This is a range new to me, from England of course. They present an eclectic assortment of figures from a number of different ranges as well as expanded entries on these ranges and some of their own. The package above, part of the North Star 1672 range, was originally part of Copplestone’s Glory of the Sun range. The company also produces ranges for Osprey’s rules.
A British manufacturer, Kallistra specializes in what they term 1/144 scale, roughly 12mm. Kallistra describes it as epic 10mm. This would put them in the range of AFV and aircraft models produced in Asia though paradoxically, no WWII or modern forces are offered. Instead, ranges cover fantasy, ancient, medieval, ACW, and WWI. There are also 28mm ranges for fantasy and SF, and a 1/3000 spaceship range.
The figures are reasonably attractive and take paint well. They are bigger than 10mm and tower over smaller 10mm figures like Museum Miniatures. Figures are based on strips. As can be seen in the packs above, the bases sometimes offer depth rather than width. This is likely the result of rules published by Kallistra mandating this basing though that is conjecture on my part.
Overall, this is an attractive range at this scale.
Currently, in production but there does not appear to be an active website. The Lost Minis website lists them as out of production though they are still readily available through The Last Square which indicates that items are cast to order, Noble Knights, and Magister Militum which offers some of their trucks.
The focus is on 10mm historical miniatures. Ranges listed are ACW, WWII, and on the more usual side, the Zulu wars and the Franco Prussian War. The figures look pretty clean and slender compared to Old Glory though the artillery pieces seem a bit petite. Officers and their mounts are a single piece.
The company lists an address in Wisconsin.
There seems to be little information on this company though it appears from the Star Blazer figures I have that they were likely producing miniatures for other firms licensed to handle particular products. I have read that the company was started by former employees of Grenadier Miniatures. The six packs below show only a handful of the available Star Blazers miniatures which were likely meant as a tie-in to a ruleset offered at that time. For those unfamiliar with Star Blazers, it was an early anime favorite in the US, altered from its original source to remove much of the violence and death in the original, Space Battleship Yamato.
Another English manufacturer, this one started back in 1980. So it says on the company website. My first encounter with them was through their 1/300th scale aircraft. While they did not seem as highly detailed as GHQ’s line, they were well sculpted and offered a broader range of vehicles.
My second encounter was with a package from their fantasy range, two mounted figures in 28mm. The figures were again well sculpted and had the added interest of combining a resin mount with a metal rider. The resin allowed for a huge squat mount without the weight or cost of metal. The figures also looked good painted. Like so many English firms, I seldom encounter these outside of conventions though I understand they can be purchased on e-bay.
Scotia Grendel seems to have been in the habit of acquiring other ranges and so has a pretty rich range of offerings that also present somewhat eclectic choices.
A company I have heard of only recently, they produce 15mm historical figures mostly ancients and middle ages from what I could see on their webpage. They also offer 28mm fantasy football teams. But where they really seem to take off is with their resin buildings and terrain pieces.
One of the curiosities that appeared in the WRG DBA rules was a rule mandated camps for each army. The camp was inordinately large and was settled off on the edge of the board. It could be as simple as a flat piece of cardboard or as elaborate as anyone could make. I suspect that elaborate camps are the norm as DBA lends itself well to people who enjoy collecting figures and displaying them rather than simply gaming.
Baueda excels in offering an ever-widening range of camp tents, fortifications, and accessories to flesh out even the simplest camp. They offer tents from Greek to Egyptian to Arabic as well as a variety of detail pieces for dressing a camp, most recently, a series of 4 outdoor cooking scenes. For the lazy gamer (me) who can never seem to find the time to sit down and sculpt this stuff, the Baueda pieces are a great help.
Because Baueda is based in Italy, it is likely that most of us will have to purchase through an intermediary. Scale Creep seems to carry a lot of Baueda stock at the moment. Baueda pieces also show up on E-bay sometimes discounted. Otherwise, a list of dealers is available on the ;Baueda website.
Jack Scruby was one of the pioneers of American wargaming providing a miniatures across a wide range of scales and historical periods. Scruby used RTV molds made of silicon rubber which allowed some level of undercutting on figure sculpts, something not possible using molds made of metal. He offered a well printed catalog and sold figures for a nominal price either by mail or through his store.
Additionally, he wrote a number of rules sets, edited and published several magazines on miniatures gaming, organized a club, as well as one of the first miniatures wargaming conventions ever held.
The figures seem relatively uncommon on E-bay and are probably interesting as much for the collector as the gamer. The figures I have seen are reasonably well proportioned with a toy-like appearance. There is little surface detail and just the simple outlines of face, hands, and equipment. Surface detail is lacking. Nevertheless, figures are reasonably proportioned. There is no sense of gnomishness.
I imagine that at the prices he sold these at, there are a lot out there, likely tucked away in boxes. They are one of the oldest wargaming figure sets made in the US.
Perry Brothers long associated with Games Workshop present a shift to historical miniatures. Given the experience of Games Workshop, it is not surprising to find that Perry Brothers produces both plastic and metal figures. The unforgiving nature of 2-piece molds in injection molding precludes any undercuts so the plastic figures show marginal detail along the mold lines. But as one would expect, the price is significantly lower per figure than comparable metal figures.
The Perry brothers, Alan and Michael, have considerable experience in the hobby and an understanding of the needs of historical gaming. As with so many British sculptors, they appear to have an enthusiasm for the English Civil War, the Napoleonic Wars, and the American Civil War. They have also provided illustrations for Osprey publications.
I am currently using these to flesh out the Confederate forces as opposition to the metal Union figures. The quality seems good enough though the light weight takes some getting used to. Hats and some accessories are cast separately on the plastic figures which affords some useful variation in addition to a well thought out range of poses.
An interesting selection of figures, the ones I have bumped into seem to encompass a range covering the late Middle Ages. I purchased several packs because I wanted some billmen and thought it might be fun to break away from the Essex miniatures I have been using. The figures are 15mm and show what is often described as a ‘gnomish’ appearance with a shortened but bulky torso and little or no neck. With a reasonable paint job, they still look fine.
Beyond this, there seems little information on the company available other than that they are located in Spain. Several sites suggest that the historical line of miniatures has been discontinued and they now focus production on figures related to the game Infinity. I suspect that bags of these will still turn up occasionally though their ranges seem well covered by other manufacturers.
One of the older manufacturers, Charles Stadden was a WWII veteran who having left the service, took an interest in the military history of Great Britain and began producing a range of figures and illustrations of the military with an emphasis on Britain’s colonies. Stadden went on to work in a variety of scales for wargaming including 30mm, 25mm, and 20mm. The 20mm figures offer a good match to plastic figures.
Stadden appears to have carved his masters from some suitable material, perhaps plaster or jeweler’s wax. This give the figures a different look with flat areas along the figure surface where a knife was used. One could readily appreciate the patience involved. Even so, the figures look very lifelike with excellent proportions. Stadden’s figures never look lifeless. There is a repetition of poses with new heads and details.