Tango01  | 17 Aug 2025 4:45 p.m. PST |
"Do you play board wargames, including hex-and-counter or block wargames? I have received comments regarding including this question in past years so very good to see that the topic of board wargame participation got the nod for inclusion into the 2024 survey. Many of these comments came from wargamers who dabble in both tabletop miniatures games and board wargames and cross-over between the two mediums regularly. Without giving some light to this section of the hobby, board wargamers felt that their interests were being either overlooked or discounted. For many, this is an important component of wargaming, so time to give board wargaming some visibility in the survey! For this question, boardgames include hex-and-counter and block wargames. While I enjoy both wargaming mediums, many wargamers choose to follow only one path and stick to their lane. For those wargamers responding to the survey with a "Yes" (Boardgame_IND="Yes" in graphics below) to the question, I label this group as cross-over wargamers with the assumption that both tabletop miniatures and boardgames are played. What does the survey show?…"
Palouse Wargaming Journal
link Armand |
 John the OFM | 17 Aug 2025 4:58 p.m. PST |
I used to. Avalon Hill and SPI introduced me to wargaming. But when I started with miniatures, I abandoned boardgames. |
| John Switzer | 17 Aug 2025 5:01 p.m. PST |
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| DisasterWargamer | 17 Aug 2025 5:26 p.m. PST |
Wonder if it makes a difference if you are a historical, fantasy and/or science fiction Miniatures gamer? While I will still play block and a few hex and counter board games – I much prefer historical miniatures gaming |
John Leahy  | 17 Aug 2025 5:28 p.m. PST |
Yeah, I'm deep into minis. Found I didn't have enough time to do computer gaming, boardgaming and wargaming. So only the latter was kept. Thanks. John |
 Dal Gavan | 17 Aug 2025 6:04 p.m. PST |
I play mini's and boardgames. I prefer mini's for corps-level or lower games and boardgames for larger battles, eg Leuthen, Kolin, Ligny and Market-Garden. |
| The Nigerian Lead Minister | 17 Aug 2025 8:37 p.m. PST |
I play more board games than minis. I like them both, but I have more opponents for the board games. |
| Oberlindes Sol LIC | 17 Aug 2025 9:43 p.m. PST |
I play boardgames as well as miniatures wargames (of course), role-playing games, hex-map-and-counters wargames, area control wargames, and a few card games. |
| Tgerritsen | 18 Aug 2025 6:10 a.m. PST |
I play them all. Minis, Board, RPG, Card, Computer. However my day job was making computer games until I retired, so that was considered professional research. |
| Andrew Walters | 18 Aug 2025 9:26 a.m. PST |
I play more boardgames and board war games than I do miniatures games. I'm working to reverse that, but life is like a box of chocolates… |
| Milgame | 18 Aug 2025 1:46 p.m. PST |
I dabbled in boardgames in high school, but the concept of moving cardboard squares around on a map never really excited me. Twenty years later, a colleague introduced me to miniature wargaming, and that has stuck ever since. A great board with great terrain and well-painted minis can't be beat! |
| dilettante | 18 Aug 2025 3:37 p.m. PST |
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| Tango01 | 18 Aug 2025 4:15 p.m. PST |
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 20thmaine | 19 Aug 2025 1:32 a.m. PST |
Some do and some don't. I suspect more miniatures gamers play boardgames than boardgamers play miniatures games. |
 McKinstry  | 19 Aug 2025 8:11 a.m. PST |
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| Shagnasty | 19 Aug 2025 11:33 a.m. PST |
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 Bobgnar | 19 Aug 2025 3:14 p.m. PST |
I like to convert Board Games into Miniatures Games. My favorite is Zombie Clue (Cluedo to UKers). Have also done 28mm scale, and Playmobil Awful Green Things from Outer Space. Also 20mm Creature that Ate Sheboygan. |
| FlyXwire | 19 Aug 2025 4:47 p.m. PST |
I also like to 3D convert board games. We have a page for these on TMP - TMP link |
| Tango01 | 20 Aug 2025 4:19 p.m. PST |
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 x42brown | 23 Aug 2025 4:34 a.m. PST |
I used to but haven't for about 25 years. So let's have a 'Not any more' in the choices. x42 |
| Tango01 | 23 Aug 2025 4:34 p.m. PST |
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 Old Contemptible | 23 Aug 2025 5:12 p.m. PST |
Both, but miniatures more often. I have trouble finding opponents for board games. |
| Joes Shop | 24 Aug 2025 7:22 a.m. PST |
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| Uesugi Kenshin | 24 Aug 2025 6:30 p.m. PST |
I got my start in historical boardgames at about 10 years old. I didn't start miniatures gaming til age 18. I still enjoy both but play boardgames more. |
| The Last Conformist | 25 Aug 2025 4:38 a.m. PST |
I play boardgames, though rarely hex-and-counter wargames. In recent years, most of my boardgames plays are children's games with my daughter, but sometimes family games that work with all ages, and occasionally I manage to play a "serious" one with my old boardgaming friends. For various reasons, boardgaming took a much bigger hit from parenthood than what minis gaming did. |
| Tango01 | 26 Aug 2025 4:41 p.m. PST |
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| UshCha | 29 Aug 2025 1:44 a.m. PST |
I thought hard about this one, trying to work out from a personal perspective what the diffrences are. The answer to me is not very much. If I look at the once very popular ASL is rules are as sophisticated as any set of wargames rulles, too complicated even for me. While it uses Hex's for measurement it does specificaly allow placement of markers within the hex, say behind a hous so it in all practical terms is identical to a wargame that does not use hexes. To be fair ASL boards are much smaller than most wargames tables which from my perspective makes hex based movement a better bet than using a ruler. In our own rules milimetric precision is sometimes needed at 1/144 scale as move distance are very small, board games being smaller require too much precision to use a ruler (my opinion). Now card markers are mentioned but even that is not a universal, even Monoply uses 3D makers (I always wanted to be the car). The otther diffrence is boards are flat, whereas wargames tables are 3D. Again evwn that is not universal some systems use string as contoures. So what are the commanalities? Both use boards.
Both can use models as markers.
Both can use precision positioning in the board. So what are the diffrences. Boardgames boards are typicaly a lot smaller. Now you will not that from my personal perspective minis have not features as a issue. To me minis are just convenient makers of no more intrinsic value than that. So I would say as a wargaemer I am a boardgamer, the real diffrence seems to be how you regard the miniature, either just as makers or that the hobby cventers around the artwork on the minatures, not the intrisic mechanics. It a matter of how you define a wargame. Boardgames are more compact I will agree that is the other major diffrence. So at the end of that diatribe I think I am exclusively a board gamer who plays on big boards. I propabley don't really count as a wargamer as minis do not feature greatly in my gaming. I admit to coulering my markers. but would not consider it as painting. NATO uses 3 Colours, Green, black (tracks and camoflarge so some paint pot) and browm. I prefer Russians 2 colours green and black only. Whan pushed we have used card marhers and un-coloured markers again bluring the distiction from my perspective. |
| thedrake | 31 Aug 2025 3:55 a.m. PST |
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