Let’s look at some miniatures this week!
First up, this is Ral Partha, the evil wizard. To my knowledge, this was the first miniature produced by Ral Partha Enterprises. He isn’t technically named Ral Partha, he’s 01-001 Evil Wizard, Casting Spell (1975), but he represents Tom Winkler’s character, after whom the company was named. The sorcerous accouterments on the ground are an unusual touch, but also a nice one.
I had no idea I owned this miniature until I finally, thoroughly, went through a box of random minis I bought off a guy who was moving cross country nearly a decade ago. Most of them were badly painted, or half-painted. I didn’t have the heart to toss this one in the thinner though, something about the crudeness of the paint job and the wear it has taken feels very appropriate.
During the mid 70’s, when the Fantasy miniatures manufacturing industry started to blossom in the US and in the UK, a lot of sculptors had few visual references to rely on, and many based their first models on Frank Frazetta illustrations, whom was the Fantasy artwork king of that era. This miniature is a rendition of the Frazetta’s illustration named “The Sorcerer” from 1965, and this is also where the books on the ground come from.
One of my favorites. I acquired my cousin’s in a trade, it represented Yarin the wizard in our game. I believe I stripped the original paint as it was pretty beat up, and bought a second off eBay. My plan is to paint both and maybe offer one back to him, since apparently all his stuff was lost in moves over the years. I still hold out hope that his original LBBs are hidden in a nook of my aunt’s house somewhere.