Heroclix does Lord of the Rings

[oni]

This sounds promising.


(January 18, 2011-Hillside NJ) - Wizkids announced today the addition of "The Lord of the Rings" property to their 2011 HeroClix release schedule through a licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Consumer Products. The first products of the new "The Lord of the Rings" line will be a HeroClix miniatures game followed by a HeroClix strategic board game, both of which will release in the back half of 2011.

"The Lord of the Rings" HeroClix miniatures game will be sold in two different packages: a campaign style box set and the traditional booster format. The all-in-one campaign style box set will include everything a player needs, including NEW epic level rules and maps. The booster format includes the figures, similar to other previous HeroClix releases. With whichever format chosen, all of the twenty or more figures will be compatible with other HeroClix miniatures games.

The second release is a unique semi cooperative HeroClix board game, following in the similar format of our other HeroClix board game products. HeroClix figures, a gameboard and several decks of cards provide all the components needed to play this unique take on "The Lord of the Rings" story. The fun twist in the game is that players get to play as the Nazgul working with and against other Nazgul trying to capture the One Ring before it reaches Mount Doom.

http://wizkidsgames.com/lotr/

[Kaze100]

Color me interested. I'll be keeping an eye out for more information on this.

Thanks for the heads up!

[Johngee]

Yup... me too. I wonder if the battlefield maps (playing surfaces) for these games are going to have the traditional HeroClix square checker-board design OR will the WizKids gurus finally venture into a hexagonallized grid system like the SaberTooth Games' "Combat Hex: The Lord of the Rings: Tradeable Miniature Game" had. It doesn't matter to me, because IF I get into another collectible mini's game (aaarrgh!), I would probably only use it on the our beautifully crafted, interlockling, and stackable, 3D plastic HeroScape tile BOV's.

[Quack188]

I don't know if anyone has seen these yet but I just found this picture on the Wizkids Facebook page.

[mac122]

Are those large scale models, I hope? They're huge! Or that guy's arm is really small.

[Quack188]

From Wizkids:

"The Lord of the Rings" HeroClix miniatures game will be sold in two different packages: a campaign style box set and the traditional booster format. The all-in-one campaign style box set will include everything a player needs, including NEW epic level rules and maps. The booster format includes the figures, similar to other previous HeroClix releases. With whichever format chosen, all of the twenty or more figures will be compatible with other HeroClix miniatures games.

I read that here. I guess the link might not be needed since it's basically the only thing on the page. Apparently that guy does have a small arm since these will be compatible with other Heroclix stuff.

[Johngee]

It could be just an optical illusion. Photography does that some times. It's hard to tell how far back from the table that guy is sitting, or it might be a child's arm. It's a weird perspective.

Anyway, thanks for posting this photo and the info. I saw these same figures at GenCon in Indianapolis two weeks ago. Yes, they are the same ("compatible") size as other HeroClix figures; approximately the same height as the HeroScape human characters, except they seemed thinner or skinnier than HS, which is typical of most HC figures.

Talking to the WizKids rep, he said that they should be available for Christmas, i.e. released this Fall; and that he thinks there will be around 60 figures in the set. Hopefully there will be expansions, since there's plenty of Tolkien material to work with.

Some of the sculpts were awesome, particularly the Nazgul ringwraiths, but I was disappointed with a couple of the others. Obviously there is a whole team of artists working on this project and some are not as good as others.

[ImAPirate]

I am very excited

[Elginb]

So why is Heroclix still around after Heroscape has been canceled? Heroscape is a much better game...

[Johngee]

Originally Posted by Elginb

So why is Heroclix still around after Heroscape has been canceled?

Heroscape is a much better game...

I totally agree..., BUT I've also had enough Buniness and Economics courses to understand that it's all about SALES and PROFIT. Our beloved HS was not enough of a money maker for the Hasborg Corp. They could have done so much more to MARKET it properly, like they do most other "franchised" mechandise that they sell. I'm sure the Lord Of The Rings Clix will be playable on the HS Terrain. I've already Pre-Ordered 2x Starter Sets from Miniatures Market near St. Louis, MO.

[Johngee]

Whaaahooo... I FINALLY received the two (2x) Starter Sets that I ordered from MM two months ago. When I placed the order I did NOT realize that they were still on Pre-Order Status and the game would not be officially released until Dec. 7th. I had to pay extra shipping to receive the other figures I wanted to complete the C3V Team's WAVE 14 expansion prior to going to a local gaming convention (see HS EVENTS-> MARS at MechaniCon, West Chester, PA).

Anyway, the figures are excellent: nicely crafted and painted, and the perfect size for intigrating them into HeroScape or simply using them on HS tiles. I'm sure there will be new customized cards soon, if someone feels that they need to improve on the fantastic ones already in the DOWNLOADS Section, mostly done by Sherman Davies. One important thing I need to point out is that WizKids FINALLY improved the round Clickable Base for each character: it's aproximately double the height (maybe 1/4" instead of 1/8"), noticeable, but not a detriment in any way. I can now actually grab it and turn the thing easily to change the stats (as when taking wounds) without fumbling and straining to manipulate the dial with my finger-tips or with a tool.

The maps are absolutely BEAUTIFUL ...and... you get SIX of them on the three (3x) large sheets of strong, folded paper. Obviously paper isn't going to be as durable as our plastic tiles, nor dynamic enough to make changes to suit your whims, but they are still very colorful with a variety of flat (2D) terrain features. I'm only disappointed in the fact that it's still a traditional HeroCLIX square grid system that allows diagonal movements. IF WizKids had only offset the alternating rows (or columns) - like the "BattleBall" Game playing field - then they would have accomplished a near-hexagonal movement enhancement to this one. I guess it was too much trouble and they'd rather keep it 100% compatible with all of their other HeroClix versions.

Since I'm pretty busy with Holiday Preparations ...AND... I've never played any HeroClix Game before, I'm carefully going through the 24 page booklet of Rules to learn about the mechanics, abilities, and special powers, etc. It seems pretty straight forward. Hopefully, next weekend I'll have time to at least set up and run through a solitaire session to get a feel for how it actually works. I'll always hate the idea of "Blind Purchase Booster Packs," so I'll probably wait until after Christmas to start collecting the other 55 characters when they start showing up on eBay instead of spending $4 on each sealed box with only ONE figure inside.

[Raider30]

Greetings,

I would be interested in knowing how your attempt at learning the system turns out. I saw the starter packs today at the local game shop, though at $35 I wasn't all that tempted by them. However, my kids have a ton of HeroClix guys and one day it'd be nice to learn the actual game. (of course I'd have to download the cards for them since most were bought in the $1 bin).

Anyway, report back and let us know how it goes!

- Raider30