"What was that first Figure or Unit that you had to have?" Topic

With Plastic figures it was Airfix World Was II Desert figures 1/72 to play with. But the ones that got my attention as individual figures were some Hinchliffe Napoleonic Old Guard. I didnt stop painting until I had several painted up – worrying my parents at the time…

Greek Hoplites

My first must have was the original box set of plastic "beakie" Space Marines. That box art and those models were just so awesome.

For historicals my first must have was Mark Sims first late war British when he launched Crusader Miniatures. Still one of my favorite platoons. After that it was the Battle Honors WWII French motorcycle troops.

Not to be silly about it, but I can't remember.

Back in the 60's there were advertisements on the back of comic books of AWI figures, for $2.50 USD.
Six weeks later of impatient wating a box arrived with blue and red plastic figures; in my 6 year old imagination I assumed they would come all painted and in different poses just like the illustration.
Both Red and Blues figures were the same poses, some rather odd looking.
I was disappointed.
However, I must have played for hundreds of hours with those figures.

Airfix Guards Colour Party

(Showing my age)

Pack of heritage gnomes with axes 8 to a pack …I bought them cause other figures were only 6 to a pack .

I donīt remember the first, it was much too long ago. But I think certainly close had to be the Marx castle with the knights and the vikings. Metal castle that closed up and worked as a carrying case, what could be better?

I don't remember either. Probably an Airfix HO scale something.

It was definitely Airfix, but I can't remember which set.

Spartans. Greek hoplites in general, but I was very particular about my Spartans (and still am).

Texas Jack
I remember that set. It was beautiful. I especially liked the Viking figures. My first must have set was Davey Crockett at the Alamo Marx set. Had loads of fun with it. Eve painted up the Mexican Army as best as I could back then!

Probably Airfix British Combat Group and German Infantry (1st set).

I was into plastic modelling long before wargaming, so I guess my first 'must have' would have been some sort of aircraft kit, but at this distance in time I really can't recall which. Possibly the Airfix Corsair, but that seems an unlikely choice although I can recall it was the first model where I painted the pilot before sticking down the canopy:)

They would be Zinnfiguren that Dad brought back from the war. I think the initial ones were Persians.

x42

While not my first miniatures, my first 'had to have' figures would be Scruby (true) 20mm ACW in Kepi.

Scruby S-64

Britains 54mm plastics American Civil War, north and south. They looked just like the Kurz and Allison lithographs.

@Repiqueone: S-64, French Grenadier on Guard. A very nice figure in its day and still one of my favorites.

@ Doug MSC
One of my friends had the Alamo set, it was great! I also loved Fort Apache, hell, everything by Marx was super!

Seleucid Armored Elephant with elephant guard.

DM

I had Airfix figures when I was younger – but my first MUST HAVE figures were Minifigs Russian Curassier in about 1977. First figures I ever painted and still got them.

Airfix Afrika Korps, the first edition!!! Because they had not one, but TWO of those 28/20mm thingees.

DDT

If we are going to count the Marx play sets then is would have to be the Alamo set and the Robin Hood set.

Airfix DAK and Brits for a Angriff game.

Then every Minitank I could find for Tractics.

Early years-Lincoln Logs and a bag of Army Men

I box airfix french foreign Legion, 1 box of Arabs and the fort

Minifigs Greek Hoplites.

After almost two years of collecting and painting, I had what was in my eyes an army:
64 hoplites, 20 skirmishers, 12 peltasts and 12 mounted.

I still have them!
But I've revisited the theme with Foundry's World of the Greeks later, and now have several hunderd of Hoplites.

Airfix WWII Soviets.

All I have left is one officer with a pistol.

My first wargaming unit was a SYW Hannoverian battalion(von Borcke). Freikorps 15mm. I lost it in a moving (together with the rest of my Hannoverians!)

Yes, all of the Marx sets were a delight to me. Dad would work a second job a month before Christmas so he could buy us presents. He would always buy me the newest Marx play set. I think they were around $5.00 USD a set back then, but the price of a hot loaf of bread from the Italian bakery across the street was only 25 cents. The fun was opening up all the little bags of figures and stuff and putting together the latest fort, etc. I would get in a corner and play with it all day on Christmas. They were treasures to me then.

I remember building that Polaris sub model. Somehow I built the missile tube assembly upside down back in the early 70's. So…. If you looked closely, the missiles "launched" into the depths of the ocean.

As for the OP question… some cretan archers in 20mm come to mind. I couldn't find in plastic back then so I found some metal miniatures…. which led to…. the current day closet and garage space busting collection.

When I was ten or so, I visited a really nifty toy store that had a sizable selection of Britain's toy knights displayed in a glass case. I thought it was the coolest thing I had ever seen. My dear old dad bought me fourteen, if memory serves. I still have most of them.