I wonder if it comes with the base of if it's just the statues and the stairs. Either way it's still a big ol' piece. And only a couple of weeks away.

I certainly hope it comes as one big piece. Correct spacing and all that are kind of.... integral I guess to the overall look and authenticity of it.

Very nice! But having already bought a FW Weathertop, I don't think I can justify replacing my homemade Amon Hen

Well, that was unexpected but awesome:

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/18/instead-of-burning-wood-on-a-fire-this-christmas-why-not-use-it-to-build-a-rohan-stronghold/

I'm a sucker for Battle of Balin's Tomb! How much? Go forth my winged monkies and don't return until you find out!

SamusDrake wrote:
I'm a sucker for Battle of Balin's Tomb! How much? Go forth my winged monkies and don't return until you find out!

To be honest, it would be kind of a rip if it was anything over £25. Those are all old, old models and there's really not much else to the box itself looking at it. I wouldn't be surprised if this was an available until sold out job.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:

SamusDrake wrote:
I'm a sucker for Battle of Balin's Tomb! How much? Go forth my winged monkies and don't return until you find out!

To be honest, it would be kind of a rip if it was anything over £25. Those are all old, old models and there's really not much else to the box itself looking at it. I wouldn't be surprised if this was an available until sold out job.

Considering it's a board game branded specifically for the 20th anniversary of Fellowship of the Ring, that seems entirely likely.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:

SamusDrake wrote:
I'm a sucker for Battle of Balin's Tomb! How much? Go forth my winged monkies and don't return until you find out!

To be honest, it would be kind of a rip if it was anything over £25. Those are all old, old models and there's really not much else to the box itself looking at it. I wouldn't be surprised if this was an available until sold out job.

Sold!

Hey Doug, do you remember how much the stronghold was during the original release?

Rohan Stronghold was £150 originally

Element Games don’t delete old products so you can usually find it there

https://elementgames.co.uk/games-workshop/MESBG/rohan-stronghold

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
Hey Doug, do you remember how much the stronghold was during the original release?

USD $250 in 2019. My guess is USD $280 for 2021 release. Contains USD $398 "worth" of scenery. Unsure for £ prices tho

Ah, thanks Dave. I don't think the houses/palisades have ever gone up in price since release? I wonder if it will keep to £150 again this time?

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
Ah, thanks Dave. I don't think the houses/palisades have ever gone up in price since release? I wonder if it will keep to £150 again this time?

I think they went up $4? like last year.

I'd be VERY interested in that Balins Tomb game if it's not too pricey.

It seems to me like the ideal gateway to help get my girlfriend more into tabletop games. She wants to play them but struggles because she had no real frame of reference for what's going on or why (the background lore isn't interesting to her). She's seen and likes LotR enough to know the characters and the situation which will help keep her invested. If it's simple and engaging then all the better.

New Made to Orders are up. They're ACTUAL MtO rather then "Get em while they're available" MtO.


Grabbed Kardush and the Ringwraiths.

£45 for the Balin’s Tomb game.

£45 seems reasonable.

XE.com says £45 converts to 83AUD. The plastic fellowship alone costs 84AUD. So in that case, bargin!
However the UK GW has the Dark Talon, Haruspex and Cauldron of Blood at £45 (the first 3 things I found that cost £45). On the OZ GW, those same 3 items $81, $100 and $75 respectively. So now I have no bloody idea how much this game will cost!

If they run it at $75 or $81, it'll be an auto-buy for me. If it comes up at $100+ (which I think is more likely) then I may skip it unless I can pick it up from a 3rd party retailer.

Eh, i'm not usually one to moan about price, but that's a bit too much this time. For the age of the models and the contents of the box, i would have been happier at the £30 mark.

To be honest I was mildly excited about the new boxed game - assuming GW would sell it at a reasonable price. Silly me. Silly me indeed!

 DaveC wrote:
£45 for the Balin’s Tomb game.

Quite frankly, this is absurd. The models included are 20 years old by now, and the Fellowship being sold for £30 alone is ridiculous enough (nine small monopose models, a single sprue, ).

Speaking in Euro monies: the pound price should translate to 60€ (possibly even 65€), the Fellowship alone is 40€. Both are bonkers. If GW had asked for 40€ or 45€ for the game I'd have checked for some store with a discount offer and got it. As it is? No way.

Damn... and here's me thinking that was an alright price.

Hey man, if it's good for you then go for it. But i already have multiple versions of the fellowship and more goblins i care to admit too. And i'm not bothered about the troll. I just feel there's not enough there to justify it for me personally.

I'm wondering if anyone would get Balins Tomb for the models at this price, and jettison the game bits on eBay? Like many here, I have all these models from the earlier boxed set. Decent game for £10 or so would be pretty good.

I wouldn't mind getting the game itself, somehow. I'm a sucker for middle earth board games.

New sculpts for Black Dragons

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/22/dragon-week-comes-to-middle-earth-with-new-miniatures/

Well, damn son Those shields

I likes 'em. Solid, a bit flashy, but not overdramatic.

Excellent models. Love them.

Look great. Right balance of ornate without being overdesigned. Much prefer them to the Dale Knight and Dragon Acolytes.

Damn, they are fantastic.

Hot damn! Bring on the war in the north.

I don't know, I really like old Easterlings, but something looks off about these. Way too wide leg stance, perhaps? Compared to old ones, they don't look human. Old models in wide leg stance have their legs spread naturally, these look like suffering from ugly broken pelvis syndrome of old, awful SM models. I really need to see 3D view but the old models seem to have way better anatomy and posing even if details are worse

Hopefully mounted version coming as well. Don't want to have those depend on paint job to separate.

 Irbis wrote:
I don't know, I really like old Easterlings, but something looks off about these. Way too wide leg stance, perhaps? Compared to old ones, they don't look human. Old models in wide leg stance have their legs spread naturally, these look like suffering from ugly broken pelvis syndrome of old, awful SM models. I really need to see 3D view but the old models seem to have way better anatomy and posing even if details are worse

I agree. The shields look interesting and I want to like to sculpts but the stances seem off.

They're cool, but I suspect that they'll be yet another overpriced Forge World thing.

What really needs to happen is for GW to redo the basic Easterling troops box; it's criminal to only provide 4 pikemen and 8 swordsmen when you need the reverse ratio for maximum effectiveness in game.

 ZergSmasher wrote:
They're cool, but I suspect that they'll be yet another overpriced Forge World thing.

What really needs to happen is for GW to redo the basic Easterling troops box; it's criminal to only provide 4 pikemen and 8 swordsmen when you need the reverse ratio for maximum effectiveness in game.

You don't want bare minimum swordmen. 1 swordmen+2 pikes=very bad mix. It might SOUND good...until opponent does the obvious thing and flanks and your pikes are just hindrance.

You don't expect opponent to just charge front of pike block if you don't cover sides do you? Dunno about you but I prefer to not base my strategy on opponent being total idiot.

I think models armed with spears and pikes should be getting a bonus against charging infantry and cavalry/monsters (respectively). It's what they're there for! And if memory serves, there's a feature on one of the movies (two towers probably) where they talk about weapon design, and it's why they gave the Uruk-hai the style of pikes the got. They were made with the intention of unhorsing charging riders from a safe-ish distance.

From an Easterling point of view though, it seems strange to me that basic warriors get 'pikes' (basic pikes), captains get 'easterling glaives' (hand-and-a-half axe) and war priests 'easterling battle staves' (spear/two-handed axe). All 3 are a long haft with a bladed edge and a spike on the end. I don't quite see why they've got 3 different rule sets.
Personally think they should have either combined the easterling glaive with the pike and had a hand-and-a-half axe that can support 1 deep. Best of both weapons, and the easterlings in general get a unique weapon. Or just made them all battle staves. That way you can spear and shield or forgo the shield and axe instead.

3 ranks vs cavalry is already pretty damn good seeing cavalry is on bigger bases...

Giving them extra bonus just means pikes will delete cavalry and lead to rock paper scissor ala 40k where you face faction A with faction B you lose.

If you try ramming into front of easterling pike formation with minas tirith cavalry lance you will struggle big time(lances and heavier armour helps a bit). Rohan? You die. Been there done that. The pike block will laugh off that.

Balin's Tomb isn't too bad with a bit of discount, if you can get it.

That said...yeah, the Moria scenery sprue would have sealed the deal.

tneva82 wrote:

 ZergSmasher wrote:
They're cool, but I suspect that they'll be yet another overpriced Forge World thing.

What really needs to happen is for GW to redo the basic Easterling troops box; it's criminal to only provide 4 pikemen and 8 swordsmen when you need the reverse ratio for maximum effectiveness in game.

You don't want bare minimum swordmen. 1 swordmen+2 pikes=very bad mix. It might SOUND good...until opponent does the obvious thing and flanks and your pikes are just hindrance.

You don't expect opponent to just charge front of pike block if you don't cover sides do you? Dunno about you but I prefer to not base my strategy on opponent being total idiot.

