Bizarre Toy Box: Neclos FortressThe Neclos Fortress (ネクロスの要塞, Fortress of Nekurosu) line of of over 320 monochromatic, soft plastic mini figures has never been adapted anywhere else but Japan. Likely, the correct English translation for the line is probably "Necros Fortress," while "Neclos" is printed on cards included in the Japaneses line (there is often confusion between "r" and "l" in Japanese to English translations). Being a Japan-only line can make information difficult to come by, but it seems that Neclos Fortress was first launched in the late 1980s.
What we do know is that Neclos Fortress was released by Lotte, an Asian candy company, each packaged individually in small boxes with candy with cards to fill in the story. What set the line apart from the many other mini-figures lines of the time, included a Dungeon and Dragon's-like role-playing game element and backstory. Players would choose a figure and card representing a specific fantasy warrior (examples include Knight, Amazon, Dwarf, Barbarian and Mage), and have to defeat a variety of monsters manipulated by the evil Neclos, as well as Neclos himself, using spell and item cards. Additionally, the figures boasted special features. The majority of them changed color when placed in warm water, certain figures were released in metallic and translucent colors, and others included removable plastic "gems."
Images credit in this article: neclosfortress.com. Click on the images to enlarge.
Within the line, there are a number of groups of like characters that go together and add extra layers to the storyline. For example, Part Seven of the toy line includes a set of seven "Holy Angels," which presumably factor in to somehow provide assistance to the good warrior characters. On the evil side, Part Two features a set of seven evil sorcerers who seem to function as Neclos's henchmen and whose names all end with "los" (Dekalos, Doclos, Hebilos, Majolos, Mechalos, Onilos, Tacolos). In addition, Part Three includes a group of devil/demon characters, such as Lucifer and Bealzelb (Beelzebub). Here is the best shot at the story we have based on a rough Japaneese to English translation. The following Neclos story summary is based on a Japanese-to-English translation from the Neclos Fortress Wikipedia page, and as a result might not be completely accurate. Please feel free to email if you would like to submit any comments or corrections. The Neclos Fortress storyline revolves around an evil sorcerer, Neclos, attempting to conquer the world, and a group of good warriors banding together to defeat him. In the initial parts of the line the eight good warriors included a knight, a mage, an amazon, a mercenary, a dwarf, a samurai, an elf and a berserker. Later parts featured different good characters, such as a bushman, an elmage and a barbarian. The story is set in a kingdom called Tankirie, ruled by the good brother of Neclos. Having been banished from the kingdom because of his wickedness, Neclos plotted revenge and using black magic, began to gather a legion of monsters to serve as minions in his conquest. Throughout the story, Neclos is defeated, but then resurrected in different forms (this is represented by the eight different "parts" of the toy line, each of which includes a unique Neclos figure). 
This was the first in a planned series of Bizarre Toy Box articles by Jacurutu99. Let us know what you thought of it in the comments below! 
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