2006 Year in review
2006 was a great year. New companies came out with a wide array of great new miniatures and products. New paint lines were announced and released. And if you were a tabletop gamer it was a difficult to say “no” to all the new figs and games that were made available. Here is a list, with commentary, about some of the more memorable stories from the year arranged by the month in which they were posted.
January
- Alpha Forge releases Star Mogul
28mm sci-fi manufacturer Alpha Forge releases rules to support their own range of miniatures. - GW stock warning and analysis
Who could have foreseen a dramatic drop in Lord of the Rings sales? Almost everyone except GW it appears. - Dark Realms Miniatures website opens
Brand new 6mm sci-fi manufacturer opens their new website
February
- Harbinger ceases production
Print magazine Harbinger stops publication - Black Devils released
More great 15mm WWII troops from Resistant Rooster. This time its Soviet Naval troops. - Excelsior loses licenses
Warzone licensee Excelsior has their license pulled and the company slips away - Classic Battletech rerelease
Battletech fans rejoice at the prospect of a return to the “classic” Battletech rules.
March
- Mongoose previews 10mm sci-fi miniatures
Now you see them… 10mm minis get announced by Mongoose and then disappear. - Battlegames issue 1 now available
One magazine folds and a new one takes its place. Its the circle of life. - Pig Iron Wardroid available
Who can resist a cool looking sci-fi droid with big guns? - Roman Seas released
6mm scale Roman naval warfare game that you can print yourself. - Black Scorpion Miniatures Tombstone preview
The beginning of a line of stylish 28mm scale western miniatures. - Axis and Allies ‘War at Sea’ sneaks out
Wizards posted information about a new game in a catalogue but fails to actually announce it. - TGN moved
A new ISP and a new CMS for TGN - Dark Realm range shipping
Dark Realm ships the first of their 6mm sci-fi miniatures.
April
- Forge World Death Korps pictures
Our first peek at the Forge World resin Death Korps minis - Hordes:Primal review
Hordes was released and we took an extensive look at it and the miniatures. - Cities of Death
Plastic sci-fi terrain with one or two skulls used as a subtle embellishment. - Musketeer Miniatures online
A new 28mm scale historical manufacturer opens their doors.
May
- Free FoW second edition rulebook
Battlefront rewards loyal gamers with a free rulebook - New GF9 Pirates accessories
GF9 expands into producing terrain and accessories for Whizkids and Wizards which indicates the depth of those markets. - Scotia Grendel acquires Void 1.1
“We liked casting the miniatures so much that we bought the company” - Miniature Scenery releases Troop Lander
Note to GW lawyers. Its not a Drop Pod. Honest. - Secrets of the Third Reich announced
You got Pulp in my WWII gaming! No, you got WWII in my Pulp gaming!
June
- Black Hat acquires Crusader ranges
Black Hat miniatures expands - Rackham post AT-43 teaser poster
Pre-painted? What an interesting concept. I wonder if anyone else thinks its a good idea? - Amazing War Stories released
Rattrap Productions adds more Weird War goodness to their Pulp gaming ruleset - Zeppelin troops in gasmasks
How can you not like 28mm scale Zeppelin troopers with gasmasks?
July
- Star Mogul: Distant Worlds released
The Hydrissians are part of the first expansion for Star Mogul - With Hostile Intent miniatures on sale
Ninja Magic’s first starship miniatures are released to the general public - Drantakh miniatures released
Regiment Games release a new 28mm sci-fi race with a wide range of troops
August
- Mongoose announces Battlefield Evolution
Prepainted minis. What a great idea! Mongoose announces a new 28mm scale modern warfare game that bears some similarity to a popular computer game - Starship Troopers Evolution
Oh, and we’re coming out with pre-painted SST minis as well. - Scrunts, Hydrissians and more in 5150
Alpha Forge shows how to market minis… let other people help you sell them by including them in their own rules. - Black Hat buys Gladiator Games
Black Hat’s quest for global miniature domination continues with their acquisition of Gladiator Games. - Rattrap Productions announces Gloire
High-flying adventures in the era of the Four Musketeers.
