Affordable Miniatures?

[Angafirith]

I've been trying to get away with using fake miniatures (mostly paper circles with drawings on them) for quite a while, but I think it's finally time to move to real miniatures.

I have several concerns, though. For one, I'm a college student and have little to no income at the moment. I can't afford to spend a lot of money on this. Second, I want to have a reasonably good idea of what I'm getting. Buying a randomized box of miniatures is going to be problematic, because I already know where I'm going with my campaign. I want to be sure that I get what I need.

I had considered using Lego mini-figures for humanoid races and such, but they're more expensive than I'd like.

Does anyone have any ideas on where I would find miniatures like these?


EDIT: I forgot to mention that I need them for D&D.

[valadil]

As far as proper miniatures go, Reaper sells theirs pretty cheaply. $3 each isn't so bad. I've also found sets of cheap miniatures. Either monsters that didn't turn out right or plastic minis that are all identical. There are usually $20 for 20 miniatures. They're lower quality, but make for decent NPCs.

One of my groups has a huge stash of miniatures they got from ebay. I've never seen any particularly good deals there, but I haven't looked very hard either.

Failing that, plastic army men work pretty well. You could always go to an arcade, blow $5 on skeeball and get dozens of plastic dinosaurs and such.

[Crazy_Uncle_Doug]

I used paper counters a while, and it wasn't a great solution for me, either.

The "blind box" collectable miniature thing was something I did not want to spend time or money on. A few solutions:

Lego minis. If there's a lego store near you, you can actually buy individual guys sometimes. They aren't bad. Some sets include different beasties. I knew a fellow who did a Boot Hill game where all the characters were represented by Lego Cowboy minis. It was cool in a silly way.

Reaper Minis. Reaper makes a rather large number of minis, with the added advantage that you can actually see what you're buying. The larger models get a bit spendy, however.

Axis and Allies gamepieces. If you don't care what your models look like, these work well. Plus, it's a fun game.

[horseboy]

Reaper good, bag of army men for $1 really good. Old chess sets

[onasuma]

Affordable Miniatures?

Never gonna happen...

[Angafirith]

Lego minis. If there's a lego store near you, you can actually buy individual guys sometimes. They aren't bad. Some sets include different beasties. I knew a fellow who did a Boot Hill game where all the characters were represented by Lego Cowboy minis. It was cool in a silly way.

Wow, I had no idea that Lego had its own stores. Unfortunately, the closest one appears to be in VA, and I'm not sure I'm willing to go that far.

I do have a lot of Lego mini-figures from when I was a kid, but I don't recall having many castle type sets. I'm sure that Darth Maul lego figure would probably make for a great Orc Warlord or some-such. Maybe I'll send an email to David Morgan-Mar and ask how he gets all of his Legos.

The Reaper miniatures look like they're worth looking into.

I suppose I could just go ahead and get only miniatures that I'll use on a regular basis, like PCs and important NPCs. For any others, I'll just improvise.

[Crazy_Uncle_Doug]

Here's the Reaper Website, FYI They tend to have fairly decent PC figures, and some monsters can come in bundles.

[Drider]

http://www.rpgshop.com/product_info....ucts_id=31243&

If you ever want a BAG O' ZOMBIES!!!

[Dausuul]

I've been trying to get away with using fake miniatures (mostly paper circles with drawings on them) for quite a while, but I think it's finally time to move to real miniatures.

I have several concerns, though. For one, I'm a college student and have little to no income at the moment. I can't afford to spend a lot of money on this. Second, I want to have a reasonably good idea of what I'm getting. Buying a randomized box of miniatures is going to be problematic, because I already know where I'm going with my campaign. I want to be sure that I get what I need.

I had considered using Lego mini-figures for humanoid races and such, but they're more expensive than I'd like.

Does anyone have any ideas on where I would find miniatures like these?


EDIT: I forgot to mention that I need them for D&D.

My recommendation: For mooks and random PC-type minis, look on the DDM secondary market. You can pick up a small army of troglodytes, spearmen, goblins, orcs, and the like for very cheap, usually around 20 to 50 cents apiece. Get a metallic highlighter and put numbers on their bases if you're having trouble keeping track of which is which. For important characters and "boss monsters," go with Reaper, since the flip side of DDM's cheap mook minis is that the big cool minis are very expensive.

(Also, Reaper minis just look way better. You do have to paint 'em, though, unless you're okay with your boss monsters all being silver.)

[Counterspin]

You can get a lot of the prepainted D&D miniatures for less than a dollar each. Try ebay.

[Altair_the_Vexed]

Stand-up paper miniatures can be bought for a couple of dollars for several dozen, and printed out ad infinitum on card-stock paper in colour. Find them online at RPGnow.com.

With a blob of blu-tack or similar on the base, they're not going to fly away when someone sneezes, either.

