Cheapo Plastic Animal Op Shop Haul

 Today I bought a large bag of plastic animals from a local op shop. They cost me $3 and included far more than are shown here. The following are the ones I decided to keep. The rest I'll sell at the Sunday market.

The frog is meant to make a noise when squeezed but no longer does so. The bear is solid plastic.


  The following animals are mostly hollow, hard plastic. The seam lines, where the two halves are stuck together are prominent, especially along the undersides.




  The trees are what first caught my eye. I already had a few of these but a few more won't go astray.
  The other thing was the camels. I have plenty of camels already but quite liked the attitude of this pose. I imagine a camel handler struggling to compose the camels as they rear back from him. A future conversion or two will be based on these camels.
As for animals in general, I generally just place them randomly on the wargame table, just as part of the scenery, usually, but sometimes as hazardous variables.

  The other thing is I harbor an ambition to one day wargame Narnia. Wild animals figure prominently in the armies. One thing deterring me is that Aslan, once he appears is virtually unbeatable as he is a metaphor for God. That could make for a predictable game unless I either leave him out or make the Ice Witch as powerful.

  The animals also be used in my Ozzz armies.

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Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 16, 2023 at 3:29 PM

    Great buy imho! Lots of uses.The camels would make a lovely mule, sorry camel, train with luggage attached to them.
    Narnia in 54mm would be great. You could do Narnia without including Aslan quite easily and quite satisfyingly so.
    Alan Tradgardland



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  2. RogerAugust 23, 2023 at 10:42 AM

    Not only can they be used as 'terrain', but I've used animals as 'cover' as well in some games. I have a couple of 'deaf cows' than can serve as soft cover for a couple of prone troopers. In some Old West games I've used cattle in stockades as cover for cowboys inside or behind the stockade. I like your idea to bring wild animals in as a hazardous variable. I guess that's what you can call it when hundreds of Japanese soldiers were attacked and eaten by crocodiles during the battle of Ramree island in 1945.

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    1. RogerAugust 25, 2023 at 8:17 AM

      Off course it is no deaf cows in my game. It was supposed to be dead cows.
      How do you resolve 'battle' with the hazardous variable provided by wild animals?

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    2. QuantrilltoyAugust 26, 2023 at 3:57 PM

      Wild beasts get the best chance to maul soldiers when they are in or attacking from thick cover. The animal action depends on its type, motivation and ferocity. You could make a reaction table. Is the beast a carnivore and thus looking for dinner, or is it protecting its young or troop (very dangerous)?
      You could just roll dice for attrition of troops in dangerous terrain, or you could actually play it out. Humans are really good at killing things, but they are best at it when they have numbers and long-range weapons. They are not so good in barehanded combat. Man against gorilla? Even Tarzan or world wrestling champions would not have much chance. I mean where is the beast's neck? Look at its muscles and its fangs. Lions and tigers are also immensely strong and deadly. As the Big cats get smaller the human has more of a chance.
      Long reach weapons, like spears and halberds even things up a bit. A pistol would certainly come in handy and can be used in close confines. A rifle is good if the human has a chance to get a shot off early. Likewise, sub-machineguns or assault rifles are going to make a mess of any beast if they can be used before the creature closes in.

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