It was a pleasure to be asked to choose my Top Ten painted figures of 2020 on this blog and also a bit of challenge after seeing those picked by Roger - who did a great job. These are my picks - a combination of the miniature and how it was painted.
I have had the pleasure of seeing a lot of these models in the flesh, but not all due to the lockdown and for that reason I am not sad that 2020 is in the past. I look forward to seeing the rest of these figures for real as the photographs don’t always do them justice, as they act as both an inspiration for me to paint my own stuff and spur on my own enthusiasm. Keep up the painting, keep inspiring me and others to paint and here’s to a better year ahead. So, without further ado…
No. 10 - Mole In A Hole by "Oathsworn Miniatures" – August 7th
This is a lovely little miniature from a great range of anthropomorphic medieval animals. It is full of character and once again is something slightly different. Just a nice little miniature.
No. 9 - Winston Churchill by "Warlord Games" – January 13th
What a quirky little miniature this is. Winston Churchill with a machine gun! This blog always unearths the quirky and the unusual, and this was one of those. A nice simple paint scheme, well executed on a mini that came out of left field!
No. 8 - Granite by "Kitbash Games" – July 23rd
This is a great little model. A superhero that takes ideas from existing characters but is made all the better by the paint scheme in my opinion. The skin is painted well but the red Soviet outfit just adds to the character, making it different and interesting. I love this and wish the Supers Unlimited success with their product.
No. 7 - Venom by "Atomic Mass Games" – December 5th
Another great superhero/villain/antihero model! This looks great! Simon has a good technique for painting black and that is good for this mini! However, it is the tongue and teeth that make it pop and convey something very disturbing and nasty about this creature. Really good stuff!
No. 6 - Zzzax by "Wizkids" – February 22nd
Another comic book character! I know, but bear with me and just have a look at the photos. I don’t know much about this one but the paint job is why I picked this guy to be honest. The body looks awesome, whether that it is fire, electricity, radiation, all three or something else I don’t know. But it looks great. The face is the stand out for me though, really like this one a lot.
No. 5 - Dalek by "Warlord Games" – January 22nd
It is no secret that this blog has a lot of Doctor Who miniatures and there have been plenty of Daleks in the past. So why is this particular model in the top ten? Well 2020 hasn’t seen as many Doctor Who minis as in the past and I really like the way Simon paints his Daleks. So this one is included for a great paint job, nostalgia and because Daleks are so cool!!
No. 4 - Simian Minion by "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" – August 26th
Another quirky little miniature that is painted very nicely. Taking its inspiration from the classic Planet of the Apes film this miniature and paint job captures the spirit of what was at the time astounding make up and a great character. One of many Simians painted this year this one gets picked because I think the mini is the best of the bunch to be honest. Again, nice to see something unusual and a bit different.
No. 3 - Iron Golem by "Wizkids" – January 8th
2020 has been a bit of a Dungeons and Dragons revelation on this blog. Some interesting dungeon beasties have been painted up, some weird, some unusual but this is my pick. Simon is great at painting metal, in particular the slightly rusted, dirty iron that is on this beast and boy does it show. I adore this model, it looks great. Really good painting that raises this model into the top three.
No. 2 - Abominable Snowman by "Wizkids" – March 20th
I just think this paint scheme is superb. The fur has been done very well and looks awesome, and the darker contrasting skin really makes the face pop, draws you to it as a focal point and adds so much character. Perhaps not my favourite mini, or certainly the most dynamic, but wow this paint job just elevates it to the top, well almost…
No. 1 - The Walking Statue of Waterdeep: The Honorable Knight by "Wizkids" – March 23rd
This is the perfect example of the pictures not capturing the full majesty and scale of the thing. It isn’t a miniature, it is a bigature!! The photographs show parts of it because it's simply too large to get a proper full shot of it. This statue is huge. It will dominate any tabletop it is on, and cause people to stop and look for sure. This came as a pre-painted model too, so why on earth would anybody disassemble it, repaint it and then put it back together again? No idea, but I am glad it was as it looks great! The statue has been loving weathered and all the little details like a birds nest and the moss/lichen have been picked out! Simply awesome stuff. Whether this is the ultimate monster encounter for some adventurers or just scenery in a game like "Frostgrave", this model will make you stop and look and admire it for what it is. A work of art.
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