"5 man squad: 5 unique poses or 3 unique, but with repeats?" Topic

Working on some sci fi figures I intend to cast up for personal use, but would like to offer them for sale in case anyone else wants to get them on the table.

These will be five man squads of infantry grunts. The common cannon fodder that gets mowed down by the hero and his sidekicks, or laser sabered in the face by the villain as the poor grunts try to escape with the secret plans.

I have two options:
1) 5 unique poses per squad at a higher cost.
Or
2) 3 unique poses (so a five man squad of poses A, B, B, C and C) but at a lower cost.

Do you have a preference?

Really depends on how many squads will be in play. The fewer the more variety I want.

My experience is that you need five poses minimum to look as though poses are unique, even in larger units. Repeating twice in a five-man squad would annoy me. But you are not me. Look at some friend's collection before you make the call.

It depends on how ambitious you are at sculpting after the first three… ;-)

Definitely five unique miniatures.

Unique kit, but similar pose.

Depends a bit on number of squads but for my sci-fi squads every figure is unique

It depends to a certain effect on the weapons mix. If you have squad A,BB,CC and one B and one C had alternative weapons then three poses would be acceptable but if both the doubles had the same weapon then you are relying on painting to tell them apart.

It depends to a certain effect on the weapons mix. If you have squad A,BB,CC and one B and one C had alternative weapons then three poses would be acceptable but if both the doubles had the same weapon then you are relying on painting to tell them apart.

Agree with this.

Now, if you have a game where you actually have mooks in stats that move as a group, you might get away with the mooks all one sculpt, but unique heroes.

Thanks all. Appreciate the insights and perspective!

Having 3 unique poses in a 5-man squad is fine, as long as the heads and/or arms are separate so that at least some variability can be achieved such as the facing of the head even if the helmets are identical. This way they'll look different even with the same torso and leg configuration.

For me I'd probably rather have one pose than three or five, unless I wanted three or five figures (either would be too upsetting if I wanted four). Ideally I would hope for at least eight distinct castings, or enough to not notice duplication. One pose with several different heads at different orientations is an effective way to look both cohesive and varied.

What if you went with three poses, but also had some accessories (ammo pouches, headgear, weapons swaps, etc.) that could be added in different ways to individualize the minis? Is that an option?

Three bodies (legs and torso, maybe an arm). Then sculpt heads and arms. You can easily achieve a good variety.

For me, 5 is a must. If only 3 poses, then most have separate poseable heads at least.