"Wish list/Rant to Manufacturers" Topic

Okay, I am digging the new the characters set from Angel Barracks – link – but the "Fast Eddie" character caused me to revisit a particular frustration about miniatures in general…

While some western miniatures manufacturers such as Old Glory/West Wind have both mounted and foot figures of the same character (http://www.oldgloryminiatures.com/products.asp?cat=444) most manufacturers don't, to my knowledge.

My Christmas wish list, therefore, is topped with:

"Dear Santa, I wish miniatures companies would provide both mounted and foot figures for their genre as a standard practice…"

Yeah, yeah, I know snow ball in Hell chances… Anyway…

Obviously this would be a standard for Western figures (well, you would think it would,) but if you make a mounted figures (size/genre/historical era independent) I am led to the conclusion you should provide a dismounted figure.

Games like IHMN where you have the "Cavalryman" trait in the game or "RPG like" games where the figure might be capable of mounted movement on the board should be cause the manufacturers playing to a rule set's players to want to attract buyers by having mounted and dismounted figures for "named" characters/PCs IMHO.

Now you can put the figure on a "generic" mount/horse icon (see Litko for such) or a large D6 (seen that before) during a game but I think it is less distracting if you have a figure that could be placed on a riding figure such as a horse, bird (like an ostrich), or lizard that matches your "foot" PC/figure.

I would think it might be less useful in plain vanilla games using 1920s or later technology like Pulp Alley where much of the riding on the table is in vehicles but if the game has the possibility of the figures moving on board on an "animal" then I would love to see that capable of being shown on the table with miniatures.

Okay, now if I close my eyes, cross my fingers and toes, and wish real hard…

Damn, you're back in Kansas, again… ;->=

Tis truly spoken, and why so many folk struggle to saw torsos in half to match to unmatchable legs.

Have we got this out of our system yet? No, didn't think so.

Doug

To add to your list. Separate heads on all figs would be nice. And never, ever, cast a shield on a fig. Puh-leeze.

Evzones in 10mm. That is all I want.

Amen Brother MB! The lack of these irritates me greatly and reduces my best friend to apoplectic fury.

Cast on heads a must never have cast in lances or spears as stsndard

One 28mm British figure manufacturer – just one – to understand the ACW wasn't exclusively fought in the Eastern Theater.

Separate shields, weapons and heads on 6mm figures – you jest of course ?

"Dear Santa, I wish miniatures companies would provide both mounted and foot figures for their genre as a standard practice…"

I understand your frustration and I sympathize you, but are you aware of how much this process costs? Do you want two of the same guy or do you want different characters altogether?

Does your line actually expand and create excitement by having thirty versions of the same guy?

In the 28mm world, it costs me about $400 USD CAD per figure, before casting. So I need to optimize what I have my friend sculpt, in order to appeal to collectors… In my mind, producing two of the exact same guy right out of the gate just sets my schedule back without actually doing anything the bulk out the rest of the factions.

Tl;dr These things cost money. You'll probably not earn that money back. You need to optimize what the player can use on the tabletop, at the same time without referencing Danny DeVito/Arnold Schwarzenegger block buster buddy movies.

Indian figures of women and children for the Indian wars

Foundry's Wild West Range has always had matching pairs.

Oh, you poor besotted 28 mm players.. You do all realize that all of what you ask for is available in 15 mm? Seriously. Even the Indain women and children. What is missing in 15 mm is mounted women – and mounted civilian men not engaged in combat. Especially would like to see some mounted cowboys with lariats roping rather than weapons. (I do have some from the lost and lamented Frontier range).

On foot I'd love a 19th century chain gang and some Chinese figures for laundry and joss house, men and women. And a 15 mm hearse like the 28 mm version from Old Glory. Get this done and I'm happy.

My other desires center on zoological not germane to this thread.

For ranges intended to be used in a specific game:

All infantry packs should add up nicely to an actual in-game unit.

3 figure packs for 8 man squads? Get bent.

When Irish homecasting company Prince August produced RPG character figures in the mid 80's, they came in a pack of four: the same figure in combat, at ease, travelling, and a lying pose which served as 'sleeping' and 'wounded'.
Decent idea, underwhelmingly realised.

Nice but how many people sign on to these dreams with meaningful amounts of money?

Manufacturers have to produce for a wide range of tastes, and custom packages and sizing would be prohibitive.

Buy 8 packs and make three squads for one.

Most of these complaints would result in the complainer buying half a dozen figures and that's it.

Even myself. I'd love to have a set of the full court of Maria Theresia at a review. 50 figures of herself, Francis, her kids, generals, ministers, equirries and lackeys. Cost $1,000 USD for the set??. Sure! Give me two sets, but that would be it.

My desire/rant is for the manufacturers and sculptors to make good saleable figures so they can make money and STAY AROUND and I can get them in doses from time to time.

I buy figures in hundreds for armies and I'm grateful for what I get. I'm also old. I remember when if you wanted 90% of the figure variety out there, you started converting or making do.

My only real desire and rant is that sculptors made figures with human proportions, not dwarves with huge legs and tiny heads- or squat little civilian figures where the women look like they have watermelons glued to their chests. It's why I prefer Surens and Staddens. Too many sculptors seem to use fat war gamers as their models.

Balthazar Marduk,

I am a buyer and not a manufacturer. Don't really care about the practical logistics. It's my rant and I'll complain if I want to…

On a serious note, no more will I buy figures for games where mounted movement is an option but I have to use work arounds or have different looking figures for the same PC/NPC on foot and on horseback.

Ottoathome, see above.

And stop bringing reality into my rant…

In my experience heads are usually too big, Otto, and the problem with the legs on most figures is stumpy, foreshortened calfs.

Look at a photo of a typical figure with your hand covering the portion below the knees. It often looks reasonably normally proportioned. Imagine where the feet should be allowing for typical human anatomical proportions, then remove your hand. The feet are generally about where the ankles should start, and on some figures even higher. See, for instance, the John Wayne in US Marine uniform in a recent WI; in reality a giant of a man, but as distortedly depicted he'd have great difficulty moving faster than strolling pace.

Dear Henry Martini

Agree. But what figures are you talking about. The 30mm Surens and Staddens I maintain are in human proportions. As for the rest, I tend to agree except for DPC figures (Dayton Painting Consortium) which are more or less models of Stadden figures in 28mm.

Otto

Manufacturers have to produce for a wide range of tastes, and custom packages and sizing would be prohibitive.

Buy 8 packs and make three squads for one.

Weasel started with

For ranges intended to be used in a specific game:

so, really I agree with him. If you're producing BoogaBooga miniatures for the BoogaBooga gaming rules and all infantry in the rules are arranged in units of 7, then your miniatures should come in a seven pack.

I agree that if you want to use BoogaBoogas to play the NambalyPambaly rules which arrange infantry in hierarchical groups of 3 regulars and one leader, then you should just suck it up and find a LCM or do something else with the spare figures.

My wish is this to happen as well. I've taken to doing conversions and modifications of for mounted figures. I usually look for poses that have a wider leg stance and "Dremel" out the thighs to fit the mount then bend the knees slightly…I've had to do this for most of my figures for IHMN and a few Pulp Era figures…ie, Indiana Jones. Also did this to the majority of my Zombie Survivors. Ya gotta be able to get around when the fuel runs out, right?

But on a side note… Old Glory often has a dismounted version of their cowboys and command figures. I wish Perry Sculpts would do this, especially for their Naps range… The French Dragoons have a dismounted option but limited pose. This I've remedied with Brigade miniatures dismounted dragoons. But a few heroic characters would be nice…