Feldherr MAXI Star Wars X-Wing Rebel Set 1 / Tantive, Falcon, YT-2400, 15 Ships ~

Michael Eckenfels, 18 November 2015

INTRODUCTION

A habit of epic proportions formed with me some years ago when the first Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Core Set hit stores. The Core set, I bought for myself, though I had nobody else to play the game with. I was immediately smitten by the mini-figures of the one X-Wing and the two TIE Fighters that come with that Core set, and was hooked.

That Core set because an extra ship here and another one there, and soon enough my collection of X-Wing Miniatures makes it look like I could film my own Abrams-worthy battle scenes for the next Star Wars movie. The problem is, while these things are beautiful to look at, they’re fragile. I feel like even lustful glances, let alone wonton groping, would cause them to break into pieces.

While the store I bought my Core set hosts an X-Wing Minis game night every Tuesday evening, I never went by, because I had nothing to really store my pieces in, much less transport them. I did some searching and found a few solutions online – some do-it-yourself, others more expensive off-the-shelf stuff – and finally fell on a line of cases by a company called Feldherr.

Feldherr is a company based in Berlin but has a worldwide reach, providing figure cases for not just Star Wars but a wide variety of miniatures. Their cases are on the pricey side, so it took me a few months before I finally pulled the trigger and bought one after much deliberation and research. I am now the owner of a Feldherr MAXI case, and have had it for a couple of months now. What’s the verdict?

IMPRESSIONS

Out of the box.

The Feldherr case I purchased is, specifically, the Rebel Set 1, which holds the Tantive IV, the Millennium Falcon, and the YT-2400, as well as fifteen other ships (the latter category is the smaller ships, such as the X-Wing, A-Wing, TIE Fighters, and so on). At $70, this was something of a steep investment, but I really wanted a case to carry my components in so I could FINALLY visit the game store and play with the figures that I’ve spent two years collecting.

Another view.

I ordered it online, and out of the box it comes wrapped in a protective clear plastic wrap. The packing was excellent and the case unblemished, free from tears, and otherwise perfectly intact. I’ve rarely had issues with shipping from Amazon, but still, it should be pointed out how nicely this was packed and packaged for delivery.

The strap.

After taking off the plastic, I noticed a carry strap that was folded very neatly and tucked into the open side of the case, which was partially unzipped. It’s a silly thing to point out, but it was a nice touch; they could have just left it flapping outside of the case, inside the plastic wrap, but the fact that they took an extra step to ensure it was inside the case was a nice touch.

The bottom.

The bottom of the bag has five nubs, so it can be stood upright with little fear of it slipping or sliding. The case itself is fairly large, and feels sturdy, though it is a soft-side case. Feldherr sells many different cases, including some with hard shells, but I liked this one more. There’s something about the softer case that is much more appealing and notably less hardcore. I didn’t want to be the guy rolling up to a game dragging a Samsonite-like case that might transport plutonium or a Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator.

The strap (again).

Outside of the case, the strap was nicely folded and secured. After unfolded, it’s a fairly standard length and can be adjusted if necessary. I like the strap; it makes carrying it much easier. Now, before you say “DUH” or some similar derisive statement, let me be clear: when carrying a case with hundreds of dollars’ worth of miniatures goodness, I sure as hell prefer to have it hanging on my shoulder and at my side, instead of carrying it by hand. As clumsy as I can be sometimes, I know I’d trap it in a door or bang it on a desk or do something else stupid with it.

Interior.

The inside of the case is…well, it looks like silk, though it’s not quite silk; it’s soft and has a nice Feldherr pattern to it. This added bit is another nice touch, as they could have just had a case wall and be done with it. Instead, this adds a touch of class to the whole thing.

Layer 1.

Inside this particular MAXI case are three layers of foam trays. There are four smaller trays, two per layer, and then one large tray at the bottom. The topmost layer has spaces for most upgrade cards, ship dials, markers, and other bits and pieces from the game. There are no instructions, really, as to where you can put what, which is somewhat off-putting. How the heck DO I store these things, I asked myself more than once.

Now with Falcon!

The second layer, with the next two trays, hold the Millennium Falcon, the YT-2400 Transport, as well as their respective bases and towers, and several smaller ships. The larger ships, of course, take up much more room – but it’s not just the ships themselves, it’s their bases, their cards, their pieces…everything in this game has a footprint, and this Feldherr case does a remarkably good job of helping me organize all of it.

A close up of the Falcon.

As you can see, the larger ships fit nicely into their slots. The cuts are not terribly snug, but that’s okay – after all I’ll need to be able to pick them up and put them back without much fuss, but they are tight enough so they’ll stay nice and snug while being carried or driven around.

Final layer.

The last tray covers the entire bottom layer, which is appropriate as this was specifically made for the huge Tantive IV model (which doesn’t need an explanation here as you can see it for yourself). This particular one has an even bigger footprint than the other ships (Falcon, etc.), and the tray is made specifically to accommodate all of that. It’s quite awesome to be able to have my Tantive IV sit somewhere other than in its box, finally!

Now, with YT-2400!

Overall, I’m impressed with the quality of this case. Is it worth the seventy-dollar price tag? For me, yes. I’ve easily invested more than that just in the game pieces you’ve seen in the pictures here, so it stands to reason that spending a bit on something nice, reliable, and easy to use to carry them around/store them in is a smart move. Anything you invest in is well worth protecting, especially when it comes to these things.

Although no, I’ve not quite taken the step to buy card sleeves. Y’all are big nerds doing that kind of thing. But I’m sure I’m well on my way to doing that…I actually looked at card sleeves the other day.

Close up of the YT-2400 in its new home.

The YT-2400 is kind of odd, in that I have to store it upside down. I’m not sure if that was an error on their part or intentional. I can only think perhaps it was a mistake, because why would you want to store the Falcon upside down…make sense? In any case, it’s okay, because the YT-2400 is a nice model whether viewing it from the top or the bottom. (Heh-heh.)

Close up of the smaller ship’s spaces.

The smaller ships don’t really have a ‘right’ way of storing them, apparently; I feel like an idiot because I had to look up pictures online to see how others are using it for storage. So, what I have here might not be the ideal way of doing things. If you have a better way of doing it with your Feldherr case, I’d sure love to hear about it in the feedback section or forums.

Inside the top case.

The inside of the top cover is the same material as the inside of the case itself. There is also a thin foam layer that lays across the top two trays, for added padding and protection for those ships and pieces stored there.

CONCLUSION

This MAXI case is overall pretty awesome. I think I received my money’s worth in the purchase, and will probably buy another one if and when I can get the cash to do that. For the moment, this Feldherr case doesn’t hold all of my Star Wars miniatures, but it does hold the lion’s share. I still have a set of Rebel and Imperial Aces to take out of the box, a Rebel Transport, a Lambda Shuttle, and several other pieces, and now I only need to try to figure out which case will hold the most out of my next set.

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