By Dan Carlson
With the Blood and Crowns Kickstarter winding down and headed for late-pledges, I’m sure that many of you have noticed that the only miniatures on the docket directly from Firelock will be in the form of STLs or the Perry plastic range. So this begs the question “where am I supposed to get minis from? I have an uncatchable itch for medieval wargaming but don’t know where to start!” Since I also have an addiction… errr – totally rational need for Medieval miniatures, I hope to highlight my chosen minis from Fireforge Games!
Whats a Fireforge?
Fireforge Games is an Italian gaming company specializing in plastic and resin miniatures spanning many eras. I’ll be covering their Deus Vult line of miniatures today. While the Deus Vult minis depict an earlier time period than Blood and Crowns, they are fantastic miniatures, and still usable in-game since Crowns is miniatures agnostic.
The Range
Fireforge Games has lots of miniatures available for the medieval period, which is great if you are looking for a specific aesthetic. I personally went with the Medieval Russian line to make a mercenary company of Kievan Rus, and they will be the center of this review since I’ve built 58 of them. For those looking to lean in on the 13th century Crusaders, Fireforge has you covered there as well. For those looking to truly stand out among their peers, the Defenders of Islam line really does a good job with the middle eastern aesthetic and is sure to be an eye catcher on the table top. Fireforge has a great line of Medieval Spanish as well!
In addition to the main forces of England, Scotland, France, and Spain, Blood & Crowns also includes a more generic “Unaligned” faction. Intended to represent mercenaries, bandits, and routiers operating in the European countryside during the 100 Years Wars, the generic nature of these lists makes them excellent for portraying pet-projects like my Kievan Russ. Also, an armored man with a sword didn’t change much between the first century and the fifteenth. While your Saxon Thegns or Norman conquerors from 1066 might look out of place fighting against their English and French descendants of 1415, the rules won’t be any different.
Not included in the list above, Fireforge just released a set of Samurai for their historical line. While their matchlock guns won’t appear in Crowns for quite some time, they can be equipped with bows to fit right in with the time period of Blood & Crowns.
The Miniatures
Fireforge Games has two different types of miniatures: traditional hard plastic kits, and high-quality resin. For my Kievan Rus Force, I have built 55 plastic miniatures, and then 3 resin miniatures. Most of the standard troops are plastic, while the command squads, characters, and some cavalry are resin (some cavalry boxes are plastic as well, it depends on the miniature).
My Medieval Russians came in a box of 25 miniatures, and each sprue has 5 bodies on them, for a total of 5 sprues per box. Each Sprue came with the options for Bows, hand weapons (maces and swords), or a two handed ax. The multitude of head options made building distinctive units easy. The main boon here for those who play multiple games is the sheer amount of spears that came with my boxes. Each box came with 25 spears! if you are playing Blood and Plunder and Blood and Crowns simultaneously, this means whatever spears you don’t use can be kitbashed with the new plastic miniatures to create more pikemen!
The plastic minis went together easily, despite the lack of instructions. It was easy to match up arms with bodies and weapons. Each body also carries a sword belt, so it really sells the “armed to the teeth” look of them. The paired arms for carrying the heavy axes can also be used for models gripping their spears, or you can have them hold their spear in one hand and a shield in the other. Blood & Crowns does not have rules specifically for shields, so feel free to mix both types of troops in a unit, or use shields to distinguish one unit from another.
The Resin command team came with a Commander, a trumpeter, and a standard bearer. They came on a typical resin sprue, with different shield options for each. While they are more detailed than their plastic counterparts, the difference is minimal, so they blend in nicely.
The square bases that come with the kit are 20x20mm, but I just bought some aftermarket 20mm bases and glued them on using superglue. This makes them about the same height as a Blood and Plunder miniature.
Hoist the Colors!
Painting the miniatures from Fireforge Games is very similar to other plastics I’ve painted. Using my patented “Accidental Zenithal Method” (I use a flat while and sometimes forget to get it into recessed areas so it *looks* like I did a proper Zenithal to the untrained eye) was no different than painting my Plunder or Valor miniatures. Being an avid promoter of Army Painter’s Speed Paints, this is what I used on all my miniatures and I think they turned out awesome! The chainmail takes paint easily, and the other surfaces are broad enough to make the paint go on smooth. For the blades and hafts, I mixed a generic metallic acrylic with vallejo metallics, to give them a more metallic shine.
A Noble with his Retinue – painted with Army Painter Speed Paints
‘Druzhina’ Men at Arms Afoot
Spear-wielding Footmen with a blue and gold color scheme
Conclusion
Fireforge Games makes quality plastic and Resin miniatures that are sure to look fantastic on the tabletop. The sheer breadth of their available miniatures makes them a great choice for anybody wanting to bring something different to Blood and Crowns. From Vikings to Teutonic Knights or Black Guards, each range has flair and character that is sure to grab eyes as well as victories!
Dead Man's Chest 