You protect your flanks with your cavalry (Kataphrakts). I suppose a few more swordsmen could help with that as well.

Do we have confirmation of the price for Battle in Balin's Tomb boardgame?

The rumoured £45/€60 is ludicrous and puts me off.

I haven't seen any confirmation yet.

It is a bit pricey!

 stonehorse wrote:
Do we have confirmation of the price for Battle in Balin's Tomb boardgame?

The rumoured £45/€60 is ludicrous and puts me off.

Not a rumour it’s confirmed £45, €60

Well technically speaking that could be fake listing but yeah there's not been many of those in past...there has been at least one time GW did late price change so it was bit off but that's super rare so that's as good as confirmed. No point hoping for such a super rare event to happen again.

Did the price of the Rohan Stronghold re-release get confirmed anywhere as well?

No. Monday after it's announced for preorder next week is when concrete info comes.

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
New sculpts for Black Dragons

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/22/dragon-week-comes-to-middle-earth-with-new-miniatures/

Forgeworld?

RazorEdge wrote:
Forgeworld?

Given the crispness of the details, i'd assume so.

Would be nice when they could replace all those bad Plastic Unit Sprues with new sculps.

If they added a sprue of Balin's Tomb to the board game (they were available to buy separately) 45 £ would have been an interesting price. But I am sure rules will suck.

Here's a play/review of it. Seems like the game is nice enough.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0bT-_M1_CI

Balin's tomb is up for preorder, it seems.

And yep, it's pretty pricey. A bit too much for me.

 krijthebold wrote:
Balin's tomb is up for preorder, it seems.

And yep, it's pretty pricey. A bit too much for me.

Yeah, the old starter set had those same figures (I think more Goblins) and plastic terrain for those scenarios for about the same price. I know that was a long time ago and prices have gone up on everything since then, but already having the figures and plastic terrain it is hard to justify $75 for a game board, rules and some cards. And for $25 you can buy the Mines of Moria terrain it looks like.

Heck, the Battle of Pelenor Fields set has a lot more figures, some of better quality/newer sculpts. Costs twice as much but you get a LOT more for your money.

The balins tomb miniatures are also very old at this point. Shame they didn't throw the pillars, sarcophagus and door into the set.

Do we have a release price for Amon Hen yet?

 Hanskrampf wrote:
Do we have a release price for Amon Hen yet?

None of the LoTR releases are on the price list which means they are direct only so we won’t know until Friday or Saturday (Forgeworld or GW) when they go live

 DaveC wrote:

 Hanskrampf wrote:
Do we have a release price for Amon Hen yet?

None of the LoTR releases are on the price list which means they are direct only so we won’t know until Friday or Saturday (Forgeworld or GW) when they go live

Thanks for the info.

Dumb question, but does that mean the Rohan Stronghold (presumably GW, not Forgeworld), won’t be available through third-party retailers?

KipCujo wrote:
Dumb question, but does that mean the Rohan Stronghold (presumably GW, not Forgeworld), won’t be available through third-party retailers?

Looks like it if it’s not on the retailers price list then it’s GW direct so no discounts unfortunately ( assuming they didn’t leave it off in error)

Rohan Stronghold is $560 on the New Zealand store. Can't find an exact match price wise $588 is £178.50 so $560 is probably around £170


https://www.games-workshop.com/en-NZ/rohan-stronghold-2021

Was £150 last time so £170 sounds about right. Shame there is no 20% discount.

Damn. New Zealand prices are crazy. That box is 13% more expensive than buying the same kits individually here.

170€ would be nice but looked at the NZ store and the Rohan stronghold is 2x the cost of the black Templar Combat patrol which would make it about 220€. Will still buy at that price. Luckily Sweden have good currency exchange rate for GW product so it will probably be 8-10% cheaper than the Euro price and equal the British Pound.

Edit: my small phone screen made it so I didn't see that you guys wrote 170£ and not 170€. Only noticed after actually clicking on link. Dakka experience on phone is still lackluster. 170£ is a price I will happily pay even if there is no possibility of further discounts. Still almost 1/3 off.

Amon Hen is up and damn that is sexy. No bare resin shots unfortunately, but the attention to detail is fantastic.
Big too,

FW wrote:- Width: 265mm
- Length: 280mm
- Height: 175mm

The price however... not so fantastic. $334AUD they want.

I'm sorry, did someone say Easterling howdah???

Certainly looks impressive, far from what I'd expect from Easterlings

Very fething excited is how i'd describe myself!

Guessing that's the Dragom Emperor himself there.

Seems to be a wealth of Middle Earth stuff coming out. After buying a bunch of Dol Guldur ruins and preordering a Rohan stronghold, it will be a few months before I can get Amon Sul or any of the new stuff from Defence of the North. Still, everything looks great!

A little too over the top for whats MESBG (The golden king of abrakahm is a similar miniature and is much more tame) but still, I'm sure is gonna be a killer of a miniature.

Am I reading this right?

On the GW website it is 170 Pounds but on the EU website it is 224 Euros… which is considerably more than the 192 Euros Google says the conversion rate should be.

Is the Rohan Stronghold only going to be able to be purchased from the GW website?

Most stuff is 10% more expensive in Euros than Pounds. The people that pay in the different dollars have it even worse. I think the US pays equivalent of 250€, NZ 330€ and AUS something in between.

Only currency I know that is almost exactly the same is Swedish Crowns that on average is 1% within UK price. About 10-15 years ago SEK was valued as worth close 1/15th of GBP but were in fact closer to 1/10th in reality so stuff were really cheap for a few years before they updated the Swedish prices. Luckily they just corrected the conversion and didn't add anything extra like they seem to do with everyone else.

I paid equivalent of 197euro in SEK and when I Google GBP to Euro 170£ is about 198€.

 Grumpy Gnome wrote:
Is the Rohan Stronghold only going to be able to be purchased from the GW website?

Looks like it - though I'm not sure why, when I think all the other bundles are available through third parties. Maybe they didn't do a custom box for it?

 Dysartes wrote:

 Grumpy Gnome wrote:
Is the Rohan Stronghold only going to be able to be purchased from the GW website?

Looks like it - though I'm not sure why, when I think all the other bundles are available through third parties. Maybe they didn't do a custom box for it?

I brought it at a UK store for 10% off retail (it was marked as a direct only product) but will have to see if they can fulfil the order or not.

 Snrub wrote:
Amon Hen is up and damn that is sexy. No bare resin shots unfortunately, but the attention to detail is fantastic.
Big too,

FW wrote:- Width: 265mm
- Length: 280mm
- Height: 175mm

The price however... not so fantastic. $334AUD they want.

I have neither the space or the money...

And yet...

No! I must be strong.

Dragon Emperor was a given, but I'm surprised he seems to be a diorama/big centrepiece model, seems a bit... well, Warhammer?

Nah, not really. Not when you've already got stuff like the beasts of Gorgoroth, Golden king etc. I like the idea of someone who calls himself the Dragon Emperor goes to battle and has such an ego he would travel on a howdah like that. Gives me Xerxes vibes.

 Arbitrator wrote:
Dragon Emperor was a given, but I'm surprised he seems to be a diorama/big centrepiece model, seems a bit... well, Warhammer?

Agree. That was my first reaction to it as well. I really dislike the centerpiece mini diorama models we have for AoS and 40k and don't want to see them make their way over to mesbg. It is of course possible that when we get the rules and a clear picture of what it really looks like they might have pulled it off well but until then I am skeptical to it.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
Nah, not really. Not when you've already got stuff like the beasts of Gorgoroth, Golden king etc. I like the idea of someone who calls himself the Dragon Emperor goes to battle and has such an ego he would travel on a howdah like that. Gives me Xerxes vibes.

300 Xerxes?
That is exactly the problem with the model. 300 is an over the top depiction of history in the same way warhammer is over the top while lotr is trying to stay much more grounded.

Beasts of Gorgoroth is just a smaller warbeast than the Mumakil and works just like that. It is multiple models on the same base but not really different from a historical war elephant. I might be wrong but I don't know anything from history where you had a leader actually fight from a carried throne. This model is probably not just going to be in the back and lead from there but rather have good melee stats and be expected to fight on the front lines. Golden king is also a bad model for this reason and doesn't excuse them making more.

Klickor wrote:

 Arbitrator wrote:
Dragon Emperor was a given, but I'm surprised he seems to be a diorama/big centrepiece model, seems a bit... well, Warhammer?

Agree. That was my first reaction to it as well. I really dislike the centerpiece mini diorama models we have for AoS and 40k and don't want to see them make their way over to mesbg. It is of course possible that when we get the rules and a clear picture of what it really looks like they might have pulled it off well but until then I am skeptical to it.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
Nah, not really. Not when you've already got stuff like the beasts of Gorgoroth, Golden king etc. I like the idea of someone who calls himself the Dragon Emperor goes to battle and has such an ego he would travel on a howdah like that. Gives me Xerxes vibes.