[de-trick]

the boxed ones are fun but soon get like Pokémon cards, before gaming my group starts to trade with each other, but we have +150 mini

also last box I bought i checked the prices online and found that my $18 turned into $22

but what do you guys use for grids, we use big grid paper but were on are last couple of sheets and no place to buy them in my town

[Mael]

There's plenty of places to get large amounts of medievel and other historic figures cheap if you don't care about them not being the usual DnD scale.
I have a large stack of 1:76 scale guys that I got in a local model railway/airplane shop for next to nothing. (I got them to use as gnomes, but they would work fine as humans/elves if you got a smaller scale figure for gnomes/halflings).

[AslanCross]

This is a problem I've been encountering. It really is difficult to get what I need. I still don't have a BBEG, and our elf wizard is currently using a dwarf wizard. Our swashbuckler is using a Justice Archon. Thankfully my paladin is using a Shadowbane Inquisitor, and my rogue is using a Shadowdancer. The cleric is using an Inspired Lieutenant, and the female wood elf ranger is using the male wood elf ranger from the starter set.

The problem is, the only miniatures on sale here are D&D, MageKnight, Axis and Allies, and Warhammer. D: I think there's some Dreamblade too. We have no cheap minis here. <_< (Unless some fellow countrymen know of a place where I can get some)

[Rockphed]

but what do you guys use for grids, we use big grid paper but were on are last couple of sheets and no place to buy them in my town

I saw a dry erase board with a 1 inch grid on it at The Teacher's Store once, but I didn't buy it. That seems like it would work perfectly. For those not in the know, The Teacher's Store is a place that sells school supplies. I can't think of anywhere else that would sell such things.

[Dr. Weasel]

I'm a fan of the Lego approach, but I don't neccesarily try to mirror characters. The models I've used for my Half-Elf Bard, Whisper Gnome Swordsage, Human Marshal/Warblade and Dwarf Druid have all looked suspiciously like Friar Tuck... With an eyepatch... and a space suit... and a Pirate's laser-hook.

[Totally Guy]

Another option is to download some cut-out models with stands. Print them out on card, do some glueing and you're done.

I've seen this site on which you buy PDF downloads.World Works

[adanedhel9]

I go with Reaper minis for PC's, but for mooks I just use cardboard squares. They're cheap, sturdy, stable (as in, the mostly stay where they're put), replaceable, and clear (a letter on each means I can put 26 of them on the board at once without any confusion whatsoever).

but what do you guys use for grids, we use big grid paper but were on are last couple of sheets and no place to buy them in my town

Chessex sells very nice vinyl wet-erase mats for gaming. They also sell second-run mats, which are marginally lower quality (most of the time you can't even see the difference) but run about $10 cheaper.

[Dausuul]

the boxed ones are fun but soon get like Pokémon cards, before gaming my group starts to trade with each other, but we have +150 mini

also last box I bought i checked the prices online and found that my $18 turned into $22

but what do you guys use for grids, we use big grid paper but were on are last couple of sheets and no place to buy them in my town

Currently my group uses a plain whiteboard from Wal-Mart, into which I incised a 1-inch grid with a box-cutter. But that's because I have too much time on my hands.

There are a number of places that sell "battle mats," which is a popular solution--a laminated mat with a grid on it, suitable for drawing on with dry erase markers.

Of course, if you're willing to wait until May, you can just use the DDI virtual tabletop.

[SilverClawShift]

Our group has what I THOUGHT was a handful of oddball solutions, but apparently it's not as uncommon as I thought.

Our DM has 3 rectangular... uh... watchacallits. I don't think there's a quick word to describe them. They're each 3 plexiglass sheets on little hinges that lay flat against each other. Lift the tope two sheets and put a 'graphical' map into place (if you have one/need one). If you want you can also lift just the top sheet to put down a transparent grid of various sizes. And of course, since it's plexiglass, you can put a dry erase marker on it with no problem (we keep a few difference colors for various things).
One thing our DM likes to do is block out the whole top level with black before putting the maps into place, so he can wipe it clean as we explore.
The middle one is usually the battlemap, then one for our current "City" or other locale, and the 3rd for whatever stuff he wants laid out on the table. Sometimes world maps, or important notes, or even just art peices that fit the mood.

For minis we print out characters/npcs/monsters on construction paper (cardstock was a little pricey for it) and do the "fold up, stand up" thing using various crap as bases. We have a collection of stuff that works (cut bottle caps, pennies and coins, ect). It works fairly well, especially if you allready have a printer but don't have a lot of free cash.

Plexiglass is cheap too, and you can pick up hinges at any crafts store. A little cleverness and a dry erase marker can give a pretty solid presentation.

[Hallavast]

D&D Minis bought the traditional way (in little blind booster packs) are expensive. Try attending gaming conventions like Origins, Gencon, and others. Look in the "bargain bins". They'll usually be sold for less than $1.00 each, and you can find what you're looking for a lot easier than buying random booster sets. At Origins last year I found an Artemis Entreri mini mismarked for 50 cents. Unfortunately, this was after I had already bought one for almost $20... But hey, now I have two...

