From NoelW: No Orc too Orcward: The Orcs' Pit (46 points)

 “Where’d Gnawbone go? He can’t just vanish.”

“Get out of the way, you stupid clerics. It can’t be that scary through there.”

“Another door, another pit of infinite peril. Getting rather predictable, actually.”

“How are we going to manage without him? Who will carry all the treasures, step in all the traps, pull all the levers?”

“I’m sure you’ll be able to work it out, elf.”

They wrench open the door, and immediately fall into the predictable pit. In a tumble of arms, legs and pieces of less mentionable anatomy, they plunge into a heap of stench and unpleasantness.

“Sorry about that,” says Elfbow. “I was frightened.”

All around them orcs of all sizes are dancing and gyrating to the wild beats of a drum.

“They’re taking no notice of us. Dancing their socks off. Look – big fish, little fish, box.”

“They're celebrating something. Is it that huge creature in the corner?”

“Dimly perceived?”

“Pretty much. It looks like Gnawbone. But he’s grown. Much, much bigger. Madly wielding that glowing sword around his head. Whipping them all up into a frenzy.”

“If it’s Gnawbone then he’s certainly somewhat larger. And he’s developed some abs from somewhere.”

“No time to muse on cause on effect. Let’s get him out of here before all these insane goblins decide to notice us.”

“Woof!”

“Agreed, Scruff. But I think there’s too many of them.”

“Quick! Gnawbone, if it is Gnawbone, is on the move again. They’re all following him through that gap in the wall.”

“Excellent!” says Elfbow. “That’s our chance to go in completely the opposite direction.”

“We can’t abandon our loyal companion.”

“I rather think we can. Just watch me!”

“No, we must press on. Through thick and thin.”

“No need to get personal.”

As the wild beat of the wild beasts subsides in the distance, our valiant adventurers pick their way through the morass of old bones, new bones, surprised skulls, half eaten something or others, and ugly heaps of indecipherable rubbish, following the dervish-like orcs down the passage.

Keeping a very safe distance.

***

These are a few contributions to my continually growing Lord of the Rings collection. Like many of us, Tolkien is a bit of a compulsion for me, ever since my first encounter with the trilogy as a schoolboy. I must have collected at least seven different variant sets of figures, and still actively have five different sets at the same time, with many still to be painted.

These are, of course, from GW’s licensed figures, and have been languishing in their blisters for many years – probably a dozen or more. They represent some of the “special characters” for the evil side of things. Two different orcs:

And three goblins, two of them drumming:

(Apologies for the substandard photos).

Scoring:

5 x 28mm figures: 25 points

1 x Orcs’ Pit: 20 points

1 x drum: 1 point?

Total: 46 points