300 Xerxes?
That is exactly the problem with the model. 300 is an over the top depiction of history in the same way warhammer is over the top while lotr is trying to stay much more grounded.

Beasts of Gorgoroth is just a smaller warbeast than the Mumakil and works just like that. It is multiple models on the same base but not really different from a historical war elephant. I might be wrong but I don't know anything from history where you had a leader actually fight from a carried throne. This model is probably not just going to be in the back and lead from there but rather have good melee stats and be expected to fight on the front lines. Golden king is also a bad model for this reason and doesn't excuse them making more.

I quite agree.

Whilst I am trying to reserve judgement until I see a proper photo, I do not have high hopes for it. And it will likely be considerably more money than I want to spend.

Rather in the same boat myself; having a centrepiece model is visually nice, but size and practicality are also important factors (the latter in terms of transporting the model, purchasing the FW-priced model, and the design from a realistic point of view).

The conceptually similar Golden King is a good example of the same design done in a far more understated and MESBG-y way, although I strongly dislike every aspect of his rules - instead of a support piece, this unarmed figure carried by two dudes who have their hands full carrying him can somehow fight really rather well, and the same may happen here.
EDIT: For a different take, I would have loved to instead have seen this character on an Easterlingified chariot. Ornate, decorative, with no function other than to carry him around. Khand has functional chariots, and the neighbouring Easterlings could have borrowed the concept but fancied it up a little for their big boss.

In addition, I'd rather see even more and different troop types rather than some new named character - the former add a lot more interesting things to an army than a single hero figure. I think a snippet in the books mentions mounted archers; elite heavily armoured archers on horseback could have been an interesting addition.

 Coenus Scaldingus wrote:
Rather in the same boat myself; having a centrepiece model is visually nice, but size and practicality are also important factors (the latter in terms of transporting the model, purchasing the FW-priced model, and the design from a realistic point of view).

The conceptually similar Golden King is a good example of the same design done in a far more understated and MESBG-y way, although I strongly dislike every aspect of his rules - instead of a support piece, this unarmed figure carried by two dudes who have their hands full carrying him can somehow fight really rather well, and the same may happen here.
EDIT: For a different take, I would have loved to instead have seen this character on an Easterlingified chariot. Ornate, decorative, with no function other than to carry him around. Khand has functional chariots, and the neighbouring Easterlings could have borrowed the concept but fancied it up a little for their big boss.

In addition, I'd rather see even more and different troop types rather than some new named character - the former add a lot more interesting things to an army than a single hero figure. I think a snippet in the books mentions mounted archers; elite heavily armoured archers on horseback could have been an interesting addition.

Definitely how I feel, particularly re: chariots. I wouldn't want them to completely overshadow Khand, but a variety of heavy chariot makes the most sense for the supreme ruler of a very proud martial culture. At a minimum, I'd hope there are upcoming sculpts for Black Dragon Kataphrakts, but ideally the disappearance of the plastic kit indicates a rework to include lances and bows, if not optional helmets and shields for the Black Dragons. Obviously final judgement is reserved until we see the actual model, price, and rules, but it currently feels almost like a misuse of a release slot for a very small faction

Hmm, those black dragon boys could look real good in Slaves to Darkness with minimal conversion work...

Aren't they the wrong scale?

Yeah MESBG are really tiny specially compared with modern warhammer sculpts. Uruk hai are goblin sized.

Well this is cute, also a good chunk of MTO sets coming in the new year. Unfortunately nothing i would like, but there's some nice stuff there:

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/12/19/classic-middle-earth-miniatures-make-their-return-to-celebrate-a-movie-milestone/

Good lord, 20 years to the day?

Where has the time gone...

Narf. Already snatched ambush at amon hen last time. Hoped for breaking of the fellowship...i need to get that sweet sweet cloaked aragorn for my rangers.

Picked up Escape from Orthanc and the Battle at Khazad-dum off eBay earlier this year, and Ambush at Amon Hen from the previous MTO, but I'll probably pick up the other two.

Weathertop is the one I'm most keen for, I love the Ringwraith sculpts, but can't stand GW resin. Shame the additional four aren't exactly easy to find

Tim the Biovore, I'd happily wager that the Ringwraiths will be metal casts for these - every other MTO I've placed has been, including the larger kits.

Men there are some ugly miniatures here..

You take that back!

Don't really need any of the miniature sets as I also got amon hen this year. The weathertop set is nice but I don't need anymore versions of fellowship models.

The khazad dum set is also a nostalgic piece. I had that all metal balrog. Jeez that was horrible to put together. Will be interesting to see if they cast it in metal or send the plastic version.

Johanxp wrote:
Men there are some ugly miniatures here..

Out of genuine interest, which models are you talking about?


This will be a comparatively light MtO for me. Only need Weathertop and the Balrog if it is indeed the metal version. Already have Amon-hen, The Fellowship and Orthanc (minus the palantir). I did get all excited for a second though as I thought they were MtO'ing the old books.

Shame they are doing Amon-hen again and not Breaking of the Fellowship. Some of those minis are quite hard to come by.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
You take that back!

Don't really need any of the miniature sets as I also got amon hen this year. The weathertop set is nice but I don't need anymore versions of fellowship models.

The khazad dum set is also a nostalgic piece. I had that all metal balrog. Jeez that was horrible to put together. Will be interesting to see if they cast it in metal or send the plastic version.

I'm glad i'm not the only one who remembers how disgusting that was to build. Also yeah, which models are ugly? Everything there is sublime.

Trying to build it as a 12 year old with no tools for pinning or anything. I think I managed to do it by using copious amounts of super glue, then mixing a makeshift filling cement by mixing super glue and PVA glue to fill the gaps and provide additional structural integrity. Nightmare

Welp. I want those.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Trying to build it as a 12 year old with no tools for pinning or anything. I think I managed to do it by using copious amounts of super glue, then mixing a makeshift filling cement by mixing super glue and PVA glue to fill the gaps and provide additional structural integrity. Nightmare

The version with metal wings must be an absolute witch to build. But that just sounds like torture!

 Snrub wrote:

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Trying to build it as a 12 year old with no tools for pinning or anything. I think I managed to do it by using copious amounts of super glue, then mixing a makeshift filling cement by mixing super glue and PVA glue to fill the gaps and provide additional structural integrity. Nightmare

The version with metal wings must be an absolute witch to build. But that just sounds like torture!

Yeah, I imagine it is, but there is something satisfying about the weight of a metal miniature and how it feels in your hands and on the table. Not sure why.

And precisely for that reason, I'm kinda tempted by that Balrog. Despite the fact that I have the plastic one which looks largely identical and is several times more user-friendly.

There is also the fact that I had hoped to purchase that particular set years ago, but they had just released the new metal one with a whip, swaying sideways. As a result, the old one was apparently no longer available anywhere that I could find, and I went from store to store to check. Would be fun to get it after all, depending on the price.

Escape from Ortanc, for example. The eagle, Gandalf but Saruman too are not well sculpted in my opinion.
All the newest miniatures proposed by GW (Witch King) and Forgeworld (new orc heroes, Easterling Black dragons) are wonderful instead.
So it is quite sad to see GW proposes old, very old miniatures to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Fellowship of the Rings and does not propose new plastic sculpt for the Fellowship...

You're going to be in the vast minority that thinks those are bad sculpts. And one thing we definitely do not need is yet more versions of the fellowship.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
You're going to be in the vast minority that thinks those are bad sculpts. And one thing we definitely do not need is yet more versions of the fellowship.

Correct, and correct.
In fact, I'd dare say that some of the newer sculpts are lacking in a quality that the older ones generally possess. Folk have been asking for a new Fellowship, but there are already four or five different versions of it, and I'm willing to bet that the same folk would bemoan an identikit Fellowship arriving out of the blue.

To be honest, they've already been releasing a new fellowship in piecemeal. We've had the plastic three hunters, Merry and Pippin in the Treebeard kit, i have no doubt there will be a plastic Boromir and Gandalf the grey at some point. That just leaves Frodo and Sam.

I do not agree but I respect your opinions!

The Gwaihir in Escape from Orthanc is definitely a weak link, that's for sure. Adequate for the time, but blown out of the water by the plastic Great Eagles (the resin Forge World Character Series version is a bit overkill). An absolute rotter to paint too, I've still not found the willpower to finish it with more than a rough drybrush.

Saruman is neither here nor there, not the best rendition of him or the worst. The Gandalf sculpt is actually one of the best for the character in hand though. Remarkably well done, to the point I don't think the painters or photography of the day could adequately capture it.

Speaking of deceptively good sculpts, gotta thank Inquisitor Gideon for standing up for the White Council set a few pages back. I'd been avoiding Hobbit resins like the plague and was going to give them a miss, but now that I have them in front of me, hot damn, they're nice.

