ACI Accessories with TBLeague Figurines

Hello! I am not new to collecting especially figures, but I am new to the historical/fantasy 1/6 side of things. I really love Greek/Spartan history and Mythology. I want to get TBLeague’s Spartan Goddess of War. I also want to get another helmet to go with her. I found some really awesome historical Greek helmets that are 1/6 scale by ACI. Has anyone tried mixing the brands? Do they work ok together? (I was also looking around for the TBLeague Spartan Warrior helmet and Monkey Depot had them for sale, but is out now!) Any help or ideas would be appreciated!

Welcome to the board.

Just a guess, but those ACI helmets should work ok with TBL.

TheVanBeard, welcome.

This might not be exactly what you're aiming at, but TBLeague bodies work well enough with the ACI "historical" Greek armor (and presumably with any fantasy variation you might create; they might have gone that way, considering that the Gorgon's head decorating the cuirass has been reinterpreted as a male head in their rendition). This is actually one of the main reasons I began to collect these bodies. I had one of the hoplite 2.0 sets lying around and used it on the M33 body and a newly converted head (Mark, this one is for you, too ). Here are some photos and comments.















The cuirass works very well (unless you go for the muscle armor with its damn pins). The helmet works well, provided you find a head suitable for it (and the one I used wasn't the smallest, either). The greaves, shield, scabbard, and sword work without issues. The tunic is a very tight fit and I wouldn't be surprised if you see some of the stitches going. I would also worry about staining, though the black one I used did not stain the figure in the half hour or so that I kept it on for the photos. The set comes with a slightly modified set of Roman caligae; I did not attempt to use them, because they are not quite accurate (and hoplites generally fought barefoot), and also because TBLeague feet tend to be a tad big for the footwear in this scale. If they don't fit and you want to use footwear for your figures, I recommend borrowing some WorldBox feet for that purpose (ACI work too, but they will probably not match in color).

Hope this helps. For a more fantsy-oriented look, check out the photos in my Spartan Goddess of War review (HERE), although her companions are Hot Toys and part-TBLeague/part-Star Ace.

Oh, man. Thanks for that, Guv. I almost chocked when I saw this. My wife got a good chuckle out of it, and then said “In your dreams.” (I’ve often said I was born in the wrong time period).

Thank you! This helps a lot. I love the above look, and I am considering building a hoplite as well. I read your review about the Spartan Goddess is War which was really good and helpful. Like you noted, they used Greek/Roman/fantasy elements in the design. That is fine, but if I can some how add to her to look more Greek I will.

Stryker2011 wrote:Oh, man. Thanks for that, Guv. I almost choked when I saw this.

You are welcome!

TheVanBeard wrote:Thank you! This helps a lot. I love the above look, and I am considering  building a hoplite as well. I read your review about the Spartan Goddess is War which was really good and helpful. Like you noted, they used Greek/Roman/fantasy elements in the design. That is fine, but if I can some how add to her to look more Greek I will.

You are welcome and I am very glad this was helpful. A real Greek goddess of war (i.e., Athena) would normally be represented with a spear, round shield, Corinthian helmet (we are lucky ACI has been making exactly that), but usually no armor (and if any armor at all, then the type of armor you see here, not the muscle cuirass). Instead, she would have a long pleated dress (peplos), and over her shoulders the (gilded?) aigis (goatskin) with the (somehow diminutive) head of Medusa front and center.

You can make your own Greek clothing to go with the armor (or under it) very easily (and arguably more accurately than what you can buy). I just posted a thread with some examples HERE.

The problem with collecting historical figures is that there are virtually none on the market that are historically accurate. You will be doing a lot of kitbashing. The fantasy/mythology stuff is easier to find.

Ok. I find this all very helpful! I know more about Greek history then mythology (though I am starting to look into it as well). I know enough to know that there is not an actual Spartan goddess of war. This is going to be a super enjoyable hobby for me though!

