Tuesday, December 17, 2019

54mm!?

Sometimes the heavily caffeinated, squirrel on speed that lives in my head and drives about in this flesh-mech you all know as "Tim" makes some pretty poor decisions...

Like; "Hey, we should put together an entire maniple of imperial titans in regular 28mm 40k scale..."

Or, "Hey, we have imperial titans, so let's put together a super heavy detachment of ELDAR titans!!?"

Or, "I know we already HAVE THREE complete Imperial guard armies and a better part of a fourth... but let's buy ANOTHER complete army and a half!?"

Or "I know we have Kill Team and a dozen other skirmish games.. but let's go ALL IN for Necromunda and then track down five entire gangs worth of the old metal minis on eBay AND a pile of extra dudes for bad guys and hive scum and bounty hunters AND custom build a tonne of terrain..."

Or "hey wouldn't it be fun to make a bunch of minis out of wooden pegs?"

OR "better yet, let's individually SCULPT entire warbands of anthropomorphic critters for Burrows and Badgers!"

Or "I don't know if ONE Eldar super heavy detachment of TITANS will be enough... let's track down THREE of those old Tempest superheavy grav-tanks to make another Super Heavy Detachment of those!?!" Or look at these super cute and cheap chibi warriors - lets order a fuckload of those - I'm sure we'll figure out something to do with them, right!?"

Or "Um... do we have enough eldar...? I don't think so!" (to be fair, this last one did fill out a number of things I did need to make a viable 40K force of Eldar... AND I split it with Keira, who also was able to make good use of a number of these things... the extra 90 Guardians... well... they were just thrown in for free anyway...).

What have I always said?

"Why do things in JUST ONE SCALE when you can do them in two...?"

"or three...!?"

(Of course I'm usually being a bit facetious when saying that, mocking my own stupidity in having the same damned miniatures for the same period in two - or THREE - different scales...)

And that brings us to Inquisitor...


For those that aren't aware, Inquisitor was a low-level skirmish game published by Games Workshop - almost role-playing game-ish in scale small... but with a TOTALLY DIFFERENT FIGURE SCALE!? They produced a series of 54mm miniatures to go along with the game. I think it would have been WAY more popular - and they'd have sold way more miniatures - if they'd just produced all   those same sorts of new character minis in 28mm! I mean, there were Rogue Traders, Inquisitors, bounty Hunters, Imperial Workers, Mercenaries, Navis Nobilitai.... Sure SOME of those were available as part of regular 40K armies... but not some of the others.

I picked up this copy of the Inquisitor rulebook ages ago...  Maybe it was a game store bargain bin? SSO book and music sale? Maybe it was...? Nah, I don't even remember... It was used, dirt cheap, and I picked it up for the fluff and the artwork. No desire to play the game or ever pick up any of the miniatures...



Then I noticed a few remaining Inquisitor miniatures in the 50% Off Bargain Bin at my FLGS... I picked up the Rogue Trader mini last year one Boxing Day. The other two I picked up a couple of months ago... Still wasn't planning to actually PLAY the game... just thought they'd be fun to have and assemble and paint - just for giggles.



I started assembling them and... welll.. this is as far as I got, so far... But while I was doing this I got it in my head that these would be really fun for a demo game at a convention or something...? Maybe even ToonCon in the spring? But I'd need a few more miniatures - back up adepts, bad guys...



I had this box of 1/35 scale SAS in a box from years back others...



I tried assembling one - the guns looked PUNY by comparison to the ones from the 41st Millennium!



Here's 1/35 scale mini next to Inquisitor models....



Diggin around through boxes of random crap, I found these. Some cheap dollar store plastic soldiers I'd picked up - because they'd also looked like actual modern SAS guys - rather than the usual generic oddly posed weirdos with unidentifiable weapons. I started thinking with some creative paintwork (and maybe just a LITTLE bit of converting....) they could be made to look like Chaos Cultists of some sort.