The original fellowship is brilliant..managing to get models that look like real people in white metal in 2001? That's a hell of a feat. The plastic models are fine but I think the metal originals have a lot more general character. I have the plastic three hunters but painting them doesn't even compare to painting the originals.

 Eiríkr wrote:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
You're going to be in the vast minority that thinks those are bad sculpts. And one thing we definitely do not need is yet more versions of the fellowship.

Correct, and correct.
In fact, I'd dare say that some of the newer sculpts are lacking in a quality that the older ones generally possess. Folk have been asking for a new Fellowship, but there are already four or five different versions of it, and I'm willing to bet that the same folk would bemoan an identikit Fellowship arriving out of the blue.

The old metals have some issues. They can be wierd to put together and require significant amounts of cleaning, and a few just are bad casts.

The old plastics can be out and out heinous XD

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
The original fellowship is brilliant..managing to get models that look like real people in white metal in 2001? That's a hell of a feat. The plastic models are fine but I think the metal originals have a lot more general character. I have the plastic three hunters but painting them doesn't even compare to painting the originals.

Absolutely. I don't know how many of them have remained my absolute favourite sculpt of that particular character given the >half a dozen iterations that followed them, but each and every one of them remains a fine little work of art with very little room for improvement.

Even more Easterlings you say? Can't remember the last time any one faction got this much focus in one release.

New Captain and War Priest?
Sword doesn't look like the scimitars we normally see, wonder if that has any significance

And unless I've lost count, Dunland got the same number of releases as we've seen so far, though I'd half expect we'll see more before it's done

 Snrub wrote:

Johanxp wrote:
Men there are some ugly miniatures here..

Out of genuine interest, which models are you talking about?


This will be a comparatively light MtO for me. Only need Weathertop and the Balrog if it is indeed the metal version. Already have Amon-hen, The Fellowship and Orthanc (minus the palantir). I did get all excited for a second though as I thought they were MtO'ing the old books.

Shame they are doing Amon-hen again and not Breaking of the Fellowship. Some of those minis are quite hard to come by.

The properly-metal one? Or the one that quickly replaced it, with plastic wings? I originally had the one with pastic wings, then later sold that one, and replaced it with the all-metal one. It's somehow managed to stay intact for 20 years, except for that time it fell off the base under it's own weight.

After picking up the Balin's Tomb game, I now have 11 Gandalfs (Ganfalves? Gandalfen?)


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
Picked up Escape from Orthanc and the Battle at Khazad-dum off eBay earlier this year, and Ambush at Amon Hen from the previous MTO, but I'll probably pick up the other two.

Weathertop is the one I'm most keen for, I love the Ringwraith sculpts, but can't stand GW resin. Shame the additional four aren't exactly easy to find

Did they ever sell the other four separately? I've got one of them, somehow, but as far as I can tell the only way to get them is to buy the set of nine, which obviously leaves you with five duplicates. As it stands, if you want to be a Ringwraith completist, you'll need 63 different models.

Best grab the Easterling Commanders kit while it's still available then....
Hopefully they do an MtO of the old Easterling warrior, Kataphracts and mounted warpriest sculpts.

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
Sword doesn't look like the scimitars we normally see, wonder if that has any significance

Looks somewhat Elvish in nature. Amdur wields a elvish blade, but no shield. So this could be an alternate/new version of him maybe.

 AndrewGPaul wrote:
The properly-metal one? Or the one that quickly replaced it, with plastic wings?

BKD balrog was the all metal one if i remember correctly. The plastic winged one had a whip not a sword.

Did they ever sell the other four separately?

Blister packs.

At a guess, I'd say those might be two new named characters, a captain-equivalent and a named warpriest.

 Snrub wrote:

 AndrewGPaul wrote:
The properly-metal one? Or the one that quickly replaced it, with plastic wings?

BKD balrog was the all metal one if i remember correctly. The plastic winged one had a whip not a sword.

The Bridge of Khazad-dûm version was originally released with metal wings for a short while, then given plastic wings for practical reasons. The second iteration with the whip was then given the same wings I think, but the first sculpt with the sword already had these too.

Did they ever sell the other four separately?

Blister packs.

Don't think the 4 additional sculpts were ever sold separately; only as part of the full set of 9 wraiths on foot (first in metal, later in Finecast). A shame, as I really like the one striding forwards with the sword held vertically, and the one casting a spell is nice too, but they rarely showed up second-hand precisely because they were only sold in the full set, and if anything the original Weathertop 5 would then show up on eBay as a result (the Witch-king being especially prevalent, also being included in the BGiMe magazines and a foot/mounted blister I think).

The alternative 4 wraiths were definitely in blisters. I remember buying them.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
Even more Easterlings you say? Can't remember the last time any one faction got this much focus in one release.

Easterlings needed more options, and now they are getting them

 Snrub wrote:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
Sword doesn't look like the scimitars we normally see, wonder if that has any significance

Looks somewhat Elvish in nature. Amdur wields a elvish blade, but no shield. So this could be an alternate/new version of him maybe.

Amdur's sword still looks like an easterling sword though, it's only elvish ruleswize.
It might just be a new sergeant with a fancy sword to make him stand out, there only ever was the metal one with halberd (and the Kataphrakt one), so it could be one with a shield.

I think they can be more named heroes.

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/12/24/warriors-from-a-bygone-age-return-for-christmas-day-pre-orders/

New MTO for Middle-Earth

Thorin's Company



Young Bilbo



Is this the Warhammer World exclusive version of the Company?

Yes

Well that's neat. I could never get on with painting the plastic set for whatever reason. So i'll grab these if they're still in FW resin.

That Thorin's Company set is actually tempting; the sculpts look better than the plastic versions. Pity it doesn't include Gandalf though; everyone needs more versions of him!

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
So i'll grab these if they're still in FW resin.

They are indeed, and they're up now.

I won't post the link, I don't want to give anyone a heart attack when they see the Australian price tag.

 Tim the Biovore wrote:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
So i'll grab these if they're still in FW resin.

They are indeed, and they're up now.

I won't post the link, I don't want to give anyone a heart attack when they see the Australian price tag.

This is why I use parents.co.uk as a freight forwarding service

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
They are indeed, and they're up now.

If they were up, they've been taken down again as I can't see them on the OZ or NZ site.

 Snrub wrote:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
They are indeed, and they're up now.

If they were up, they've been taken down again as I can't see them on the OZ or NZ site.

Just in case you didn't realise, they're on Forgeworld, not GW main (and I can see them on Oz)

Baragash wrote:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:

I won't post the link, I don't want to give anyone a heart attack when they see the Australian price tag.

This is why I use parents.co.uk as a freight forwarding service

Not a bad idea, might be time to call my brother

Snrub wrote:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
They are indeed, and they're up now.

If they were up, they've been taken down again as I can't see them on the OZ or NZ site.

https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-AU/thorins-company-2021
https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-AU/young-bilbo-2021

Ouch, £100 for Thorin's Company.

Ah! That would be exactly why I can't find them. Wish I hadn't found them...


Yo what the feth. They want that much for a couple of dwarves. Piss off Forgeworld you scabs.

I was a little taken aback by the price too. But screw it. I think it's actually cheaper than when they were sold as blisters and it'll be near impossible to find as a complete set again. Especially at a non-absurd price.

But anyway, merry Christmas all.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
I was a little taken aback by the price too. But screw it. I think it's actually cheaper than when they were sold as blisters and it'll be near impossible to find as a complete set again. Especially at a non-absurd price.

But anyway, merry Christmas all.

I think someone said that they were £108 combined previously, so a £3 increase after being off sale for a few years isn’t too bad.

 Snrub wrote:
Ah! That would be exactly why I can't find them. Wish I hadn't found them...


Yo what the feth. They want that much for a couple of dwarves. Piss off Forgeworld you scabs.

My reaction exactly. I'll stick with the plastic ones for like 1/3rd the cost. $155 US is too much for what you get. Although it could be worth it to some people, I suppose.

So off topic from the previous discussion, but do you guys think they'll get around to giving the Rohan/Easterling treatment to Gondor any time soon?

I could see myself getting (back) into LoTR models if the Gondorians got some new plastic love.

Gondor have got a bit of FW love. Updated sculpt for Denethor and Irolas. Hurin and Ingold plus the rangers.

Plastics wise there's not a whole lot they need. Plastic Citadel Guard and maybe a trebuchet would be about it. I should think they'll probably do a plastic Boromir/Faramir at some point. Might even get two sets of each. Captain/Fellowship Boromir and Ranger/Captain Faramir. Both are needed and both require foot/mounted versions.

Possibly a plastic Beregond too if we're lucky.

Gosh, I'd love a plastic captain Boromir to work with to make a Dol Amroth, or other fiefdom hero/commander.

 Baragash wrote:

 Tim the Biovore wrote:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
So i'll grab these if they're still in FW resin.

They are indeed, and they're up now.

I won't post the link, I don't want to give anyone a heart attack when they see the Australian price tag.

