Mouseferatu
Hero
WinnipegDragon said:
I wouldn't presume to speak for anyone else, of course. But IME, using miniatures slows things down dramatically. Often by a factor of double or more.
[Poll] Who DOESN'T use minis?
- Thread starter WinnipegDragon
- Start date
I wouldn't presume to speak for anyone else, of course. But IME, using miniatures slows things down dramatically. Often by a factor of double or more.
s/LaSH
First Post
Sometimes I'll use minis, especially for large combats and combats involving large creatures. Nothing beats breaking out an 8"-long pewter dragon statue and saying, "See this? That's to scale. No, it's just a wyvern, dragons are much bigger."
Other times graph paper is sufficient - if someone's mapped an area properly they have a good idea where they are. Like the Hellcat fight which involved pits, tombs, swinging blades, people climbing walls and some really weird 3D stuff - we didn't use minis for that because we didn't need to, but other combats necessitate their use.
Other times graph paper is sufficient - if someone's mapped an area properly they have a good idea where they are. Like the Hellcat fight which involved pits, tombs, swinging blades, people climbing walls and some really weird 3D stuff - we didn't use minis for that because we didn't need to, but other combats necessitate their use.
Ralts Bloodthorne
First Post
One thing I gotta love about this whole thing, is some people have stated that it's a money-making ploy only...
True, it does have some money-making potential, but we're not talking purses or bracelets that accessories some rich broads dress, we're talking accessories for a group of people that a vast majority of could qualify for foodstamps...
If I need a minature, I have a bunch of pennies, some buttons, some old Monopoly token and some pocket lint...
It's not uncommon to hear: "OK, my character {the pfenning piece} is going to do Leap of the Clouds and get close to the soda can that represents the dragon..."
I once used a squeeze toy that giggled and said: "Gimme a hug, hee-hee!" for an Elder Red Wyrm...
Figures are expensive, I don't have the cash, and frankly, putting a map out is just ASKING for a giggling toddler to run through the room and kick everything in order to get more attention than the map (Toddlers are notorious for being jealous about attention) and then throwing the figures behind the couch and jamming two into thier pants before running off...
I don't care how much of uber-dude your BBEG is, if it's a choice between pulling his figure out of a poop-filled diaper, or just saying: "Ummm, he teleported away." and offering whoever complains the chance to retrieve the figure, you'll more than likely relagate Mr. BBEG to fecal-covered doom....
I'll wait till I read the exact wordings, both in the books, and the SRD, before I make a judgement...
Besides, if worse comes to worse, I have a whole butt-load of plastic army men somewhere. I'll just hang signs around thier necks with thier names....
True, it does have some money-making potential, but we're not talking purses or bracelets that accessories some rich broads dress, we're talking accessories for a group of people that a vast majority of could qualify for foodstamps...
If I need a minature, I have a bunch of pennies, some buttons, some old Monopoly token and some pocket lint...
It's not uncommon to hear: "OK, my character {the pfenning piece} is going to do Leap of the Clouds and get close to the soda can that represents the dragon..."
I once used a squeeze toy that giggled and said: "Gimme a hug, hee-hee!" for an Elder Red Wyrm...
Figures are expensive, I don't have the cash, and frankly, putting a map out is just ASKING for a giggling toddler to run through the room and kick everything in order to get more attention than the map (Toddlers are notorious for being jealous about attention) and then throwing the figures behind the couch and jamming two into thier pants before running off...
I don't care how much of uber-dude your BBEG is, if it's a choice between pulling his figure out of a poop-filled diaper, or just saying: "Ummm, he teleported away." and offering whoever complains the chance to retrieve the figure, you'll more than likely relagate Mr. BBEG to fecal-covered doom....
I'll wait till I read the exact wordings, both in the books, and the SRD, before I make a judgement...
Besides, if worse comes to worse, I have a whole butt-load of plastic army men somewhere. I'll just hang signs around thier necks with thier names....
Arnwyn
First Post
We virtually always use miniatures. And 3e has nothing to do with anything - we've used miniatures since 2e, long before the PO books were out.
As to using miniatures and combat speed - for our group, it's much faster using miniatures. We played our first few sessions back in 2e without, and then we implemented them and combats started speeding up immensely.
As to using miniatures and combat speed - for our group, it's much faster using miniatures. We played our first few sessions back in 2e without, and then we implemented them and combats started speeding up immensely.
Arc
First Post
Our group just started using a gridded whiteboard (lines done with an X-acto knife, fun), and it sped combat up beyond belief. While we previously got 1-2 combats in a session, and those took up about an hour and a half each, we can now fit more in, and have more time for roleplay. The main problem is getting proper miniatures. After all, does anyone make feral kobolds in a kimono weilding a katana two-handed? Or a kobold cleric of Kurtlemak in plate? Or maybe the half snake-half kobold with large claws as natural weapons? If we could find em, we would use them.
ShinHakkaider
Adventurer
WinnipegDragon said:
In terms of speed it helps.
Everybody knows where everyone is there is no disputing who gets hit by what or who moved where.
Most of my pre mini games got held up by discussions on who said where their character was when that fireball hit. Or who was by the door when those Orcs busted through it.
