I think gw are probably contractually obliged to do 'something' for the films or we wouldn't have got Laketown - they did the bare minimum, not nothing at all. We've got to try to see that as a positive.

For the next movie, I'm suspecting either a WD Dex, or a digital. Certainly nothing major. Finecast Dain, some finecast dain troops. One, two months releases, tops, and all finecast. (Or resin, if the FW and gw sharing production rumours are true.). I expect them to be around for a year or two at most, until the license expires.

Not a brilliant prognosis, frankly. But let's try to focus on the positives.

We can do The Battle of Five Armies as it was in the book. Lakemen, check (but expensive - but we shan't need too many of them, considering allies of dwarves and elves to make up the points). Dwarves, check (two different kinds to choose from, and a version of Dain already in the rules). Mirkwood, check. Orcs, check (loads - finecast Gundabad Orcs and Goblins, loads of plastic orcs and goblins we can ally in). Wargs, check (plastic, two different types for variety). Eagles, check (plastic!). Spiders and bats, check (less obvious outside of the finecast things priced by men utterly lacking a single rational though, but both are fantasy staples so can be proxied easily enough.). Bolg, check (the oldbolg is even better for book accurate Hobbit, because he's such a hard looking mother). Beorn, check. (Man form available now, bear to come/be proxied). Thorin's company, check (though sadly sans armour).

So, even if this were to be IT (which i don't think WB allows, hence the lakemen exist), we can still do pretty well. Always look on the bright side, and all that.

Barring some crazy Jackson stuff, we can even do dol guldur.

Spiders at the BOTFA?

Very surprising release.

I think the only thing I’ll be buying will be the Master of Laketown. Although I’ll need to compare Bard and decide which to get (assuming they do release the version from the book too).

There really is no way to justify getting many Laketown Guard. I might get 1 or 2 packs, but it also means I won’t bother with Alfred as there won’t be enough troops for him to lead. I’ll get the Master & Bard as they are book characters even if I don’t get anything else.

Damn shame the Laketowners are finecast, there goes the Good-horde army. The models do look gorgeous, especially the archers.

New Bard pose looks brilliant, was hoping it would be another plastic clampack like Legolas and Tauriel.

I'm still wondering if any of the alternative poses for Thorin's Company, which can be seen in the rulebook, will be released in the near future.

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Soso Lobi

But if GW is barely supporting the range, than why do we get to see 2 different Bard sculpts, millions of gandalfs and Bilbo's and a character for pretty much every unit in the films, even Alfrid? Sure, there hasn't been a GRAND release, but what are people expecting? There's close to nothing in the films that hasn't been released already or will be released, so what more can they do for now?
We used to have metal units back in the day that were unattractive as well. (Metal Dunland Folk, Metal Moria Goblins, Metal Ruffians, etc.)

Why don't we all take a chill pill (don't do drugs, kids) and look at the positives, being new miniatures, however few. For now, we get what's in the films, and maybe the range will sell big in the future, and maybe it won't, but I think it's too early to be assuming the worst already.

That being said, the new Bard looks great!

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"Mickey, my friend!"

Two months of releases and still Evil only has the spiders. sigh.

I wonder if in the face of luke warm response to the UEJ releases they are just going to cover the bare bones of what is in the DOS book. They have to bring out the Gundabad orcs at some point because they are in the book but they may just get a token finecast release.

A real pity, that would mean no new plastic evil sets for DOS at all, and a missed opportunity, I imagine many an evil player would buy them in plastic to supplement Mordor armies.

I wont buy them in fine cast, more because I consider it too fragile for gaming, than because of the cost (painful as it is).

I may buy Bard for the cabinet though.

Shame because I think that there is a bit of buzz and momentum growing again around the SBG, and anecdotally I think most of the December releases sold really well.

To speculate wildly:

- The Laketown Guard are just that, some lavishly equipped troops in the service of the Master.
- The Dale Warriors are the former soldiery and warriors of Dale.

Neither of which are exactly a full army. No, what I suspect is that Bard leads a popular levy to Erebor to demand compensation from the Dwarves. So the Men of Laketown at the Battle of the Five Armies will be differently arrayed again, probably with a small cameo by the Laketown Guard. The Guard don't need a lot of figures, so, hence, finecast. The Laketown army probably requires a plastic sprue.

One again, the 2 become 3 movie arrangement is playing merry hell with release schedules....

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Dreaming of getting back to painting...any month now.

I also think people are overly worried about future releases. Just think about it logically.

1. GW is a business that is out to make money.
2. GW has paid a lot of money for LOTR rights
3. GW knows they wont sell a lot of mini's at the prices of the Laketowners
4. GW needs to re-coup as much money as they can even from a "dying" range.
5. If GW "intentionally" bombs out their own range they'll lose even MORE money because of costs to make molds, sculpts and all in addition to the rights to make such figures.
6. GW is contractually obligated to make figures for the final movie, to tank it will only cost them more money.

