"Common basing for 6mm?" Topic

As the title says, is there a 'common' basing approach for 6mm that allows for the most variety? I realize that almost every set of rules will say "you don't have to rebase" but if you were starting from scratch, what sort of basing would you go with?

It's likely not feasible but it would seem at 6mm you could do a basing style that had one stand = 1 squad at a 1:1 ratio (so 8-10 figures per base, slightly less for command bases) such that ~30 figures with the right weaponry would give you a full company in the correct proportions, but I've also seen a lot of 30x30 type of basing as well with a handful of figures, essentially 15mm basing but with 6mm.

Any suggestions? There's no 6mm around so there's no established basing to mimic, I'd be on my own.

My stuff is mostly on 30x30, originally aimed at Spearhead but I use it for everything from company sized skirmishes to multiple divisions with brigade sized bases. Generally one vehicle or gun per base, and 'some' infantry. I usually do one with some riflemen (say 4-6) one with an LMG (and rifles) so they can form a rifle group and gun group for those types of rules (like WRG 1925-50). Specialists like engineers usually get fewer figures and/or different formations so I can easily tell them apart. HQs usually have a vehicle, horse or something as well as officers and radio ops. Heavy weapons (mortars, MGs, ATG etc) go one per base.

I base my infantry on 20 X 20 bases – 4 or 5 per stand or 4 gun crew

I base 4-5 figs on a 1"x1" base. Only small vechicles like jeeps and guns get a base.

I generally go with inches. I have a lot of Team Yankee in 1/285. Most importantly, I have over-length bases for tanks with long barrels. This helps protect the long guns from sideways damage. I haven't found a way to protect from top=down though…
I use metal bases from O.G. 15s. I have to prepare them by filing the sharp edges and corners to protect my ground mat. I also sandpaper the tops to allow for better glue adhesion and paint.
These painted beauties rest in a 12" x 12" plastic photo box, purchased economically at Michaels, with a magnetic sheet, to make transportation easy.
I use 1/2" wide for most all of my vehicles.

1" squares for my WW 2 armies. Moved to 1.25" squares for the Cold War to protect the longer tank barrels.

I use 5 figs on a 25mm x 15mm plastic card base for 'squads' with the figs facing the wide part.

For heavy weapons 15mm x 15mm bases.

For AT guns I use 25mm x 15mm bases but position the gun at the side facing the narrow part with 4 or 5 kneeling crew positioned behind the gun looking like they're doing something useful. Often I don't glue the gun on so can position the gun behind a towing vehicle when being towed or with the crew when deployed.

I don't base vehicles (just why bother?).

I struggle with infantry bases that are bigger than the terrain feature they occupy, so went with 1/2" and 3/8" square bases, using Evergreen Plastic sheet sidewalk tiles. Just bend and snap, and you have bases that are .04 inches thick.

Since I often play in a compressed scale, I opted for a proportional representation of infantry sections. Squads and combat sections are based on the 1/2" bases using three infantry figures, heavy weapons and support elements gets the same size, often with two figs and the appropriate weapon. Command can be on either size depending on the size of the section, but get two figs. Crews get 2-3 figs on 1/2" base. Scout and some weapons like Manpads get a single fig on a 3/8" base.

The number of figs and size of the base tells me what most bases are at a distance. Heavy weapons can usually be readily identified by the weapon on the base; MG section, mortar, anti-tank, etc.

Combat elements based as fire teams could be done the same way, and sometimes I use them in that capacity for games using closer to 1 to 1 scale on the table (I use three different ground scales with 6mm).

I don't base vehicles unless the miniature is too fragile, small, or light to manage otherwise.

This is for homebrew rules, so isn't a standard that you will find anywhere, but functions more practically than the methods recommended by various published rules that I used before, which resulted in infantry stands that were often too wide for roads, defences, or fitting between buildings.

It also saved me from having to paint 12,000 6mm dudes, resulting in more like 3000 being painted.

Wayniac – as you can see from the replies the answer is a resounding --- NO, there is no standard.

