The Taproom
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- This topic has 6,719 replies, 38 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 2 months ago by Barliman.
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May 22, 2008 at 5:22 pm #2273
I really can’t wait to get my hands on those figures!
Don’t worry Master Tree about looking at those newsletters, we are here to help you out when you need it!May 22, 2008 at 9:44 pm #2274Huooommmm .. thanks a lot for that, Master Jdbrownn55, indeed. … I do appreciate your offer …homrhuom …
May 25, 2008 at 12:26 pm #2275Rhhooommmrhuoommmm … hom … it has become a bit quiet around here …. hoommm … so I spend my time cleaning warg-skins and keeping them spiders away from the tab in the room …
May 25, 2008 at 6:01 pm #2276Actually, the wargskin rugs are supposed to scare the spiders away. But as you say, it has gone a little quiet round here. Maybe I should instal a duke-box (like a juke-box, except that it plays madrigal music).
While you’re about, Master Tree, have you heard any rumours lately regarding when the next batch of Mw347 Dwarves might appear on eBay? They’re certainly slower in appearing than even the Mw347s were.
May 25, 2008 at 8:22 pm #2277Are there more dwarves in the series MW346 apart from the 3 that went on Ebay? I thought they were the only ones there …:rolleyes:
May 25, 2008 at 11:23 pm #2278Yes, their are more dwarves. They are the Warband that would have been released, but how many were actually made is the big question. I don’t know how many we will see, but I imagine that some others will be sold in the future by Mr. Tubb.
May 26, 2008 at 5:41 am #2279From an email message I had from The Man a couple of years ago, I think there were approx 20 Dwarves in the Mw346 set – which probably means something along the lines of the command group we’ve already seen plus several variants (four, very likely) of each of several different warrior poses, as in the Mw347 set and the two earlier ‘Warbands’. I also seem to recall (though my memory isn’t all that it was…) that our resident Ent has been told that, unlike the Half-orcs, none of this set have gone missing during the intervening years.
May 26, 2008 at 3:57 pm #2280huooommmmm … sorry, no news about those tiny dwarves …. ahem, I forgot to ask The Man …
I think it’s a good guess, Master Barliman, …. about twenty, I also think, though the Gondorians and orcs in the later armies were more … huommm …. so, did I really say that, Master Barliman? … rhuom … I cannot recall having received and given any details about missing or non-missing dwarves of that army …. huommm … but my memory might match yours by now.May 26, 2008 at 4:04 pm #2281More probably it’s my memory that’s at fault. The only thing I don’t seem to have difficulty remembering is who hasn’t paid their tab.
May 27, 2008 at 8:49 pm #2282Fantastic! more dwarves!
I adore the dwarves, although it must be acknowledged that they are well represented in Mithril. In the series “Thorin & Dain” we have a good example of what we can expect from those who appear on the Mw346
May 28, 2008 at 7:39 am #2283actually, among the races that are quite missing in the mithril range is…. “heavy armored” (that does not necessarily mean platemail but even chainmail) elves…
we have some of them of course, mainly personnalities…. but other elves, are mainly wood elves, or light armored elves. The only “wargeared” elves so far are those from the Warforge series (which is not mithril)May 28, 2008 at 9:04 am #2284Yes, I’ve often thought it’s a pity that the Lothlorien guards in their grey mail and white cloaks aren’t represented in the Mithril range. I’m not so sure about ‘heavily-armoured’ elves, though. Is it ever intimated that they had any heavier sort of armour than mail? I know Chris has often given them plate armour, but I don’t think this is actually supported by any of JRRT’s writings – or is it? Please correct me if I’m wrong!
May 28, 2008 at 9:39 am #2285There is an essay about it on this by Mr. Joe Piela. Not if you know. Not only is a study of armor, also of weapons.
This is the link:
May 28, 2008 at 9:49 am #2286when i say “heavy armored” it can most assurely be chainmail…. But most of the elvenchainmails we see in mithril range are “light chain”… There is no need of plate, but chainmail with full chain arms, chain leggings, helms, and gloves (full armor) is very very rarly seen. Most elves have arms unprotected. I have always wondered why almost all elves have “bare arms”, ok for wood elves, but there are not only wood elves
I doubt that elves during the Last Alliance, went to war in such a fashion… and the only “war gear” elves we have are in plate armor…. (which is open to debate), and mostly they are personnalities.
When it comes to the “host of valinor” which is outside Tolkien Enterprise Licence, no matter if it is plate or chain type or armor, but I am most certain it is a “heavy gear” covering all the body including arms, hands, and head.
Celebrimbor and Anatar in the last vignette have a good armor for this purpose, though there is indeed some pieces of plates at shoulders and knees.
May 28, 2008 at 10:42 am #2287The absence of armour on the arms would be explained in practical terms by the inconvenioence of the weight when shooting with a bow.
The only reference in JRRT that could be interpreted as indicating plate armour of any sort is that to the Haradrim use of ‘overlapping brazen plates’, but my own feeling is that he intended scale or, less probably, lamellar armour.
May 28, 2008 at 12:31 pm #2288Gildor Inglorion wrote:when i say “heavy armored” it can most assurely be chainmail…. But most of the elvenchainmails we see in mithril range are “light chain”… There is no need of plate, but chainmail with full chain arms, chain leggings, helms, and gloves (full armor) is very very rarly seen. Most elves have arms unprotected. I have always wondered why almost all elves have “bare arms”, ok for wood elves, but there are not only wood elvesI doubt that elves during the Last Alliance, went to war in such a fashion… and the only “war gear” elves we have are in plate armor…. (which is open to debate), and mostly they are personnalities.