 

They're pretty close in scale...

And then I started casting around the internet (well... eBay, mostly) to see what else was out there...



and I found some relatively inexpensive "54mm" models from Russia - they were even metal!



But WAAAAAY too big... Ah, well...



I did also find some AWESOME plastic model from Russia - These ones would make perfect Valhallan guardsmen.



Scale-wise, they are close enough to totally fit in...

And there were others that would make great Chaos Cultists and so much more...

And then I came to my senses...

I actually started writing this post months ago and then stopped when I shelved the project. I shelved it around the time I came up with the Q4 Plans - back at the beginning of October, and this post has been sitting in my drafts folder since then... I felt like I'd done all the work, might as well finish it off at some point. But I also felt maybe I should wait until I had enough distance from the project that finishing off the post wouldn't get me going on the idea again.

I still like the idea for some small demo game at a convention at some point... so it's on the back-burner... but like waaaaaaaay on the back burner... maybe not even on the burner at all... maybe it's in an airtight plastic container in the back of the freezer that I hope won't get all freezer burnt before I get around to doing something with at SOME point!!

For now, need to focus and get some OTHER stuff done: Hellboy, Necromunda, Blackstone Fortress.... all the other 40K stuff.... so much more... don't need to deal with ANTOHER scale (which would, of course, need it's own set of terrain... yeah, I really don't think these things through, do I...?)


Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

Hellboy Miniatures!!!

Seriously.


29 comments:

  1. Some would say that 54mm is the new 28mm! Controversial?

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    1. No, not really.

      Considering the market share GW holds in the hobby gaming industry and that THEIR 54mm minis are LONG out of print and there is next to zero chance they will ever bring them back, or that there are no other major publishers or manufacturers producing 54mm miniatures specifically for gaming, I doubt there are very many that would say that... And those that do say that are just trying to create controversy where there really isn't any.

      I'm not trying to put down 54mm gaming enthusiasts, here. I get it! I really LIKE the idea. They're fun and colourful and attractive and would be GREAT for getting people's attention at a demo game at a convention (largely BECAUSE they're DIFFER so greatly from the norm). But given how much 28mm stuff I already have - not just miniatures - terrain too! I recognize that it is the height of absurdity for me to expand into a new scale - especially when I have most of the same things in another scale already!? I think MOST gamers would be in the same boat, too.

      I've mentioned elsewhere on this blog: "Never say 'Never'!" - but I HIGHLY DOUBT 54mm miniature gaming is going to be the next BIG thing...

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    2. For me 54mm and 60mm ARE the norm. And there are MANY manufacturers of this scale designed for wargames. Have a look at my blog, Quantrill's Toy Soldiers and you will see my 1/32 wargames. The average size is with about ten units a side with infantry of 24 man units and 12 man units of cavalry

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  2. 54mm figures are crazy. Much more work to build, convert, and paint. And yet I have several dozen of them moldering in a box in the garage... so you are not the only one to get caught up in them!

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    1. Ha! I bought a box of 1/32 Plastic Toy Soldier Great War Canadians years ago thinking, "Hey these will be FUN!" and "They'll be EASY to paint - all the details are so huge!" and I primed and started painting one and ended up thinking "Damn, these take for-EVER!?"

      So much more surface area to cover!!!

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  3. There's also the cost. 28mm are ridiculously expensive to buy, and the terrain is also that way if you don't DIY. But the biggest handicap for any scale bigger than 28mm is the issue of storage. I have a pretty big bin plus a carry tray for my battle-in-a-box 28mm, but that doesn't include any big hills and only a limited selection of small and medium hills. I'd have to triple the number of bins for 54mm and I'd have to come up with something ingenious to handle some of the bigger terrain pieces.

    In hindsight, though I like my 28mm figures, I really wish I'd done my armies in 15mm (or 20mm at most).