This is why I use parents.co.uk as a freight forwarding service

As a small business owner in the US....Thank you! So many cancelled orders lately because the post office has a moratorium on shipments to AUS and NZ.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Carlovonsexron wrote:
Gosh, I'd love a plastic captain Boromir to work with to make a Dol Amroth, or other fiefdom hero/commander.

Can I interest you in alternative miniatures?

It depends a lot on the material!

Plastic is attractive both because of it's strength vs. falling but ease of cutting to make conversions with. I'm rarely happy with things 'out of the box' to that's an important factor to me.

Osgiliath boxset (in the same manner as Pelennor), coming to your table in 2022/2023.

 Eiríkr wrote:
Osgiliath boxset (in the same manner as Pelennor), coming to your table in 2022/2023.

I'd expect a Last Alliance box set, if I'm gonna be real here.

Two Towers twentieth anniversary in 2022, we'll see.

 Eiríkr wrote:
Two Towers twentieth anniversary in 2022, we'll see.

Amazon has a Third Second Age TV series coming...and the Last Alliance models look like junk.

Id put money on the Amazon series being complete garbage and an absolute mangling of the universe and Tolkien's vision. I hope GW dont get the rights to it and start making models from it.

Will it be a mess? Probably.

Will it look cool? Probably.

Would I want models from it to tell my own stories with? Probably.

I have to admit, it's the upcoming series that has my interest piqued in LoTR again, even if what I'm most interested in exploring and playing out story wise are adventures in the 4th age.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Id put money on the Amazon series being complete garbage and an absolute mangling of the universe and Tolkien's vision. I hope GW dont get the rights to it and start making models from it.

After the total wretched disaster that Amazon has turned WoT into, I no longer have high hopes for their LOTR series.

I really doubt they're going to have anything to do with the tv show. I can't imagine Amazon would want to share their show with the movies in game form. So i would think it would have to be a totally seperate game, which i just don't see happening.

It's hard to imagine this amazon show not being a complete train wreck. And surely it would be a new separate license, so hopefully GW will have nothing to do with it.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
I really doubt they're going to have anything to do with the tv show. I can't imagine Amazon would want to share their show with the movies in game form. So i would think it would have to be a totally seperate game, which i just don't see happening.

I think that's overly 'optimistic'*.

Amazon is almost surely banking on people having fond memories of Lord of the Rings, even after all the drawn-out Hobbit trilogy hullabaloo in order to get viewers.

Amazon is also very, very, VERY sure to have seen how well Games Workshop has been doing the last few years.

Games workshop is sure to have fond memories of the money baths from the original LoTR bubble. And while they are sure to be much more cautious given that the Hobbit as a game never took off, they do already have thier hand in the pot, so to speak.

I also think it's no coincidence that LoTR has been given a new lease on life in parallel with the Amazon series being announced and developed.


I couldn't hazard to say if it will or won't happen, but I do think there is a lot in favor of GW getting the license for the amazon series. Enough to where i suspect it actually GW's choice as to if they want to accept it or not.

I disagree. I just find it very hard to imagine managing the whole licencing hell there wouild be through Amazon, New Line and the Tolkien estate. As well as GW having to pay for another licence just to get ahold of Amazon OC's. As they already have access to the written material for the second age. It would basically be paying for the same material twice. And again, that's even if Amazon would want their own creation being mixed in with an existing game.

And this isn't even taking account into the huge power disparity between the ages. Characters from the second age tend to be massively over characters from the thiird. It would be difficult to balance them in properly to the game. Numenor at fuill power would absoluitely obliterate any third age force for example.

Yeah, it isn't happening.

 Snrub wrote:
Amon Hen is up and damn that is sexy. No bare resin shots unfortunately, but the attention to detail is fantastic.
Big too,

FW wrote:- Width: 265mm
- Length: 280mm
- Height: 175mm

The price however... not so fantastic. $334AUD they want.

There's a painting guide on the WarCom website that gives a bit more of an idea of what you'd actually get in the kit: https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/12/09/paint-amon-hen-like-its-right-out-of-the-film-with-this-new-downloadable-guide/ (pdf at the bottom of the page)
It's too stupid an amount of money, and yet... I do love Amon Hen.

New orc hero's up today:

https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-GB/razgush-and-muzgur-ravagers-of-the-north-2022

Those are nice. Here's hoping for more good things for the upcoming supplement.

They seem strong

Very nice!

Rather liking the style of those sculpts; quite some mail armour and simple ragged cloth, very solid classic orcs.

This probably doesn't count as news, but I was perusing the Adepticon Event List and there is a Battle Companies tourney at 24/40, a Friendly Doubles event at 35/60 and a Grand Tourney at 59/60. That's some solid attendance numbers!

Compare that to a Conquest event at 14/16, a KoW Clash of Kings tourney at 19/50 with numerous casual KoW events at about 1/4th signups, and a Song of Ice and Fire tournament at 15/64 with a few Demo events and team tournies at various levels of attendance. Seemed pretty wild to me that the Middle Earth game is smoking all of those (at least in terms of attendance at one of America's biggest gaming events, possibly biggest?) other non-AoS fantasy games listed above at a comfortable margin.

I never really got into this game, and generally skip over Warcom and White Dwarf articles in favor of the games that I enjoy, and in my silly (but time/space restricted) bias I never stopped to think that they are making this content for a dedicated and loyal player base. I always thought they were putting in the motions because they had the IP and had to do something with it. Lo and behold the game looks to be in a great spot.

Another MTO coming up:

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/01/20/defend-the-north-with-classic-made-to-order-heroes-from-middle-earth/

I get the theme is to go with Defence of the North, but Haldir's elves again? I'm surprised they don't just become a range item at this point.

Galadriel who i'm certain we had last time as well.

Captain of Dale who should actually be a permanent item. But a full warband of the old metal Easterlings and Goblins is very cool however.

The metal goblins were in a previous MTO as well.

There are still some rare models which we haven’t seen yet so shame they are repeating some quite frequently.

Dale Captain isn't a surprise, but the lack of Grimhammer Captain makes me think it'll just be Iron Hills units in the list.

Metal Easterlings was a surprise, but no Mounted Warpriest?

Haldir's Elves(tm) must sell pretty well to keep coming back, but I remember them being very popular even back in the day.

I expect the war-priest will get re-relased when the rest of the Easterling stuff goes up for order. Bring the range back up to full again.

Haldir's elves have always been popular, but this is what, the fourth time now?

Will these be metal or finecast?

The material they were released in orignially. So everything here should be metal.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
The material they were released in orignially. So everything here should be metal.

Save the Dale Captain I suspect, GW had gone finecast before any of the Hobbit stuff came out.

Oof. That's a big load of things I want. Barring the Galadriel, which I got last time, everything there is stuff I want.
I neglected to get any of the metal elves the last 2 times they went up for MTO and I can never find any at a reasonable price, despite how common they are.

Did the Made-to-Order with Attack at Weathertop, Ambush at Amon Hen, The Battle at Khazad-dûm etc. happen already or are we waiting for that one too?

I believe we are still waiting for they one (unless I missed it entirely).

jullevi wrote:
Did the Made-to-Order with Attack at Weathertop, Ambush at Amon Hen, The Battle at Khazad-dûm etc. happen already or are we waiting for that one too?

Not yet. That article said next year (this year), but not when specifically. This one actually says Feb.

I picked up that Galadriel last time around; probably my favorite Galadriel for actually gaming with as it looks more like how she would appear in a battle (in her "war aspect" form).

I'll definitely grab some of those Easterlings, if only because they actually have the correct ratio of pikes to swords (unlike the plastic box that has it reversed for some reason). Of course, if the price is completely ridiculous I'll give it a miss though. I like the Haldir's Elves models, but if I want Galadhrim models I'll probably just stick with the plastic ones (which look pretty good TBH). The Goblins are tempting if only because the plastic ones have aged so poorly; again depending on price I might grab a set.

Personally i don't actually have much of an issue with the plastic goblins. They still paint up rather nicely with a little effort put into them.

Plastic goblins are alright, but the metal ones make for great captains. Thats how I use mine anyway. Very little risk of mistaking them for other models. And more variety in posing. Win-win, basically.

 Tyr13 wrote:
Plastic goblins are alright, but the metal ones make for great captains. Thats how I use mine anyway. Very little risk of mistaking them for other models. And more variety in posing. Win-win, basically.

That is exactly how I use mine. They make great captain models.

More Easterling characters.

A Not!Captain and the head War-Priest which shouldn't really surprise anyone.



Defence of the North sure is taking it's sweet time.

I'm actually kinda in love with that priests helmet. But lets' just have the emperor and book and release the stuff.

Very nice looking sculpts. Personally would have preferred a new sculpt for the generic Dragon Knight that loses the bath robe, but I'll not be saying no to these.

Also, between these two and the as-of-yet unnamed Emperor, there are now as many named characters for the Easterlings as there are warrior options. Interesting place to be.

