Review by James Burnett (SAFOLs Members, CapeLUG Members)
The Chima theme is centred on the fictional world of Chima, a place inhabited by warring tribes of anthropomorphic animals. There are 12 main tribes living in the various parts of Chima. These are Bear, Beaver, Crawler (sub-divided into Bat, Scorpion, and Spider), Crocodile, Eagle, Fire (sub-divided into Phoenix, and Tiger), Gorilla, Ice Hunter (sub-divided into Ice-Bear, Mammoth, Saber-Tooth Tiger, and Vulture), Lion, Raven, Rhino, and Wolf Tribes.
The Wolf tribe is a nomadic tribe and have no need for large cities. They have a permanent base in the Timber Woods called Wolf Camp, but they prefer to roam the land. They have no royal family or formal leadership structure as it has little need for a leader because they form a close pack that all think alike. They do choose one wolf (the Alpha) to handle interaction and negotiations with other tribes. The Wolf tribe loves destructive. The Wolves revere a great “Mother Wolf” whose “Mother Tooth” was left to them to provide light in darkness and thus is treated as a holy. The tribe consist of 5 members:
- Worriz (the Alpha male of the tribe)
- Wakz (elder of the tribe).
- Wilhurt (a soldier and the Alpha’s second in command)
- Windra (a female member of the tribe.
- Winzar (a soldier of the tribe)
All Wolf tribe vehicles feature a full wolf-head build into a truck in gray, black and dark red. Vehicle features include a head, jaw, white teeth, fangs, large wheels and flaming exhausts.
The Build
The main build consists only of the Wolf tribe vehicle called a Pack Tracker and it uses mainly black, dark red, DBG and LBG. It is built to resemble a wolf. The drivers cabin is shaped like the head of a wolf with eyebrows and everything. The bottom jaw of the snout is hinged and can be opened or closed, depending on the pose you could like to have.
The back of the vehicle resembles a stand truck flatbed and this is where the primary weapon is located which is one of the newer projectile launchers (cannon). The projectile has a good range and does shoot out with a decent force, so avoid shooting yourself in the eyes as it will hurt (don’t ask how I know J ).
The tail is a chain with two claws attached to it, and is a secondary weapon. It can be rolled in using technic gears thereby capturing enemies and bringing them on board the vehicle. The large open snout, large black wheels and dark red exhausts (with flames) gives the vehicle an a very aggressive look, which fits in perfectly with the nature of the Wolf tribe.
The Minifigure
The set comes with 3 minifigures. The first is Wakz, one of the pack Elders. His legs are DBG with white claws and he is wearing dark red pants. Patches of fur can be seen sticking out of his pants. On the front of his torso is a dark azure circle (representing CHI) with dark red armour, silver markings, and a fur animal pelt print. The same detail is on the back of his torso. A flat silver armour piece fits on the torso.
His head is double-sided with one side being stern, and the other appearing as if he is snarling. A wolf head-piece goes over the standard minifigure head in order to enhance the look of a wold. The headpiece is DBG with LBG accents which helps to create the look of an older wolf (seeing as he is an Elder).
The second minifigure is Winzar (a soldier of the tribe). His legs are LGB with white claw. He is wearing a dark red loincloth and has a fur tail lucky charm dangling from his belt.
On the front of his torso is a dark azure circle (representing CHI), surrounded by DBG chest hair. The rest of his fur is LBG with muscle printing. The back of the torso is mostly LBG with a few strips of BDG fur. I am slightly disappointed how plain his back print is, but luckily you would display him from the front.
His head is double-sided with very detailed red scars over his left eye with is closed. I am not sure if he lost the eye in a previous battle or if it is only swollen shut. His wolf head-piece has stubble and the same red scars as on the head. Over all the printing detail creates an angry and ferocious looking wolf soldier.
The third minifigure is Equila (the Tournament Announcer of the Eagle tribe). His legs are white with yellow talons. He is wearing a dark blue belt and pearl gold belt as well as pearl hold knee covers.
On the front of his torso is a blue circle (representing CHI), with an absolutely stunning pearl gold armour plate pattern. The rest of the torso is bright light blue with muscle printing. The back of the torso has the same beautiful armour plate printing. A pearl gold armour piece fits on the torso with a trans-light blue round tile represents the CHI on the front. White wings can be attached to the back.
He has a double-sided head with one side having very cool orange goggles. An eagle head-piece goes over the standard minifigure head in order to enhance the look of an eagle. The headpiece is mostly white with some medium blue feather.
Conclusion
While the vehicle is a fun build that does a great job representing a wolf, the true value of the set lies in the detailed minifigures which is a pure joy to display and look at on a daily basis.
