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2013/10/20 10:19:11
Subject: Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
The original Valten is hands down the best mini ever sculpted. I remember when Warseer was still Portent and the news&rumors section had the original leaked image under the title "sigmar?" and I nearly lost it. There's been a lot of "Conan"s over the years, official and wannabes, but Valten, the original Valten, captures it better than any of them. The pose, the face, the hair, I've probably used 6 of them for various things over the years just because it was such a great model.
I ask, why dosen't Valten have rules? IIRC Snitch killed him at the end of SOC but GW has retconned WH to just before the campaign.
DC:90+S+G++MB++I--Pww211+D++A++/fWD390R++T(F)DM+
2013/10/20 16:31:58
Subject: Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
The original Valten is hands down the best mini ever sculpted. I remember when Warseer was still Portent and the news&rumors section had the original leaked image under the title "sigmar?" and I nearly lost it. There's been a lot of "Conan"s over the years, official and wannabes, but Valten, the original Valten, captures it better than any of them. The pose, the face, the hair, I've probably used 6 of them for various things over the years just because it was such a great model.
2nd place:
For many of the same reaosns I love Valten, this is my 2nd favorite model of all time. The pose, the face, the hair, everything I want in a mini. Just looks badass and awesome and intimidating. Cool factor all the way up to 11.
You, sir, have really good taste!
I really like Valten. He's not covered in garish details, which I really really like as opposed to something covered in detail. I've never seen the model before, but I think he's one of my new favourites.
The Wood Elf miniature is also the reason why I started collecting Wood Elves (though I still haven't gotten my hands on the damn thing!). He looks so fragile but seems to exude confidence or something.
2013/10/21 18:27:41
Subject: Re:Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
Okay, this guy is a stand in for the entire Red Box line for me. Really awesome miniatures in a consistent style with true scale features. Bloody amazing.
While I'd question the use of the word "gorgeous" I know what you mean!
He is The Barbarian Dude from Raining Frogs, but I believe him to be sold out some time ago.
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
shamikebab wrote: I cannot believe someone just posted Canis Wolfborn.
I'm hoping that a number of the GW sculpts are being posted as jokes, to be honest. Nagash obviously was, but Canis is not a good sculpt, mainly due to the giant trained attack squirrel he is riding.
When you look at some of sculpts that Mierce, Enigma, Kingdom Death, etc are putting out, GW aren't even in the same ballpark.
Gamgee on Tau Players wrote:we all kill cats and sell our own families to the devil and eat live puppies.
Kanluwen wrote: This is, emphatically, why I will continue suggesting nuking Guard and starting over again. It's a legacy army that needs to be rebooted with a new focal point.
Confirmation of why no-one should listen to Kanluwen when it comes to the IG - he doesn't want the IG, he want's Kan's New Model Army...
tneva82 wrote: You aren't even trying ty pretend for honest arqument. Open bad faith trolling.
- No reason to keep this here, unless people want to use it for something...
2013/10/22 10:00:57
Subject: Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
shamikebab wrote: I cannot believe someone just posted Canis Wolfborn.
Canis is not a good sculpt, mainly due to the giant trained attack squirrel he is riding.
When you look at some of sculpts that Mierce, Enigma, Kingdom Death, etc are putting out, GW aren't even in the same ballpark.
I can't agree more there, that is one ugly wolf.
Fafnir wrote: Oh, I certainly vote with my dollar, but the problem is that that is not enough. The problem with the 'vote with your dollar' response is that it doesn't take into account why we're not buying the product. I want to enjoy 40k enough to buy back in. It was my introduction to traditional games, and there was a time when I enjoyed it very much. I want to buy 40k, but Gamesworkshop is doing their very best to push me away, and simply not buying their product won't tell them that.
2013/10/22 10:22:11
Subject: Re:Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
Well, to be fair, its not much worse than some other people's favourites. So, it's not obviously a joke. Not sure that the face palm is necessary.
And i think we should try keep this thread serious. It's introducing people to some really nice miniatures and some really good, but less well known manufacturers.
Plus, there's already a "worst sculpt ever" thread.
alanmckenzie wrote: Well, to be fair, its not much worse than some other people's favourites.
Really? pHaley is pretty much the worst model PP have made.
Then why post it in a thread about the best ever sculpt? This thread has turned me on to some new models and companies, and I can only imagine has done similar for others, I would very much like it to keep going and continue to do so.
OT nonsense like this, especially as it isn't obviously a joke, is just wasting everyone else's time, and increasing the odds of it getting locked.
Automatically Appended Next Post: Just to get things back on track, not sure I'd say "best ever" but I took delivery of this guy from Dark Hammer miniatures today, quality is exceptional, the concept is quite original and the sculpting is pretty fabulous too.
They only have a small portfolio so far, but if they keep turning out things like this, they are a company to keep an eye on.
EDIT I plan to use him as a Nurgle DP in my Daemons army, after some light conversion, if anyone was wondering!