Kind of a silly hand pose, but otherwise pretty neat.

I like the War-Priest barring the weird hand pose, but does Rutabi look a little squat to anyone else? Probably the angle, but the clown shoe doesn't help.

I actually really like the hand pose. It's an archetypal villain stance. But i think the squat look is because his legs are slightly bent in a brace pose. Angle doesn't help either.

They've obviously been impressed with the new Avatar of Khaine and thought "I'll have a bit of that!"

It's a villain pose, but it just doesn't feel like a lord of the rings villain pose to me, if that makes sense.

Still, not a huge issue.

I mean, it's not far off the pose Sauron himself is making.

Ha, fair point!

Man, it's been a long time since I watched those movies.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
But i think the squat look is because his legs are slightly bent in a brace pose. Angle doesn't help either.

Assuming you're talking about Rutabi, then according to the article... she, not he.

Yes, I just noticed that re-reading the article. That's what happens when I skim read. Still it's nice to have a woman lead for them.

 krijthebold wrote:
Kind of a silly hand pose, but otherwise pretty neat.

Isn't he French? I thought he either gave or is about to give the French "Hi" to the Brits. :p

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
Very nice looking sculpts. Personally would have preferred a new sculpt for the generic Dragon Knight that loses the bath robe, but I'll not be saying no to these.

Also, between these two and the as-of-yet unnamed Emperor, there are now as many named characters for the Easterlings as there are warrior options. Interesting place to be.

It might sound like a long shot, but I would be willing to wager there is still more to come. The plastic easterlings models don't even have a command available anymore.

Davor wrote:

 krijthebold wrote:
Kind of a silly hand pose, but otherwise pretty neat.

Isn't he French? I thought he either gave or is about to give the French "Hi" to the Brits. :p

Other way round isn’t it? British ‘salute’ to the French? As the story goes anyway.

 ImAGeek wrote:

Davor wrote:

 krijthebold wrote:
Kind of a silly hand pose, but otherwise pretty neat.

Isn't he French? I thought he either gave or is about to give the French "Hi" to the Brits. :p

Other way round isn’t it? British ‘salute’ to the French? As the story goes anyway.

Correct, the bowman's salute is a false legend that the French would cut off the bow fingers of any English archer they captured, so the salute is a way of saying 'I can loose an arrow'.

Nice tale, but sadly there is no evidence to support it.

As for the model, very nice, the pose is quite menacing.

Are these guys plastic?

I like them both. Although first thing i'd be doing to the priest is cutting the rock out from under his foot and adding a dead dwarf.

Inquisitor Gideon wrote:I actually really like the hand pose. It's an archetypal villain stance.

It's the "I have the Power" clutching nothing hand gesture.

zombie_sky_diver wrote:It might sound like a long shot, but I would be willing to wager there is still more to come. The plastic easterlings models don't even have a command available anymore.

Do you mean this command? It's still available on the AUS website, albeit Temporarily out of Stock.

Carlovonsexron wrote:Are these guys plastic?

Forgeworld most likely.

Carlovonsexron wrote:
Are these guys plastic?

Almost certainly resin.

For the foreseeable I'd only expect major film-present characters to be in plastic.

Carlovonsexron wrote:
Are these guys plastic?

Pastry. You have to put them together with egg-wash.

Ugh. Such a pity. I was dearly hoping for dough.

No, you have to use the dough to buy them.

But only if you really knead them.

Oh I love that! :lol

I've learned a bit about pointing in this thread!

Personally I thought he was doing the whole "point at my eyes and then point at yours" threatening gesture.

There's probably a name for that.

 krijthebold wrote:
I've learned a bit about pointing in this thread!

Personally I thought he was doing the whole "point at my eyes and then point at yours" threatening gesture.

There's probably a name for that.

I have my eyes on you, or, I'm watching you, or, watch yourself

I quite like the pose, but I think this may be the meme you've been looking for....

New FAQ's available. One even comes from the future! (error on month )

Good, simple fixes to the Vanquishers.

 Baragash wrote:
I quite like the pose, but I think this may be the meme you've been looking for....

Now there's a post that I'm happy to exalt.

tneva82 wrote:
New FAQ's available. One even comes from the future! (error on month )

Here's the link to the community announcement which itself has a link to the actual FAQs: https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/02/03/dragon-cults-and-powerful-heroes-headline-februarys-middle-earth-strategy-battle-game-faqs/

You're welcome!

MTO next week:

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/02/06/sunday-preview-dominate-the-eightpoints-and-middle-earth-with-next-weeks-pre-orders/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sunday-preview&utm_content=sundaypreview060222&fbclid=IwAR3olvM_kM7i9qipxIZbUwey9DWAThSuk-YoHH5gxU07s_Inm49Nwws_JAk

Personally, i think it will just be a warband of unarmoured wood elves for me. Nothing else screams at me.

I gotta have those Easterlings, and possibly the Moria guys too, mainly because that Captain sculpt isn't in the command set.

Wonder if the Fellowship-themed MTO has been cancelled then?

No, someone asked on the facebook thread and they said it was still due. The original article did say this year, just not when this year.

Well this came at a really gakky time for me. With a big expense having just all but depleted my slush fund i'll now have to be more selective with what I get. Looks like I'll be missing out on Haldirs elves again.
Probably grab the goblin shaman as he's not all that common. Hopefully be able to squeeze in the Easterling horde too.

The captain of dale has quite an expression on his face.

 Snrub wrote:
Looks like I'll be missing out on Haldirs elves again.

Better hurry, you'll only have another dozen or so chances to get them

Have to set up a competition thread for who has the most bent pikemen spears.

 Tim the Biovore wrote:
Better hurry, you'll only have another dozen or so chances to get them

Yeah they certainly wont be made available again for when the Two Towers based MTO rolls around.

Have the Ruins of Osgiliath quietly slipped back into production? I'd swear blind that they weren't available earlier in the year....

Stuff goes out of stock and back all the time.

tneva82 wrote:
Stuff goes out of stock and back all the time.

This isn't an "in and out of stock" situation. They flatout were not for sale for a chunk of time.

Yeah, I actually checked just last week, working on a Fiefdoms army that needs some scenery, and that set wasn't there

It surprised me too. Does anyone know how it is as a terrain piece? The price seems all right, if nothing else.

 Kanluwen wrote:

tneva82 wrote:
Stuff goes out of stock and back all the time.

This isn't an "in and out of stock" situation. They flatout were not for sale for a chunk of time.

So were Easterling Kataphracts but with Defence coming out soon no way were they getting rid of those.

I'd just blame GW's bizzaro IT system/website being it's usual self.

Nah. This is something different. They announce when things are coming back.

They've been available to purchase at WHW for a long time, I haven't ever seen them disappear from the shelves. I'm fairly certain that I've also been able to find them online too, most of the time, so maybe this is something made visible for those outside of the UK?

Ok, nice to know I'm not going mad.

Eiríkr wrote:
They've been available to purchase at WHW for a long time, I haven't ever seen them disappear from the shelves. I'm fairly certain that I've also been able to find them online too, most of the time, so maybe this is something made visible for those outside of the UK?

WHW has had a lot of stuff like this still available over the years...but yeah. It wasn't available on the US webstore for at least two years. I had it on a wishlist I made a few years back, it ceased being there--and it was the only item removed.

 Kanluwen wrote:
It wasn't available on the US webstore for at least two years.

Definitely wasn't available on the OZ site either for I couldn't tell you how long. A few years at least.



As an aside, it's come back at the same price too! Which is nice.

Well this doesn't sound good: https://variety.com/2022/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-hobbit-tolkien-zaentz-rights-sale-1235176036/

Hollywood is about to stampede into Middle Earth. An array of movie, merchandising, gaming and live event rights to “Lord of the Rings,” “The Hobbit” and other titles from author J.R.R. Tolkien are coming up for auction now that the Saul Zaentz Co. has decided to sell its Tolkien holdings.

Unlikely to affect anything for years, if at all.

 krijthebold wrote:
It surprised me too. Does anyone know how it is as a terrain piece? The price seems all right, if nothing else.

It's one of the best terrain pieces in an already excellent range of scenery. Seriously great value for how characterful and useful it is.

You think there is a chance we'll get an easterling chariot model in this new book?

I hope so.

zombie_sky_diver wrote:
You think there is a chance we'll get an easterling chariot model in this new book?

I hope so.

I hope so too. That would be great. I would also like so Rhun Drakes as well.

The Captain of Dale is metal, is this the first time that a model that was originally Finecast has returned in metal?

zombie_sky_diver wrote:
You think there is a chance we'll get an easterling chariot model in this new book?

I hope so.

Seems to be a surprising lack of Khand in this book, so I doubt it. If there's anymore than the Dragon Emperor to reveal it'll be a pleasant surprise.

Santtu wrote:
The Captain of Dale is metal, is this the first time that a model that was originally Finecast has returned in metal?

