"Army of Gondor in 15mm?" Topic

Hi all,

I again peer into the magic 8-ball that is TMP.

Magic 8-ball: any suggestions for Gondor troops and Rangers in 15mm- Peter Jackson style if possible?

Well, not Peter Jackson types but Tolkien thought Normans were Gondor and Goths were Rohan.

Thanks,

John

Well IMHO, the riders of Rohan a la Jackson, appeared to me to be mounted Vikings. As for Gondor, a variation of 11 c. French or German?

My gut feeling would be look at Byzantines of 10th or 11th centuries, otherwise, as John Leahy suggested, Normans.

I also back Byzantines.

Byzantines for Gondor and Goths for Rohan. Dont know about Rangers.

A smattering of 10th -12th Cent Russians would look good in a Gondor army IMHO

Khursan's 11th-Early 12th century European ("Frankish") Knights look promising.

Still at a loss for Rangers.

I would use War of the Roses period for peter jackson style
Gondorians. Since they were wearing plate armor in the movie.
Feudal Castings dismounted knights and mounted. Mirliton
condotta range has infantry with shields.
David

I'm aware of two references to the appearance of Gondoran armor in the books, and I would want to capture both.

One is the seabird wings on the helmet of the tower guard. The other is that the prince Imrahil has a "brightly polished vambrace" which suggests at least some plate in the mix, and that polished steel.

Byzantines for Gondor is always my favoured way to go. Maybe try later Byzantines, 1400 – 1450. Heavy armour in this period would be similar to Italian/War of the Roses but with some Eastern elements. Just avoid the more Eastern type figures. Try Essex for this period. I always liked the idea that Rohan was Hungary and surrounding areas at this time. Their description and fighting style is more akin to Goths, Huns, Pechenegs etc. So some figures from the Eastern European ranges would suit. Lots of horse archers and some spear/lance armed heavier cavalry. You might even find some winged helmets amongst the Eastern Europeans.
Because of the movies i compromised and went for Norman/Crusaders for Rohan. Much more western/northern european. Though to get the horse archers element you cannot use historical crusader/Norman armies. Late Crusades armies would have had more turkomen, horse archers (Christianised turks) than earlier ones and so just increase their presence in the army. "Vikings on horseback" Oh how i hate that phrase. Apparently Tolkien was looking at the Bayeux tapestry and was asked if they were what he had in mind for Rohan and he replied "they would do!" But the feel of the book is more that of travelling through Hungary to the 1453 seige of Constantinople. Only in LotR the western roman empire, (Aragorn and co.) and the Eastern European Christians (Rohan) get their act together and save Byzantium (Gondor)from the Eastern hordes, Mongols (Mordor), Turks, (Easterlings), Arabs/Persians (Haradrim). OK there is also China (Khand) though they do not appear at the seige of Constantinople, though Khand does appear at Gondor. Allies and servants of the Mongols. And i do know the Mongols weren't at the seige of Constantinople but i am stretching the point to make the comparison with Tolkien's work. Unified Christians taking on the rest of the world. It would never work LOL.

OK one more comment. You got me thinking and i checked Essex and they have new "crusader" figures. Check out the crusades section and look at CRU50. Rohan or "Armoured Horse Archer with separate shield. Suitable for most Middle-Eastern armies, assorted poses."

And again. For Gondor Knights with wings on their helmets check out Irregular's 155 mm medieval pages. I think HR44 Polish/Russian Knight would fit the bill. Not quite Jacksonesque (I think i've just invented a word LOL) but entirely suitable.

I'm aware of two references to the appearance of Gondoran armor in the books, and I would want to capture both.

One is the seabird wings on the helmet of the tower guard. The other is that the prince Imrahil has a "brightly polished vambrace" which suggests at least some plate in the mix, and that polished steel.

Tolkien specifically notes "full harness" (meaning a full set of plate) for Imrahil and his knights. One might argue for some partial plate in addition to standard mail for others who would have been well-equipped.

I agree with Byzantine for Gondor, however, since you are wanting the movie feel, then go with the 100 year war stuff. War of the Roses stuff is also ok, and even more fun since they have the same initials as the War of the Ring.

I was looking at using some of these as Rohan forces…

link

They also have some ranger types in their fantasy range…

link

Cheers Andy

From the Rangers- do you mean DD43? Any chance you've seen these or have a photo?

How about the Corvus Belli HYW? The Long Bow 3 have plate leggings and the knights full plate. However, the barding, while not a complete turn off, is a bit much.

Old Glory 15s deviously hid their Rangers under the misleading title: Human Rangers [FO61]

link