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    1. Sure, there are some dirt cheap 54mm plastic toy soldiers... but they are light on detail and there all in one or two poses. There is a huge variety of resin individual character models available in 54mm that are just as ridiculously priced as any 28mm figure. And those Inquisition figures - even a bog standard Guardman started at about $25CAD - for ONE DUDE!

      Yeah... storage... Very good point...

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    2. Detail varies. I find that most 54mm brands have excellent detail. If you are basing your observation n dollar store figures I can understand as detail there varies from horrible to crisp.

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  4. We played Inquisitor quite a bit way back with some of my really old 28mm rogue Trader era miniatures and it was pretty good, trying to get the balance right was a pain but then came along Rogue Stars and it gives just as good a game with way less book keeping and working out of modifiers.

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    1. Cool.

      Y'know, I picked up Rogue Stars when it came out - I LOVE all of Andrea Sfiligoi's Song of Blades and Heroes games... but I have yet to try out Rogue Stars (or ANY of the ones that Osprey Games published, for that matter - even though I have all of them, and Of Gods and Mortals was the FIRST game of his I ever purchased!?). Maybe I will with the 54mm minis - when I ever get back to the project.

      I don't think I'll ever actually USE the Inquisitor rules. It occurs to me now that I may not have been clear in the post above. When I said "it would be fun to do a demo game at a convention with these" - I meant the miniatures, not the RULES! I was thinking something like Necromunda... But now that you mention Rogue Stars....

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    2. Rogue Stars is very good, we play it regularly at club with a bunch of different people. It took a bit of getting used to and the first game we had to step through the rules bit by bit, but once it fell into place it was fine. (It didn't seem intuitive at first with how stress and pins worked)

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    3. Fantastic! Well... Now I better get off MY ass and finally try it out!!

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    4. I'm really glad to know people are still playing it!

      It felt with a lot of the Osprey Wargames, there was an initial bit of excitement - lots of people trying them out... and then... nothing...

      I picked up almost all of them that came out the first year or so. In my case, with the exception of Dan Mercy's rules (which I actually HAVE played), I got excited, started acquiring and painting minis, but before I got forces together, interests had moved on.

      (Well, I have played Lion Rampant and Dragon Rampant and The Pikeman's Lament - I STILL have not tried Men Who Would Be Kings or Rebels and Redcoats. The latter I don't really have forces for - but the former I could EASILY throw down British and Zulu forces for!)

      I guess I didn't really have an excuse with Rogue Stars - as I already HAD loads of sci-fi minis of all varieties I could have used... guess I was just really into... something else...? When it came out!

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    5. If it's any help, of all the Osprey blue book games, the only ones that stuck are Rogue stars, Dragon Rampant and In Her Majesties Name. (Burrows and Badgers needs more playtime but it wasn't one of the blue books)

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  5. I had a lot of fun playing Inquisitor campaigns back in the day. But we played with 28mm miniatures.

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    1. Seems to be a theme developing here... I wonder if ANYONE actually played with the 54mm minis? Surely there must have been some. But I wonder how many that was compared to those that played with 28mm minis!?

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  6. Hey Tim, I still have a bunch of those inquisitor figs that I've been taking to the bit swaps. Sold 3 last time around, but still quite a few...just saying!

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    1. Really don't need any more at this point!!

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    2. But just for interest sake, what do you have!?

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    3. Will have to dig the box of them out & see. Will email you a list in case someone peaks your interest

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  7. Tim: Noted. // Awakening interest trips alarms!
    Tim: Really don't need any more at this point!! // Response activated. Attempting to override urge to get more stuff.
    Tim: But just for interest sake, what do you have!? // Override failing! Danger! Danger!

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    1. HA! Yeah... You know me too well!

      Truly, I have very little interest in them at this point. I was actually just curious to see what he has squirrelled away. Terry's an even WORSE hoarder than me - if that can be believed! It's always a little bewildering to see what treasures he pulls out when he goes into that crawl space under his house!

