Lead Market Report - February 2012

Sugar honey iced tea! It's April already? Time to post the February LMR so I can turn around and get the March LMR hammered out. My own fault for dragging my feet once again. Enjoy.

CITADEL: The AD&D Umber Hulks from this line are just awesome, and therefore command prices like $31. It makes this $14 Minotaur look like an absolute bargain and then some! There was also this run of six MOC AD&D blisters from the same seller: Duergar for $30; Norkers for $26; Hobgoblins for $25; the Illusionists for $23; Dwarf Villagers for $26; and the Elf Magic-Users for $27. Even a humble Shrieker still netted some seller $6.

The boxed version of the AD&D dragons can sometimes get pricey, but this loose Red Dragon sold for $25, so if you don't need the packaging and documentation, bargains are still out there, just waiting for you to come along and snap them up.

And here's a Ral Partha pin/badge that ended at $89, apparently done by Citadel. Here's a pic of it on the CCM Wiki.

DRAGONTOOTH: This GI-05 Horned Hill Giant had been sitting around for several months before someone finally pulled the trigger at $40. It's a lot higher than I would have paid, but not outrageous considering you don't see too many DT giants up for auction. And I picked up my first DT dragon - D76 for $21. Poor fella had his wings glued on backwards! No wonder the other dragons wouldn't let him join in any of the dragon games. This lot here that went for $178 wasn't exclusively a DT lot, but my guess is the DT minis were a big part of the deal. I can see what looks like a D80 Small Dragon, GI07 Old Horney the Hill Giant (can't tell if he's holding his club or not), and DE05 Winged Snake Demon to name at least three, along with all the other old school lead visible.

FASA: I had to look up the Northampton-class frigate. It never had a starring role in any movie or TV episode as far as I can tell, but don't tell that to gamers and collectors. This one sold for $39. This is apparently a RAFM-produced mini for FASA.

GRENADIER: I was very fortunate (damn lucky!) to pick up this Great Griffon, also known as Wizzards & Warriors Special #2 for the bargain price of $22.84!!! I say that because the last one that surfaced in December 2011 sold for $233.50, more than 10 times what I paid for mine.

Monster Manuscript collectors seem to go after these sets with a full-blown case of collecting fever. Volume 12 sold for $178, while this Volume 11 went for $118. And they weren't even in shrink! But they were complete and in really nice shape, so I guess that was good enough. Other MM sets that sold include this shrinked Volume 7 for $76 and this shrinked Volume 5 for $27. I wonder why such a huge difference in price? Were the higher numbered MM sets short printed or something like that?

The AD&D Gold Line boxes show no signs of going down in price. The Dwellers Below seems to be the most popular, like this one that sold for $51. Very clean and minty-looking. $37 for Dungeon Explorers seems a bit lower than in past months, but not by much. And then there was this Hirelings for $35. Do player characters still use hirelings??? A complete-looking Dragon's Lair was $18.

For the rest of Grenadier's various lines of boxed sets, take a gander at these: $19 for a complete & painted Giant's Club Frost Giants. A NIS LOTR Hillmen of the Trollshaws for a $32 BIN. $36 for Boris Vallejo's The Magic Goes Away (gotta love Boris!). For one dollar less ($35), how about the Special Edition Roc and War Rhino? The box looks like hell in a handbasket, but this Wizzards & Warriors Dungeon Explorers was only $16. NIS Encounter at the Red Dragon Inn? $56. NIS Encounter at Deephaven? $31. $21 for the Black Dragon II.

From the Great Buys file, how about Princess Achmiri for $5. Yes, $5! And for $9, someone picked up this great-looking Fire Giant. I've been chasing this particular giant for awhile now, but just haven't jumped in on any bidding yet. Maybe you have a spare one sitting around that you'll trade me???

And from the Son of The Great Buys file comes this Teronus the Ultimate Dragon for less than $7! Sure, it's assembled and painted, no box, no insert - but if you want a big old dragon (this guy is heavy!) for less than $10, this would have been your bargain.

One of my favorite eBay sellers to keep tabs on is cola55z. Great selection time and time again, like this Two-Headed Demon (oh come on, just call him Demogorgon already) that sold for $13. Be sure to swing by their new website too! You can buy offline from eBay, peruse upcoming minis about to hit the auction block, or help ID some unknown minis. Fun stuff.

The picture is way too fuzzy, but this seller claims this might be a Grenadier Grinch. And for only $3, why not take a chance on a fun mini, even if you don't know what it is? I almost did.

If you're into Grenadier printed matter, you might have seen this collection of the original newsletter-style Grenadier Bulletin that took in $114. Very cool stuff, if you happen to be into the history of collecting.

HERITAGE: Three Dungeon Dwellers boxed sets, all in shrink! Roaming Monsters Level One sold for $59, Roaming Monsters Level Two sold for $57, and Roaming Monsters Level Three sold for $53. And even when opened and sporting beat-up packaging, sets like Roaming Monsters Level One can still fetch prices like $53.

