My original 13 part Rat by Any Other Name series covered a lot of ground, but a few figures managed to slip through the cracks that have since come to my attention. And as time marches on numerous new offerings have sprung up, primarily on Kickstarter, which seems currently the venue of choice for most sculptors jumping into the market.
To kick off the new year, I thought it was high time I spotlighted some of these ever-increasing options for rodent connoisseurs. I'll save the Kickstarters and bigger lines for the next post(s), so for now I will just run through a menagerie of smaller additions, in no particular order.
To kick off the new year, I thought it was high time I spotlighted some of these ever-increasing options for rodent connoisseurs. I'll save the Kickstarters and bigger lines for the next post(s), so for now I will just run through a menagerie of smaller additions, in no particular order.
To start with, one very early Wererat miniature I missed in my initial outing was this rare fellow from the Chronicle CM series. (CM16 to be exact). Originally an independent miniatures company, started and sculpted by Nick Lund, Chronicle was bought out by Citadel, who then ceased production of the line when Nick Lund left them for Grenadier.
I think this guy is gorgeous, and if any reader of this blog has one they'd be willing to part with or a line on where to acquire him, I'd be most grateful.
Now, let's return to Gaspez Arts whom I originally talked about in Part VII, particularly raving over their fantastic Big Topi. Well, Big Topi has recently been joined by Big Fat Mouse, a corpulent rodent behemoth who apparently enjoys attacking his enemies with a make-shift flail composed of rats tied together by their tails.
Now, let's return to Gaspez Arts whom I originally talked about in Part VII, particularly raving over their fantastic Big Topi. Well, Big Topi has recently been joined by Big Fat Mouse, a corpulent rodent behemoth who apparently enjoys attacking his enemies with a make-shift flail composed of rats tied together by their tails.
 |  |
Big Fat Mouse reminds me quite a bit of the early Skaven Bloodbowl star player back from 2nd edition that was never produced...
...Well, officially, at least. Every once in a while on Ebay this fellow pops up, a fan sculpt clearly based upon this early design:
Speaking of fanmade figures, I ran across an interesting Heroclix conversion of TMNT's Splinter from a Mole Man mini, courtesy of one "Skrull Dad"
In regards to Heroclix, though I've largely avoided pre-painted minis in this series so far, I must at the least express my appreciation for the Blightrat figure from the sadly defunct Dreamblade line
And speaking of those who lack the time or inclination to paint up miniatures, but would still enjoy an accessible army of Ratmen to play with, Brave Adventures does a line of paper minis available as pdf downloads from RPGNow :
Fanath Art is another European sculpting group making Blood Bowl alternatives, which includes two Ratman figures: a Ratman with Plague Ball and Ratmen Gutter Mutant.
Bronze Age Miniatures is a Utah-based miniature company mostly known for their Frank Frazetta-inspired line. They offer three Ratmen figures with a particularly medieval flavour:
 |  |  |
Dwarven Forge, mostly famed for their pre-painted terrain, offer their own small clan of Ratmen. The sculpts remind me a bit of Ral Partha's Ratlings in style and stature
Oathsworn miniatures offers a small group of Ratmen intended for use in their Burrows & Bunnies skirmish game. The sculpts are okay, but unfortunately Michael Lovejoy, co-owner, has a reputation as a bit of an arrogant twit on social media.
  |   |   |
The Dungeons of Doom III Kickstarter included one Ratmen figure, the evocatively-named Horsepuncher Jones
Aradia Miniatures recently offered the quite gorgeous Bismuth: Treasure Seekers, sculpted by Ali Jalali and screaming out for an impressive Rat Ogre Bonebreaker conversion:
Turnkey miniatures was started in 2013 by Craig Jirowetz and his partner Stephanie to continue many of the lines once offered by the late and lamented Mega-Minis. Included is a set of giant rats including a large and vicious-looking ratman
Gydran Miniatures Studio is, as of this writing, currently running a small Kickstarter to fund the creation of one "Pelegian Sapper - Sci-fi Rat Trooper," an appropriately dynamic H.R.U.D. -proxy for those inclined towards Space rodents.
To go from the current to the classic, Ral Partha Europe offers a set of 4 miniatures entitled "Difar Demons," which are suspiciously Ratlike in appearance
And to finish up I want to make a shout out to Geoff Solomon-Sims, of Oakbound Studios, who posted the following WIP recently on the Oldhammer Sculpting Group of a ratman that is uncannily similar in style to the original Jes Goodwin Skaven that I love so dearly. I eagerly await this fellow being completed and available for sale, and hope that if Geoff can so successfully capture the spirit of Goodwin again in the future, that this one example will soon be joined by a line of such Ratmen that could join my verminous hordes.
COMING UP NEXT: The Update continues with several Kickstarter lines, as well as a surprising post-WWI themed group of Rats.