This is a visual reference for HeroQuest 2021 Edition using the Bardsung dungeon crawler board game by Steamforged Games. As with all of their games, this has a very high production value. There are 68 miniatures in the box with 36 different sculpts. All of the miniatures are preassembled with one exception: The Great Demon. This version of Bardsung has ceased production and can currently be located in many online game shops for a steep discount.
Because I like the female elf miniature from the 2021 edition of HeroQuest, I have elected to use it as my reference in all of my images. Only 10 sample miniatures will be in this web article. At the end is a link to the PDF version of the full reference containing all 36 sculpts.
There are five unusual hero miniatures in this set. They are only provided artwork and names. With minimal background, and no cultural references, I have elected to assign their cultures based on their appearance.
Lightweaver is the name of this character, the miniature appears to be an elf female with a magic staff held in an attack position. It could also be used as a monk wielding a staff.
Elf – vs – Dwarf – Fighter – Stoneheart – Female
Good miniatures of female dwarves are relatively rare. I was very happy to see that there were multiple female dwarf sculpts in this box and all of them were very well done. This one has both iconic dwarven weapons, a hammer and an axe.
Corvidae seemed to be the appropriate culture for this miniature. The artwork for it shows them with black feathers, which is I expect is where the name Nightfeather originated. Armed with only a dagger led me to the idea this one was a rogue.
The Dawnguard miniature would be good for a fighter class, a militant cleric class, or even a paladin class with all that armor and the shield. Also not a super obvious female orc, but the artwork certainly provides that impression.
Wyldshell would easily be adaptable as an aged spell caster or as a wizened old monk. Using them as a traveling merchant from an exotic land would just as well. I went with Testudine being that this one appears to be tortoise like, but with fingers not just toes.
This hob had to be angled in as such to show the bracer blade as it blended in with the over all grey of the miniature. In other versions of the photo it blended with the arm. The stocky build with the large ears and bald head might work well and as alternative half-elf / half-orc character.
The game calls all of the dwarfs that appear in it duergar, except for Stoneheart. Wielding two axes and sporting a mohawk this one reminds me of the troll slayers of old Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.
A massive ogre that truly fits the perception of a terrifyingly cruel person eating giant is in this box. Wielding a club screams extended reach in combat, its easy to imagine this beast crushing heroes to jelly.
The hook horror looks less like the popular bird variant with hooks for wings. To me it has a Graboid feel to it, as if a Graboid Screecher were to grow out of its cute stage and into a truly horrific monster.
Hands down the best giant rat miniature I have ever seen. It really is a giant compared to the elf and especially the rats in the HeroQuest box, which are about the size of a human skull.
This Bardsung box game has provided lots of options for home brewing. The inclusion of the unusual Hobs has spurred an idea for a quest involving warring factions of elves and orcs. It is very nice to have functional alternatives for the female dwarf in my HeroQuest game. Even though this version of the game is out of print now, many of the miniature sculpts can be found in new releases by Steamforged Games.
As I do with these visual references I have posted a PDF file for download.
– Dru
Dru's Den of Ill Repute 