"Best and worst figure poses" Topic

So what poses do folks like for figures for mass units?

What poses do people just hate?

And this can be either for mounted or dismounted

Thanks

Terry

I hate figures using their rifles as clubs.

For mass figures I like marching or advancing, either is fine.

Single ranked infantry:
High-porte

Double ranked infantry:
Firing line (mix of firing and loading), or assaulting (mix of advancing and firing)

Cavalry:
At the charge

Hate grenade throwing troopers, best walking at the low ready.

I like dramatic advancing "under fire" poses, slightly crouched, Battlefront style.

For horse & musket I prefer march-attack poses, largely because there are no muskets hanging over the edges of the stand waiting to break off. Cavalry with sabres at rest for the same reason.

For WW2 I agree with Gunner D.

I hate any and all dead and wounded figures, ESPECIALLY if I have to pay for them in a pack.
Since I base my AWI regimental scale figures 3 on a stand, to me they are just bad juju. Why start the game with a casualty on the stand? To all you guys who like "little dioramas" on your stands/bases/elements, good for you. Buy them separately.

I could do without kneeling firing figures.

Being an Old Fart, I long for Ye Goode Olde Days™ when I could buy individual figures. When you are now forced to buy blisters or bags, I resent having to pay for the figures I do not like.

The "Hey Bob!" pose

I like high porte or advancing at the ready.
Dislike intensely march attack for Horse and Musket and Not fond of Guitar hero

Yes, 'Hi Bob' is awful; ditto guitar hero.

The desert troops with rifles in the air crossing a river (?!?!) are also notably bad.

I too prefer high port, mostly because you can push the bases into contact without bending stuff.

Ancient pike level to the ground are lovely to look at and largely useless to game with.

Anything looking in one direction but gesturing in another. They look nice individually, but silly in a unit.

For horse and musket i prefer either firing line poses mixing loading and firing (no kneeling firing please), or high porte.

Running, with weapon at trail, looking at the ground, one leg kicked up behind, about to do a face plant.

The Grenadier wave.

Squatting, one leg splayed way out, leaning way back as if recoil is pushing figure over

Upright like a telephone pole and lacking any fluidity, with spear overhead

Firing looks good, but with bayonets, makes melee/contact with other figures tricky

Interesting responses that just go to show everyone has a different idea of what is a good figure pose. Many times the poses are limited to what will cast easily and prolong mold life. You lean very quickly what poses will cast consistently and which ones with deep undercuts will quickly destroy a mold.

Dave

March attack for Horse and Musket. Slung rifles for 20th. century. Leaning on musket/rifle looking bored. Prone for 20th. century, 'cause that's a position they would spend a lot of time in, and it involves painting only half the figure!

Guys who are lying down. It's wasting half the model. I'll make an exception for snipers and FOs.

Half of the Ral Partha fantasy women had both hands overhead, doing … something. Were they all from the same Interpretive Modern Dance class?

At the ready / high port for colonials with fixed bayonet.

The pose I like the least is running one leg in the air.

Guys who are lying down. It's wasting half the model. I'll make an exception for snipers and FOs.

Seconded. Hard to base consistently with other figs, too, which just makes me hate them more.

Best: A figure that looks as good walking across the table as it does in a combat situation. (Advancing with rifle to shoulder)

Worst: Any figure with his foot up on a rock. What's he doing, taking a break?

Like: March attack for H&M.

Dislike: 'Action' poses for H&M, especially 'at 'em with the bayonet'. War should be conducted with decorum.

Being an Old Fart, I long for Ye Goode Olde Days™ when I could buy individual figures. When you are now forced to buy blisters or bags, I resent having to pay for the figures I do not like.

Your buying the wrong figures JtOFM

link

;)

I've always liked having all the poses different. Paint the uniforms the same for unity, different poses to reflect the chaos of combat. That said, unique poses that you get more than one of in a set are annoying, like the British 8th army guy sitting on a 55 gallon drum eating lunch…

My responses are for WW II figures since that's what I play most.

Best: Guys who look like they are advancing under fire/fighting in some way. I am fine with standing, kneeling, and prone models, too. The more variety the better! I have a full platoon and support of both US and Germans from AB in 20mm and there isn't one figure repeated. Same with my 28mm Marines and Japanese from Brigade and TAG. All these companies do it RIGHT!!

And I like casualty models and buy bunches. It looks great having bodies in the heavy action areas of a board. Most gamers I have met seem to think it looks cool as well.

Worst: Any model with a rifle or MG across his shoulders. Useless.

Any time I get a fig doing a high kick or jumping, I just… ugh.

@ Battle Phlox;
Prone figs? Well, it's one of those glass half empty situations , eh? If you're painting for pay, the less you have to paint the better. Besides they break a lot les!

