During some of my early games of Warmachine, I had a very difficult time seeing when a model had Line of Sight to another. Usually these troubles occurred when I needed to make a call while peering through ranks of infantry or around large terrain pieces to a desired target. Often it would be difficult to use templates or rulers to lay down a straight line to confirm due to the distance.

Solution: the On-Target Laser Line!

HUGE NOTE: GameSmith has taken down their website. It also appears that a lot of individuals on KickStarter never received their promised products and were not given refunds. I was not a KickStarter-Backer and purchased this product at an LGS in Calgary, Alberta. I am disappointed that this company did not follow through with their KickStarter promises. I believe you are not able to acquire this product any longer and for good reason. Kickstarter is definitely “buyer-beware”, but this kind of situation really should not happen. I do not endorse GameSmith in any way outside of my positive review of this short-lived product (and not the conduct of the KS Campaign that created it).

My understanding is that this product started on Kickstarter, and was developed in my home province of Alberta. I got mine from one of my local game stores. You can get yours on the Gamesmith website!

Here are my thoughts:

The On-Target has a simple but effective design: Single “On-Off” button on what seems like a standard-sized laser pointer chassis. However, the big point here is that the construction is very solid. Entire unit is metal and has considerable weight for its size. I have zero concerns about this product failing on me if I were to drop it.

One concern I have, but I don’t have the time to test, is battery life. Looking around I can’t see any information on this. My assumption is that the battery life should be comparable to similar products and so I don’t expect any issues.

Holding the On-Target above a game surface and finding that critical line is incredibly easy. You can operate the On-Target with one hand (and take pictures, see below!) and it feels quick to use. You might want to be careful about hovering this thing over models if you’re a butter-fingers….I imagine it would do some damage if it fell.

As you can see from the picture below, I am able to see the line on the table with ease and there is no question now that the Stormblade Gunner below has line of sight. Against the backdrop of a gamemat I imagine these lines would be even easier to make out.

My only concern about this product is price. I paid $32.95 CDN for this product. When I was budgeting I estimated my laser line would cost me under $20. While it isn’t comparable in terms of build quality – the Army Painter laser line is about $11.00 CDN and can get the job done just fine. These cheaper products may not last as long in comparison as the quality of materials on the On-Target is exceptional. However, considering you shouldn’t really be treating your laser line too harshly (this is a game, not a construction site), I imagine the cheaper alternatives will get the job done just fine.

I’m also a little disconcerted by the price for how often I actually need this tool. I anticipate I will maybe take out this laser line once or twice a game? Other game systems might see this product used more often, and maybe that means the build quality will be more important. My understanding is that X-Wing uses these laser lines more frequently, but I could be wrong.

Conclusion & Score

The On-Target does its job very well and is a well-built product. However, unless you are budgeting for a premium product, or need this laser frequently for your game system, I would look to cheaper alternatives.

Pros: Well built, easy to use, feels like it will last a long time;

Cons: Price is high.

Score: 7/10

J

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