Gamer Extraordinaire Bob Beatty presents pictures of his League of Extraordinary Gentlemen collection of figures.
He also has some photos of his Battle of Regents Park game
Bob always puts on a good game, and we are fortunate to have him here in Ann Arbor. He also runs games at most of the major US historical conventions. Look for him there.
I have to admit to being very tempted to buy some of Conquest Miniatures new 500 Nations line of 28mm miniatures. Being of Cherokee descent, I have long wanted to do miniatures games of warfare between Native American warbands. If you’re also sitting on the fence about these figures, here’s a review that may help you make your decision.
The Wargames Directory has a review of Bolt Action Miniatures 28mm Russians. This was a new company to me, and I’m now interested in adding some to my collection of 28mm WWII figures—most of which are BattleHonors.
From Wargames World comes a review of Gripping Beast’s 25mm - 28mm Republican Roman Allies figures. I’ve been looking at Roman figures lately since finishing the excellent book, Rubicon : The Last Years of the Roman Republic, by Tom Holland.
The best part of the book, from a wargamer’s perspective were the descriptions of the street battles conducted between supporters of rival politicians. It would make a very cool skirmish game. (That’s a hint to you figure manufacturers out there.)
Eye candy time. This nice site has some pictures of wonderfully painted Seven Years War French Army units. Specific regiments are listed, so, if you're like me, and need pictures for inspiration, this is a useful site.
Rob W. has written a review of The Assault Group's Dirtiest Africa miniatures. TAG's figures are one of several recent lines of figures for the current wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Africa. These modern fronts could provide a large number of possibilities for wargaming.
Games Workshop has this tutorial on creating nicely terrained bases for your wargames figures. I think bases are an underappreciated part of the miniature wargaming hobby. A well-done base can make an average paint job look much better; conversely, a plain base can make even a top quality figure look average -- or worse. While this tutorial is aimed at GW's 25mm - 28mm singly based figures, you easily can use the principles for smaller scales on multiple figure bases.
Miniature Wargaming is part of the "adventure games" hobby, which includes r ole p laying and board games. Wargamers recreate battles on the tabletop with toy soldiers, like a more complicated game of chess. Models range in height from 6mm to 28mm tall, with 15mm and 25mm being the most popular. There also is a growing interest in toy soldiers and military models, such as the 1/32 and 1/35 scale plastic soldiers from Conte, and Marx.
The most popular miniature wargames are fantasy and science fiction based, such as Warhammer, Warhammer 40K, Warmachine and The Lord of the Rings. World War II games such as Flames of War and Axis and Allies are new favorites. Other favorite historical periods include Napoleonics, the American Civil War, and ancients, such as Romans or Greeks. Other gamers enjoy miniature naval wargames, recreating battles like Trafalgar, Jutland and the Coral Sea.
Hobbyists research historical periods and paint their tiny soldiers in accurate uniforms. Others develop "historically realistic" rules sets or build scale battlefield terrain using model railroad techniques.
For pictures, visit the gallery.
Some of the bigger hobby companies are Games Workshop, which produces Warhammer, Wargames Foundry and Old Glory Miniatures. Wizards of the Coast produces several lines of pre-painted miniatures games, such as the Star Wars and Dungeons and Dragons miniatures games, and a historical game with pre-painted miniatures: The new Axis and Allies game. Wizkids produces a fantasy collectable miniatures game, such as the Mage Knight and Heroclick fantasy games, the science fiction games MechWarrior and Rocketmen, as well as the quasi-historical Pirates of the Spanish Main.