I'd not be too shocked if it was a mistake on their part. I think there's a few cases on the webstore where a model is listed as metal/Finecrap and it's the opposite.

 Snrub wrote:
Have the Ruins of Osgiliath quietly slipped back into production? I'd swear blind that they weren't available earlier in the year....

It seems to be 'temporarily out of stock' on the UK site, and also has all its copyright information in German, for some reason.

I put in an order for 2 of the Easterling MTO lots; it'll be nice to finally have a proper number of pikemen without having to try to come up with 3rd party bits or something.

Santtu wrote:
The Captain of Dale is metal, is this the first time that a model that was originally Finecast has returned in metal?

Confirmed by the MESBG team on Facebook it's an error.

 judgedoug wrote:

 krijthebold wrote:
It surprised me too. Does anyone know how it is as a terrain piece? The price seems all right, if nothing else.

It's one of the best terrain pieces in an already excellent range of scenery. Seriously great value for how characterful and useful it is.

Much thanks! Today may be the day that I actually buy some terrain, then

I broke down and grabbed 2 sets of Osgiliath ruins, a set of armored Moria goblins, and chucked in a Galadriel at the last minute.

Maybe old news for the rest of you but I only just came across this…

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-anime-the-war-of-the-rohirrim-new-line-cinema-warner-bros-animation-1234993740/

That might sell some Rohan minis.

Well that's got me infinitely more excited then the amazon show.

Hope the animation quality is up to scratch.

Does gw have the license for the Amazon show? I thought the trailer looked pretty good.

Chikout wrote:
Does gw have the license for the Amazon show? I thought the trailer looked pretty good.

If they have, they haven't announced it as far as I know. Would be an entirely separate deal to their existing license (one would assume) so they may just not have seen the value in attempting it.

 Grumpy Gnome wrote:
Maybe old news for the rest of you but I only just came across this…

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-anime-the-war-of-the-rohirrim-new-line-cinema-warner-bros-animation-1234993740/

That might sell some Rohan minis.

That does sound more promising than the Amazon show. I can't find any indication on when this might be released yet.

It's a bit hard to get excited about an anime without seeing any images yet, for me at least.

 krijthebold wrote:
It's a bit hard to get excited about an anime without seeing any images yet, for me at least.

What you need is that time machine people are using to unconditionally say the Amazon series is gak.

 .Mikes. wrote:
What you need is that time machine people are using to unconditionally say the Amazon series is gak.

Same as with Witcher, racists see someone with slightly darker skin color and start rabidly screeching. Even for a character who comes from a place (in either setting) located where Africa or Middle East is in real life. Not that logic has any bearing for these types.

And the even funnier part is, the 'white' medieval Europe these imbeciles imagine never actually existed to begin with, and the trope had been debunked thousands of times, not that, once again, facts can do anything about these delusions:

https://fakehistoryhunter.net/2019/09/10/medieval-myths-bingo/#notraciallydiverse

Yeah. Could we just not go there in this thread please?

It's even worse when idiots assume that if you don't like the thing they like, you must be a racist.

Ok personally I'm just not trying to pass judgment on either one until they come out.

I was not trying to make this a thing.

The idea of an anime based in Rohan might be a lot of fun, I'd just like to see more than a few paragraphs, you know?

Looks like it's at least two years away. Current release date is April 12, 2024. I think they're just talking about it now to capitalize on the attention the Amazon series is generating.

https://variety.com/2022/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-the-war-of-the-rohirrim-release-date-1235181646/

 krijthebold wrote:
The idea of an anime based in Rohan might be a lot of fun, I'd just like to see more than a few paragraphs, you know?

More Middle Earth is just great. I'm keen for all of it.

 .Mikes. wrote:

 krijthebold wrote:
It's a bit hard to get excited about an anime without seeing any images yet, for me at least.

What you need is that time machine people are using to unconditionally say the Amazon series is gak.

If I see someone take a turd in a sandwich, I don't then need to eat it to be able to tell you it tastes like turd...

I'm looking forward to the Amazon show. It should be better than a lot of crap put out and since my wife liked the movies I'll be able to get her to watch with me.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:


If I see someone take a turd in a sandwich, I don't then need to eat it to be able to tell you it tastes like turd...

I'd expect not. But we're not talking about defecating into bread products. What you're doing is guessing. To use your analogy, someone has offered you a sandwich and you can't see it. You say it's a terrible sandwich, and the waiter asks you how you know, and you say something about someone taking a dump in front of them. You're then asked to leave the store, and you say why, at what point did someone start using images of feces become a crime? And they say, not this again. And you say no one will ever make a Lord of the Rings Adaptation like Peter Jackson, and the waiter says Peter Jackson's films were also held in wide suspicion before release, as you would know if your on message boards in the late 90s, and would you please stop using 'feces' in front of the other customers.

I fail to see what all this discussion about race and who plays who in the new Middle-Earth show and turd sandwiches has to do with the MESBG. Could we get the whole thing back on topic? Pretty sure there's a thread over in Geek Media for those who want to discuss the show itself.

I saw this image just before I read this thread, probably just a coincidence https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FLz_OhMXoAAXdnb?format=jpg&name=900x900

Not sure how it happened, but my MTO order has already arrived. Not that I'm complaining, of course!

Ive seen a few people on instagram and various discords saying similar things. 2 or 3 day turn arounds for their MTO orders.

They might be learning what sort of numbers they need from previous MTO orders and have pre-cast a whole bunch.

Yeah, got my MTO armored Moria goblins and Galadriel in just a few days. When I ordered them it said it would be a few weeks. I was pleasantly surprised.

I got the ship notice for my Galadriel 2 hours after I got my ship notice for the rest of my order. Not bad considering I made my order yesterday!

So finally next week new Easterling heroes are up for preorder!

I wish they'd just get the emperor and book out at this point. This is such a dragged on release now considering it started back with the acolytes.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
I wish they'd just get the emperor and book out at this point. This is such a dragged on release now considering it started back with the acolytes.

Weren't they revealed about a year ago now?

 Arbitrator wrote:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
I wish they'd just get the emperor and book out at this point. This is such a dragged on release now considering it started back with the acolytes.

Weren't they revealed about a year ago now?

The acolytes? First teased 31/12/20, revealed 22/2/21 (so almost a year to the day) and then released 20/3/21.

So yeah, they've been dragging this one out.

 Snrub wrote:

 Arbitrator wrote:

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
I wish they'd just get the emperor and book out at this point. This is such a dragged on release now considering it started back with the acolytes.

Weren't they revealed about a year ago now?

The acolytes? First teased 31/12/20, revealed 22/2/21 (so almost a year to the day) and then released 20/3/21.

So yeah, they've been dragging this one out.

So I that rate we can expect the Emperor and Black Dragons within the next 2 years.

Oh joy, it's just like waiting for the Winds of Winder.

Yeah, I was surprised to see only these two heroes and nothing else in the preorder. Just give us the book already
But as usual, backlog is big enough, we must not be hasty.

Sgt. Cortez wrote:
Yeah, I was surprised to see only these two heroes and nothing else in the preorder. Just give us the book already
But as usual, backlog is big enough, we must not be hasty.

Okay Treebeard, we won't be hasty.

I feel everyone on the waiting thing, especially since I've decided to focus on Easterlings as my main Evil army. I'm really looking forward to the book for both the Easterlings and for the fluff; it's one part of Lord of the Rings that a lot of people forget about since it wasn't in the movies at all (not even a mention except in the extended edition where Aragorn tells Gimli that his kin at Erebor are probably going to have their own battles to fight).

Huh, surprised to see the new Easterling heroes go up for pre-order before the Black Dragons and new Dale units, both of which were teased much much earlier.

Also do we have any idea when DotN is coming? I'm keen to re-enter Middle Earth with an updated Easterling and Dwarf army!

Are the easterling heroes resin or plastic?

chaos0xomega wrote:
Are the easterling heroes resin or plastic?

Almost certainly resin.

chaos0xomega wrote:
Are the easterling heroes resin or plastic?

Personally i'm expecting the emperor to be plastic. We haven't had our quarterly plastic kit yet and he's the only thing left right now.

 Fergie0044 wrote:
Huh, surprised to see the new Easterling heroes go up for pre-order before the Black Dragons and new Dale units, both of which were teased much much earlier.

Also do we have any idea when DotN is coming? I'm keen to re-enter Middle Earth with an updated Easterling and Dwarf army!

New Dale units? Which one apart from Knights, already available at FW?

Ah so they are! My bad. Just the Black Dragons to come then, plus the last Easterling unit.

So sad, I hoped for more units for my beloved Dale!

Dragon Emperor reveal.

Its beautiful...

I know its probably in resin, but is it too much to hope for it to be plastic instead?

Damn. I may need to start an Easterling army.

Pretty cool model. But I think I'd swap his weapon for an Easterling halberd, it looks "too asian" for my taste.
And two guys more to carry him would have been more believable I think. Pretty large Palanquin for those 6.

