After 30 years, Gripping Beast Miniatures is closing it’s doors.
In 1995 Bernard Cornwell took a break from publishing Historical Fiction to publish a little Fictitious History. After writing a series of thirteen novels set in the Napoleonic Wars, Cornwell briefly turned his attention to the Arthurian saga, publishing the first of three novels: The Winter King. Already a fan of his work, I devoured this book. Nothing I had read before brought that Dark Ages to life like this novel, with it’s realistic and gritty take on the Arthurian legend. In the book, the main character, Derfel, eventually becomes one of Arthur’s lieutenants, commanding a company of soldiers called The Wolf Tails for the hunting trophies adorning their helmets. Already an avid miniature gamer, I longed for miniatures to portray these characters, and I began to scour the internet for whatever I could find. That’s how I first discovered Gripping Beast Miniatures.
Opened in 1996, Gripping Beast Miniatures started out as a small outfit selling metal, historical (and slightly less than historical) miniatures, with a strong focus on the end of the Roman era and the Dark Ages. Featuring wonderful historical accuracy, fine detail and excellent paint jobs, these miniatures jumpped off the (web) page. Gripping beast would continue to grow their ranges over the years and flesh out different Dark Age factions. Their fanbase grew on the strength of their product and service.
In 2010 Gripping Beast made the jump to plastics, releasing their first set, Viking Hirdmen, with an opposing set of Saxons the next year. These models were an excellent value at an amazing 44 multi-pose minis to a box, and a true joy to paint. Gripping Beast never looked back, releasing 18 different plastic sets over the years, bringing a deluge of excellent Dark Age miniatures to the market. As the years went on, they continued to expand their metal offerings, bringing Front Rank Miniatures and their wide array of historical ranges in-house.
But the years rolled on. In a statement posted to social media yesterday the Gripping Beast Team said that after 30 years it was time to shutter the business. Much due was paid to their loyal fans and little was said about the state of the company, besides the fact that several of the older team members have retired and those still there aren’t much younger themselves. Though a pillar of the hobby community, Gripping Beast is swimming in an increasingly crowded pond, as more and more plastic miniatures are coming to market, and relative newcomers Victrix Limited are churning out very high quality Dark Age miniatures in stunning quantities. Regardless, it is an end of an era and the passing of one of the great hobby companies.
