ALL72030

Trolls have their origins in Scandinavian folklore, and while descriptions of their physical appearance vary enormously, they are often said to be large, ugly and slow-witted. Generally seen as dangerous to humans, they live in very remote regions, and are sometimes said to turn to stone if exposed to sunlight. Clearly that would greatly limit their usefulness in war, especially in a northern European summer, but their size and strength must offer terrific advantages in battle, and they are to be found in many books, films and games. The four poses in this set are certainly big; they stand about 50 mm (3.6 metres) tall, plus horned helmets etc., and they are very stocky too, thus giving an impression of great strength. All are dressed for war, wearing helmets, cuirasses and armour on the arms and shoulders. Their own skin texture seems to be scaly, and their faces are certainly not friendly - all have large open mouths displaying many teeth. The weapons they carry are, of course, also huge - a couple of blades, a hammer and a mace. Like the armour these are of various designs, but quite sophisticated too, making them really interesting objects in themselves. One troll carries a shield, apparently made of sheets of metal or hide nailed to a frame.

Their large size clearly helps when it comes to sculpting, and all these look good, with plenty of detail. The faces and mouths are a particular highlight, but everything here is really nicely done. Even the poses are all good, without the flatness so often seen on figures with blade or impact weapons. There is some flash in places, but much less than is some sets in this series. The benefits of sculpting at this larger scale are clear in this set, and the result is a very pleasing collection of nasty-looking creatures that we would imagine will be very difficult to overcome in a fight unless you happen to be a troll yourself.