Ladies and gentlemen, I am sure by now each of you will have heard about the brand new, and wildly popular, Lord of the Rings tradable miniature game. What's that? You have no Middle-Earthly idea of what I'm talking about!!! Well, then by all means, let me be the first, but certainly not the last, to tell you all about it. The fine folks at Sabertooth Games (www .sabertoothgames.com ) have recently introduced the latest in the ever expanding table top mini-game universe. The company has taken the genre by storm, producing a line of pre-painted, painstakingly detailed figures, based on arguably the most beloved series of fantasy books, and movies, of all time. The figures themselves, in addition to their movie-accurate sculpting, and scale, boast the new Combat Hex system of game-play, allowing beginners an all too easy opportunity to learn a new game. The game is quickly gaining a solid foothold in an industry dominated by the range of products put out by the current mini champion...Wizkids. With the advent of Hero Clix, both the DC and Marvel versions, and the recent addition of the compatible Indy Clix game, they have broadened their scope from just Mage Knight, or Mech Warrior. Each of these aforementioned games is either currently going strong, or quickly picking up speed. I, for one, am absolutely thrilled at the diversity put forth by each company. Even old school Dungeons and Dragons fans are breathing a sigh of relief as they play their legitimately named, though poorly conceived D&D minis game. (I mean, no clickable base!!.. Stat Cards!?... what the?!) What is the difference?, you ask. Well, admittedly, the Wizards of the Coast, and Wizkids customer/retailer support programs are top-notch, the staff at Sabertooth Games is taking their ante a few steps above and beyond. They've aggressively sought out comic and gaming shops, nationwide, both known for carrying such product, and those yet to take the gaming plunge, and pulled out all the stops toward carrying their product. With a license that spans the three movies/books, they have promised to go after the rights to produce additional expansions for The Hobbit, as well as other Tolkien works. ( Silmarillion, anyone! We need to keep our fingers crossed.) If that wasn't tantalizing enough, they have a schedule that will include a series of expansions, interspaced by in-scale, playable creatures such as the Cave Trolls, Ents, Fell Beasts, and possibly Sauron himself. Sabertooth is releasing nearly 25 separate Limited Edition pieces, both as promos, and as Tournament prizes. These already include bow-wielding Lurtz and Legolas, a completely different sculpt on the Ringwraith, and an Eowyn figure that is one of only 1,000. With horse mounted characters, map pack expansions, and talk of 3-D castle wall sets abound, this game isn't going anywhere anytime soon. One last thing though, I am begging someone, anyone with too much time on their hands to put together a bridge between the playing systems of some of these games. I mean, c'mon, how incredible would it be to my Hellboy take on a Fell Beast, or a pack of Warg Riders get trounced by the Batman/Spider-Man/Judge Dredd dream team. Or, heaven forbid, the Dark Lord Sauron assailed by.....A DOZEN SENTINELS!!! Crazy. Who's with me?
Todd Dark
Special Correspondent
Acme Comics and Toys with additional info from the Bat-Marc.