| In the first book of the Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien described a great
monster of the ancient earth, an ancient demon that came up from the depths
and directed the annihilation of a Dwarven city and its inhabitants. Its
encounter with the Fellowship of the Ring is vivid and frightening, beginning
with a mounting battle between its Orc minions and the party and culminating
in a fateful duel with Gandalf the Grey. |
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| Original image courtesy Sabertooth Games. |
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Sabertooth Games has captured some of this drama in The Balrog, one of the
most recent releases in its "Premium Line" of figures for the
Lord of the Rings Tradeable Miniatures Game, a collection of especially
nice and larger-than-normal models within the series of mostly-28-millimeter
pre-painted figures. And this model--it seems sort of odd to call it a "miniature"--is
premium indeed. It is, in fact, a proportionally accurate model of the ancient
demon battled by Gandalf in the Mines of Moria, and it is of epic proportions,
some 9 ½ inches tall--making it a scale 45 to 50 feet tall! Detail
is excellent, and includes a massive flaming sword, a beautiful pair of
unfurling bat wings, and a snarling, fanged visage. |
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| There are actually two figures in this set, the other one being Gandalf
in the pose he assumes when stating to the foul creature, "You shall
not pass!" This is a perfectly serviceable little figure, and sure
to be an asset in a wargame, but is somewhat overshadowed by the huge, colorful,
almost animate Balrog. Indeed, while all of the figures for the LotR Tradeable
Miniatures Game are nice, it is the monsters in the series that are the
most impressive--and it is The Balrog that is foremost among them. |
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| Original image courtesy Sabertooth Games. |
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| Both of the figures in The Balrog set are mounted on stands characteristic
of Sabertooth's innovative "Combat Hex" tabletop wargaming system,
which include full game statistics for the miniatures in question. Other
items in the set include a large custom d6 with a Balrog image on one face
and a pamphlet with new special rules for the Combat Hex system. These rules
include "Moving the Large Model" and five new special abilities
that could be applied to it or other figures, as appropriate: Fearsome,
Terrifying, Volley Attack, Flyer, and Large. |
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A number of other companies have tried their hands at creating miniature
versions of similar creatures over the years, often with a fair degree of
success. One of the most popular was a Balrog-like lead miniature manufactured
by Grenadier models back in the late 1970s, included in a set of 20 dungeon
denizens, which stood about two inches tall, had good detail, and painted
up nicely. I still have mine, as a matter of fact, as do at least two of
my friends.
This piece, however, is in a different league altogether. That is in
some part due to the advances in miniature-making and plastics technology,
of course, and model like this was not really a commercial possibility back
when Grenadier broke ground with its Balrog.
Needless to say, this model is a must-have for anyone who plays the Lord
of the Rings Tradeable Miniatures Game. This is especially the case for
anyone who might want to recreate the war against Sauron that predates the
main action of the movies (in the movie version of which no Balrogs actually
appear on-screen), or the cataclysmic ancient battles described in Tolkein's
Silmarillion.
Beyond that, however, Sabertooth's Balrog would make a great collectible,
an excellent centerpiece for a diorama or display, and would be an ideal
wargaming piece for any other fantasy role-playing game or wargame. Indeed,
players of any other games should not hesitate to pick one up--because,
quite simply, they are probably not going to be fortunate enough to find
anything else like it. |
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