Disappointed with Minis

[Djeta Thernadier]

Minis look great, granted, but they have never been able to address the fundamental issue I have with them as a DM:

Almost always, when I run a battle the PCs are up against multiple, identical enemies. Five goblins. Seven trolls. Four hippogriffs. Eighteen ghasts. Whatever. With identical minis, it's virtually impossible to tell them apart. Three rounds after the fact, I don't know which critters are slowed, which are enervated, which are poisoned, which are wounded, etc... Sure, the DM keeps notes, but there's no visible way to keep track of which minis represent which scribbled notes.

The simple question "I'm going to charge and attack" "Which one?" is difficult to answer.

This problem is so easily solved by numbered counters or dice that I can't see any reason any DM interested in battle-tracking-effiency would ever use anything else.

Our gm last night put each mini on a peice of paper that was folded up slightly in the back and had a number on it.

You could also have a small colored dot (stickers work good for this) on each bases and tell them apart that way.

 

[Kaji]

I think randomized packs of minis is an easy way for WotC to get out of having to predict which minis will be popular and which won't. They just have to dump them all together and then buyers have to go to a secondary market to get what they really want.

Originally, I was somewhat interested in the new minis. But after I started reading reviews from people who got piles of useless halflings but never the minis they really wanted, I changed my mind. Now I think it's a waste of money for (IMO) poorly painted minis, some of which look downright awful.

I'd rather spend my money on individual blister packs of metal minis that are far superior in quality and I know what I'm getting beforehand. I find that unpainted minis are just as good as painted ones b/c people can imagine an unpainted mini in any number of roles whereas a black-robed wizard is going to usually be construed as a bad guy. Painted looks cooler, but unpainted is more versatile.

Thumbs down to WotC minis...

I'm mostly in agreement. I bought several packs, and the quality of the minis varied greatly. Some looked pretty good, some looked like crap. I'm not "collecting" them, but I do intend to buy some every now and then to help flesh out my regular collection. I've got mixed feelings about the whole thing. Not being able to buy exactly what I want is annoying, especially when it is the official source.

 

[Doc_Klueless]

Hope that helps.

Awesome, Thanks.

 

[Spatula]

The simple question "I'm going to charge and attack" "Which one?" is difficult to answer.

That's easy, just dab a spot of different colored paints on the bases.

 

[Spatula]

I'm missing the following: Axe Sister, Devis, Dire Boar, Evoker's Apprentice, Hound Archon, Human Blackguard, Large Fire Elemental, Mind Flayer, Owlbear, Sword of Heironeous, Troll, Vadania, Werewolf, Wight and Wraith.

Heck, I got the Evoker's Apprentice, Human Blackguard, and Werewolf in the one starter pack I bought.

 

[MerricB]

Minis look great, granted, but they have never been able to address the fundamental issue I have with them as a DM:

Almost always, when I run a battle the PCs are up against multiple, identical enemies. Five goblins. Seven trolls. Four hippogriffs. Eighteen ghasts. Whatever. With identical minis, it's virtually impossible to tell them apart. Three rounds after the fact, I don't know which critters are slowed, which are enervated, which are poisoned, which are wounded, etc... Sure, the DM keeps notes, but there's no visible way to keep track of which minis represent which scribbled notes.

I invested in a pack of small (quarter inch diameter) labels - about 5 AUD (or about 3 USD - containing hundreds of labels. I then stick them onto the bases and write "1", "2", "3", etc.

In one of the very rare times I've used miniatures in an RPG, I had 15 skeletons, 15 zombies, 6 darkenbeasts and 4 goblyns all numbered in such a fashion. (Alright, I used hellhounds for the darkenbeasts and grimlocks for the goblyns, but otherwise it worked fine).

Cheers!

 

[MerricB]

I've also got 2 Stonechildren, 4 Regdars, 3 Red Samurais, and 4 Abyssal Maws - really how many Abyssal gumballs do I need?

If you play the skirmish game, you'll want more. Seriously, I've heard of warbands using nine or ten of the little gumballs.

You might be interested in this tournament report: http://www.3rdedition.org/merricb/minibfcupreport.htm

Cheers!

 

[MerakSpielman]

That's easy, just dab a spot of different colored paints on the bases.

I invested in a pack of small (quarter inch diameter) labels - about 5 AUD (or about 3 USD - containing hundreds of labels. I then stick them onto the bases and write "1", "2", "3", etc.

Bah! If it were that easy I would have thought of it myself!

So there!

Come to think of it, combining the two methods might go down well... A spot of white paint or white-out, with a number written on it, and then a thin layor of clear something-or-other to keep it from chipping...

Still, dice are cheap and plentiful. There's bound to be dozens at the table that nobody's using, and I have yet to come up with a better use for all those damn d12's.

 

[MerricB]

I'm kinda confused as to why the won't make more of the Harbinger boosters? For the price and for what you get, the Harbinger Entry pack is a rip-off.

Because it's not feasible. Any product sells best when it is first released. (Well, most do. ) After a while, sales taper off dramatically, and it just sits there, eating up shelf space in your FLGS.

Shelf space is valuable. That space spent showing those Harbinger boosters that only a few people want would be more profitably used displaying Archfiends boosters. A major selling point of these miniatures is that they don't use up much shelf space. Think about how much space Games Workshop require for a decent number of minis!

Then too, the miniatures in Harbinger aren't as well done as the figures in later sets. By the time Fell Menace comes around (Set 5, and the next set with Entry Packs), I expect we'll see most of the D&D staples being redone with better sculpts and better paintjobs. (And a better grasp of scale!)

While it'd be nice to imagine WotC keeping all releases constantly in stock, it just isn't going to happen.

Cheers!

 

[Nathal]

Minis look great, granted, but they have never been able to address the fundamental issue I have with them as a DM...there's no visible way to keep track of which minis represent which scribbled notes...this problem is so easily solved by numbered counters or dice that I can't see any reason any DM interested in battle-tracking-effiency would ever use anything else.

I've had the same realization. And not all of the miniature's bases are so easily numbered with a silver pen (like the wraith). And yet, some DMs can memorize all of the information you mention without writing anything down, keeping track of all the minis on the board without numbering. It amazes me when I see this. I don't think those DMs are human.