When it comes to the “host of valinor” which is outside Tolkien Enterprise Licence, no matter if it is plate or chain type or armor, but I am most certain it is a “heavy gear” covering all the body including arms, hands, and head.
Celebrimbor and Anatar in the last vignette have a good armor for this purpose, though there is indeed some pieces of plates at shoulders and knees.
nice thing to discuss.
being part of the re-enactment- scene (those freaks doing fighting with swords as part of medieval events) I know, that speed is mostly the key of success. Most close combats are no longe than some minutes as one blow is the final one, which kills or hurts so heavy, that your enemy cannot strike back (sorry, war is a bloody affair). I always thought, that elves must be quickly with their strikes, so that their armour is lighter not to hinder their “speedy” figthing abilities. Wearing mail armour is heavy enough, so that you cannot fight with it much longer than a very few 2 hours- mail seems much lighter to any fighter than plate, which makes you almost immovable. Plate was historically only common for cavalry units and in the latest Middle Ages as the gunpowder weapons became so popular, that mail wa almost useless (and the Royals and the nobility did not want to be killed or hurt heavily ).
As the 3rd Age of Middle Earth is one of secret warfare, where especially the Elves fight with bows and spears striking surprisingly from hidden places, heavy armour would be a “heavy weakness” instead of a protection.
In my mind the evil side is generally better equipped in the 3rd Age than the Free peoples as reflected in Sarumans troops.Hope to have thrown in some new aspects.
NAMARIE
estelMay 29, 2008 at 2:52 am #2289Hey Barly, I always got the impression that Tolkien intended Prince Imrahil to have at least some plate over chain, due to the reference of his “burnished vambrace” or something to that effect when he came upon the Rohirrim bearing the injured Eowyn into Minas Tirith.
May 29, 2008 at 3:07 am #2290I am not sure about plate over chain, but some sort of plated armour over mail makes a lot more sense. You can easily have nice polished vambraces and so forth without going all high medieval plate armour. So, far as I can tell, the Imrahil recently released is perfect.
All we need now is a foot model of him.
Gavin
May 29, 2008 at 5:30 am #2291Yes, I’d forgotten about the Imrahil/Eowyn vambrace moment – which is odd, since I’ve pointed it out to other people on many an occasion (memory like a lumber room, etc…). But I agree with Gavin re this incident not being an excuse to go full-frontal Gothic on us. Early medieval – maybe c.1220-1240 in this instance in ‘real’ world terms – seems more appropriate, when the most plate armour that tended to be seen generally consisted of pieces to protect the outside of the arms, the front of the legs and sometimes (but way less often, and frequently made up of quite small plates attached to a foundation) the breast; and even these pieces were often hardened leather rather than metal.
All in all, though, I suspect it’s the overall ‘feel’ of a Mithril figure’s appearance that dictates whether or not it gets away with wearing ‘heavy’ armour. For instance, I dislike the armoured LR Ringwraiths intensely, but feel the mounted Elrond and Gil-galad figures somehow get away with wearing pretty much the same kit. Odd, that.
May 30, 2008 at 6:09 am #2292Barliman wrote:Yes, I’d forgotten about the Imrahil/Eowyn vambrace moment – which is odd, since I’ve pointed it out to other people on many an occasion (memory like a lumber room, etc…). But I agree with Gavin re this incident not being an excuse to go full-frontal Gothic on us. Early medieval – maybe c.1220-1240 in this instance in ‘real’ world terms – seems more appropriate, when the most plate armour that tended to be seen generally consisted of pieces to protect the outside of the arms, the front of the legs and sometimes (but way less often, and frequently made up of quite small plates attached to a foundation) the breast; and even these pieces were often hardened leather rather than metal.All in all, though, I suspect it’s the overall ‘feel’ of a Mithril figure’s appearance that dictates whether or not it gets away with wearing ‘heavy’ armour. For instance, I dislike the armoured LR Ringwraiths intensely, but feel the mounted Elrond and Gil-galad figures somehow get away with wearing pretty much the same kit. Odd, that.
Dear Barliman,
1220-1240 are not the early Middle Ages but the High Middle Ages. But I think you are perfectly right about the armoury of the knights, which tended to be a little bit more plate at that time. Must have been the improved bows and crossbows and the development of the pike used by the peasantry used in the many wars which forced the smiths to create heavier armour for their lords.
I also agree to your second note, that it is the overall ‘feel’ of a Mithril figure’s appearance which leads to give it armour this or that way. For Manwes sake Chris has done mostly what I expected
which is a fine thing. Concerning dwarves, I hope to see some day the 13 dwarves without armour, more in a ranger or traveller look (even dwarves would not travel with mail if they do not got to war).
What do the members her think about the look of the Royal Gondorian soldiery, I mean the usual soldier of MT? When I was a boy I found them ridiculous but having grown old I love these figure-designs very much. I do not think the MT warrior in the field should wear much armour, as this would hinder his marching speed on the field and I always had the idea from Tolkiens descriptions, that Gondor has won his battles by large and highly disciplined infantry (and not by TIN-MEN!!).
NAMARIE
estel -
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