As far as Grids, I use a 3'x3' vinyl battlemat and wet-erase makers. It's the best method I've seen in 8 years of D&D.

Cheers.

[Exarch]

Some of the other forum goers might think I'm crazy for this...but Warhammer isn't too bad if you get the right stuff. Basic humans (State Troops and Militia) are reasonably good deals, same with Goblins and Orcs. Dwarf Warriors and missile units are a good deal. Skaven aren't bad if you can find a use for them. Maybe undead skeletons or zombies, not too sure. Their ogres are pretty good too...the Bulls.

Of course, I wouldn't buy a character from them unless you play their game and are a glutton for fiscal punishment, such as myself. Reaper is usually a good place to get those. And D&D Minis from eBay can give you some great deals.

[Angafirith]

For mats, I use graph paper that I created using the Hexagonal Graph Paper Generator and modified in the GIMP (image editor).

Here's an example of a room I'm using in my campaign I'm planning on changing the floor pattern, doing a bevel on the grid and taking the grid itself out. Makes a nice floor tile effect, as seen in this other example. The second one there ended up getting broken in half and printed out.

I think my custom grids look pretty nice, which is part of why I want to put real miniatures on them, rather than little round pieces of paper with stick figures.

I'm a fan of the Lego approach, but I don't neccesarily try to mirror characters. The models I've used for my Half-Elf Bard, Whisper Gnome Swordsage, Human Marshal/Warblade and Dwarf Druid have all looked suspiciously like Friar Tuck... With an eyepatch... and a space suit... and a Pirate's laser-hook.

I've already put together a Darth Maul in a suit of armor with a lance and a double bladed light saber... I'll work him into the campaign as an enemy somehow.

[leperkhaun]

go to your local gaming store, ask them if you can put up a sign that says you want to buy cheap mini's.

My friend buys those DnD boxes, and there are several types of mini's he has in the dozens. Sold about a 100 minis for 30 bucks.

[Person_Man]

I made the mistake of selling thousands of miniatures after graduating college because I had to move around a lot for work at the time. Once I started gaming again a few years later, I bought a couple of Heroscape boxes used off of the internet. For about $50 I got a wide variety of 60 painted plastic miniatures and a metric ton of stackable terrain. Combined with my reversible hex/grid map that you can draw on with wet erase markers, and all of my DMing needs were taken care of for a reasonable price. I highly suggest it.

[nyjastul69]

This is a good place for DDM.


http://store02.prostores.com/servlet...mes/StoreFront

[DeathQuaker]

A lot of folks have mentioned Reaper, but unless I missed it, have not noted their new, non-randomized pre-painted plastic miniature line:

http://www.reapermini.com/LegendaryE...aintedPlastics

They're only just coming out (only orcs and skeletons available so far), but look to be quite nicely made and useful. They're between $2 and $5 a model.

Obviously since the line's just started they're not all that useful yet, but something to keep an eye out on.

Bargain-bin and ebay sources are good as well.

As a GM, I use minis for the PCs and big bosses (Reaper pewter figs I paint), and otherwise just use numbered markers (just bought a bag of miniature bases) for monsters/random NPCs.

If you just want something somewhat individualized but really can't afford stuff...

Buy a bag of miniature bases. They usually are around 1 inch square. This shouldn't set you back too far.

Use a basic graphic editor and/or publication program and make 1-inch print-size pictures of your characters, monsters, etc. You can probably also find premade ones online, as pointed out. Put them so you can print them out on one sheet of paper, and glue the pictures to the bases.

For large creatures, just fit together 4 squares and make a 2-inch-square picture, etc.

That way you've got something that fits a gridmap and everyone has a unique icon, but shouldn't cost you too much.

[AslanCross]

I bought an art board with a predrawn grid. The board's pretty big, about 2 feet x 3 feet. The only problem is that the squares, I discovered, were a little too small. I use tracing paper and copied the grid from a D&D miniatures battle mat. We just draw on the opposite face of the sheet and erase afterwards. Not a permanent solution, but it works anyway.

[Waspinator]

It's amazing what you can do with Mage Knights and/or HeroClix and some well-chosen action figures:
http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/7386/scourgebt2.jpg
Geek points to anyone able to recognize the big guy!

[Anxe]

I buy good lead(or whatever metal it is now) figures for the players minis and use cheap ones for everything else. You should have your players buy minis for themselves and you buy the monster ones. In my campaign we don't really care if the mini exactly matches the monster. One of my minis that was the most fun were stand-up stick figures made up on the spot to represent Huge Zombies. They had faces like this

So my point is you don't need perfect minis and if you really want cheap have your players chip in and live with the plastic randomized ones.