TheVanBeard wrote:I know enough to know that there is not an actual Spartan goddess of war.

Well, that is already better than what TBLeague knows or cares to know.

Helmets are a big problem for 1/6 hoplites. The so-called Corinthian style (which is the only historical design available) is fairly common for the early period, but there should be more variety of that type. As to the other types they are non-existent in this scale.

I had hoped the designers in the 3D printing company which I have used in the past, whose name escapes me, would have come to the rescue, but unfortunately not yet.

Also, hoplites would have had some "standard" equipment such as the thrusting spear and the shield (although I disagree with Dr. Sekunda that all spears would have been 8 feet in length) but how many men in a phalanx wore the cuirass, greaves, thigh guards, toe armour etc. would depend on how wealthy they were and what was available in their region.

I suspect that after a battle there would also be a certain amount of upgrading going on as men looted superior equipment from the enemy dead.

JohnByng wrote:Helmets are a big problem for 1/6 hoplites. The so-called Corinthian style (which is the only historical design available) is fairly common for the early period, but there should be more variety of that type. As to the other types they are non-existent in this scale.... Also, hoplites would have had some "standard" equipment such as the thrusting spear and the shield (although I disagree with Dr. Sekunda that all spears would have been 8 feet in length) but how many men in a phalanx wore the cuirass, greaves, thigh guards, toe armour etc. would depend on how wealthy they were and what was available in their region. I suspect that after a battle there would also be a certain amount of upgrading going on as men looted superior equipment from the enemy dead.

Some of the Roman commander figures come with "parade helmets" (which are sometime thought to have been merely an artistic convention), which are probably a decent approximation of an Attic helmet.

As long as you know Sekunda and others like him are generalizing, he knows his stuff -- but there would have been plenty of exceptions and variations as you point out. I imagine toe armor was rather rare, as were thigh guards (unless you mean the perizoma and pteruges). But since hoplites were a specific type of infantry (heavy) drawn from a specific set of classes (middle and upper), a general uniformity of type of equipment (even if not the specifics) is not unreasonable to suppose. After all, the whole point of the phalanx is to work in close formation as a single group.

The Sekunda reference was quite specific, he said that all dorata (thrusting spears) were 8 feet long!

I think that uniformity is overdone these days. Although the hoplite would have obtained a lot of his equipment from local sources, individuality will always shine through. Men might make their own spear shafts and then take them to be mounted with the metal parts, damaged helmets might have new parts added. The richer citizen-soldiers might import whole sets of armour and weapons from a particular craftsman (or craftsmen).

It is also possible that those with more complete sets of armour would fight in the front ranks and men who (for example) only had a helmet and a chlamys or were deficient in some other piece of equipment, might have made up the majority of the men in a phalanx.

I know that the Corinthian style was one of many styles and that it is a more early design. There are many others. From what I understand art from that time used the Corinthian style most. I personally like the look of it. But I also understand that it is the only helmet used for Greek thymed things when it wasn’t the only style.

The Corinthian is my favourite too. Nothing says "hoplite" quite like a Corinthian.

I agree with both of you, I too am a devotee of the Corinthian style. There is something powerful and sinister about the way it completely encases the head, leaving only the eyes and a tiny strip of the face visible.

It is very "modern" in that way and I think its anonymising properties are the key to its popularity.

Although I decry uniformity in historical terms, I often find it aesthetically pleasing and I think that is why it is all pervasive in the present.

In popular culture uniformity is so much easier to draw, or graphically render - or for movies to equip all soldiers of an army in exactly the same way. There must be a lot of time and cost savings in standardisation.

But it is a pity (for example) that the style of the "300" has contaminated the image of the Spartan to such an extent.

I do like that look and it worked great in the film, but it has no basis in reality at all. I suppose that all history is mythologised and even those of us who are interested in facts often argue bitterly over the "truth".

