December | 2020 | Little Men at War

The Call of Cthulhu RPG has had a long life and so has spawned a variety of suitable miniatures. The two licensed ranges were from Grenadier and RAFM. The RAFM figures are still available as of this entry.

The figures are 25mm with similar figures listed simply as ‘pulp’ figures ranging up to 28mm. Pulp refers to the pre-tv action/adventure/ horror tales published in cheap magazines made of the cheapest type of paper using pulp wood. The initial stories of the Cthulhu Mythos were published in Weird Tales.

The figures lend themselves well to a variety of RPGs and there are a range of rules to choose from. Needless to say, certain figures resembling Indiana Jones, Amelia Earhart, and Sam Spade appear as a recurrent theme. Monsters from a variety of ranges make suitable antagonists.

Several imported monsters of unknown manufacture listed as Cthulhu Wars. Nyarlathotep is the large blue figure in the back with Shub-Niggureth a bit to the left and the King in Yellow in the foreground.

A Hong Kong Cthulhu War cultist alongside a Grenadier Call of Cthulhu investigator standing on a RAFM base. The scale seems close enough.

A night gaunt from Hong Kong Cthulhu Wars and another from RAFM. Scale seems about the same.

Plenty of other figures mesh with The Call of Cthulhu, here, Ral Partha ghosts.

From Steve Jackson still focusing on less complex rules came this game featuring cars and trucks battling each other on miniature highways, 1” = 15 feet. Later supplements introduced additional vehicles and terrain, boats, helicopters, shopping malls, as well as additional weapons. Though 40 years old, the game and its supplements are still available at Warehouse 23.

Car Wars used card cutouts moved along a square grid at a scale of 1:180, smaller than the more common 1:160 N scale (what else is new?). According to the Stuff of Legends website, a company called T-Rex produced the first miniatures, though molds and masters were soon picked up by Grenadier Miniatures who added a package of trucks.

Left to right, N-scale Classics Metalworks, unknown manufacture purchased in Taiwan, and Car Wars scale miniature.

Some of the vehicles for Car Wars. Notice that they recreate the box art.

Trucks and motorcycles. The trucks suggest these were Grenadier castings.

Currently, miniatures made specifically for Car Wars Are no longer available though with the fifth edition the scale has been modified to accommodate larger scale vehicles. Irregular Miniatures has in the past offered these sort of cars in 6mm though it is not clear if these are still available.

An Inquiry into Miniature War Games