      I have been painting up Hellboy minis like a Mad Bastard - trying to get them done by Xmas - well, not ALL of them done... but all of the CORE SET stuff so we can start playing on the 25th. (Unfortunately I've misplaced one of the Frog Creatures and all the furniture and doors I ordered!? GAH!? On the plus side, as I have the Kickstarter edition, I actually have, like eight more frog dudes than the regular retail basic set would have... so I'll probably be good... and there are cardboard tokens for doors and furniture... I'm just annoyed that I misplaced them and have spent an inordinate amount of time looking for them - time that probably could have been spent getting a LOT MORE miniature painted!!)

      I've also been doing some planning for next year - at least for the first quarter - and I've more or less got things hammered out - and 54mm minis are NOT part of that plan!!

      More on all of that SOON!

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  8. I wargame with 54mm toy soldiers and I can state very confidently that there is a huge range of figures, poses and periods of history. The first wargames and wargame rules used 54mm figures. HG Wells is the great grandfather of wargaming and wrote the book little Wars(not just War of the Worlds). If you look on Facebook there are at least five sites dedicated to 54mm toy soldiers. My Australian Group is called Australian Collectors of Toy Soldiers. Some other groups on FB are International Collectors Of Toy Soldiers, Little Battles, Friends of Plastic Warrior, International collectors of Plastic Toy Soldiers, Little Battles and so on. There are many brands that made and make 54mm toy soldiers, including Armies in Plastic, Expeditionary Force and so on. Many older figures are available off the Internet, plastic and metal.

    I wargame on table tennis tables and in the garden. I have played 1/32 (54mm) games with thousands of figures.

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    1. Thanks!

      I actually HAVE some of those Armies in Plastic! I had no intention of using them for gaming, I just thought they might be fun to do because they made some for the Canadian Expeditionary Force in the Great War (which were probably just repackaged British, but, whatevs... I thought they'd be super easy to paint and take no time at all (because the details were all so big and chunky - compared to 28mm minis I had been painting). But... there is a LOT of surface area on a 54mm miniature and, wow, did it ever take a long time to paint. I'm not sure I even finished one of them.

      If I were starting completely from scratch, and only planning to do small, skirmishy games for which I would do miniatures for all sides of any conflict (which I do often do anyway) - 54mm would be a definite possibility... they are fun and there is so much out there... but given that I have so much terrain and other miniatures in 28mm... it really doesn't make much sense for me to do this. I may get around to finishing up a few Imperial Agents and cultists to try out a game of Inquisitor - maybe make some simple terrain for them by painting up some cardboard boxes (like I did for the zombie games I played a few years back). but that's probably not going to happen soon.

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  9. I know this is kind of a tangent, (and a bit of a necropost, sorry) but I've been getting into converting 54mm figures and wondering if you've got any suggestions on good bits sources? So far ive just been using 28mm parts (which works surprisingly well!) And scratchbuilding, but I'd appreciate some pointers lol.

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    1. Well the "28mm" GW stuff, for sure! Those an old Dragon Models SAS kit that I had started to assemble above - they're firearms looked absolutely dainty next to the assorted 40K bits I have! I considered using the holstered pistol from the Dragon kit on some 40K models - for someone who wanted something SMALLER than a bolt pistol?!

      I honestly hadn't delved into this too deeply before I said "WTF am I doing?" and set it all in a box for now. So I don't really have too many suggests for you! Sorry.

      There are a LOT Of sellers on eBay (and probably amazon) that sell all manner of 1/35 scale resin bits - but I find them wildly expensive and, as they are actually to scale 1/35 they look small compared to the weapons 28mm 40k minis would be carrying.

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    2. That scale messiness has been pretty handy! Yeah, what you said fits with what I've found so far... maybe I'll just try and keep an eye out for job lots and 2nd hand stuff. Thanks anyway!

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