Do you worry about varying figure sizes?

[Veralius]

Hey everyone.

I obtained about 20 or so of the old Foundry Western miniatures at a convention earlier this year. Like most purchases, they've lounged at the bottom of the lead pile!

Anyhow, I've only just realised that they are all at the "small" end of the Foundry size range, and they look noticeably smaller than say the Artizan cowboys. It's a real kicker, especially as they're all lawmen so I'll definitely be needing more minis for the bad guys.

What do you lovely Lead Adventurers do in this sort of situation? I could sell them all and buy into the larger ranges available these days, or could stick to one manufacturer and just buy more Foundry stuff. Argh, the decisions!

Or maybe I should just remember they're all toy soldiers at the end of the day and just get on with it!

[Digits]

I dint get too hung up.  We use a mix of foundry, especially as they have some great civilians and characters, with Artizan, Dead Mans Hand AND Black Scorpion.   Everyone in real life is not the same height!  You can artificially adjust figure heights a bit too.....use a piece of plasticard on top of your base to raise a low figure, especially if it has a cast base.



If you painting them for display, a vignette perhaps, I'd agree that you'd ensure some match up.....but for gamers?   Not usually a problem.

[Malamute]

Your other option is to slip a piece of card/spacer between the base of the figure and the washer or stand that you intend to base the figure on.

It will raise the height of the miniature and usually does the trick.

[v_lazy_dragon]

I vote for the spacers between the bases too! If you do decide to go down the route of more figures, from what I recall the Dixons old west stuff scales nicley with the smaller foundry old west figures...

[carlos13th]

Not with western models as I don't have any but with other ranges I don't worry too much about height my biggest issue is with head and hands. Of the head or hands of a model are hugely different then they just don't like right to me but I have no issue with different heights.

I think it matters even less when you have models that are individuals like Wild West ones rather than historical that are ranked up in units.

[northtroll]

I game with friends who have lots of different figures. We mix and match at will for the most part. We get caught up in the game, not the scale creep.

[Deedles]

Nope, people vary in height and girth...

[Elbows]

Only when I run into the smallest of a "scale" and the largest of a "scale".  For instance I didn't bother painting/using my Knuckleduster figures because they were proper 25's (really small) and I use everything else from Black Scorpion, which are 30's or so.  I haven't found other ranges to cause much of a fuss.  But the Knuckleduster figures I had were literally half the mass (height/width etc.) of the BS guys.

I agree with the adjusted bases.

[Flashman14]

I have a similar issue in 15's with Peter Pig and Blue Moon. The smaller ones I use as a proxy to identify lesser skilled figures and the taller ones are characters and heroes.

[NickNascati]

Veralius,
             I've stuck with collecting only Black Scorpion figures, and have not regretted it.  While it is true that people vary in height and girth, weapons do not.
                                                                                                                Nick

[Archie]

I just fought a battle between traditional Samurai and Amazons warriors wearing erm .... fur bikinis ... for me this is all a game and if my trusty (not lusty!) Amazons can fight Samurai one day and a dragon the next then a small matter like size is immaterial.

And guns are different sizes ... as my ten year old asked yesterday when comparing the pistol the character Callan (from the sixties tv show) uses (a 38 revolver) was compared to Lara Crofts pistols.

Its nice if everyone is roughly the same size but I wouldnt sell some just to rebuy in a certain scale.

[6milPhil]

Nope...



Perhaps think Billy the Kid?

[former user]

"Re: Do you worry about varying figure sizes?"

every day! like I hate people not being the same size. Makes me sick when I go into the streets every day...

Used to have a dry goods factory for pants - bloody retailers wanted me to make different sizes, damn critters.
Went bankrupt on that. My shrink recommended collecting miniatures soldiers "for they are all the same size"  - bloody good idea!

But even those damn sculptors can't agree on one size, and they even make different scales...
Dammit!  will have to quit the hobby.....

[former user]

  While it is true that people vary in height and girth, weapons do not.

 

[Captain Blood]

Yes.

It's a personal preference. There's no right or wrong answer, so I don't think there's much point trying to find ways to 'prove wrong' the people who don't agree with your preference  

Personally, within a particular 'army' I like all figures to look and feel stylistically similar. It's not about height, it's usually about bulk / stature and sculpting style.

People with lower aesthetic values, who don't care about (or are unable to achieve) beautifully painted figures or beautiful terrain, will generally care less about the look of things, so won't mind too much about mixing figures of all different shapes, styles and sizes on one tabletop.

People with high aesthetic values, for whom 'the game' is just a way to enjoy and use beautiful models and terrain, are more likely to pay attention to the details of such things and want everything to look as perfect as it can.

It's just a personal taste thing, so maybe we should refrain from trying to prove each other 'wrong'?