Custom Monster Playset

[horrorhunter]

I actually see no problem with scale there at all. People have grown over the centuries. Just check out any medieval suit of armour. People were little runts back them. That's why the Unholy Eight and the undead knights are so small relative to their chosen sacrificial victims.

And the Paladin Force? Specially chosen for their short stature in order to be able to pursue the Unholy Eight "into the underground caves that run through the hill back to the cliffside/seaside grotto".

LOL...thanks for helping with the rationalization.

Actually all the figures are very close in scale. The Paladin Force are a tad shorter because they are free standing without bases. The victims being very tall is actually cool because after so many generations had passed the Unholy Eight would have a wide selection of descendants of the men who originally hanged The Witch, and they would naturally pick the most statuesque and beautiful to gift to Agrezelh and the other Dark Powers through sacrifice. Those zombies are kinda shrimpy, but then a shrunk up zombie makes sense as corpses lose body mass. An even creepier idea is that the zombies are actually undead children that The Creature Of Doom raised from the graveyard.....wooooo, scary huh kids!? 

[Flower]

WOW! I want one!

Me too! But I really want two .. One to play with and one to look at .. 

[Hepcat]

The victims being very tall is actually cool because after so many generations had passed the Unholy Eight would have a wide selection of descendants of the men who originally hanged The Witch, and they would naturally pick the most statuesque and beautiful to gift to Agrezelh and the other Dark Powers through sacrifice.

Understandable. Word on the street is that Agrezelh likes them tall and "healthy".

[horrorhunter]

I've fleshed out some background on The Unholy Eight for anyone interested in such silliness:

Hagmar The Witch, born Hagmarion Thorne, travelled Europe and Asia amassing vast knowledge of The Black Arts before coming to The New World and being hanged in 1692 at Demon's Overlook. She prayed to malevolent entities insuring she would have friends in Hell before she ever died. Those religious fanatics who hanged her merely allowed her to achieve her destiny- to lead The Unholy Eight on a crusade of evil and chaos sowing the likes of which hadn't been witnessed in centuries. Two hundred and seventy seven years after her hanging, she has returned for revenge...now an emissary of Dark God Agrezelh, the bringer of blood and pain and ecstasy...she will begin her revenge on those that murdered her for practicing her religion. Hagmar is a ghastly revenant wearing a spectral hangman's noose, and talking to her bat familiar, which is really just a manifestation of her clairsentience spell. Her spellcasting abilities have increased tenfold since spending over two centuries in Hell. Her magical laboratory under Demon's Overlook, now called Cemetery Hill, contains a summoning circle, an alchemy table, a mystic library, and a powerful grimoire called Malefus Infinium. This tome allows her to cast her spells through time and over great distances. It also allows her to summon a ghost galleon which she has antichristened The Haunted Hulk. This spectral ship allows the Unholy Eight to sail the seas at unnatural speed.


The Creature Of Doom is the avatar of an unnamed Dark God. It is virtually indestructible. It has great psychokinetic powers. The scythe it wields is intensified negative energy and can cut through nearly anything on a molecular level. It can raise undead by the hundreds and has absolute control over all lesser undead. It is there to assist The Witch, but also to insure that she honors her part of the pact with the Dark Masters. It is the most powerful of The Unholy Eight.

The Wolfman is a 13th century Spanish nobleman named Amando Jose Alverez. The Witch controls him with spells and potions but he is willful and occasionally rebels, especially when beautiful women are in peril. Strangely, they usually fall in love with him. The other members of The Unholy Eight sometimes have to beat him back in line. He is a deadly lycanthrope.

The Monster is a demon possessed body made of parts of different corpses and given life through alchemy by The Witch. It serves her totally and without question.

The Mummy is an undead possessed by the snake demon Ssekarkuss. It is surrounded by an energy aura making it fireproof. It has a negative energy touch which turns the living into the undead unless a cleansing ritual is successfully carried out.

The Vampire jokingly refers to himself as Varney after the character in the penny dreadfuls. He is Count Valigast. He is a potent vampire lord of eight centuries. He considers himself Hagmar's equal but she usually figures a way to  him. He serves with her because it pleases his lord Agrezelh. Someday The Witch will bow before him if he has his way.

Skeleton and Devil Bat are demons which work in tandem. They keep their names secret to avoid unwanted control. The Skeleton body is powered by a great energy aura which makes it an exceptionally tough brute. Devil Bat relies on speed and maneuverability to put a diseased bite on it's foes and victims. Devil Bat thirsts for blood, but is strangely attracted to sweet smells like cologne and aftershave.....go figure.

The Executioner is an insanely sadistic revenant who was called The Crimson Executioner in life. Although physically powerful, his greatest ability is the fear he strikes in others. With a glance of his red eyes he can make the weak willed flee or cringe. With a stare he can render them insane, or make their hearts explode.

That's it for now. Keep telling yourself....."It's only a playset"....."It's only a playset".

[Hepcat]

Did you not find anything from the Dragon Crest playset useful? It featured sixteen of the MPC Weird Monsters plus knights.

[batgirly]

this is awesome

[horrorhunter]

Did you not find anything from the Dragon Crest playset useful? It featured sixteen of the MPC Weird Monsters plus knights.

No. I'm not a big fan of the Dragon Crest playset. It was put out to capitalize on the popularity of Dungeons & Dragons as opposed to being inspired by classic monsters. The Marx knights, horses, and other pieces were far superior to the MPC equivalents. MPC just had the cool monster figures which Marx lacked in 54mm. That's why I made my playset an amalgam of the two companies product. I know I keep bringing this up, but the job that Marx would have probably done on that Haunted Mansion playset would have blown everything else away. If it existed it would be THE Holy Grail Monster Toy for many of us.

[horrorhunter]

this is awesome

Thanks, batgirly. 

[Frankenmarx]

Isn't it amazing that our wives allow us to play with these toys at our ages?  I still set up the Hot Wheel or Johnny Lightning track now and then and do some racing.  She just rolls her eyes...but when the Yeti does his thing, she puts her foot down.

[horrorhunter]

Isn't it amazing that our wives allow us to play with these toys at our ages?  I still set up the Hot Wheel or Johnny Lightning track now and then and do some racing.  She just rolls her eyes...but when the Yeti does his thing, she puts her foot down.

Yeah...sometimes you gotta kinda sneak around and stay outta the way...like we did with our moms.

Of course, it helps to have a monster room(s) to retire to so we can monster away from nonmonstering eyes.

[horrorhunter]

Little clearer pic:

[Scatter]

I'm not a man given to profanity.....but this play set is F&$(*at*)IN' WICKED!!

[horrorhunter]

I'm not a man given to profanity.....but this play set is F&$(*at*)IN' WICKED!!

Thanks, man.

[Mord]

I'm not a man given to profanity.....

Yeah, right (ya basterd).

[horrorhunter]

Occasionally toys would contain small comic book styled instruction sheets like the Monster Scenes kits by Aurora. If this playset had have actually existed in 1969 it would have been totally awesome if an 8 page comic book were included explaining the plot behind the Unholy Eight and the Haunted Graveyard. Since we're dreaming let's dream big...interior art by newcomer phenomenon Berni Wrightson (later Bernie), and cover by Neal Adams, with a scary cool House Of Mystery vibe. Since MPC was really behind producing this thing it's highly doubtful they would have sprung for a comic book extra...but hey, that would have been a little slice of monster heaven were it real.