tipping the scales

[Mick]

scales of miniatures ..its hottly contested..how tall is the scale..to the head? to the eyes..? had a long post on tmp discussing the thing. some saying oh I wouldnt by a miniature thats larger then 32mm..what i think alot fail to realize is when alot of people do sculpting its hard getting the same scale..anyways here is that thread to date..I think honestly as picky as we are a miniature could be near perfect and we could find things we didnt like about it..not even considering the scale lol

http://theminiaturespage.com/news/talk/msg.mv?id=978980

comments?
mick

 

[green stuff]

It\'s this simple : scale is from eye to foot because it\'s hard to compare with the hairstyle between two minis if you take the head into account.

I don\'t know why, but since a year or so, a lot of people have been thinking that it\'s head to foot ...

what i think alot fail to realize is when alot of people do sculpting its hard getting the same scale

The whole thing has me rolling on the floor because since when in real life does everybody measure the same size?

 

[Mick]

green stuff I know I have spoken to several sculptors and they do it differently..jim johnson ,sandra garrity, tom meier etc seems each do it differently unless you specifically tell them to do it to the eye..i know jason wiebe asked me which i preferred so seems its not a set standard of rules just on a sculptors whim ..prime example myself and ron at reaper discussing Dennis Mizes arm lengths I think the sculptors get so used to doing things thier way thats how they do it and accept it.

 

[Orb]

The scale idea of using a height is pretty innacturate; it\'s a height not a scale as such.

Scale is a ratio between the size of something and a representation of it. Such as 1/32 scale, or 1/35 etc. For some reason the mini world went with a nominal height for sizing, not a scale.
The scale works for a measurable constant, eg an IG lasgun, but the guardsmen could all be differing heights, as Greenstuff says.....

 

[Mick]

Orb yep I think this is a good explanation seems people hear something is a few more millimeters and they freak out thinking its a completely different size..I guess best if people see the minis either compared side by side or in hand so they can see and if someone is so anal they gripe about 1mm difference they want all clones myself i like having humans different sizes myself

 

[sebrushworth]

Let\'s face it, most of the time you can\'t really tell if figures are 28mm and 35mm or whatever just by looking at them. I recently painted a Rackham keratis warrior, and only realised that it was a full head taller than my other Rackham figures when I put it next to them in my display cabinet.

 

[airhead]

most of our games (D&D, etc.) are played at 1:60 scale (1\" = 5\') and for some reason most of our mini were originally 25mm (1\"+/-) at 6 foot. Now, they are \"heroic scale\" or 28mm or even 32mm.

But if 25mm (1\") is 5 foot then your average 6 foot tall hero would be in the neighborhood of 30 mm tall - heel to top of head.

From a gamer\'s perspective, it really doesn\'t matter, I can use a coin or dice to represent my charactor or the monster, but it is much cooler to use minis.

From a painter/collector\'s perspective, it is very noticibel to see the old D&D lead vs. the newer GW/Reaper/etc. minis. The new stuff is certainly larger.

 

[vincegamer]

Yeah, I have a midold RP bar bouncer who was supposed to be a head taller than everyone else back in the day.
Now he\'s shorter than the average chick in bikini mini.

 

[Mick]

Sebrush especially if you are ordering off a site and just see the mini and noting saying how many millimeters it is..thats why we actually say how tall it is in mm and the scale.

 

[Mick]

airhead I really had a good laugh reading this my pal sitting here basically said the same thing you did word for word ..he says the only annoyance is the standard 5 foot playing field like a stone floor is generally too small for say a reaper with a large flowing cape front front to back and a 2 handed sword sticking to the front a inch

 

[Mick]

Vince lol i bet i havew that same bar tender came with a pack of bar maids? hes a large brute in rp size 25mm..but teen like against a new mini lol

 

[supervike]

I just like my minis to fit together. I don\'t know why since I don\'t really play any games, but it somehow makes logical sense to me.

For instance, it perturbed me greatlywhen I ordered a few buildings from ForgeWorld. They are off a bit scalewise with regular GW minis. I realize the base adds some height to the little guys, but the damn doors don\'t look wide enough for a \'regular\' sized person to fit through.

I have some of the old Ral Partha and Grenadier minis. That was when the \'scale\' was 25mm. Those supposedly huge warriors now look like hobbits compared to anything else.

I can remember as a kid playing with matchbox cars. The neighbor kid wanted to play, but wanted to include his 2 inch tall army men into our little world. What the hell was that kid thinking?lol

 

[Mick]

Super..lolol...lolol...thats too funny and so true I think we are generally anal when it comes to what we like ..so i guess we can buy it or not..it is annoying though when your finely painted minis are there and trees look like shrubs..doors so small Bilbo would be like damn thats small..you need a pack mule for the party and its so small it looks like a shetland pony next to warhorses..so i agree

 

[airhead]

Originally posted by Mick
...the only annoyance is the standard 5 foot playing field like a stone floor is generally too small for say a reaper with a large flowing cape front front to back and a 2 handed sword sticking to the front a inch

Like I tell my players, you can walk 3 people through a 5\' hall way, but you won\'t have room to draw swords or fight.

 

[Dragon Forge Design]

Id not be to concerned with the posts on TMP.. to many old men with shallow pockets who like to moan about the fact that minis arent still a perfict 25mm and .30 cents each anymore..

 

[Naukhel]

You could buy minis for .30?!?!?!

When was this?


My thoughts on size and scale:

It ain\'t what you got, it\'s how you use it.

 

[green stuff]

Message original : sebrushworth
I recently painted a Rackham keratis warrior, and only realised that it was a full head taller than my other Rackham figures when I put it next to them in my display cabinet.

Fluff-wise though, it\'s not that surprising. Dirz are all genetically engineered clones. They come in all sizes and shapes.

 

[Dragon Forge Design]

Originally posted by Naukhel
You could buy minis for .30?!?!?!

When was this?

1970\'s.. and trust me they remember exactly what they paid for toy soldiers back then.. I remember in the 80\'s I could buy a pack of 6 ral partha minis for $3.00 or less..

As Ive said it befor..apparently in the eyes of some, miniature figures are exempt from inflation.. the price should never go up ..ever

 

[supervike]

well...

Originally posted by Dragon Forge Design

As Ive said it befor..apparently in the eyes of some, miniature figures are exempt from inflation.. the price should never go up ..ever

Bread should never go up either! Minis and bread are the staples of life, you know.

 

[Ogrebane]

I dont mind what the size of a mini is the main problem I have (as an army collector) is when You cant fit a mini on a 25mm base and then rank him up with the rest of the unit. GW have scaled up there minis over the years. I have some of the new orcs that stand taller than my old ogres and they are only on a 25mm base. But if a mini looks good I\'ll buy it no matter how tall it is.