Blog | Tome of Minis

My Neighbour Totoro Diorama

20th Dec 2022

When I decided I was going to sculpt a Totoro diorama I did think about what shortcuts there might be such as 3D printing, but the problem I felt with that was that the results for a novice would be unpredictable at best. It would lack that personal human touch as well, so the only option was to sculpt all of it by hand. For the scale I wanted to make this to, using Green Stuff for sculpting wasn't going to be cost effective, so instead I used some Superfine white milliput.

It's usually recommended that something such as crumpled tin foil is used as a core, however I didn't have anything…

Cursed City - Nightwars

15th Sep 2022

When Games Workshop announced Warhammer Quest - Cursed City, it reminded me of Mordheim, a game I really liked the aesthetic of, but never got to play. This being a Warhammer Quest game it would be one with a strong narrative, and there was promise of expansions, just like Blackstone Fortress had. When Cursed City was released it sold out fast, and they changed their messaging. It was then claimed it was always going to be a limited release. People were shocked, and there was a lot of speculation about what went on. Shortly after we then saw new miniatures released for Soulblight Gravelords…

Warhammer+ Year Two

24th Aug 2022

A year ago, Games Workshop introduced the world to Warhammer+: a subscription service that featured plenty of Warhammer-based videos being released on a weekly basis. As an extra incentive they introduced two miniatures that are exclusive to subscribers - one of which you get for free. In the first year the choice was between an Imperial assassin, and an Ork. The assassin was the obvious choice for me, but I also liked the ork so eventually bought that one too.

This year, Games Workshop have announced for Year Two

HeroQuest - The Mage of the Mirror and the Rogue Heir of Elethorn

4th Aug 2022

After HeroQuest was updated and released around the time of the pandemic, I never expected it to keep on going. I thought it was a 'one and done'. However, when I caught sight of the Frozen Horror expansion I found that I'd already missed a small release which had been used to test the waters. The demand for that has been massive, and if the most recent news is anything to go by, it sounds like pre-orders for The Frozen Horror have been a success as well. Avalon Hill have announced two new releases!

The first of these is a character release called Rogue Heir of Elethorn which includes…

HeroQuest - The Frozen Horror

13th Jul 2022

HeroQuest was one of the first boardgames I ever owned myself. When Avalon Hill worked with Hasbro to re-release it with updated miniatures I jumped at the chance to get it. Whilst back then Hasbo Pulse wouldn't allow UK backers, it was brought to the UK through Zavvi. I received my copy last year, and even though I've not yet been able to play it, it's one of those I can't wait to play. I got the Mythic Edition, and this also included the first two expansion packs:

Return of the Witch Lord
Kellar's Keep

These included models, scenarios, and new tiles which…

Da Red Gobbo and Bounca

29th Dec 2021

When Games Workshop announced Da Red Gobbo and Bounca for this year's festive-themed miniature, I knew I had to do another diorama. The first thing that sprung to mind was that they should be on a roof and throwing the dynamite down a chimney. This idea expanded out to include some of the walls below the roof to give more context, and then after the miniature of the month on November was revealed to be a squig I had the idea of using this on the same diorama, but that its rider has fallen off, face-planting in the snow. The first step was to figure out the sizes - I wanted it on a display plinth…

Review: HeroQuest Game System

20th Nov 2021

All the way back in 1989, American board game manufacturer Milton Bradley partnered with a smaller, lesser-known English company named Games Workshop to create a Dungeons & Dragons style fantasy board game using miniatures. There were already big, complicated fantasy role-playing games out there, D&D itself had been around since 1974, and what HeroQuest aimed to be was something simpler and more accessible. The game was such a success that it spawned a number of expansions, a video game, and later Advanced HeroQuest which was a sequel with individual tiles to allow for unique dungeons, and introduced…

A Very Citadel Christmas

6th Nov 2021

Since Games Workshop launched its Citadel Miniatures, releasing a Christmas model has been something of a tradition. This started in 1981 with a Mail Order exclusive Father Christmas, and in the following years we saw a slew of miniatures that riffed on the character of Santa Claus, with Space Santa and Sanity Claws (a character based on their Call of Cthulhu RPG) to name a couple. Sometimes, such as in the case of Sanity Claws, they tied in with products lines that were launched that year.

After the 80s finished, it seems this tradition disappeared into the darkest depths of the Underhive.…

Warhammer Day 2021

30th Oct 2021

This year's Warhammer Day kicked off by pointing people in the direction of a number of deals that have already started. They're offering two weeks free of Warhammer+ (or an extra two weeks if you're subscribing), there are two new miniatures to mark the day, and a number of reductions on boxes such as Warhammer AoS: Dominion, and one I've succumbed to and bought: Aeronautica Imperialis.

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The first big reveal…

Warhammer Day 2021 Miniatures

23rd Oct 2021

For Warhammer Day 2021, Games Workshop are releasing two special miniatures. The first of these is a Primaris Lieutenant With Storm Shield - because we don't have many Primaris Lieutenants yet, so obviously it's about time we got another. This one looks similar in design to those from the Indomitus boxset, and is standing with one hand on his Storm Shield. As it happens, when the Warhammer Imperium partworks was released in the UK, I customised mine into a very similar pose!

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This…

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