Miniatures or Counters?

[Water Bob]

I could give two hoots about miniatures. They're expensive, and typically, I don't like the way they look (preferring a more "realistic" fantasy game over some of the wild looking minis out there).

But, I would like some type of counters to use in my Conan game. Since it is "Conan", I need human likenesses, and I need a lot of barbarian types (for the Vanir, Aesir, Cimmerians).

Now, I'll buy a couple of actual miniatures if I can find some I like and are not too expensive. I want them to look "realistic" though. And, I'd prefer them to be painted already.

Anybody know where I can find some counters or minis to fit my needs?

Thanks.

 

[frankthedm]

Historical mini lines tend to be less Xtreme.

These counters are probably not what you were looking for....

 

[JoeGKushner]

Red Box Games
http://www.red-box-games.com/

http://red-box-games.com/shop/index...ath=13&zenid=a6d599a725c1807112fefa14cdb75148

http://red-box-games.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14

two different tribes

 

[frankthedm]

$7 a fig might be more than OP wants to spend.

Old glory figs are still a good price for metal AND they offer a 40% off discount with purchase of a $50 membership good for a year.

http://www.oldgloryminiatures.com/categories.asp?cat=113

http://www.oldgloryminiatures.com/categories.asp?cat=117

Old Glory Miniatures Barbarian Command, GB-01

Old Glory Miniatures Warriors with Axes, GB-02

Old Glory Miniatures Berserkers with Wolfheads, GB-05

 

[Scribe Ineti]

I really like Fiery Dragon's counter sets (Fiery Dragon). I use them for all my 4e games. Far less expensive than miniatures, durable, and easy to store. I like miniatures well enough, but it's far easier to pick or make a paper counter for my specific PC than to search all the various miniature companies for a miniature that fits my PC concept.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

I like cardboard minis better than counters. I've had Steve Jackson Games' Cardboard Heroes for a long time. Make copies, cut 'em out, fold 'em, tape or glue a penny to the bottom, and you're good to go. Sample art is here.

 

[Lancelot]

I'd recommend cherry-picking from the DDM line at a singles-retailer like Miniature Market or Troll-and-Toad. The minis you're looking for are generally commons or uncommons, which means you can get pre-painted plastic for a relatively low price. Certainly cheaper than buying metal (or even Warhammer hard plastic), primer, paint, and then spending time working on them.

There are a ton of non-"fantastic" (i.e. semi-realistic) figures which would suit a Conan game well. If we take a single DDM set as an example (...we'll use Aberrations, which is the first one alphabetically):

• Human-appearing figures: Man-at-Arms, Aasimar Favored Soul (Cleric of Mitra?), Sharn Cutthroat, Emerald Claw Soldier, Carrion Tribe Barbarian. I'd also include the Frenzied Berserker (great figure!), but she's an expensive rare. The others are all pretty cheap.
• Classic Conan-esque creatures: Iron Cobra, Fiendish Dire Weasel, Chuul (only rare included here, but not pricey and would make a classic creature-from-the-deeps), Fiendish Giant Mantis (as above), Taer (classic "white ape"; e.g. Rogues in the House, Shadows of an Iron Moon, etc).

The benefit of going to one of the singles sites is you can just open up their DDM folder and peruse the galleries. They'll have pictures of all the minis available. With about 20 DDM sets released, and about 50 figures per set, you have about a thousand options... but you can skim the lot of them in under 15 minutes. Just ignore the orcs and kobolds and focus on the human-like figures and the select few Conan-esque beasties. Also, don't be discouraged if you see a really sweet rare figure in one set with a $15 price tag (like the Frenzied Berserker above). There will be a half dozen other entirely suitable common figures for $2 or less, so just go with them if budget is an issue.

 

[frankthedm]

abPrices.com - Collectibles Price Comparison lets one compare prices on plasticrack [collectible mini] dealers.

 

[Shades of Green]

I like miniatures; painting them and improvising terrain is fun all by itself, and they make tactical situations easier to represent.

However, I prefer 15mm miniatures over 28mm ones. Not only is my table small and my storage space strictly limited, but they are quite cheap (sometimes less than $1 per figure) and quite easy to paint even when one is not very skilled (and I'm quite new to minis).

 

[MadLordOfMilk]

If you shop around, you can get miniatures pretty cheap.

That being said, I plan on eventually converting over to counters myself, despite having 50-100 decent minis. It's just a thousand times easier to transport, and significantly more convention-friendly!