"Biggest model you'd use in 15mm SF?" Topic

I'm starting to convert some of my old 6mm armies to 15mm – and one of them is based on a dropship/air-cav theme.
But I reckon the dropships will be about almost the same footprint as an A4 sheet of paper on the tabletop… I can't decide if this'll be too big or not.
It's going to be a lot of work to do, and I'd like to be sure it was going to be useable before I do it.
So, do any of you use large models in 15mm SF? And does it game OK – or should I stick with 6mm for the air-cav, and just stick with tanks/infantry for my 15mm gaming?

thats not much bigger than the footprint of a 28mm Horsa glider for WW2 games, so not that big, as long as you realise itll draw every gun on the table wile its coming in and unloading, in th hope that itll rob you of a large chunk of your forces.

Khurasan's upcoming Dictator is about my limit. Roughly 8 to 10 times the volume of an average MBT and at least 4 times the footprint – and that's a pure fighting machine, not a transport flyer. Very much akin to an Ogre or Titan in 6mm, relative-size-wise.

Depends on what type of gaming you like – if you want a Contiental-class Heavy Siege Unit, that would be plenty big, but I think Battle Works is about right

I don't think I'll make anything bigger than the dictator -- I think BWS is right that it "pushes the envelope." The DPLS is actually bigger but it's a flyer so it's off the table other than when landed (as a dropship).

I used to use a harridan when I played 40k and that thing is gigantic! But it just flew around blasting stuff, so it's size was a good thing rather than bad. I also had a heirophant but it was basically too big to be practical in straight up 40k.

Of course, you could go the old Rogue Trader route for Juggernaut war machines – have the table itself be the upper surface of an ubertank/mobile fortress/starship the size of a small town. Dress the whole thing up in armor plate with gun turrets, landing platforms, sally ports, exhaust vents, etc poking up. That could be kind of cool.

You could also theoretically scale it down a bit so the Jugger was "only" 3 or 4 feet long and put it on a more-or less normal table, perhaps moving slowly toward something it wants to squash while the other side frantically tries to board and disable it. Quite a bit beyond being a "miniature" at that point, but it would be neat for showing off in convention games.

I also had a heirophant but it was basically too big to be practical in straight up 40k.

Stupidly huge ground models work best when they're stable enough to be used baseless and big enough that you can stand models underneath them. That way their footprint is truly their footprint, if you know what I mean. Of course your rules need to support the "loom over other figures" thing, which IIRC 40K does not.

"Of course your rules need to support the "loom over other figures" thing, which IIRC 40K does not."

Tell that to the squad of 8 Space Wolf termies my Reaver titan squashed flat last week. :)

Big models need to really have a place on theb attlefield to be worth the expense in my mind. The Dominator is going to stick around on the table. Dropping a ton of money for dropships that don't loiter around has always been low on my shopping list.

In the case of a ship like the DLPS, it makes for great scenery too and therefore gets extra miliage. You can have it be a centerpiece to a game with a getaway scene, or just a general spaceport shootout. Also, having it on the table in a planetary assault helps if it has long range weapons, etc.

-Eli

As big as I can get away with!

BWAHAHAAHAAHAHAHAAAHAHAA!!!! Fly my pretties!! FLY!!!!

picture

whkeith.com/bolo.htm

Leland R. Erickson
Grayhawk Studios
grayhawkstudios.com

People are weird about this. Nobody thinks twice anymore about putting a super-heavy Baneblade tank in a game of 40K, even though it occupies something like 1/16th of the entire tabletop!! (Maybe exagerating a little.)

Yet when I brought a couple Star Wars Viper Droids picture
slightly modified for use as large 15mm scale walkers, folks kept saying they were "big." But they are NOT as big relative to a 15mm scale human as a Baneblade is to a 28mm person. They are more like the relative size of a Leman Russ, but with legs. And in absolute terms, they occupied only a very slightly larger base than the CMG walkers we were also using, and are only a couple inches taller.

Personally, I'd go up to the equivalent of an Epic Knight in a 15mm-scale game. That would be a mech about 8 inches tall or so. And then only if it was a large battle on a large table. Even then it wouldn't be nearly as "big" on the table (in either absolute or relative terms) as a titan in a 40K game. I think Titans in 40K games are crazy unless you are playing on a gymnasium floor or something.

Generally, I think it's a bad idea to use a figure that is so large relative to the table that it can't really do much more than stand in place and shoot, which is pretty much what 40K Titans do.

Well, IMHO it comes down to several factors:

1) Scale. The smaller the scale, the bigger the beasties you can get away with.

2) Use. Is it an assault transport, a grounded space freighter, or a Bolo?

3) *Why* is that ginormous super-humongus tracked fortress of nuclear uber-doom even on the battlefield and within 300 meters of our position?!!!

Leland R. Erickson
Grayhawk Studios
grayhawkstudios.com

I was thinking about using 28mm elephants in a 10mm fantasy game.

I have big stuff. I have a 16" thunderbird 2. A 12" MFalcon as drop ships. All for 15mm.

Since I use 1/48 models for 28mm games, I don't find a dropship the size of an A4 sheet too bad. My Osprey is about 3x that size (more with the rotors!), and a 1/48 Hind is twice the size of an A4 sheet.

However, those are the absolute biggest minis I game with. Everything else is smaller by a significant amount.

Look at it this way: A 1/100 scale CH47 Chinook is about the size you're talking about. I've seen multiples of those on a table.

I think an important question is how large are your games and your table? If you're playing a game of Flying Lead on a 2x2 table, large models would be ridiculous. If you're playing Future War Commander on a 4'x8' surface, you could probably get away with a few Dictator-size models.

Chris

I was thinking about using 28mm elephants in a 10mm fantasy game.

I was thinking of doing something similar once. Though I was thinking of using 6mm Khmer figures with a 15mm elephant, for the 10mm game. Little people, big critter.

andy

The biggest thing I have on the 15mm table is 2x Dropship toys from Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

AWESOME VTOLs, just really big footprint on the table.

It depends largely on the purpose of the model and the setting. An Ogre (cybernetic tank) would probably be an objective of some kind the same with a large transport.

The DPLS is at the TOP of my purchase list for this reason. It will be set up with landing gear down as an objective for multiple scenarios I have drawn up.

Well Someone did a short run of 15mm Mk3 Ogres in 15mm a few years ago (Sorry I can't seem to find the the link right now for pictures).

As a general rule nothing longer the about 6 inches as a movable asset is my limit.

That being said I have built several "Starships" as terrain for running gunfights in the starport.

I have also been considering "Dropships" and "Armed Shuttles" in the 4 inch-ish range as a idea.

Just for giggles one time I used my 28mm Warhound in a 15mm game. And yes it became an absolute bullet magnet right way. But the look on peoples faces made it all worth while.