Wayniac – as you can see from the replies the answer is a resounding --- NO, there is no standard.

That's what I figured, but doesn't hurt to ask ;) So basically do what looks good/works. I'm fine with that. I'll probably look at some suggestions and make a decision.

- Wayne

1 inch x 1 inch for me, for both WWII and modern infantry bases, with the choice of figure, a small vehicle, or a feature sometimes indicating the stand's function. Heavy weapons teams have a visible weapon (ATGW, e.g.); HQ companies have a jeep or similar, or sometimes a radio operator.

I base micro vehicles too: 1" square for the vast majority, but 1x1.5" for larger vehicles (e.g., some recovery vehicles) or contemporary MBTs etc. All bases have magnetic undersides, which help keep everything in place in storage boxes.

I base only infantry, one soldier on one round base (0.9 cm diameter). For infantry heavy weapons with soldier(s) attached I use slightly bigger round bases, one heavy weapon on a base. I may do bigger bases with flat terrain (sand, green plain, snow field) to put individual bases of soldiers to work as trays for military units.

I have used a variety of rule sets for 6mm WW2 and modern (ie: post WW2) gaming.

In general the figure scale has been one of three levels:
a) 1 stand = 1 "fire team" (or 1 stand = 1/2 squad or 1 stand = 3-5 men)
b) 1 stand = 1 "squad" (or 1 stand = 9-12 men)
c) 1 stand = 1 platoon (or 1 stand = 30-40 men)

The first two (a and b) have been more common for me. The third (c) 1 = platoon) has been rare for me, but seems common for other gamers.

Both a) and b) tracks to 1 model = 1 vehicle. When c) is the infantry unit scale sometimes the vehicle scale is 1 model = 5 vehicles and sometimes it is 1 model = 1 platoon. The difference is not great, but it does make a difference when a Russian tank company (3 platoons of 3 tanks) is 2 models vs. 3 models.

I prefer b) 1 stand = 1 squad. I like 1 to 1 for vehicles, and find that fire-team basing winds up being unbalanced. It makes the infantry play too slowly compared to the vehicles. ie: A Russian infantry company winds up being 38 to 42 stands while a Russian tank company is 10 models.

All of that said, sometimes I wind up in games with someone else's choice of rules, and I prefer my forces to be usable.

This is the approach I have taken to basing my infantry:
I put four figures on a stand. This represents a full sized regular squad in my own usage (ie: 4 figures represents 9-12 men). Sometimes the stand gets both riflemen and an LMG gunner or team, sometimes not. Some armies did not have an LMG with every squad, so sometimes the presence of the LMG figure matters. Other times the army had 1 or even 2 LMGs per squad. In those cases it hardly matters what's on the stand, as 4 figures = standard squad.

If I wind up in a game where 1 stand = fireteam, I use more of my squad stands and can build fewer total platoons. If I wind up in a game where 1 stand = platoon I use fewer of my squad stands and can build more companies.

For non-standard units I use 3 figures as squad-sized specialist groups (engineering squads, large support weapon crews, large command sections, etc.) I use 2 figures for half-squad sized (2-5 men) sections (small support weapon crews, vehicle crews, small command groups, etc.).

The total is quite flexible and easily observed and understood.

I use US Pennies (1 cent coins) as my bases. Cheap, plentiful, always available when I need more, substantial enough that my stands don't get jostled around when the wind blows or the table is bumped.

Here is an example of the vehicles for a US Army Armored Infantry company.

Here are the 3 rifle platoons of the company dismounted. Each platoon has 3 rifle squads, 2 MMGs and 1 HMG dismounted from the Halftracks as support weapons, and a 60mm mortar dismounted as a support weapon. Even though there are only about half as many figures as a real company would have, it still looks like a large enough crowd to work for my purposes. And it is easy to see and understand the unit (ie: what is what) at game time.

Hope that helps. Good luck and good gaming.

-Mark
(aka: Mk 1)

1" square for infantry, guns, and small vehicles. I print those 1mm thick on my 3D printer. Larger vehicles I don't base.