Now, some of these figures are mine and are at various stages of completeness. Some of these miniatures are stock photos because I either don't own the model or it isn't in the condition necessary to post (on the sprue, painted 20 years ago and in terrible condition, etc).
So without further distraction let's get started.
Warhammer Fantasy
This game system is one that took me a long time to finally fully embrace. I would start an army and play and then sell everything off before starting back up again with the next edition. To date I've played Skaven, High Elves, Goblins, Dark Elves, Empire, Warriors of Chaos, Tomb Kings, and Vampire Counts at various points in my Warhammer Fantasy Career. How many armies do I still own? Roughly 2 1/2.
At heart, I'm a fantasy lover. I'd rather watch Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, or Lodoss Wars than Star Wars, Star Trek, Firefly, or Dr. Who (I still love all of them). So Fantasy holds the aesthetic I love.
First up is the Grey Seer figure from the Screaming Bell. While this specific model is slightly converted he holds the same pose on teh bell minus a single arm. This figure is brilliantly dynamic showing the seer up high away from danger and barking orders to his minions below. He sways with the bell as it rings and his robes, gear, and arms show how chaotic Skaven can be. Here's hoping they do a clamshell variant of this figure when GW releases a new Skaven book.
The Ogre Firebelly is one of the few figures I own that is not part of an army I play or have played in the past. Just like the seer this model shows a fantastic amount of character and dynamism.
This version of Queek Headtaker is simply amazing. He's learing straight at a victim with weapons in hand, ready to tear out the heart of his foes. As if to foreshadow the impending doom of his target, Queek is festooned with hard-won battle trophies to take the heart out of his opponent and let them know that their life is about to end.
I promise not all of the remaining fantasy entries are Skaven. In fact, this is the last one and it is the newest Skaven model. Released as a semi-special character when Isle of Blood launched, this model is really well designed with a ton of detail and one of the most wicked swords anyone has ever wielded.
This is the Krell figure that everyone was waiting for. For ages we were stuck with the ridiculous representation for this mightiest of wights. This figure was sculpted with particular attention to detail that the figure is downright menacing.
Exalted Vermin Lord. Quite Possible one of the best buys from forgeworld I've ever made. This guy just looks menacing and disturbingly violent.
Warhammer 40,000
I started with Warhammer 40,000. Actually I started with Space marine but that quickly led me into 40K since all of my friends actually played that game. Over the years I've played most factions with Eldar, Space Marines, and Orks being my most prolific. These days I'm largely exiting the 40k scene in favor of other games, but GW still puts out some of the best plastic kits of any tabletop wargame. I see myself as more of a collector when it comes to 40k despite the fact that most of my friends still prefer to play this particular game. Oh well, at least I can enjoy the miniatures.
Grotsnik brought me back to playing Orks after years of neglect. This figure is one of the most threatening and deadly looking miniatures in all of 40k. He's big. He's stealthy. He's an Ork. FYI - I love this miniature so much that I put 10 pins into him so he wouldn't fall apart.
The latest version of Lelith Hesperax. Again, I really love dynamic poses and as such, lelith is one of my favorite 40k models. She looks aggressive but still fragile. Feminine but still dangerous. This model really has great balance despite an asymmetrical approach and stance.
This is the Dire Avenger Exarch from teh Dire Avenger plastic box. he has a few builds but this one represents a diresword and a shimmershield. After years of being generic space elves, this box brought back the eastern Asian aesthetic to the Eldar line with back banners, straight spears, and kanji like characters engraved in small places. For a sprue miniature the detail really is superb.
One of the early Eldar Farseer models. I really think that out of all the Eldar Farseer models this one captures the essence of the Eldar the most. He directs his troops with the knowledge and foresight of a seer but looks passively dangerous with the sheathed blade on his back. Classic figure.
This little beauty was released only with the Dark Angels army box back in 2007ish timeframe. I bought that box for this model alone. While I tweaked him to fit with my Blood Ravens (hence the different banner and cloak) the hooded figure with no eyes showing and the imperious stance was perfect.
Warmachine/Hordes
I really love the Iron Kingdoms setting for Warmachine and Hordes. It has so much detail and it doesn't fall into tropes or genre stereotypes. It has all the familiar names with certain familiar characteristics but at the same time they made them different enough that they are still interesting. That's the good news. The bad news is that this game drives me crazy with the hyper-competitive crowd these days and the miniatures, while improving over time, still remain some of my least favorite. The weapons are chunky, the poses are often awkward, and everything just seemes beefier than necessary. Don't get me started on small legs either. We'd be here all night.
All the above aside, I do have a number of figures I really like from these lines, albeit a smaller selection than other games with similar sizes lines.
Before the Epic Haley model I never really considered playing Haley of any variety. I was happy with Commader Stryker and that was that. Despite the overly bulky spear the robes swirling around thie miniature as she prepares one of her time-altering feats really is breathtaking when the model is painted up appropriately.
Malifaux
I became involved with Malifaux while on a break from 40k. The card based mechanism made for a very distinct change of mechanism and allowed me to truly rest and rejuvinate my interest in dice games while playing. The miniatures are all over the board with quality and I'm likely one of the only people on the planet who really doesn't like the new plastic miniatures but I do have several favorites that either started me on teh game or brought me back in when they released.
Snowstorm. This is one of the best models in any game. It is two parts, a silent one named Snow and the giant Wendigo like creature named Storm. Snow looks to be calling upon December to bless her while Storm looks quite menacing. Brilliant model.
Lord of the Rings
I never really played this game much. I bought the first ruleset and was angered when I had to buy a whole new box when Two Towers dropped to keep playing with the full ruleset. The miniatures always seemed to lack something special but I do like a number from the line even if I own very few.
Gamling. In the books he was almost a no-one but in the movies he's a great hero. This model and his mounted version, are superbly detailed and as such were very popular in painting contests for several years.
Kingdom Death
I'm really not a horror fan. But I do like Kingdom Death with it's special brand of horror. Now, the overtly sexual stuff like the newly released Satan or the Wet Nurse are simply not my style. The subtly horrifying models are the ones I find interesting. As a backer of the Kickstarter, I'm super-excited at the prospect of having these models in hand somewhat soon.
The Flower Knight looks very innocent and grandiose. He has stunning detail but a closer inspection reveals barbed thorns, a very predator-ish owl helmet, and other details that betray his deadly nature.
Miscellaneous
These miniatures are from all over. Some are D&D miniatures. Some are from any number of other game systems out there. Some of them are from small boutique miniatures and some are from larger game companies. Some are old while some are new. You get the idea.
This is a grenadier miniature from the late 80s. I think he is from the woodland collection that had some rangers and barbarians but, I don't recall. Why is this relatively unremarkable miniature here? Simple. This is the figure that started it all. My dad box me this box and he sat down with me to paint my very first miniature. He painted a halfling in a tree-stump and I painted a ranger. Over the years I revisited that miniature until I lost it one day. I purchased this one off of E-Bay last year in an effort to repaint it and put it on my shelf.
You'll notice a distinct lack of historical figures and Infinity. I really don't have a large enough exposure to historical figures to choose favorites. For Infinity? I plan to give them an article of their own in the future.