[ID Help] Mystery 1979 Ral Partha Figure - Strange Equipment

Eddie

Eddie

Serf
Hi folks, I have been cataloging my old 1980's figures plus a job lot from ebay that i bought back in 2005. I have identified over 80 of them thru lost minis wiki and stuff of legends, but this guy is proving impossible to find. He is base stamped "RAL PARTHA 1979" but was almost certainly distributed by Citadel in the UK in the early 1980's. I am intrigued by the equipment at his belt, I have no idea what it is. Can anyone tell me who he is and what he is carrying?
 

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Eddie said:
I am intrigued by the equipment at his belt, I have no idea what it is.
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Do you mean other than the bow and quiver? ie whatever is hidden back behind the shield? A dagger I'd guess. I assume the main weapon is some kind of great sword.

As to identifying the mini I shall have to leave that to the wiser souls here!
 
Oh, is that a small bow in the quiver? I have not seen that on any of my other miniatures. Google AI was trying to tell me it was a lever and giant bolts for loading some kind of 4 man operated repeating crossbow ballista, but i didn't believe that. I am also confused by the shape of the top of the staff. I cant work out if it is damaged or if it is a sling staff or similar. There is a long sword in a scabbard behind the shield, you can see it from the back but i didn't upload that view. You can see the tip of the sword by his leg just below the shield,
 
what's the use using that google trash? it doesn't work on knowledge or anything... No offense, but it's like using a fork or drink a glass of water. While it might be possible, it's a waste, wastes everyone elses time and is just an awful idea..

again, I don't mean any offense.. just people using the wrong tools, tools which hurt people, is just.. a bit distaste for to me, specially when if the tools were used by the right people in the right way, there is SOME merit in them. but sigh, people need to jump on the band wagon before they not the problem. Happened with Radium, happened with CFC's, happening again. sigh.
 
ManicMan said:
what's the use using that google trash? it doesn't work on knowledge or anything... No offense, but it's like using a fork or drink a glass of water. While it might be possible, it's a waste, wastes everyone elses time and is just an awful idea..

again, I don't mean any offense.. just people using the wrong tools, tools which hurt people, is just.. a bit distaste for to me, specially when if the tools were used by the right people in the right way, there is SOME merit in them. but sigh, people need to jump on the band wagon before they not the problem. Happened with Radium, happened with CFC's, happening again. sigh.
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I agree. I have been working in IT since the 1980's so I know that AI is anything but intelligent. I wasn't using Google AI, I was using Google Image Search on the off chance I hit a match on Ebay, But Google AI always gives its opinion, whether you ask it or not. I just thought that one was exceptionally ludicrous LOL
 
^_^ yep, good to see you took that in the intended way.

I've been looking.. a couple of things with that figure bother me.. the Shield for one.. I think it's a second piece glued on cause.. well.. working out the mould line, and that shield makes no sense. It appears to have undercuts which wouldn't be possible in a 2 part mould.

And something about the pose is weird too. a Flannaged mage head on a polearm.. probably advancing.. kinda excluded rangers (with that shield), the advancing style kinda excluded adventurers.. Shame Ral Partha's catalogues back then were mostly text.. not even drawings. Though even with Ral Partha on the base, I could be a Citadel one they repackaged.. I don't know if they did change base markings.. most likely they didn't, which is why they sculpted replacements but still.... wait.. Do you have a couple of better shots of the top of that pole? seeing the shape from a different angle, I'm wondering if it's a broken standard. That would explain the pose.
 
ManicMan said:
^_^ yep, good to see you took that in the intended way.

I've been looking.. a couple of things with that figure bother me.. the Shield for one.. I think it's a second piece glued on cause.. well.. working out the mould line, and that shield makes no sense. It appears to have undercuts which wouldn't be possible in a 2 part mould.

