I have had this entry sitting in Blogsy for almost a year. I kept meaning to get the pieces out to photograph and it never happened. In my defence in the last 12 months I have got married and had a baby so I have been busy!
I got the figurines out to photograph. I found my Band with Rocks In easily enough as they live at the top of the stairs. I knew Jade would be a challenge as I put her safely in her box and into the cupboard when I put my figurines away. I have since changed my bedroom furniture and have found that for the time being Jade is completely inaccessible. Rather than delay this entry any longer I decided to just leave photos out until I can get them. I found Polly in the cupboard but Igorina was nowhere to be seen. Igorina came in several parts so I must have boxed her up and put her away so I didn't lose any. I will endeavour to get them photographed and added on though.
This entry was going to be all about the Troll characters that have made it into figurines. As I was noting the various Troll characters I realised that I have already covered most of them. Detritus in Armour was covered in the Watch section and the Ruby and Detritus bookends were covered in…. Bookends and Event Pieces. This left me with Lias Bluestone and Jade from Monstrous Regiment. Therefore I decided to make this section about the Band with Rocks in and the Monstrous Regiment trio instead!
The Band with Rocks in
These guys feature in the first Discworld book I ever read, Soul Music. They do not feature in any other books. They are 3 broke musicians who meet when they try to join the Musicians Guild. Imp finds a strange instrument in a strange music shop and finds that he is able to play it instantly, he seems possessed by the instrument. The instrument bears more than a passing resemblance to a roundworld guitar and so Imp becomes the front man. He was previously a harpist in his native Llamedos. Lias is good at banging stones together and so obviously morphs into the drummer. Glod can play the horn and makes up the final member of the band who freely admits to being in it for the money!
The book is fun as due to its obvious parallels with the roundworld there are lots and lots of references to popular culture. I won't list any of these save to say that my favourite relates to the new boy in the fish shop being ‘elvish’.
Imp Y Celyn DW81
Imp is from Llamedos, the rainy land which is more welsh than Wales! Populated by druids, it is a place where music is important. Llamedos is Sodemall backwards. A trick inspired by Dylan Thomas Under Milk Wood which is set in the fictional Llareggub. I have welsh roots and my house has a name plate with Llamedos on. Chiefly because when I bought my house it was the first house I had ever owned and my feeling when I shut the door was Sodemall!! Most people think it is something to do with my Welsh roots which suits me!
Imp’s full name is translated from Welsh roughly as Bud of Holly. So naturally he gets called Buddy. In the piece he has a distinctly 50’s rock and roll look with his dark hair in a quiff leaning back playing his guitar.
The RRP for Imp was £24.95.
The quote for Imp is from Soul Music
"Buddy’s eyes snapped open suddenly. ‘Let’s rock,’ he whispered."
Lias Bluestone DW82
Lias is the rhythm section of the band. He initially starts out just banging rocks together but later he develops an actual drum kit. Lias also changes his name, choosing to be known as Cliff, despite being told by others that noone by that name would last in the music business!!
The piece of Lias comes in 2 parts. Lias himself with his hands up, clearly mid drum and the drum set itself. He is wearing dark glasses. The RRP for Lias was £44.95.
The quote for Lias is from Soul Music
"’Let’s give ‘em "The Wizard’s Staff", then,’ said Glod.’ That always breaks the ice.’ ‘OK,’ said the troll. He counted on his fingers. ‘One, two…one, two, many, lots.’"
Glod Gloddson DW83
Glod seems to be less bothered by fame, stating clearly he is in it for the money and trying to direct the others to achieve this. I love that when they play a gig and are expected to be pelted with veg, Glod brings a string bag so as not to waste anything! A lovely detail on the Glod and Imp pieces are the pieces of fruit on the ground around them.
The pieces do not seem to be completely in proportion with each other but they do make a nice set. I have them arranged on a shelf with Lias at the back and the other 2 arranged either side of the drum kit. The RRP for Glod was £24.95.