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2013/10/22 16:55:19
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
"...and special thanks to Judgedoug!" - Alessio Cavatore "Now you've gone too far Doug! ... Too far... " - Rick Priestley "I've decided that I'd rather not have you as a member of TMP." - Editor, The Miniatures Page "I'd rather put my testicles through a mangle than spend any time gaming with you." - Richard, TooFatLardies "We need a Doug Craig in every store." - Warlord Games "Thank you for being here, Judge Doug!" - Adam Troke
2013/10/22 20:48:59
Subject: Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
I want to get a WOC army just so I can use these model.
That's more like it,
Although I would urge you to look further abroad than the GW site, even some of their best work is starting to look positively mediocre compared to what some other companies are turning out.
I urge you to check out the Ysian Drunes from Mierce if you like the idea of WoC or just spend an hour browsing some of the galleries on cool mini or not to really see what amazing stuff is being produced at the moment and really gain a sense of perspective.
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
Here's the thing about GW sculpts: they have style. There are some models out there that are technically better, that are more anatomically correct, that have more detail. But it's all about how the miniature comes together. The Barbarian Dude is a fantastic mini, just awesome and amazing and I wish I had gotten one because I've seen some absolutely gorgeous ones painted up. But as absolutely cool as it is, I'd rather have a Valten. He's almost got a certain cartoon aspect to him that the hyper-realistic 'roided out anatomy on Barbarian Dude just doesn't quite match. The sculpting on TBD is better, the level of detail is better, but it is not a better figure.
There are a LOT of great minis out there, GW was top dog in miniatures for a reason, but Rackham was making figures 10 years ago that matches or exceeds stuff put out today. Recently Corvus belli and Wyrd took up that spot and you also have Mierce and Mercs and Raging Heroes and a few dozen others all making amazing figs. Reaper makes a lot of solid good-but-not-great minis, but there's a few true gems in their lines that hold up against any other company.
But my personal criteria for a truly amazing model? It has to inspire you to make a roleplaying character, not the other way around. It has to inspire you to build an army around it. It inspired you to come back to the hobby after you left it. That is what makes something "the best miniature", not just that it's simply more detailed or more realistic or "better" in the technical, skill-of-the-sculptor way. It's something more personal and more subjective: it's art at that point, the literal definition of art. It elicits an emotional response.
And so yes, there are "better" sculpts than the ones listed here, but in the very subjective sense they aren't really better now are they? Canis Wolfborn is a terrible model IMHO, just horrid. But I can see how he could (to some people) have that "wow" factor that made a person start a Space Wolf army.
I'll end this by posting some more of my favorites, this time both technically good and inspiring good models
GW Deamon Prince
Spoiler:
Rackham Varghar
Spoiler:
Rackham Bregan
Spoiler:
Rackham Sygma
Spoiler:
Rackham Mercenary Assassin
Spoiler:
Rackham Firebrand Ogre
Spoiler:
Gamezone "not Bloodknight" Mournful Knight
Spoiler:
Corvus Belli Oniwaban
Spoiler:
Corvus Belli Penthisilia
Spoiler:
Corvus Belli Ajax
Spoiler:
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2013/10/23 03:56:12
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
I'm not going to say that PP make the best sculpts around - they make nice gaming pieces, with occasional weird choices when breaking models down to parts (Nyss Hunters and Steelhead Halberdiers, I'm looking at you) - but there are some pretty nice sculpts in the range.
I've tried to pick one from each faction that I really like.
Spoiler:
Cygnar - Captain Jeremiah Kraye
Spoiler:
Protectorate of Menoth - Paladin of the Order of the Wall
Spoiler:
Khador - Supreme Kommandant Irusk
Spoiler:
Cryx - Brute Thrall (I'm not terribly keen on the Cryx look, though)
Spoiler:
Mercs - Harlan Phineas Versh, Illuminated One
Spoiler:
Trollbloods - Mountain King
Spoiler:
Circle - Classic Pureblood Warpwolf
Spoiler:
Skorne - Mammoth
Spoiler:
Legion of Everblight - Archangel
Spoiler:
Minions - War Hog
Spoiler:
IKRPG - Valeria Alvaro, Ordic Pistoleer
Again, I don't want to make the claim that these are the best around, but they are quite nice to paint.
Gamgee on Tau Players wrote:we all kill cats and sell our own families to the devil and eat live puppies.
Kanluwen wrote: This is, emphatically, why I will continue suggesting nuking Guard and starting over again. It's a legacy army that needs to be rebooted with a new focal point.
Confirmation of why no-one should listen to Kanluwen when it comes to the IG - he doesn't want the IG, he want's Kan's New Model Army...
tneva82 wrote: You aren't even trying ty pretend for honest arqument. Open bad faith trolling.
- No reason to keep this here, unless people want to use it for something...
2013/10/23 09:12:52
Subject: Best ever sculpt - character of mini and quality of sculpt/detail
id thought id throw in a possibly unknown miniature into the ring that i found while searching for a non black reach warboss for my personal Whaaagh
hes a russian sculpt as far as i know and sold on ebay through a store called hobby world
if any of you peeps know more please do tell cause id be interested in more of this persons work
Love the troll an LOVE the dragon.
]
Angels Amaranthine - growing slowly
Currently 200pts 