Don't know how I feel about it as a Middle-Earth model, but it definitely looks great as far as GW goes

Very pleased with how things have gone for the Easterlings, especially if the Black Dragon kit has the option to assemble them all with pikes (and thus helping negate the lack of them in plastic). Still wish we got new sculpts for both versions of the Dragon Knight and the footslogging War Priest, but then we can't have it all.

Damn son I'm glad i have an Easterling army already or i'd be starting one.
But i have a strong feeling this will be plastic. As we still haven't had our quarterly plastic kit and this is the last thing to be shown.

Sgt. Cortez wrote:

And two guys more to carry him would have been more believable I think. Pretty large Palanquin for those 6.

Yeah. Especially since the six are expected to be able to defend themselves. Might be a bit hard for the other guys if one (or more) of them decides to not carry the palanquin for a few moments to fight some Gondorian. Even one handing a sword might be tough

TBH the palanquin looks really plastic, especially the screen pattern on the sides of it and the dragon decor. to the sides, but I've already been burned hoping that some of the other Easterling previews would be plastic, so I'm not getting my hopes up.

chaos0xomega wrote:
TBH the palanquin looks really plastic, especially the screen pattern on the sides of it and the dragon decor. to the sides, but I've already been burned hoping that some of the other Easterling previews would be plastic, so I'm not getting my hopes up.

I share these sentiments exactly.

Pretty sharp details so I'm betting on Resin. If it was plastic they'd probably have said so right away but I might be wrong.

Yeah, I think they’d have made a big deal out of it if it was plastic. Sweet model though.

I'd be stunned if anything that's not a movie-character/unit is plastic.

Hell yeah! Looks awesome, really hope its plastic.

Gorgeous. I don't know I like the idea of the GWs centre-piece model method permeating Middle-earth, but it's gorgeous none the less.

From what they hinted at rules-wise he's looks like he's going to be heard to shift. I'm predicting at minimum Fight and defence of at least 6 (gotta be on par with Amdur) and a rule for special armour, plus I'll bet he's got the shielding rule too thanks to his elven glaive (ala Galadhrim Court Guard) or some sort of attack and riposte type rule.

 GaroRobe wrote:

Sgt. Cortez wrote:

And two guys more to carry him would have been more believable I think. Pretty large Palanquin for those 6.

Yeah. Especially since the six are expected to be able to defend themselves. Might be a bit hard for the other guys if one (or more) of them decides to not carry the palanquin for a few moments to fight some Gondorian. Even one handing a sword might be tough

I'd have to imagine that before the combat starts, they would place it down and then when everything is dead they'd pick it up again and move on.


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 Snrub wrote:
Gorgeous. I don't know I like the idea of the GWs centre-piece model method permeating Middle-earth, but it's gorgeous none the less.

From what they hinted at rules-wise he's looks like he's going to be heard to shift. I'm predicting at minimum Fight and defence of at least 6 (gotta be on par with Amdur) and a rule for special armour, plus I'll bet he's got the shielding rule too thanks to his elven glaive (ala Galadhrim Court Guard) or some sort of attack and riposte type rule.

To be fair, center-pieces have been a thing in the game ever since the Balrog back in the Fellowship days. You just never tended to see them that often due to their higher points values.

 Inquisitor Gideon wrote:
To be fair, center-pieces have been a thing in the game ever since the Balrog back in the Fellowship days. You just never tended to see them that often due to their higher points values.

Sorry, I should have been more specific, I meant centre-pieces models in the mini diorama style of Katakros or the Triumph of St Katerine, rather then just a large monster such the Balrog, Watcher or Beast of Gorgoroth. Those are fine.

I know the Dragon Emperor isn't a mini diorama like Katakros or the Triumph. But it's got to be on at least an 80mm base. No middle-earth non-monster is on a base that big.

Well, the Khandish king on chariot is on a 60, so if he is 80 it's not too far off.

And then you have the Iron Hills Chariot on the 170mm oval base o' doom...

Ah you know i'd forgotten about the chariots. The Iron Hills one especially (but that's just because I pretend those movies dont exist.)

Right so base size is not wholly unprecedented I suppose.

 Arbitrator wrote:
I'd be stunned if anything that's not a movie-character/unit is plastic.

Dol Amroth knights are plastic, or at least the mounted ons are. So are the Easterling horsemen.

So there is the tiniest amount of precedence to set me up for disappointment :

GW confirmed on their community page that is is resin from FW.

I am surprised to find I actually kind of like it. I did not expect that.

Sgt. Cortez wrote:
Pretty cool model. But I think I'd swap his weapon for an Easterling halberd, it looks "too asian" for my taste.

"Too Asian" for a model in samurai armor, with samurai helmet/menpo, surrounded by Japanese dragons, Asian palanquin, under Eastern-style banner, and a few other details like that?

Funnily enough, his glaive looks least Asian out of all this

Sgt. Cortez wrote:
And two guys more to carry him would have been more believable I think. Pretty large Palanquin for those 6.

If it was made in medieval Asia, then outside of carrying beams and the floor, most of the thing would be made out of lacquered paper or hollowed out, lacquered wood making it pretty light. Seeing traditional, fully enclosed Chinese palanquin can be carried by as few as two men, eh, don't think this one is particularly unrealistic. Yes construction would be pretty expensive and labor consuming but if someone can afford it, it's this dude...

 Irbis wrote:

Sgt. Cortez wrote:
Pretty cool model. But I think I'd swap his weapon for an Easterling halberd, it looks "too asian" for my taste.

"Too Asian" for a model in samurai armor, with samurai helmet/menpo, surrounded by Japanese dragons, Asian palanquin, under Eastern-style banner, and a few other details like that?

Funnily enough, his glaive looks least Asian out of all this

Sgt. Cortez wrote:
And two guys more to carry him would have been more believable I think. Pretty large Palanquin for those 6.

If it was made in medieval Asia, then outside of carrying beams and the floor, most of the thing would be made out of lacquered paper or hollowed out, lacquered wood making it pretty light. Seeing traditional, fully enclosed Chinese palanquin can be carried by as few as two men, eh, don't think this one is particularly unrealistic. Yes construction would be pretty expensive and labor consuming but if someone can afford it, it's this dude...

For you his armament might look Asian (and I definitely agree on his facemask) but for me Easterling soldiers were closer to middle eastern warriors or macedonian successor states in design what with the whole Phalanx thing. But GW/FW definitely gave them a more far eastern spin with these last miniatures.

-the armor is not designed anything like samurai armor
-the helmet is designed nothing like a menpo
-the dragons... okay, yeah they are vaguley japanese like
-the palanquin is designed nothing at all like any that were commonly used in "asia" (assuming here that "asian" is being used to mean japanese/chinese) and is decidedly more Indian/Persian/middle eastern, etc.

but yes a bit silly to complain about the halberd. They've always been a mix of middle eastern and east asian influences.

Fiiiiinallly Moria Goblins(among others) are returning.

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/03/17/warriors-of-moria-and-lake-town-return-to-the-middle-earth-strategy-battle-game/

Faaaaar out. That's massive for Moria. That gives them just about their full selection again.

Combining the War Priest and Dragon Knight is a bit odd. Since the former has been OOP for so long and the latter was a very unremarkable, overpriced sculpt, wonder if it's a way of shifting excess stock.

Oh man I forgot how goofy that dragon was

 Arbitrator wrote:
Combining the War Priest and Dragon Knight is a bit odd. Since the former has been OOP for so long and the latter was a very unremarkable, overpriced sculpt, wonder if it's a way of shifting excess stock.

I thought that was odd too. Especially since the Dragon Knight HAS BEEN available on the US page for a while now.

It's the Easterling Command set that missing from the US order page. How else can we get captains?

Very pleased with this news

Not surprised they didn't show off the Blackshield Warband with the six swords and six spears, considering the latter is just the one sculpt

 Arbitrator wrote:
Combining the War Priest and Dragon Knight is a bit odd. Since the former has been OOP for so long and the latter was a very unremarkable, overpriced sculpt, wonder if it's a way of shifting excess stock.

More likely to reduce SKU's and keep the range more manageable. With all the new Easterling stuff, i expect they're going to be a new flavour army. But very pleased for Moria, that's basically the entire range back in one go. And finally the captains will be getable at non-absurd prices. Edit* Just noticed the Khazad-guard are metal Now lets' please have the same for Iron guard.


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 Wha-Mu-077 wrote:
Oh man I forgot how goofy that dragon was

You wash your mouth out.

The Blackshields are reverted to metal, right? I'm pretty sure these were Failcast at some point.
If you did that to every Failcast model, you could get a lot of money from me, GW

Ah. Really happy with the return of the goblins. Think this makes me want to continue painting my moria project.

Damn. I didn't even realize Easterling Command were currently not available. Definitely hurts my plans to start the army right now. Also already own two Dragon Knights so them being bundled makes it more annoying for me to get a War Priest.