2007 Editor’s Choice Award Top Ten list
So after some deliberation we have managed to narrow down our list of nominees to a top ten list. TGN staffers Zac Belado, Grant Hill and Bob Barnetson each submitted a ranked vote for all the nominees and this list is a result of the cumulative votes each writer gave to the our full list of nominees.
We hope to have the winner picked in the next few days but until then take a look at our choices and if you feel so inclined tell us what your favourite releases were this year.
Update: the 2007 Editor’s Choice Award winner has been announced.
Privateer Press Hordes: Evolution
Privateer Press has a long history of producing excellent expansions for their Warmachine and Hordes games and the Hordes: Evolution expansion is an example of Privateer at their best. Great art, great layout and a fun set of new units and Warlocks for the Hordes game. Not only does Hordes: Evolution look good but it provides a really interesting and fun set of new units for the game. This is a great example of a company that is striving to not only beat the competition but also to exceed their own past accomplishments.
Impact! Miniatures Deadwood Stumpy
Even if you don’t play Impact! Miniatures’ Elfbowl game or any other fantasy football game this is a great figure to have. The Deadwood Stumpy is an Undead Treeman sculpted by Alex Garrett that includes great features like a vulture posed on top of it and an internal section that includes a pile of skulls. This is a great fantasy figure that can be used for almost any type of gaming situation and could even be repurposed as some sort of primitive shrine by removing the front section of the figure. It is a great sculpt, a great idea and just a fun miniature.
Gamezone Miniatures Venerable Thaumaturge
The quality of sculpting at Gamezone has improved dramatically in the last few years and the Venerable Thaumaturge is one of the better miniatures in Gamezone’s last series of releases. This miniature is part of a group of mounted “Empire” characters that include a priest, general and wounded trooper all of which are exceptional sculpts. Gamezone is often criticized for creating “knockoffs” of Games Workshop miniatures and with these figures it is apparent that GW really should be aiming to achieve the same standards that Gamezone have now reached. The Venerable Thaumaturge has exquisite detail and immense amounts of character and is perhaps one of the best 28mm scale fantasy releases this year.
ZUZZY Terra-Flex table-top terrain mats
Terrain mats used to be flat. And then the fine folks at ZUZZY decided to come out with textured latex rubber mats with contours and the same level of detail that is on the rest of your gaming terrain. Previously in order to get this sort of texture on your game tables you had to create table sections from foam insulation or other similar material. A situation that required a fair amount of storage space. These mats roll up, can be drybrushed and blotted for a quick paint job and make it easy to provide a great backdrop for your tabletop gaming. Now if only they made a mat with a more diabolical theme…
Asmodée Grand Damné De La Colère
Asmodée’s Grand Damné De La Colère is a literal representation of the word visceral. The model is flayed with sections of its own skin used to attach the two mammoth weapons it carries to its hands. The skin around its neck and head appear to have been crudely stapled to its body and the Grand Damné is wearing a belt made up of the arms of a corpse that is carries on its back. The sculpt is beautiful and repugnant at the same time and the figure is screaming in rage or pain or perhaps both and it charges into combat. No one sculpt better defines what it is that sets apart the Hell Dorado game from any of its competitors and it helps explain the appetite for this game in the English speaking world.
Rackham AT-43
Say what you want about prepainted miniatures but Rackham is really firing on all cylinders when it comes to AT-43. Great concepts for their figures, an interesting background, an innovative game and army building system and a game that people want to play. Did I mention apes in power armour? It has taken a while for some of the kinks in their distribution to be worked out but the fourth faction for AT-43 is now coming out and it looks as if the future is bright for this sci-fi mass combat game. If Rackham can keep themselves in the black this game may save them and may also redfine the company and possibly the hobby.
Pulp Figures’ Cowled Cultists
Bob Murch’s Cowled Cultists are the pulp-gaming equivalent of Star Trek’s Red Shirts. You need them to fill out the plot line, but odds are good they are going to die. Odds are very good in fact. These figures are at once full of character and entirely anonymous. Whether disciples of the Ancient One or surprisingly organized hillbillies, these boys are incredibly versatile and well sculpted. They are also nicely differentiated by height, girth and choice of weapon. Perhaps this is part of the appeal of pulp gaming - figures that exude individuality, even wearing identical cowls.
Catalyst Game Labs Classic Battletech Introductory Set
Two maps, two rulebooks and 24 plastic BattleMechs for $40 US. It is a recipe for a great starter set. One of the real failings of the BattleTech franchise for many years has been a lack of a way to get new gamers interested in the system. Catalyst Game Labs solved that problem with the release, at Gen Con Indy, of the Classic Battletech Introductory Set. Not only does it provide great value for gamers but the trimmed down ruleset makes it easy for beginners to start playing BattleTech. If you are an existing fan then the miniatures provide very good value and if you are new to the game then it provides an excellent entry point into what is a very expansive game in terms of rules and background.
eBob Miniatures King Edward I
It’s difficult to imagine a 28mm scale figure looking down its nose at you but eBob has managed to pull it off with the haughty and regal Kind Edward I miniature from his Scottish Rebellion range of figures. The figure comes mounted or on foot and it is the mounted version that really excels. eBob has a real knack for horses (in fact his horse masters grace a few other historical manufacturers catalogues) and the easy manner in which Edward is astride his horse surveying the battlefield adds “bags of character” to the model. The detailing on the horse’s trappings are well done and the figure really meets that critical mass that pushes this from a good historical figure to a mini you want to buy and paint regardless of your gaming interests.
Forge World Aeronautica Imperialis Ork Bommer
While I’m a big fan of 6mm scale gaming and Epic in particular I’ve never really been a big fan of any of the GW or Forge World Epic Ork miniatures. The exception to this are the Forge World Aeronautica Imperialis Ork aircraft and in particular the massive and highly detailed Ork Bommer. The model is positively baroque with detail and has some nice Orky features like a bank of mismatched Shootas along both sides of the model and an Ork pushing bombs out the back door of the aircraft. Forge World also has two ground attack versions of this model but for me the Bommer is the definitive model in this series.