Influential Warhammer sculptor Aly Morrison has died; the announcement of his death was first made by specialist art trader Warhammer Original Artwork, and confirmed by Morrison’s ex-wife Trish Carden, on Thursday October 12. Morrison’s involvement in the early design of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 miniatures had a major impact on the development of the hobby and the Citadel aesthetic.
Morrison’s career in miniature design began as a young man some time around 1977. Morrison contributed art to the Scottish D&D fanzine Underworld Oracle, and with the ‘zine’s co-editor Lou Nesbit developed models for the small Oracle Miniatures range. Morrison worked freelance for several companies including the historical miniature maker Mike’s Models before coming to the attention of Bryan Ansell at Games Workshop, where he landed freelance work designing figures for Citadel Miniatures in 1983.
Long-time Warhammer fans may know Aly as part of a duo, Trish and Aly Morrison: today Trish is Trish Carden. They met in Edinburgh through mutual friend Donald Brotchie, who was studying jewellery and silversmithing with Trish at Edinburgh College of Art. Trish was fascinated by the detail Aly put into his miniatures and began to experiment with the medium. When Aly showed her work to Bryan Ansell she was also offered a job, creating the Citadel Studio’s first (and likely only) power couple.
Aly and Trish married in 1984 and lived in a tiny top-floor tenement flat in Endinburgh for eighteen months, receiving orders from the Citadel studio and sending down completed models via the mail or on train trips. During this period they rented a studio which they shared with one of Trish’s jeweller friends and Bob Naismith, another silversmith who also did early miniature design work for Citadel miniatures.
In 1986 Morrison was offered a full-time position at Citadel miniatures and, hoping to buy a house with Trish, accepted the job. The pair moved south and joined the Citadel design studio at Enfield Chambers in Nottingham.
In 1988, as part of an initiative by Bryan Ansell to diversify the miniatures that Games Workshop sold, and to diffuse criticism of the growing commercial juggernaut that Games Workshop was becoming, Aly and Trish founded Marauder Miniatures. In practise this was a wholly-owned subsidiary of Games Workshop, since it relied on Citadel’s manufacturing and distribution facilities, but Aly and Trish had the freedom to develop the studio as they saw fit and earned a sales commission.
To say that Marauder was an enduring line would be an understatement. The Marauder dwarf troll slayers were never replaced, and are still the current miniature for Warhammer: the Old World – arguably they’re the design archetype underlying the Age of Sigmar Fyreslayer range. While Trish carved out a niche as the mother of monsters, Aly’s designs capture whimsy and wit, models with the exaggerated animation of a Jim Henson puppet..
Trish and Aly had one child together, Mharaid, whose birth in 1992 was announced in issue 150 of White Dwarf on the new page, under the whimsical heading “New Marauder Miniature”.
Morrison was an active part of model design at Games Workshop until his retirement in May 2026. His blog, Aly’s Toy Soldiers, describes ongoing difficulties with the chronic condition fibromyalgia, though we do not know if this played any role in his death.
Writing to her own Facebook group, Trish Carden says “Mharaid and I are heartbroken to announce the passing of Aly Morrison, a very much loved father, veteran wargames miniatures designer and friend to many around the tabletop and the world. Aly passed unexpectedly but peacefully this Wednesday, and will be sorely missed”. She requests that people respect their privacy during this time of mourning, but “would love and appreciate to hear any stories those that knew him have to tell of their times together”.
In writing this obituary I’ve relied extensively on Trish Carden’s interview with John Stallard and Robin Dews in the collection ‘Talking Miniatures’, and her posts in her Facebook group. The Lost Minis Wiki was also a big help.
Source: Wargamer