September
- Urban War: Strike-Team Actions
Urban Mammoth renames their Urban War game to avoid confusion with their upcoming Metropolis rules. - Winter Finnish infantry from Resistant Roosters
Resistant Roosters continues their 15mm releases with new Finnish winter troops - Vanguard: Men At Arms released
The Figure Trader releases a new 40mm skirmish game and a series of historical miniatures - Take On You presents Tannhäuser
Pre-painted 28mm scale Pulp figures. It comes with a boardgame as well. - New hover-tank prototype from Antenociti’s Workshop
Amazing 28mm scale sci-fi hover tank kit that you can build your own way.
October
- Zombie Baluchi from Obelisk
Zombies on camels! - Mephalians unleashed
Another new sci-fi race from Alpha Forge. Interesting pseudo humanoid design - Announcing Anima: Tactics
30+mm scale Anime influenced skirmish game - Avatars of War Dwarf hero available
Note to GW lawyers. Its not a Dwarf Slayer.Honest! - Pre-painted miniatures from C-P Models
C-P Models announces that they will no longer sell bare metal minis but will only sell pre-painted figures - 5150 Star Wars
Star Wars Miniatures figs and the 5150 rules. Great fun - Mega Miniatures buys Armourcast Terrain
Armourcast’s range of terrain changes hands - JR Miniatures 15mm fields
New RVT terrain from JR Miniatures to complement their existing RVT terrain - Exodus Wars announced
Another new 6mm sci-fi manufacturer. Who says there isn’t a market for 6mm sci-fi minis. - Pig Iron Heavy Infantry
More great 28mm sci-fi figs. This time troops with multiple heads and optional backpacks - 28mm Nazi Zombies from East Riding
The slow shuffle of the brown-shirted undead. Captured in 28mm scale minis - Harbinger 26 ready for download
Harbinger comes back from its dormant state in a new PDF format electronic magazine.
November
- State of the Mongoose Address
Mongoose head honcho Matt Sprange looks back at 2006 and then forward to 2007 - Classic BattleTech Miniatures Rules
Free miniature rules for Classic Battletech - Rebellion range released
One person’s Scottish and English troops are another person’s Dunlendings and Gondor troops. - City Grounds city surface
Great as a basis for GW’s City of Death terrain despite the odd size of the boards - Terrain Boards from Kobblestone
Great boards for Confrontation - Privateer Press launches Parts Service
Launched a month after TGN Editor Zac Belado bought a whole Seneschal miniature to get the back banners. - MechWarrior Terrain available
Great terrain for any 6mm sci-fi game - Baccus announce Command Horizon
New 6mm sci-fi range and rules from Baccus - Dragonblood announces pre-painted miniatures
Another smaller miniature manufacturer announced prepainted figures. Is it a trend? - 15mm Painted Russian Cabins
JR Miniatures released painted and unpainted 15mm Russian cabins - Prepainted miniatures and more from Elhiem
The trend continues. More prepainted 20mm scale WWII figures - Kerr & King European “City in a box”
Great new 15mm scale rubbled buildings for your Flames of War table - Battlefield Evolution stock warning
North American Battlefield Evolution gamers may not be able to get their hands on stock
December
- Metropolis rules released
Urban Mammoth previews a draft version of their Metropolis rules. It’s Void meets Urban War. - 15mm US Marines from Eureka
More 15mm Flames of War compatible minis, this time from Australian manufacturer Eureka. - Alpha Forge releases Zombies
Not Nazi zombies it’s sad to say but still some interesting zombie sculpts for those who like post WWII horror gaming. - FanPro Direct launched
FanPro decides to open an online store to sell their gaming and RPG products direct to consumers - AE-WWII starter sets available
Darkson Designs releases the starter sets for the AE-WWII Weird War game. - Privateer Press announces price increase
Thankfully I already bought that Senescahl - World War 2 Evolution announced
No word on whether there is prepainted miniatures but Mongoose announces a new WWII game based on the SST/Battlefield Evolution rules