LEADING EDGE GAMES: "All we know is that there's still no contact with the colony, and that a xenomorph may be involved." These poor colonists never had a chance! But their Last Stand earned this seller $60. Or you could have picked up the exact same set still in shrink for just over $18. I would have picked the latter, but that's just me. Colonial Marines #2 sold for $57, pretty close to what it typically ends up selling for. Aliens sets I see a fair amount of, but Terminator 2 sets, those I don't see quite as often. I guess that helps explain the $84 price for the Future Soldiers.

MANZAKK PUBLISHING: This Mergatroid sold for $8, which is about par for the course when it comes to Manzakk's Finieous Phigures set.

MARTIAN METALS: I dont' think I've ever seen any of these 15mm Traveller minis up close, so I've always been curious as to their detail and quality. At $10 per blister, they seem downright affordable if you are actively searching for them.

RAL PARTHA: What is up with you BattleTech fanatics? $103 for a Marauder IIC? I really need to find myself an abandoned storage locker full of MOC BattleTech minis. Ka-ching!!! The funny thing is, next month's LMR will showcase an individual BattleTech model that topped $300. Wow - just wow.

If I'm going to drop several hundred on a lot, I'd go after one like this: 50+ mechs, a bunch of bases, and even a nice selection of books and supplements for $410. To me, that's getting a lot of bang for your BattleTech buck! And some lots, like this one for $61, are relative bargains in my estimation.

This batch of lots carried the Ral Partha tag, but were mis-labeled "Battlesystem" instead of BattleTech. That mistake cost the seller a chunk of change IMO, but some lucky buyer(s) picked up some bargains: Lot A $41; Lot B $42; Lot C $42; Lot D $46; Lot E $31; and Lot F (parts, bases, and bodies) also for $31. Great prices for collectors looking to fill in some holes, or for resellers looking to make a few bucks.

On the other end of the spectrum, here are some BT lots that seem to be more the norm these days: 27 for $203; and this lot of 60+ mechs and 40+ vehicles for $500 - looks like there are two unassembled Marauders in this bunch.

Only a couple of loose Mechs to note this month - a Warhammer for $16 and a Marauder for $43.

I love bargains, and I know you buyers out there do too! Some lucky dog picked up an Imperial Dragon for $25. Oh, and they also picked up 16 other dragons in the same lot. 17 dragons for $25 is what, about $1.45 per dragon???

On the AD&D end of things, boxes like the Great Red Dragon (new and shrinky) still make collectors say 'Thank you sir, may I have another?' to the tune of $110. This Red Dragon of Krynn sold for $36, and this T'Char went for $26, and the FR Heroes set took in $21.

If you feel like $270 for 45 blisters is a good deal, I'd agree with you! That's only $6 per blister, people. Sure, 10-12 are Ravenloft, and there's one from Harlequin mixed in there, but that's still a sweet deal in my book. And if you buy loose 11-series, you gotta love prices these days: a 11-505 Illithid (the much-cooler, fez-topped flayer) for $6.50; 11-491 Skeletal Giant for $6.51; and 11-057 Elminster for $10.

Lead, as in pencil - here's a $71 sheet of pencil sketches by Dennis Mize for the 01-506 Slave Auction box set.

SUPERIOR MODELS/PERTH PEWTER: Bidding is usually strong when it comes to Elfquest's Cutter and Leetah. Maybe if the seller had included "Elfquest" in the listing that might have helped their cause.

TSR: Here's a lot of with the four character class boxes that sold for $83. The boxes look to be in decent shape, and only one mini out of 48 was damaged. Not bad for TSR.

WOTC: Sometimes a mini looks like it crawled right off the pages of the Monster Manual. This 3E Umber Hulk is one of those as far as I'm concerned. And for a $20 BIN, someone snapped this guy up right quick. And this lot of Chainmail minis ended up at $282 - at a bit over $2 per mini, that's a nice deal if you are building up your factions for some serious battles.

THE X-FILES: I have no idea who made this interesting-looking dragon with six legs and curling horns, but maybe you do? In any event, someone added him to their collection for $10.

LOTS OF LOTS: OK, I see the Minifigs Demogorgon and the Heritage John Carter Green Martian, but who are the other fellas clutching spears? $41 took those uglies home. This $56 lot is full of demonic A-listers. This $90 lot has three different Grenadier Umber Hulk variants, among others. There are a variety of dragons and lizards in this $61 lot. And this lot of giants (oh yeah!) that sold for $42 has a nice mix of Superior, Grenader, Ral Partha, and Heritage - including both Heritage DD ogre variants. This big $171 lot featured a Grenadier gold-plated orc shaman and a bunch of Dungeon Dwellers, but $171 dollars worth? This $178 lot had more minis, just nothing gold-plated from what I can see. And some lucky Warhammer Fantasy collector picked up an $81 steal - terrain, siege equipment, ogres, and not one but TWO Citadel/Marauder giants. Score!