Faster and alot more entertaining. I'm not a Roleplaying Snob, but I like to roleplay when the game calls for it. The game is not all combat all the time nor is it all roleplaying all the time.
WinnipegDragon
First Post
Cool.
Well, thanks to everyone who took the time to vote and to post their comments. I think this the most informative of the (few) threads that I've started
Well, thanks to everyone who took the time to vote and to post their comments. I think this the most informative of the (few) threads that I've started
I could actually imagine running a game without using minis (wouldn't particularly want to, though).
I'd never play in a game that doesn't use minis, unless it involved the best storytelling and role-playing I've ever seen, or something, for two reasons.
1. In the games I was in where people weren't using a mat and minis, they were simply doing so due to the fact everyone, including the DM, didn't know the rules worth a damn and couldn't be bothered to learn... One man's "freeform" is another's "simplistic and boring".
2. The DM does NOT get to control my character unless he's under the effect of mind-influencing magic. When it's up to the DM to decide whether I incur an AAO, can take an AAO, get a Cleave, can move into a flanking position, am eligible for a sneak attack because someone went off running away, can use Spring Attack, have a straight line to charge, can bullrush someone off a cliff, etc. he's making arbitrary decisions for my characer, and I want no part of that. For the most part, I don't want to be told a story, I want to play a game.
I'd never play in a game that doesn't use minis, unless it involved the best storytelling and role-playing I've ever seen, or something, for two reasons.
1. In the games I was in where people weren't using a mat and minis, they were simply doing so due to the fact everyone, including the DM, didn't know the rules worth a damn and couldn't be bothered to learn... One man's "freeform" is another's "simplistic and boring".
2. The DM does NOT get to control my character unless he's under the effect of mind-influencing magic. When it's up to the DM to decide whether I incur an AAO, can take an AAO, get a Cleave, can move into a flanking position, am eligible for a sneak attack because someone went off running away, can use Spring Attack, have a straight line to charge, can bullrush someone off a cliff, etc. he's making arbitrary decisions for my characer, and I want no part of that. For the most part, I don't want to be told a story, I want to play a game.
Tsyr
Explorer
I've used minis before, but answered no, as I no longer do.
I found it caused a few problems.
First, it slowed combat down measurably.
Second, people started... playing different. It became less roleplaying, more rollplaying, to use the old catch phrase. "Ok, if I move to this grid, I'll get AoOed, but if I dont, next round the giant will threaten me... But if I do, even if I survive the AoO, our mage will then have to re-plan his cone spells... hmmm..." Not the type of game I want.
It's expensive, if you want to use real minis, and confusing if you don't ("Ok, so the green jellybeen is an ogre, and the..." "Wait, I thought the green jellybeen was me...").
I'll sometimes, for a complex battle scene, draw a quick sketch on a sheet of paper... Nothing major, "Ok, this circle is the pit of acid, these three X's are skeletons, this big "D" is the dragon, these little circles are you guys...", but it doesn't update with the battle, or anything, it's just to set the scene.
I found it caused a few problems.
First, it slowed combat down measurably.
Second, people started... playing different. It became less roleplaying, more rollplaying, to use the old catch phrase. "Ok, if I move to this grid, I'll get AoOed, but if I dont, next round the giant will threaten me... But if I do, even if I survive the AoO, our mage will then have to re-plan his cone spells... hmmm..." Not the type of game I want.
It's expensive, if you want to use real minis, and confusing if you don't ("Ok, so the green jellybeen is an ogre, and the..." "Wait, I thought the green jellybeen was me...").
I'll sometimes, for a complex battle scene, draw a quick sketch on a sheet of paper... Nothing major, "Ok, this circle is the pit of acid, these three X's are skeletons, this big "D" is the dragon, these little circles are you guys...", but it doesn't update with the battle, or anything, it's just to set the scene.
Last edited:
apocalypstick
First Post
I use minis. I love minis. I got my current group to switch over from gridding out combats with a pencil and a sheet of graph paper to using lead by providing the minis.
To those who say "we don't use minis, maybe my imagination is better that yours?" I say... well, you're being an insufferable, egotistical poop-head. I seriously doubt that your imagination is superior to that of someone who uses miniatures.
Finally, minis aren't horribly expensive; in fact, painting and collecting them is much cheaper than buying PS2 games or going to a baseball game or what have you. after an initial outlaying of cash for some paint pots and brushes, a good miniature that'll give you hours of painting fun costs between 2-3 dollars.
Of course, you have to like painting. And if I wanted to be rude, I might say that maybe you don't paint minis because you're a clumsy oaf with no artistic talent. But, of course, i would never say that; i'm a nice guy.
To those who say "we don't use minis, maybe my imagination is better that yours?" I say... well, you're being an insufferable, egotistical poop-head. I seriously doubt that your imagination is superior to that of someone who uses miniatures.
Finally, minis aren't horribly expensive; in fact, painting and collecting them is much cheaper than buying PS2 games or going to a baseball game or what have you. after an initial outlaying of cash for some paint pots and brushes, a good miniature that'll give you hours of painting fun costs between 2-3 dollars.
Of course, you have to like painting.
And if I wanted to be rude, I might say that maybe you don't paint minis because you're a clumsy oaf with no artistic talent. But, of course, i would never say that; i'm a nice guy. 
