Games Workshop Hobbit Game - possibly ?!

Tweet

Share on Tumblr

GW had their licence extended by Warner Bros to include the new Hobbit movie, called, errr... "The Hobbit".

Which basically means that GW will be planning a Hobbit game I guess. I wonder whether it will just be an extension of the LOTR franchise or something completely new ?

Here's the press release...

"WARNER BROS. CONSUMER PRODUCTS EXTENDS LICENSING AGREEMENT WITH GAMES WORKSHOP TO INCLUDE "THE HOBBIT" AND "THE LORD OF THE RINGS"

BURBANK, Calif., Wednesday, February 9, 2011 - Warner Bros. Consumer Products (WBCP) announced today that it has extended its six-year licensing agreement with Games Workshop, enabling them exclusive, worldwide, all-language rights to produce tabletop games based on "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" properties.

This extension allows Games Workshop, the largest tabletop fantasy and futuristic battle-games company, to expand on their arsenal of battle-games and model soldiers. Under the agreement, Games Workshop will continue to develop and increase their offerings from Middle-earth, the literary creation of J.R.R. Tolkien, allowing fans to realistically recreate action from the books and movies, based on one of the most thrilling stories ever told.

"Games Workshop has been a valuable partner of ours for a number of years and we look forward to continuing and expanding this successful relationship," said Karen McTier, Executive Vice President, Domestic Licensing and Worldwide Marketing, Warner Bros. Consumer Products. "Their products reflect the true spirit of 'The Lord of the Rings' franchise and, as anticipation builds for the release of 'The Hobbit,' the property's loyal fans will be excited for these richly inspired offerings."

"'The Lord of the Rings' is now firmly established as one of our core game systems, and the opportunity to expand it further with the upcoming film 'The Hobbit' is very exciting indeed, both for us and our hobbyists," said Mark Wells, CEO, Games Workshop. "The fantasy worlds of Middle-earth, as realized in the original works of J.R.R. Tolkien and in Peter Jackson's groundbreaking film adaptations, make wonderful backgrounds and stories which Games Workshop faithfully reproduces through its range of miniatures and battle-games."

Games Workshop products are available for purchase through Games Workshop Hobby Centres and independent retailers throughout the globe. "

Sir Ian McKellan (Gandalf) and Christopher Lee (Saruman) are both back which is cool.

Here's a decent site if you're interested :- http://the-hobbit-movie.com/

PS. I believe the movie is scheduled for release in the US on 19th Dec 2012 (two days before the end of the world according to the Mayan calendar - let's hope it doesn't get delayed :)

New Undead Cavalry Miniatures

Tweet

Share on Tumblr

The first set of new resin / plastic miniatures from Mantic Games are called Revenants, they're Undead Army Cavalry and they are extremely good value - less plastic used for undead models ;-)

These are fairly neat 28mm scale models. There is a superb and very detailed review of them on Total Wargamer below (apparently, from the parts provided it's possible to build 4 different mounts and 7 different horsemen (of the apocalypse I presume !) plus a 3 model command:-

http://www.totalwargamer.co.uk/blog/?p=1027

I've trawled around a bit it and it sounds like the models are going down very well. They are certainly good value for money at £25 for 10 (that's about $39 USD). If you visit Total Wargamer above they are actually running a 25% discount on the minis at the moment so they work out as £18.74 (see above link above).

The Mantic photos aren't great, they need to get higher definition shots with better lighting but they should give you a good idea of what to expect.

Images are © Mantic Games. All rights reserved. Used without permission.

A Free War Gaming PDF Magazine

Tweet

Share on Tumblr

Not very Warhammer Fantasy Battle related (although there is a nice feature on a GW Games Day*) but a very inspirational magazine worthy of a read and therefore worth sharing with you.

This magazine won't be to all of my reader's tastes but I feel that it genuinely portrays the passion that so many have for the war gaming hobby. It's an 81 page general War Games mag which I've really enjoyed reading so far.

Open this in Adobe Reader:-
http://www.battlegames.co.uk/documents/Battlegames_three-year-freebie.pdf

It's quite a serious mag, very well written (to a professional standard) and contains loads of examples of previous magazine articles covering all manner of game systems that are a delight to browse through.

I love the archive photos of some of the first tabletop war gamers from way back in the 1960's. There are also some very generic themes mentioned that apply to us all... "There does come a point in a project for everyone where you think you could do with painting something else!"

I'll be printing this off at work to read on the train. I've already spotted a very interesting article on Wild West gaming named "Quickdraw" (a Cowboy Skirmish) which includes, from the look of it, all the rules needed to play. I might well post a follow up article on that system on the Miniatures and Modeling Gallery blog that I use to post anything inspiring I find in the world of gaming.

* the writer says that the GW Games Day in Birmingham UK attracts more visitors than all 5 of the GW Games Day events in the US added together ! It came as quite a surprise to me because I would have thought WFB was bigger in the US now than the UK.

A Winged Hellsteed mount and Lord for a Vampire Counts Army

Tweet

Share on Tumblr

Flying Hellsteed miniature from ManticGames.com.

I don't believe a winged hellsteed currently exists at Games Workshop (let me know if I'm wrong !). If you want one you would have to buy some wings from the bitz sections and make your own, or I guess you could buy Morathi and use her Dark Elf Pegasus.

So, I was pleased to stumble across a Vampire Lord on a hellsteed on the  ManticGames website. I've never seen this company before but it looks like they produce Elf and Undead armies, amongst other things. The site itself is quite tidy looking and the miniatures are pretty decent quality.

Anyway, here's the blood sucking brute. Not bad at all and he should save me quite a bit of conversion time. The model isn't cheap but it's not too expensive either - it's £18 so it's roughly comparably to GW prices. The wingspan is actually a bit wider than it looks from this angle and the sword is pointing forward (as opposed to being broken !)

Their undead models are fairly good, esp the Reapers and Ghouls (which I guess look more like Zombies).

Image is © Mantic Games. All rights reserved. Used without permission.