And something about the pose is weird too. a Flannaged mage head on a polearm.. probably advancing.. kinda excluded rangers (with that shield), the advancing style kinda excluded adventurers.. Shame Ral Partha's catalogues back then were mostly text.. not even drawings. Though even with Ral Partha on the base, I could be a Citadel one they repackaged.. I don't know if they did change base markings.. most likely they didn't, which is why they sculpted replacements but still.... wait.. Do you have a couple of better shots of the top of that pole? seeing the shape from a different angle, I'm wondering if it's a broken standard. That would explain the pose.
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4 more images attached. He has been in the acetone bath and had a gentle scrub with the toothbrush, so most of the paint is off the shield. If it is stuck on they used something that does not dissolve in acetone, but it looks like part of the original cast to me, i cannot see any gaps or a join line. The more I look at him, the more I think that is a snapped standard rather than a sling staff.
Also, Citadel were licenced to make and distribute Ral Partha models in the UK back in the early 80's. All of my collection was purchased in the early 80's in the UK. Either directly by me of by the guy that I bought the job lot off. The Citadel ones just have codes on them, or sculptors initials (like M. P.) or even plain bases. But all the Citadel produced Ral Partha ones are stamped RAL PARTHA in block capitals and 1979.
 

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yeah, I know Citadel sold Ral Partha under license for a while, and Ral Partha did some citadel under license, but I couldn't remember if they did any base making changes ^_^

I'm not doubting you but.. that shield is still odd to me.. you can see the mold line on the base and going up the back right leg to deal with the bow undercuts, but then how does it deal with that shield... need a better judge then me to see that.
 
ManicMan said:
yeah, I know Citadel sold Ral Partha under license for a while, and Ral Partha did some citadel under license, but I couldn't remember if they did any base making changes ^_^

I'm not doubting you but.. that shield is still odd to me.. you can see the mold line on the base and going up the back right leg to deal with the bow undercuts, but then how does it deal with that shield... need a better judge then me to see that.
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Well if it is an addition they must have soldered it on. I had a good look in bright daylight with a magnifying glass, but it is not an obvious addition. However my eyes are not brilliant. I can see the snapped ends of the pole and the ribbon though, so that pretty much confirms he once had a standard of some kind.
I agree the shield looks odd. I have literally trawled though hundreds of images on lost minis wiki, and i have not come across any shields that size. I am not sure exactly how the two part mold casting process works, but i will take your word for it that undercuts are difficult to handle. The mold line on the base does line up perfectly with the back edge of the quiver and the front edge of the shield.
 
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The figure's got a historical vibe about it. The closest, I think, would be the Persians of Xerxes and Darius who fought the Greeks and Macedonians. That said, the shield wouldn't be right.
 
Brother Meredith said:
The hivemind of the LostMinis Wiki Facebook group are usually very good at identifying minis? https://www.facebook.com/groups/682245555869048
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Thanks, but it seems I cannot use that without creating a facebook account, and I don't do social media. (I know, I am in the minority, but it is my personal choice). Maybe I can request identification through the lost minis website. I need to give them some photos anyway as I have a couple of FTD (Fantasy Tribe Dwarves) variants that they do not have photos of.
 
Confirmed as
Ral Partha Enterprises
SKU #: 42-210 v2
Description: Mongol Auxiliary Infantry
Range: 1200 A.D.
ralparthalegacy.com

52-3221: Mongol Spearman

1 Infantry Figure. Supplied unpainted and unassembled. Cast in lead-free pewter. Any plastic bases shown in photos are not included. Sculpted by Tom Meier. Original Ral Partha SKU# 42-210-2 . Ral Partha Enterprises Release Data SKU #: 42-210 Description: Mongol Auxiliary Infantry Range: 1200...
ralparthalegacy.com
 
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ralparthalegacy.com

52-3222: Mongol Infantry, Advancing

1 Infantry Figure. Supplied unpainted and unassembled. Cast in lead-free pewter. Any plastic bases shown in photos are not included. Sculpted to 1/64 scale, where the height of an average human soldier is represented as 25mm. Sculpted by Tom Meier Ral Partha Enterprises Release Data SKU #...
ralparthalegacy.com

this guy?
 
Thankyou, it was really bugging me that i had identified all my ral partha stamped miniatures except that one. Shame he is missing the top of his spear, but I can still paint him up for D&D gaming nights
:)
 
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