Cool Lead: Whats rocking my boat right now

Here are some recent additions to collection outside the realm of the 1980s that I am loving right now.

Bloat Thrall, modern EE, Reaper, Grenadier (now Mirliton), hasslefree and more Reaper

First up is the Bloat Thrall from Warmachine.  I am slowly assembling what could be considered a Cryx force, but this is merely a biproduct of how much the figures rock the eyeballs, rather than an urge to play Warmachine.  I grabbed this figure because it is just a huge open canvas waiting for tasty blending.  Ok, so it looks good and will paint well- what are the drawbacks?  Well, the weight Vs. leg strength is a big issue- I suggest drilling double pins into the joints and using a tough pin such as a sewing needle (be extremely careful cutting sewing needles- use goggles and hold a peice of rag or plastic over the pin as you cut to stop it flying off).  Even then, you are faced with a chunk of metal resting on four thin legs.  The lipped base and weight combine to make this hard to pick up, so my advice would be to slather it in layers and layers of gloss varnish so you can pick it up by the body during a game.  Drop this one at your peril!

Next up, surprise, surprise is some modern Citadel.  Yes, I know, I know, but these are actually rather good.  Bemoaning the fact that on the whole quality has dropped massively since the 80's, doesnt completely cut it, as you still have gems like these being produced.  These two are Jules Le Jongleur (Brettonia collectors series) and Countess Marianna Chevaux (Mordheim range).  Mordheim currently holds some of the more interesting quirky figures in the modern range, including the brilliant Frenzied Mob.  It sits right in with travelling players and villagers from the 80's.  Brilliant stuff.

I also have Trish's hatchling dragons lurking on my shelf.  Dont worry, I wont be rushing out to buy any plastic armies anytime soon.  Do check in the misc collectors section for some modern casts of old dragons and elementals too- mind you, I just grabbed two sets (oops) of vintage Elementals for way under the modern price.

Grenadier may be gone, but Mirliton is still cranking out its casts.  This pictured Death Giant is actually an original grenadier fig I picked up of Ebay, so its nice and crisp.  I have read reports that some of the Mirliton moulds are showing their age, and maybe once my leadpile is down I may order some and see for myself- I have an itching for the collectors giants and Dwarfs I need to scratch.  This Death Giant haunted me during the 1980s, appearing in white dwarf magazine ads I poured over, and yet never being in my pocket money budget.  What a brilliant thing to have striding across your undead battlefield.  It does look a bit like an oscar, or perhaps a posessed statue of liberty, but I love him.

Reaper's The Summoning is some of Julie Guthries best work to date- check that sculpt.  Three writhing spirit women -sensual and yet not crass.  Great stuff.  The necromancer chick lifted by skeletons is also a must- the skeletal detail on the base is brilliant and satisfying to paint.

The last batch of figures all come from my new love, Hasslefree miniatures- who not only shipped me a great batch of figures but also included an English sweetie.   Cheers.
The figures shown are just a few of the figs on my ready line - and there are many more I am aching to grab.   Two thumbs up for quality on all the casts I have received, the mould lines are smartly placed and the modular options are so good you will be tempted to buy a few copies just so you can have all the variants.  Damn you Kev!

I am also eagerly awaiting some classic sculpts based on my old art faves Eastley and Elmore this week - I have a Songs of Blades and Heroes warband to assemble!