Miniatures Forum? Please vote!

[S'mon]

Should there be a dedicated forum for discussion of miniatures within EN World?

I posted this suggestion to the Meta forum, I'm polling here to check demand (and yes, I have read the FAQ!).

Miniatures seem a big part of 3e D&D - the combat system only seems to work with miniatures, unlike previous editions - and I was wondering if we could have a forum for miniatures discussion? This would be for discussion of painting, converting, manufacturers, etc. What do you think?

Is there some reason why there should NOT be a miniatures forum within EN World? I've noticed that there are lots of places to discuss online/computer-related aspects of play - graphics, software tools, web pages et al. Are minis/figurines too low-tech for the brave new world of the Internet?

If there were a minis forum, would you read it?

Please give me your opinions, either way - I've long wondered why miniatures don't have a higher profile. Am I missing something? Are minis to be relegated to Warhammer, Mage Knight and Chainmail? Does everyone else use cardboard markers? Do people these days not have time for minis painting anymore?
Cheers,

Simon

 

[TBoarder]

Consider me uneducated, but I don't see what there could be to talk about when it comes to miniatures, apart from "Hey, this one is cool looking" or "Hey, this one is broken/got the shaft". I think the general forum could easily handle it, and if those topics do become popular, a new forum could easily be made then.

 

[S'mon]

Consider me uneducated, but I don't see what there could be to talk about when it comes to miniatures, apart from "Hey, this one is cool looking" or "Hey, this one is broken/got the shaft". I think the general forum could easily handle it, and if those topics do become popular, a new forum could easily be made then.

Things that I would be interested in discussing include painting techniques, how to do good bases, techniques for easy conversions, different manufacturers (since minis are currently not reviewed at all on EN World!) - price, quality, value for money, mail-order reliability - suitable 'substitution' miniatures (if you don't happen to have your own 25mm tojandra) - links to pics - especially use in D&D/d20 play - and so on.

Eg a player of mine did this web page in honour of a recent session, with pics of the battle scenes:

http://www.boman.biz/index.php?pagename=DendridiVillage

Also good scenery - cardboard, plaster of paris, etc - good retailers, how to make your own scenery, etc.

Are people really apathetic or negative on this issue? If so, is it because you don't use minis - did you never use them, cease using them for some reason, or just regard them as too uninteresting to discuss?

 

[TBoarder]

Put me in the "apethetic" group. I've never used miniatures. I own a total of 1. I'm not negative on the issue. Like I said earlier, my comments are completely uneducated, but even with the possible subjects that you gave, I don't see there being a lot to talk about. (Then again, considering that I still have under 100 posts on these new boards, and probably fewer than 250 since Eric's site opened in 1999, it seems that I don't have a lot to talk about to begin with... I may be the wrong person to be talking about this ). I'd have no problems with miniature discussion in the general forums, and as I said before, if there happens to be a real demand for it, like there was for the Sci-Fi boards, then a separate board can be created. Otherwise, I think it'll just add more clutter to the opening page.

 

[Gospog]

Miniatures are an integral part of D20. We use miniatures in all of our D20 games.

Potential topics include:

-Miniature conversions. I just finished four Judges for Judge Dredd D20. No such miniatures existed before. I also converted all of our Star Wars miniatures.

-Painting. Techniques, critique, etc...

-Sculpting. I sculpted an Undead Beholder. Anybody want to see?

-Terrain. I create a custom terrain piece for almost every game I GM (more or less weekly). Again, anybody want to see? Want to learn how?

I think the creation of a Miniatures board is a great idea!

 

[Barendd Nobeard]

I have a lot of minis, but I don't think the current volume of posts about them warrants a separate forum. Yet.

 

[S'mon]

I have a lot of minis, but I don't think the current volume of posts about them warrants a separate forum. Yet.

I think people are a bit reluctant to discuss them in the General forum. I know I am - it took me a long while to summon up the nerve to post this thread.

People do post minis threads here, but they kinda seem a bit off-topic, and the volume in General is such that they soon slip off the radar. But the nature of these threads is more technical/informatory IMO than most General topics, and I for one would like a place where minis threads would hang around for awhile and be checked back on every few days without having disappeared into page-8 oblivion.

 

[S'mon]

-Sculpting. I sculpted an Undead Beholder. Anybody want to see?

-Terrain. I create a custom terrain piece for almost every game I GM (more or less weekly). Again, anybody want to see? Want to learn how?

Me! Me! On both counts.

 

[S'mon]

d20 has been a learning process for me - when we started playing D&D 3e, it took awhile to realise that the new combat rules were heavily predicated around use of minis, or at least some kind of counter/marker. Without them AoOs et al are confusing, muddling and unnecessary, a hindrance to cinematic gameplay (IMO). With minis the D&D combat rules make a great miniatures skirmish system, elegant and exciting. I get a lot of comments from my players like "this is so much better with miniatures!" "this wouldn't work at all without miniatures!" etc. Not to mention that in 3e it's a great evil-GM feeling to plonk down my Ettin miniature and know that its combat stats now back up its fearsome appearance!

 

[Buttercup]

Miniatures seem a big part of 3e D&D - the combat system only seems to work with miniatures, unlike previous editions

Not true. We don't use miniatures, and combat works just fine. We use paper counters to represent all the participants, so we can keep track of where everyone is standing. I've also found that a numbered grid works just fine.

I have no interest in such a forum myself, but if there is demand, I have no objection. I didn't vote, since there is no "I don't care" option.