Feb 2010 1st Round Vote is CLOSED

[Michael O'Brien]

There are some exciting new ideas this month, so you have a tough choice to choose just one.
I apologise for the delay in starting this vote so it is extended to the 22nd (monday). Round 2 will begin on the 23rd.

If you have submitted these ideas then now is the time to get support behind your choice. Add images, slogans, references, or argue why yours is better or the others are not suitable. Be polite however.

[barliman]

My suggestion doesn't seem to have been approved, which is a shame (well, it is to me...). In its absence I've opted for Dunhere as being the best of the rest.

[ungoliant]

I liked the idea of the Pillar of Isengard. It would have made for a nice diorama, with Gandalf and Shadowfax on their way to the Tower, or perhaps a scene where the Captain of Orthanc meets with some dark messenger from another compound. I am disappointed it was not accepted.

Note: I wanted to suggest the Kraken but decided to check with Michael first. Good thing too, because he said Chris would not take the job, due to the complex nature of the piece.

[Thingol]

To much votes for creatures....

[bombadil1963]

Hey Thingol!
How do they say on radio? "Stay tuned!" One has to be patient in some cases . . . Arathorn´s time will come for sure!
I thought Narvi would have started better, too. Powerfull support by sounding and well-known names was promised!
Let´s wait and see who is going to survive the first round!

[ungoliant]

The Stone Giants! These guys are a tough lot. The fact that they defend their land with crushing boulders, form alliances with other races, and wear animal skins for warmth, would suggest beings of higher intelligence. They certainly utilize tools and/or weapons to survive.

Food for thought: The Giants have a king who sits on a throne carved right out of the walls of the icy cavern in which he dwells. The king wears a crown of ivory tusks and a mantle of mammoth hide. He wields a tree-size spear, or maybe a mighty warhammer the size of an ice chest! Next to his throne is a great bronze shield (a gift from Azog for his allegiance). Okay, I was going to save it for next month, but I wanted to get the creative juices flowing! For now, a 2nd Giant to accompany the 1st! Later...King of the Giants! Odin! Odin! Odin!

[ddaines]

Denethor and his throne needs a statue looking over him it can be used elsewhere as well.

[estel]

Feb 15, 2010 20:30:29 GMT @ungoliant said:

The Stone Giants! These guys are a tough lot. The fact that they defend their land with crushing boulders, form alliances with other races, and wear animal skins for warmth, would suggest beings of higher intelligence. They certainly utilize tools and/or weapons to survive.

Food for thought: The Giants have a king who sits on a throne carved right out of the walls of the icy cavern in which he dwells. The king wears a crown of ivory tusks and a mantle of mammoth hide. He wields a tree-size spear, or maybe a mighty warhammer the size of an ice chest! Next to his throne is a great bronze shield (a gift from Azog for his allegiance). Okay, I was going to save it for next month, but I wanted to get the creative juices flowing! For now, a 2nd Giant to accompany the 1st! Later...King of the Giants! Odin! Odin! Odin!

well Master Grond, being more or less a Tolkien purist I think this is NOT what Tolkien had in mind. I am also sure, that Tolkien did NOT gave any hint, that the Stone Giants were allied with any of Morgoth's evil creatures! There is no hint in Tolkiens writings, that Sauron had any giants in his armies and he had not one mere dragon. If the giants were more than just some "barbarians" is not known.
If Giants are tough may be, but if you think about "Farmer Giles of Ham", not many did like Giants, because they were hungry and stupid and did much harm to more civilized people. So it might be, that they were hunted down in Middle Earth outside the Hithaeglir.

I am also not sure, if there are many GF's in here, who would like to go that far into a "sword & sorcery"-Fantasy like Conan with that.
That vision of giants would be interesting, but has to muchn in common with what some others have done with the Oger kingdoms.

I am sorry, I know, this is not the right place to discuss that.

[Deleted]

Hello everyone.

After a lot of time far from this forums, I return again to see the new designs and ideas.

I like in this case, the statues in order to do a diorama.

Greetings,

Felipe.

[Gildor]

in any case, I think I have seen enough standard bearers for a century of mithril now

so my vote will go to Narvi as I said in the suggestions, I like this idea

[aelfwine]

Well, I voted for Eomer...though two Eomers split the vote. I'll vote for Dunhere in the run-off.

Odd little factoid regarding giants.

"Ent" is the English rendering of the word "Eoten" which in turn is a version of the word "Jotunn" which is another word for...Troll.

We know the trolls were made in mockery of the Ents. So it does leave us to wonder what, if anything the giants were. May well have been Bilbo making things up. Maybe, however, the Ents and Stone giants are kin of old. Creatures - elementals, if you like - of earth and stone, maybe akin to the Maiar themselves.