Your buying the wrong figures JtOFM
.
.
oh thats funny, you sneaky bastard, yeah front ranks ARE good, but I am in a finacial "embarrassment" right know, and cant even afford to beef up the Crimean war in 15mm Minifigs.

Probably the worst all time ever is the Airfix paratrooper firing a Tommy gun into the air -at his own mates presumably or did they arrange to fight German paratroopers…

I would include the 'heroic' officer on the rearing horse. Looks good on a pedestal in a park but not on a wargames table really.
Like charging cavalry with sword pointed forward.

Pikes held horizontally :( So impractical for wargaming purposes

"Probably the worst all time ever is the Airfix paratrooper firing a Tommy gun into the air "

If you cut the base off, you can use him as a laying on his side prone-ish figure.

Worst figures are the kneeling ones that are as tall as the standing ones….

It does depend on the era. Ditto to Lee John Ayre. I have spent many hours converting horizontal pikes to vertical. I like attack march Horse and Musket, same principle.

Some do not like running figures. I like only Bersaglieri running, rifle at the trail. Wish the new Bolt Action figures had this pose as an option, There is one NCO running. When this is available as a single I will get a whole platoon. Prone LMGs are ok.

I do many conversions to get variety so I dislike figures with weapons held close to the body. I also dislike armed civilians, especially women with no ammo pouch or for the latter, in any setting, a purse.

Bayonets horizontal are bad in any era, at least 45degrees up.

There is quite a bit of commonality among us :)

Best – advancing at high porte

Marching is not so bad, especially for SYW

Worst – "Hey Steve" (or "Hey Bob")

Officers peering through binoculars – especially if it's the only officer in the range.

I play skirmish. It's always useful to have some sentinels, sitting soldiers, idle soldiers, etc.

I hate those doing unnatural gestures, gestures that last only a few seconds in real life. Who wants to wave a musket or a sword during a whole battle?

Here's a heretical one, since otherwise AB is universally praised: they are called "order arms" but to me they are just loafing around.

Ya – "at the trail" basically useless too …

The worst pose I ever encountered was in the old Kreigspieler's Napoleonique line. Russian Guards in overcoats in what was called the "utility" pose. Basically they were all standing at attention with their muskets held out vertically to the side. It was as if they were drawn up on parade, and then told to hand their musket to the guy on their right. I never saw any "utility" to this pose at all.

Flashman, those are my favourite all-time figures!

Pish! Pshaw! And possibly even Fie!

Laying down is the worst

I agree with Jon the OFM about the dying or wounded figures. I'd rather have all the figures looking like they're able to fight.

Yes I realize the question was about "mass units", which I don't play much, but…

Dead figures? oh they are sometimes useful as markers. And they look good on the battelfield, on the spots where hard fighting took place :-))

Wounded figures? I hate them especially those who appear to have been just hit, and seem to fall down during the whole game.

I have such a miniature from Foundry Marlburian range, and I was annoyed with him till I found what to do with him!

I sawed him in two halves, and he appears in my pirate games. The upper part tries to swim when a ship sanks (the blue material is the same as we use for the sea). The lower part (glued to a wooden barrel) is usually near the tavern, as a drunkard (in one game he was a murdered guy)!

Like: Many of the Old Glory figures that Chris Hughes from Sash & Saber created.

Dislike: Old Glory Guard Horse Artillery many appear to be contracting polio while suffering a stroke. Soilent Green material.

Shooty shoot from the shoulder and advancing with weapon held in front.

Not a fan of lying prone.

For my 18th century I guess the best is advancing with the mustket at the carry. For that period anything not seen in a painting is out. However I have accomodated myself to the artistic visions of the sculptors and use only certain vendors. The firing in two ranks doesn't bother me too much as I buy Willies figures with seperate muskets which can be replaced, but I also help the situation along by having the front of the stand overhang the reach of the muskets by a half an inch or so. My cavalrymen even when charging with the sword up are no problem as I simply snip them off when painting and drill the hands and insert unbreakable polyethelene strips. They are quite flexible so

I do agree I don't like the more frenetic poses, and someone yelling one direction and pointing in another is a stupid pose.

I also shield my figures by not finishing off the sharp edges of pikes and spontoons held by the NCo's makes gamers handle them gingerly.

@ Flashman;

Those are nearly perfect poses! Also a pose in which a lot of time is spent!

The Essex straight arm holding spear pose. One figure is ok, a whole line looks like a dance routine and can be impossible to base without staggering.

The Irregular Miniatures 15mm Afghan regulars are also sculpted in that useless 'utility' pose. Not only does it look ridiculous, but it also means they occupy too much frontage for the vast majority of basing systems.