The quote for Glod is from Soul Music
"He was small, even for a dwarf. A large bronze horn lay across his knees…’I can blow anything,’ said Glod."
Value wise Glod and Imp are fairly standard small figures. Prices between £30-£50. Obviously Lias is a larger piece and can make up to £80.
I do have numbers sold but my paperwork has been put away. Will update shortly!
All three pieces were retired in February 2005 and were introduced in around 1999.
Monstrous Regiment
Monstrous Regiment is another book that features characters that don’t resurface in later books. It follows a group of recruits who turn out to be females disguised as boys. I do like this book. The characters are generally appealing and the story goes along nicely.
This was one of the last books that Clarecraft was able to draw inspiration from. I do wish that more could have been made from the book. I really like the character of Jackrum, the rotund Sgt in charge of the recruits. ‘You are my little lads and I will look after you’. Various characters from Ankh Morpork appear including Vimes, Wililam De Worde and Otto Chriek. Each of them brings something to the story, reminding the reader that a war does not just affect the countries and armies involved, but has repercussions in the wider world. Especially a world that has been made smaller by the introduction of the clacks.
These pieces were among the final ones produced by Clarecraft. They were introduced after May 2005 and retired in October 2005 when Clarecraft closed.
I didn’t buy all of the final pieces but I did buy these three because I really liked them. All of these pieces were introduced in 2005 and retired later that year when the factory shut. I have no idea of numbers sold and there are no variations of these pieces.
Polly DW167
Polly is the first character we meet in the book. She cuts off her hair and is disappointed that that is all she really needs to do to look like a boy! She has however practised and prepared to pass as a boy and is very successful initially.
Polly is a relatively small figure resplendent in her red uniform with her shako and sword and pack on her back. She had an RRP of £45.00 and has made in excess of £100. The 2 most recent sold on ebay however have reached more modest prices of £66 and £77.50. There are no numbers sold available for these pieces but anecdotally Polly is the figurine that most often appears on ebay. Polly was sculpted by Mark Ayling.
The quote is
"No, sir. I was a – I am a girl, and I cut my hair and pretended I was a boy and took the Duchess’s Shilling, sir."
Jade DW168
Jade is my favourite of the three. Jade (AKA Carborundum) is the troll in the group. This is a large piece and was an expensive piece to buy new. The detail on her is just amazing and she is a lovely piece. She was sculpted by Joe Pattison.
The quote is
"It looked like a boulder that had spent centuries in the damp pine forests. Lichen covered it. Stringy grey moss hung in curtains from its head and its chin. It had a bird’s nest in one ear."
This piece was expensive due to her sheer size, this also made her the rarest of the three as people had to make hard choices about which of the final pieces they wanted to spend their money on. I recall that she was about £80, she has obviously made far in excess of this however. She has appeared on ebay infrequently but I haven’t seen one for a little while. Pollys and Igorinas do pop up from time to time and are subject to the same vagaries of value as the other pieces. Sometimes they go for silly money, sometimes they are more affordable.
Igorina DW169
Igorinas are the female version of Igors. Apparently they lisp less and tend to be more attractive than average. Igorinas motivation seems to be that Igorinas are not allowed to be as ‘hands on’ in helping people as Igors. She has a wish to become a surgeon and feels that battlefield experience will help her persuade her father to support her.
Igorina is a piece in proportion with Polly. She has her shako and pack too however they are separate add ons to the piece. The shako being separate allows the stitiches around her hairline to become visible. Rather than cut her hair like Polly did Igorina simply transplanted her scalp, replacing her long hair with a shorter one. She keeps her own scalp in a jar. The separate pieces may make her value rise in future as various parts get lost and misplaced. Her RRP was the same as Pollys at £45.00 and she has made in excess of £100. She tends to appear less frequently than Polly but more than Jade but there hasn’t been one on ebay in recent months.
The quote is
"’ What’re female Igors called, Igor?’.
Igor stumbled and kept moving. He was silent for a while, and then said: ‘All right, what did I do wrong?’"
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