Or maybe it is otherwise, maybe what Bilbo called the giants were ancient trolls. After all "giants" are an ancient enemy in both Norse and Celtic mythology. Maybe the Stone Giants are the ancestors of the trolls. Perhaps they were never broken by Morgoth, but remained old and hostile powers nonetheless, hiding in their mountain vales until the world changed.

Gavin

[ungoliant]

well Master Grond, being more or less a Tolkien purist I think this is NOT what Tolkien had in mind. I am also sure, that Tolkien did NOT gave any hint, that the Stone Giants were allied with any of Morgoth's evil creatures! There is no hint in Tolkiens writings, that Sauron had any giants in his armies and he had not one mere dragon. If the giants were more than just some "barbarians" is not known.
If Giants are tough may be, but if you think about "Farmer Giles of Ham", not many did like Giants, because they were hungry and stupid and did much harm to more civilized people. So it might be, that they were hunted down in Middle Earth outside the Hithaeglir.

I am also not sure, if there are many GF's in here, who would like to go that far into a "sword & sorcery"-Fantasy like Conan with that.
That vision of giants would be interesting, but has to muchn in common with what some others have done with the Oger kingdoms.

I am sorry, I know, this is not the right place to discuss that.

Hello estel. Thank you for your comments. Well, I’m somewhat of a purist myself, when it comes to certain things, so I sympathize.

The origin of the Giants is derived from the tales of Hobbits. According to Hobbit lore, great Giants, in league with Orcs, guarded the High Passes in Rhovanion. This area included all the lands stretching east of the Misty Mountains to the River Running, including the vales of Anduin and the forest of Mirkwood. I referenced A Tolkien Bestiary by David Day, so I just didn‘t pull the notion out of the air. BTW, I never stated that the Giants were employed by Sauron. I merely suggested that they were allied with the Orcs of the Misty Mountains. Makes sense since the Orcs of the Misty Mountains infested the same high passes. Does that mean the Giants were evil? Perhaps. And so what? As a Tolkien purist, you must realize that nothing is born evil. Alliances can be made for the wrong reasons, and being hungry and ignorant doesn’t make one evil, only desperate.

I will not limit my imagination by working within the confines of someone else’s interpretations. As brilliant as Tolkien was, no one could have covered every detail regarding the people and places of Middle Earth. Like the Free Peoples, we as readers are FREE to fill in the blanks. An image of Conan came to your mind, probably because I mentioned mammoth skin, big hammers and icy places. Personally, I was thinking old Norse mythology. You know, the Giants and The Ring??? That’s why I mentioned Odin. Plus, I just like the sound of his name! Odin! Odin! Odin! ;D

I am tickled pink that you felt inclined to critique my suggestion openly. Debate and controversy is good. Being different is likewise good. This is how we grow. Thank you for helping me grow estel.

[twrich]

Grond, I agree completely. Especially as Mithril has never been, and never was meant to be, a "purist" producer of Tolkien's works, as discussed many times.

Still there are those who wish that it were, perhaps not knowing about (or accepting) the company's history, and that is fine.

Others just prefer the people/creatures named in the books, and would rather have them produced before figures not specifically named. Of course, that is how we get so many of the same character.

As FG members, we all can suggest, vote for, and purchase what we want. What other producer of figures allows their customers to do that? None that I know of!

So although I will not vote for the Giant this time (I like Dunhere, Lord of Harrowdale), I encourage all suggestions that Chris and Mithril will allow, it is their choice how narrow of a list they will produce. So good luck with the Giant, and good luck to the others who made a suggestion!

Now speaking of

[glow=red,2,300]DUNHERE, LORD OF HARROWDALE[/glow]
he needs one more vote!!! This should assure him a place in the second round. Who will sponsor him?

[Shadyt]

The orc needs one more vote also to ensure a place in the next round.

[ungoliant]

Indeed, the forum is a golden opportunity to examine and expand on the works of Tolkien. One of the ways we accomplish this is by critiquing and voting on ideas submitted by other members. It’s both competitive and great fun. Naturally, some members will be put off by certain descriptions and opinions. This is to be expected. Winning is not my primary objective (although it sure feels good when it happens). Most important is the need to stimulate the imagination by offering new and, if necessary, controversial suggestions to the forum. This is essential. Incidentally, the comments made by aelfwine earlier, regarding Ents, Trolls and Giants, are a perfect example of this. Very interesting. Anyway, thank you twrich and good luck to you and your favorite character to win!

