7TV - Fantasy (2)

Here's my second bunch of fantasy figures for 7TV.  Some of my hobby mates and I set ourselves the task of painting something suitable for "Orctober" (geddit?).  I do have some bona fide orcs in my leadpile, but I decided to go with goblins instead.  This is because (a) I need them for a particular 7TV campaign, and (b) they've been sitting in my leadpile for what I reckon is about 35 years, and I thought that if I didn't paint them now I probably never would.  So here they are - very, very old, pre-slottabase Citadel sculpts (with one exception).  These are from the early/mid-1980s, when the castings were almost black, not the bright shiny metal you see nowadays (and of course were real lead, not the zinc alloy that is now widely used).  Looking at the Stuff of Legends website, these figures were originally marketed as "Great Goblins" and Night Goblins", the latter being noticeably smaller than the former.

It was very satisfying painting figures that I've owned for so long.  I wish I could remember why these weren't already painted, as I tended to paint most of the stuff I bought as a teenager.  Most of my gaming in those days was Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, as opposed to large battles; so maybe I just never needed these for any actual gaming.  The figures do show their age - and I bet the sculptors had a lot of fun seeing who could make a nose which looked most like a....different part of male anatomy.  Some of the Greater Goblins have beards, and one has a rather odd moustache (unless it's supposed to be rivulets of snot).  Of course the key question for painting goblins is whether to do green or brown flesh.  I decided to go with the more traditional "Tolkein-esque" leathery brown, mainly because I thought that would be easier to paint (although I do have some green goblins in my collection).  I used a triad of Coat-d'Arms paints: "Chestnut Brown 219", "Hairy Brown 120" and "Barbarian Leather 116"; and then a very light final highlight of Citadel "Balor Brown".  

The only non-Citadel figure here is a bona fide Crooked Dice 7TV sculpt, the "Goblin King".  He sits on a throne, which is itself a very detailed resin sculpt.  Crooked Dice make various packs of goblins, which I assume are a better match in terms of size and style.  The king is bigger than the Citadel sculpts, and a bit more "human-looking"; but I don't think that matters and he makes an excellent "boss".  He is part of Crooked Dice's range of figures for their "Valley of Dread" scenario pack.  Also from that range is a "Goblin Gate", which acts as a backdrop. A couple of the photos are a bit crappy and out of focus - sorry about that.  I expect there are some more of these critters lurking in the outer reaches of the leadpile, so there may be a follow-up post in due course.

13 figures, 1 throne and a gate. Painted October 2024.

The reverse of the throne.

"Goblin Gate" and guards