets are aligned.
5. Glue the magnets in place and leave the putty to set.
6. Once the putty set, paint the magnet on one side and
leave it to dry.

Let any magnets you want to place on the model snap on

to your newly created tool and use it to place the magnets
in the holes you drilled. Keep track of which way around
you use the tool e.g. the painted side goes into the base
model, while the unpainted side goes into the parts that
attach to it.

We recommend that you keep small magnetised parts in a

small, resealable plastic bag to keep them from getting lost.

Once painted, give your main hull and all the options
you magnetised, a good coat or two of varnish.
Magnetised pieces get handled a lot and your paint job
will begin to chip.
 Magnetisation Examples
In this section, we dive into how to magnetise your
fleet. We use the UCM and Scourge starter fleets
as examples of various magnetisation techniques.
The intention is to equip you with the skills to
magnetise any ship and related classes for Dropfleet
Commander.

The UCM fleet uses more simple techniques, while

for the Scourge fleet we introduce a few more
advanced techniques with examples.

When planning to magnetise your fleet remember

that you do not need to magnetise a ship for every
class based around that hull. Figure 12. Magnetised UCM frigate base
Magnetise the weapon systems to connect them to the
Examples include: main hull with 2mm x 1mm magnets.
UCM cruiser and heavy cruiser hulls, with the dorsal
plate that can be fragile when magnetised. The Toulon weapon battery mounts consist of parts 4
PHR frigates where the frequently used Medea class and 5, and remember to glue the weapon turret part 2
uses a different tail section to all the other frigate into place.
classes.

United Colonies of Man

Frigates
Begin by magnetising the hull part 1 with options parts
3 and 12 for each cruiser using 2mm x 1mm magnets in
the aft section.

Figure 13. Magnetised UCM frigate weapon

Once you are done handling the hull sections while
magnetising, glue the weapon turret part 2 into place.

Figure 11. Magnetised Frigate aft section

To magnetise the frigate weapon systems we use 2mm x

1mm magnets. We slightly offset the magnets in the hull
to ensure that we keep left and right weapon systems
paired correctly and minimise the effect of polarity
issues. As well as avoiding where we mount the Hawk
widget. Figure 14. UCM Frigate weapon turret in place
Here is an example of a fully magnetised UCM frigate Glue together parts 19 and 20 to create the burnthrough
with all the class options. lasers and parts 22 and 23 to complete the bulk lander
launch bays.

Install 3mm x 2mm magnets in the weapon mounts on

the ship, be careful to check the polarity and ensure it
stays consistent. Magnetise the weapon systems with
2mm x 1mm magnets except for the bulk lander bays for
which we recommend 3mm x 2mm magnets.

Figure 15. A fully magnetised UCM frigate

Cruisers
Assemble the base model as in the Construction guide
part A1, A2, and A3. Figure 17. Fully magnetised UCM Cruiser with all options

While it is possible to magnetise the dorsal plates,

parts 15 and 16 on the UCM Cruiser sprue with
1mm magnets, this is a very difficult procedure. We
recommend that you designate some cruisers as a Heavy
Cruiser and glue part 16 in place for those ships and
part 15 for the remaining cruisers in your fleet.

The aft weapon systems parts 9 to 14, dry-fit snugly into

place and do not require magnetisation. You can also
go ahead and glue part 17 down as indicated. If you are
following the advice above, you can also glue parts 9
and 10 into place if you designated the ship as a Heavy
Cruiser.

Figure 18. Fully magnetised UCM Heavy Cruiser with all

options

Figure 16. UCM Cruiser and Heavy Cruiser base models

Scourge
Frigates Once you are finished with all the weapon systems, you
Begin with part 1 on the Scourge Frigate sprue, use a will have a fully magnetised Scourge frigate.
sewing pin or thumbtack to mark where you need to
drill to install the magnet. The guide hole will help the
drill take on the rounded surface.

Figure 22. A fully magnetised Scourge frigate

Figure 19 Scourge frigate hull with guide hole marked. Cruisers

Install a 2mm x 1mm magnet into the hole. Scourge cruisers have fine details on their prow
weapons that will get destroyed when drilling through
the outside. So we are going to hide the 3mm x 2mm
magnet inside the hull. In the thickest section of cruiser
part 2, aligned with prow weapon systems drill a 1mm
deep hole. In cruiser part 1, we drill a corresponding
1mm deep hole. If the parts don’t line up, don’t be afraid
to adjust the hole like in the example. Glue the hull parts
together.

Figure 20. Scourge frigate hull with magnet installed

Use the same technique with the pin to ensure good
placement of your magnets and install 2mm x 1mm
magnets in each weapon system.

Figure 23. Scourge cruiser hull with hidden magnet

Part 4, the dorsal section we magnetise with the same
trick. Drill a 1mm deep into the back of the dorsal plate
where the stealth crest part attaches and mount a 3mm
x 2mm magnet inside. As with the hull drill a hole to
countersink the protruding magnet into the hull. Use
a 2mm x 1mm magnet in the stealth crest to magnetise
the crest and when completed finish assembling the crest
Figure 21.Scourge frigate weapon systems by attaching parts 24 and 25.
 Mount a 3mm x 2mm magnet into the bottom of the
hull and into the bulklander to mount it to the ship. You
will not see this while playing, and it can be obscured by
some clever painting.

Figure 24. Scourge dosal section

Allow a 2mm x 1mm magnet to snap to the outside of the
assembled hull. Apply some paint to the magnet and use it
to mark the location for the magnets on the prow weapon Figure 27. Scourge bulklander magnetised
systems parts 13 to 20. Remember to glue together the
It might seem unsightly to use sets of 3mmx 2mm
weapons systems that require additional assembly such as
to attach the side weapons parts 7 to 12 to the side
parts 13 and 14 as well as parts 15 and 16.
sections, but the parts themselves are too heavy to attach
with smaller magnets. Once installed into parts 5 and 6,
the magnets are invisible and provide a solid connection.

Figure 25. Scourge prow weapon marked with paint

Once the magnet is installed in the prow weapon Figure 28. Scourge side weapon mount
system you will be able to switch out your prow weapon After glueing parts 5 and 6 into place, your Scourge
systems. cruiser is fully magnetised.

Figure 26. Scourge prow weapon magnetised and fitted Figure 29. A fully magnetised Scourge cruiser