Hah! Glad to see the Orcs are running strong of late! I hope he advances to the second round too! I would also like to see more Orc variations, at least in regards to weaponry. Some sort of polearm, like a glaive-guisarme would be nice for a change.

[presto247365]

Arathorn gets my vote. I like Chris's "one-off" interpretations of characters, especially the tragic types. Imagine Arathorn, head of his dwindling people, and the weight and sadness that could be conveyed to his character. Knowing he must often face danger, away from family and safety. And now, he has to pass this heavy responsibility on to a young son, knowing he is dooming him to a life of struggle, hardship and thankless tasks leading the few that ensure the safety of many. How can all of this be represented in static metal?? Fanscinating subject matter!

[twrich]

Interesting! Currently there are four figures tied for 3rd place. Perhaps this is a situation where Mithril will break a tie, but just not for first place. Otherwise we might only have two figures to vote for, which I don't feel is enough choice.

We shall see, perhaps one of those tied for 3rd will get that extra vote before the end to pull ahead of the others.

[hsf62]

Everything can change!

[tolwen]

According to Hobbit lore, great Giants, in league with Orcs, guarded the High Passes in Rhovanion.

Is it really said that the Giants were *in league* with the orcs and *guarded* the pass?
I could only find passages were the Giants were some kind of dangerous "barbarians" who are better avoided. Of course their presence would deter travellers, but that does not imply (nor is it referenced) that they worked in cooperation with the goblins.

I referenced A Tolkien Bestiary by David Day, so I just didn‘t pull the notion out of the air.

I certainly do not want to speak bad about Mr. Day, but I found most of his books problematic when comparing to the sources. His interpretations (and sometimes even references of known thing; compare his Númenor map) are - IMHO - often a bit at odds with the "canon". Thus I'm inclined to believe him only when I see it confirmed by a Tolkien source.

[ungoliant]

Yes, it says that tolwen. If you get your hands on the book, look on page 121 under GIANTS. I assure you there is no need for me to create fiction on top of fiction as a selling point for the Stone Giant. I only mentioned it because it seemed an interesting tidbit of information. If you wish to discredit the passage and/or the author, that’s AOK by me. Mr. Day and I are not related. I purchased the book many years ago for the illustrations. I make no claim of the book’s accuracy. I only use it as reference. Incidentally, the book is illustrated by eleven artists: Ian Miller, Michael Foreman, Allan Curless, Lidia Postma, John Blanche, Pauline Martin, Sue Porter, Linda Garland, Victor Ambrus, John Davis, Jaroslav Bradac. The book is filled with many meticulously illustrated pen & ink drawings. Personally, I like the way the book is put together.

Again, what aelfwine said earlier regarding Ents, Trolls, and Giants may very well be the case. Could be that Giants are related to Ents or maybe even Trolls. Granted, from a distance, a Troll might be mistaken for a very large Man, particularly by a Hobbit. However, M307 Stone Giant is obviously not a Troll. He is a gigantic hominid, more man than monster.

I would very much like to see one or two more Giants added to the Mithril line. While it doesn’t look like the Stone Giant will make it to the next round, I will try again next month with a Giant King. Und warum nicht? Every race has a leader of some sort, be it a mayor, a lord, a king, etc. So should the Giants! As far as whose side they’re on, we’ll leave that up to the imagination too.

[tolwen]

Feb 22, 2010 6:19:16 GMT @ungoliant said:

Yes, it says that tolwen. If you get your hands on the book, look on page 121 under GIANTS.

In my edition (HarperCollins Paperback, 1993) p. 121 is the passage when the first Dwarves appear at Beorn's house and Gandalf tells of their misfortune in the mountains. I could find no passage where there is mention of the goblins and giants cooperating. Perhaps we have different editions? Could you post the passage that speaks of planned actions/cooperation with the goblins?

Or do we have a misunderstanding here? Of course the giant's presence was some kind of guard on the pass, although not explicitly stated or ipmlied that they acted in unison with the goblins. Perhaps the goblins knew of their presence and took advantage of them, similar to Sauron's and Shelob's relationship (who had no alliance or coordination either) wher Sauron was pleased with Shelob's presence because she acted as an excellent guard of the secret passages there - even if not allied with him in any way.

The book is filled with many meticulously illustrated pen & ink drawings. Personally, I like the way the book is put together.

I did not say anything about the artwork. That is indeed fine.

As far as whose side they’re on, we’ll leave that up to the imagination too.

That's fine indeed. The scarce evidence on the giants is hard to tackle from a tolkienistic POV (e.g. fitting in the remainder of the legendarium), so there's much room indeed for this or that interpretation.