I think GW is using DOS as a testing-ground, we all know the initial releases sold well and if the rest does moderately well as well then we should be fine when BOFA comes around

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Commission Painting @FB http://www.facebook.com/squyrepainting
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Well put JamesR, do you think we will see a Smaug?

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Harfoots-The first of the Hobbit people to cross over the Misty Mountains and enter Eriador.

personally I do. But not in the way we've ever seen before. I wouldn't be surprised if he was $100-$150 USD and a "limited release"

Also I'm thinking scale-wise around a baneblades since

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Commission Painting @FB http://www.facebook.com/squyrepainting
Commission Customers include:
GBHL Youtube Channel
MiniWargaming

I agree with you.
What does gw have to work on?
Lake town
Mirkwood elves
Mirkwood
Gundabad orcs.
Two of wich have (will be soon) realesed.

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2014 Oathtaker (16 points)

I'm not saying we've reached that point, but can we keep the thread to the releases, and not GW's motives? Thanks...

Appologies, wasn't trying to side-track the discussions at all.

As to the releases I don't understand the trend of the minor decorative aspects like feathers to the models. I personally dont feel it adds anything, but makes the piece look more comical.

The only "intimidating" warriors I have ever seen with Feathers were some of the American Indian tribes, and these are nothing like them.

Obviously "The Master" is supposed to look comical, he's a joke, but why the Guard Captain?

Any thoughts on this?

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Commission Painting @FB http://www.facebook.com/squyrepainting
Commission Customers include:
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MiniWargaming

Lots of militaries use feathers as part of their uniform, especially historically - think landsknechts, the swiss guard, etc. Laketown itself seems to have a sort of shabby-Renaissance theme going on with it's dress sense. They even have sort of slashed sleeves and shirts. It's not meant to be intimidating - it's meant to be pomposity, and the Master is nothing if not a pompous dictator. (He does have a giant statue of himself, after all.)

He is trying to empress the master?

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"the same as a duck you must be made of wood"

They're nice enough, but the price is just outrageous. I have no idea how they expect a range to do well if it's out of most peoples price range. At least in the old days you could get boxes of 10 or so metals. Having said that the Bard is pretty nice.

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Instagram @abbmodels

Agree with you John, Weta are genius at fantasy imagery, the Men of Laketown do bring a bit of colour into the film characters.

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Harfoots-The first of the Hobbit people to cross over the Misty Mountains and enter Eriador.

I think the Laketown Guard are mostly a joke too, in the grand scheme of things. In the film they seem more like bullies than warriors, dumping out barrels of fish fror no good reason and being nowhere in sight during the Orc attack. Perhaps they make the ranks by arse-kissing, not fighting ability?

Having just come back to the SBG front after quite an absence (8 months or so) I'm disappointed with the continuing price creep. I have a better job now than I did when I was last collecting, but it does seem too pricey now despite my better means.

All the Elves look amazing, Legolas and Tauriel especially but I don't really collect or play Elves all that much. I didn't like the Palace Guards' armour designs in the films, so I wouldn't even touch those minis even if they were more reasonably priced. Thranduil is a gret mini, but I still think I like the older metal version better.

Barrels Out of Bond is another silly set that is a lot of money for not much versatility. They're well sculpted but not worth the price imo.

Beorn is awesome looking but disappointing that he doesn't come with his bear form as well.

Thrain the Broken confuses me. At what point was he supposed to make an appearance and why was he cut from the film but allowed to be made as a miniature?

The Spiders are really amazing and they're the most likely item for me to be getting out of all the December releases. Just fantastic!

Now, January's stuff:

The Laketown Guards are incredible models, I really love the sculpting on them. That's why it's so bitterly disappointing that they're in "Fine"cast. I may still grab a few, but only maybe.

The Master and Alfrid are nice minis, but I'm not in love with the characters at all. Since I rarely play, it also doesn't matter if they're amazing in game terms.

Gandalf is possibly the nicest foot pose we have seen for the Grey Wizard yet, but seeing as how I already have a handful I might pass.

Bard, lastly, is an excellent miniature and will surely be finding his way into my collection.

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Gondor: 2339pts
Rohan: 1318pts
Dwarves: 2482pts
Elves: 1091pts
Mordor: 2305pts
Isengard: 1762pts
Moria: 1463pts
Evil Men: 381pts

Right, I've gone away and thought about how this effects my Long Term Plan of Doom. I keep trying to think 20 years ahead - and whether I want to be able to look back and say that I retained my pride and didn't pay more than something was worth, or say that I swallowed my pride and now have an awesome collection.

Since this is me waffling about myself, to myself, I've included a spoiler box.

It was hard for me to stop collecting. I keep thinking back to the 1980's when I did not buy all of the GW LOTR figures. Fine Cast killed my interest in GW products.

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"the same as a duck you must be made of wood"