So does size doesn't matter or is what matters is if you can use it?

[nozza_uk]

Hopefully not too provocative a title!

With the advent of 3d printing, it's become very easy to get miniatures printed for your favourite game/genre. However, I'm finding that 28mm is in the eye of the beholder. Figures advertised as 28mm, tend to be anywhere from 25mm to 35mm depending on the printing company used. I have Star Wars figures advertised as 28mm that look like they belong in a Legion game.

But, it's not just 3d printing. As an example, earlier this year, I picked up the Conquest Games Robin Hood figures and the Victrix Norman skirmish pack. However, either the Conquest Games are true 28mm and the Victrix figures are 'heroic' 28mm (aka 32mm), but the Conquest Games figures look small against the Victrix figures.

Now I know human beings (and aliens) come in different sizes, but would a noticeable difference in figure size stop you from mixing and using the figures on the table? Or is a case of what looks good from 3ft away shouldn't really matter and I need to get a life and just play the game?

[vodkafan]

The age old question. In the end they are your toys and your games, so whatever you choose is good. Personally if differences are too jarring I don't mix big and little figures. A friend of mine is fond of saying "You can put a piece of plastic card under the small ones and build up the base so as not to notice," but I always DO notice tricks like that, when every little guy is standing on his own hillock. I would rather just find figures that match.

[Michi]

I never care much about the height or proportions as long as the sculpt is pleasing my eye. I mix and use every production method and material of miniatures (once painted you'll never see the difference) together.

[Ran The Cid]

I prefer to keep units with similar sizing - both height and thickness/bulk.  Check out my Latin Tribes post in Ancients, I've got 4-5 different sizes that I'm working with for the same time period.  Its becoming quite an issue when I need to fill a few missing slots in certain units.

[Belligerentparrot]

For me, the answer to your question depends on the game size.

I much prefer same-size minis for the look of a skirmish gang, less so for the mismatch in body size and more for the mismatch in weapon size. For some reason it bugs me if two gangers ostensibly have the same weaponry but one is carrying something much larger than the other.

For a battle size game this bothers me much less, because individual minis aren't the focus really.

[Cat]

Yes people come in many sizes, and especially for skirmish games I prefer a mix.
 
But not all sculpts look like they are depicting the same species, so I do take care on which ones get mixed.
 
I find it exceedingly annoying that so many manufacturers won't list the general toe-to-eye height.  Make whatever bleeping size you want — just tell us what it is already!

[FifteensAway]

I am on Michi's page.  And I fully support Cat's final paragraph.  And this matters in 15/18 mm just as much as in 25/28/32/whatever-it-is-this-week size figures. 

Since, mostly, I game unit sized games, as long as a unit is generally cohesive, I'll mix overlarge with oversmall but in separate units if that is what it takes to get variety.  Though, mostly, I like most units to have the same or similar poses to make them easier to paint if they are all in the same uniform.  If all different, like in Old West, not bothered so much but still make an effort.

[ced1106]

The story behind 25mm/28mm miniatures being all over the place was that retailers didn't want to carry different miniature scales, so manufacturers fibbed a little and used terms like "heroic" to create larger miniatures (more details, etc.) that supposedly had the same scale as the mini's the retailers already had. And, AFAIK, there's no standard for *proportions* of miniatures, other than "true" vs "heroic", which are even more all over the place.

Myself, I'm playing miniature agnostic rulesets for generic fantasy miniatures, so will obsessively need to play each side (eg. heroes vs enemies) with all of the same mini's from the same manufacturer, hopefully with the same weapon loadout as their stat sheet!

https://alkony.enerla.net/english/the-nexus/miniatures-nexus/miniature-hobby/miniature-size-miniature-scale

[Dolnikan]

I don't really car and mix all sorts but then again, I mostly do medievals which means that there also wasn't a lot of uniformity around. For later periods where you had more standardisation it might be more of an issue but people who don't know that the differences are there (which is to say, anyone but the owner) usually can't tell the differences in sizes and the like from a normal distance. How much you yourself notice however is a deeply personal thing.

[zemjw]

I have a tolerance level, but a lot of today's stuff exceeds it. If a group is alternating between The Rock and Kevin Hart, it's too much

I collect (not sure I can claim to play much these days) for skirmish - fantasy, modern and SF mainly.

Most stuff is okay to mix, but Infinity, eg, had a massive size bump a few years ago, and they just don't work with the older ones. I have some Stargrave figures that barely come up to the shoulder of some cyberpunk figures.

I am favouring 28mm Stargrave, older Rogue Trader metals etc these days. There is a parallel stream of 32mm+ figures (some of the Infinity ones are just so nice ), but it's not a priority. There's just so much to explore in the various Stargrave sets that it makes more sense (to me) to stay there.

[nozza_uk]

I have a tolerance level

I have a tolerance level too, but where I get frustrated is that it's very hard with online buying to judge the height and size of a figure. As a result, you have to trust what the retailer is telling you.

I'm looking at my painting desk and I've got some '28mm' figures that stand 40mm (toe to head). My Stargrave figures reach their shoulders and that's what drove me to post.

[Easy E]

I use the 3 foot rule.  If I can't tell the difference from three feet away, no problem.  If I can, then I don't mix the outliers in.

[FramFramson]

For me, the answer to your question depends on the game size.

I much prefer same-size minis for the look of a skirmish gang, less so for the mismatch in body size and more for the mismatch in weapon size. For some reason it bugs me if two gangers ostensibly have the same weaponry but one is carrying something much larger than the other.

For a battle size game this bothers me much less, because individual minis aren't the focus really.

This. As long as weapons and certain unchanging parts of kit match across all miniatures, it shouldn't matter much even if they're fairly different in height. The smallest man in the unit coming only up the shoulder of the biggest fellow in the unit is okay - as long as they both carry identical rifles!

[eilif]

I use the 3 foot rule.  If I can't tell the difference from three feet away, no problem.  If I can, then I don't mix the outliers in.

This is generally my rule of thumb also. How does it look on the table. In big unit games I prefer my minis to be the same height range so if I've got some small chaps I want to add to my unit of mixed Chaos foot knights, I'll just boost their height a bit.

Generally I like to stay between 28-30mm (to the eye) for my average joes.  Heroes can be bigger.

[eilif]

I'm looking at my painting desk and I've got some '28mm' figures that stand 40mm (toe to head). My Stargrave figures reach their shoulders and that's what drove me to post.

Thinking in terms of "Toe to head" is guaranteed to lead you to frustration.    Generally wargaming figures are measured and listed in terms of sole to eyeline so you don't have to estimate the height including headgear. 

 If I'm unsure about height I'll look around for a figure comparison or even ask other gamers or the manufacturer what the sole to eyeline measurement is.