"300" was a cinematised version of a comic book. In that context it was a faithful rendition. The problem is the people who assume that it was historically authentic. If the movie causes some people to do further research to find out what Greek warfare was really like then that is a good thing.

Here is a dory I made from a couple of fake antique arrowheads I found on ebay.

shazzdan wrote:"300" was a cinematised version of a comic book. In that context it was a faithful rendition. The problem is the people who assume that it was historically authentic. If the movie causes some people to do further research to find out what Greek warfare was really like then that is a good thing.

Unfortunately that is not how movies work for most people. The number of people who have commented online about how realistic Saving Private Ryan was as a depiction of combat in WWII is frightening! The opening scenes on Omaha Beach ARE excellent, but after that it is all downhill.

Someone also commented that The Patriot was real history!

In the Last of the Mohicans the Marquis de Montcalm is scurrilously portrayed as a cynical murderer when the truth is that he saved the lives of British soldiers by bravely interposing himself between them and his Native American allies. The truth would have been just as exciting dramatically, so I am afraid we are in the realms of propaganda with that one.

I have no problem with popular culture bending and recreating history for entertainment if it is clear that that is what it is doing. The 300 was fun and it meets that criteria but unfortunately, for most English speaking people history is made in Hollywood and the UK equivalent. I suspect that Chinese and Russian films are also historically suspect. They all do this because the truth is either not exciting enough for the film makers, or would take too long to tell in a factual way, or they want to make propaganda.

Of course, Action Figures are mostly popular culture so I do understand the desire to produce something that will sell, I just think that there is probably enough demand for historically accurate hoplite gear (or as close an approximation as the scale and media allows) to make it worth their while to provide it. After all they did not wear much and what they did was fairly simple by modern design standards.

shazzdan wrote:Here is a dory I made from a couple of fake antique arrowheads I found on ebay.

That is great! I like the leaf-shaped speartip.

Did you also make the leather cuirass? It looks like you made or adapted the shield too?

John Byng, completely agree with you on the misleading and unfortunate role of the movie industry when it comes to "history"-based or -inspired films or shows.

And I am sure shazzdan did everything except the figure himself. He has been showcasing examples of his scaled ancient weaponry and armor usually made from something like the original materials time and again. I like the dory too, although the spear head does look a tad large (then again, there were different types and sizes).

GubernatorFan wrote:John Byng, completely agree with you on the misleading and unfortunate role of the movie industry when it comes to "history"-based or -inspired films or shows.

And I am sure shazzdan did everything except the figure himself. He has been showcasing examples of his scaled ancient weaponry and armor usually made from something like the original materials time and again. I like the dory too, although the spear head does look a tad large (then again, there were different types and sizes).

Sorry for banging on, it is one of my pet peeves! I watch too much tv.

I think the spearhead is pretty accurate for the larger leaf type? I haven't seen one in person only in books. The overall effect is great.

An interesting thing about hoplites is that the name is often said to derive from an ancient Greek word for shield. Others say that it means "arms" as in man at arms, but one article said that it is a generic word for equipment and as the hoplite is a warrior, in that context it means military equipment.

I made the aspis and spolas myself. The tutorial section was looking a little sparse so I added one for the shield. Hope it helps.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t1198-hoplite-shield#15763

JohnByng wrote:An interesting thing about hoplites is that the name is often said to derive from an ancient Greek word for shield. Others say that it means "arms" as in man at arms, but one article said that it is a generic word for equipment and as the hoplite is a warrior, in that context it means military equipment.

Originally the Greeks had three words for shield; Homer uses aspis, sakkos, and rhinos. By the time the hoplite came on the scene, they were only using aspis. Hoplon means "gear" or "equipment". Militarily, the ancient Greeks used it to refer to "war gear" or the entire panoply. IIRC modern Greek uses hoplon to refer to firearms.

Apparently hoplon was sometimes used as a synonym for aspis (the oval shield), and also for armament (armor and even weaponry) in general; so a hoplites is someone who is (relatively heavily) armed.