Am I the only person who hates plinths?

[032125]

I know I'm going to be stoned for this heresy, but I hate plinths. I hate them. I know there are whole companies dedicated to deifying miniatures, but I find them loathsome and diabolically narcissistic for anything smaller than a greater daemon of Khorne.

Don't get me wrong; I love a good scenic base, and in many cases the base is cooler than the mini. It's mostly the giant, gaudy plinths for 28mm human sized minis. Why on earth does it make sense to glue your nicely painted mage to a cinder block? Who started this nefarious trend?

Flame on.

 

[Wyrmypops]

I dunno, I kinda like it. If/when I wrestle my camera and it's manual into submisson and start taking pics of my mini's, I'll be slipping a plinth underneath them. Shan't bother gluing em, just plonking the base on top of a plinth and click. Just makes them stand out a bit more, like smoothing ones hair before getting your own pic taken.
Whoever did it first, good on 'em. I wouldn't, you know, put them on a pedestal* , but it does make for an appealing aspect of design to me.

*Couldn't resist. And I tried. Really I did. Honest.

 

[freakinacage]

i don't like the gaudy ones. it should accentuate the mini, not overbear it. if the mini is well painted, it finishes it imo. otherwise it'd like having a monet without a frame

 

[skeeve]

yes, you are indeed the only person that hates them.

 

[GreenOne]

Well, it's a matter of balance. Oversized ones do pose a problem imo. Especially when the subject is a human-size mini, on a gaming size base, stuck on a giant plinth;
then the painter shoots the whole thing, often on auto-focus, and posts it like that, with no close closeup. In these case i do hate them, looks like he's advertising his plinth, with a mini on to put the plinth in value.
I lately use 1''x1'' to 2''X2'' cubes, and kinda like them

 

[Einion]

I know I'm going to be stoned for this heresy, but I hate plinths. I hate them.

Define plinth?

Plinth is really a base style, there's no set size/proportion so a pic or two of exactly what you're objecting to might be useful. If you're against plinths period, well, each to his own, but IMO they can often set off a miniature better than any other base type.

Einion

 

[supervike]

I guess there can be an aura of pretentiousness about them. But I like the ones that continue on with the setting.

I have a few of the smaller ones, (one which is like a hockey puck)...but I've not felt that I've ever painted something spiffy enough to be so mounted.

 

[Dedwrekka]

I have a problem with plinths if it's outside of the theme of the miniature.

For instance, in my opinion these are good uses of a plinth:
http://www.coolminiornot.com/272154
http://www.coolminiornot.com/271152
http://www.coolminiornot.com/272039

These are bad uses of the plinth to me:
http://www.coolminiornot.com/268057
http://www.coolminiornot.com/269470
http://www.coolminiornot.com/270416

An undecorated, plain, geometric plinth under a miniature that is anything but simply makes my mind go nuts. I'm looking at an amazing miniature, enjoying the theme, sculpting, painting, and then I'm suddenly looking at a block of wood. It interrupts the theme, sometimes drastically if the plinth is more visible than the miniature. When you're sculpting or painting a miniature to making it look like something other than a block of plastic or greenstuff, why would you then immediately put a block of plastic beneath it? I'm sure that even Monet would go under-appreciated if I framed his paintings with untreated, black painted 2x4s.

 

[IdofEntity]

Looking through some of the plinth work on this site I've formed the following opinion:

Keep the miniature/plinth ratio anywhere in 1/1 to 2/1.

The only gripe I have against plinths is when they're far too tall and the extra height on them adds nothing to the model. It just seems distracting if it's too tall.

 

[uberdark]

wrekka: idk, i rather like the crimson fists one. but the other two are too big to fit on the plinth. i prefer models that work on a pyramid scale. smaller at the top, and wider as it goes down.

 

[Einion]

An undecorated, plain, geometric plinth under a miniature that is anything but simply makes my mind go nuts. I'm looking at an amazing miniature, enjoying the theme, sculpting, painting, and then I'm suddenly looking at a block of wood.

Man you'd be in a minority there! The classic idea of a base is that you essentially don't see it; it's just there to mount the model to, to handle it and to raise it off the surface of the table. It also comes from a historical precedent, since lots of statuettes were mounted this way (still are too).

I'm sure that even Monet would go under-appreciated if I framed his paintings with untreated, black painted 2x4s.

What about a Monet stuck straight on a wall without a frame at all? That kinda thing makes a lot of people cringle.

All joking aside, there are a lot of painters who really like very simple framing, painted matt or satin black, for exactly the same kind of reason that a plain, unadorned base is used for a lot of miniatures.

Einion

 

[Einion]

P.S. The Crimson Fists dio isn't even on a plinth as I would define it.

Base ≠ plinth.

Einion

 

[supervike]

Hmm...I quite liked everyone given as a 'bad' example so far.

I guess I am a plinth lover.

 

[freakinacage]

i wasn't keen on the middle fella but then i would consider that to be a thick base

 

[032125]

To clarify, I definitely don't mean integrated scenic bases. The amazing sculpt of the empire farmer with the burrowing machine under his field is a classic example of a scenic base.

I'm talking about the big block of stained wood, often with a placard on it. I guess if I won a Golden Demon I might set a mini on a block of wood, but I've seen them used on run of the mill, well painted minis, and to me it's the height of narcissism.

 

[Einion]

I'm talking about the big block of stained wood, often with a placard on it. I guess if I won a Golden Demon I might set a mini on a block of wood, but I've seen them used on run of the mill, well painted minis, and to me it's the height of narcissism.

So the same base would be okay if the mini were more exciting and/or painted to a higher standard?

Einion

 

[BPI]

It depends upon the plinth for me. Chipped, tatty looking blocks of wood with paint rubbed off the edges, no, don't really work. Presentation is the key here though and if the plinth compliments the work, I'm all for it. They can also help with composition, not just with lifting the mini up a bit but also for photography.

I'll take each plinth on its own merits I think

Cheers, B.

PS Brass plaques & the like, attached to plinths, I have a more embedded dislike for but only because they're so rarely well done and are often simply jarring

 

[Avelorn]

Well it's extremely practical to be able to hold onto something while viewing it. That's why I always use plinths nowadays for miniatures not intended for gaming.

 

[Trevor]

Yes, if you're taking models to shows and meets and giving them to people to look at a plinth is really handy (excuse the pun) for poeple to have something easy to hold the mini without chipping paint or getting greasy fingerprints all over it.

 

[funnymouth]

i dont like 'em at all. aside from the fact that i like to use my miniatures for games (yes, even my "contest minis"), i find the composition they produce unappealing.