Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming designed to incorporate miniatures or figurines into play. The miniatures used represent troops or vehicles (such as tanks, chariots, aircraft, ships, etc.).
Many miniatures games are played on a floor or tabletop, with terrain represented by miniature scenery (hills, forests, roads, etc.). In this respect, miniatures wargames theoretically offer players great freedom of play, as well as a spectacular visual spectacle. Movement of the miniatures is regulated using a tape-measure. However, like boardgames, miniature games can also be played using gridded terrain (demarcated into squares or hexagons) or even gameboards.
One of the main reasons people play miniature games, as opposed to computer or boardgames, is because many find the tactile element of soldiers and scenery on a tabletop to be aesthetically pleasing; additionally, some hobbyists enjoy the challenge of painting miniatures and constructing scenery. Miniature wargaming may be seen as combining many of the aesthetics of tabletop train modeling with the strategy of war.
There are any number of miniature wargaming rulesets, including some which are available free on the internet. Most rulesets are intended for a specific historical period or fictional genre. Rules also vary in the model scale they use: one infantry figure may represent one man, one squad, or much larger numbers of actual troops.
Scale is generally expressed as the approximate height of the figure in millimeters, as opposed to the ratio values used in scale modeling. Popular sizes include 54mm, 45mm, 28mm, 25mm, 20mm, and 15mm, which equate to roughly 1:32, 1:35, 1:64, 1:76, 1:87, and 1:144. Some model railroad scales are close enough to the smaller-scale figures to provide usable structures and/or vehicles, possibly requiring some modification. Some wargamers use card model structures because of their economy and the ease of scaling them to appropriate sizes, and many wargamers scratchbuild their structures.
Free Wargames Rules, a website that hosts and links to rules for games of all periods. All the rules on the site are free.
The Miniatures Page, the web magazine for miniature wargamers. Hobby news, manfacturers and painting services directories, forums, and more.
TinyWars.com, is one miniature wargame hobbyist's (sporadically updated) attempt at providing a useful collection of tips and tricks of the trade to the online wargaming community. Looking for a particular article? Go to the "About" page for contact information.
The Wargames Directory, A comprehensive directory of wargames traders with detailed information on the products and services they offer, plus links to wargaming and military history web sites, product reviews, rules directory, gallery, articles, forum and noticeboard.
MiniatureWargaming, A listing of free online wargames resouces, including free wargame rules, paper figures and terrain, painting tips, terrain modeling tips, articles and more.
Rules
Brikwars, a freely available wargame, built using the customizable and adaptable environment of Lego.
BlitzkriegCommander, fast-play tabletop wargame rules for combined-arms operations, 1936-45.
The Wargames Directory, A comprehensive directory of wargames traders with detailed information on the products and services they offer.
DeepFriedHappyMice A site featuring side-by-side comparisons of miniatures from over 30 different manufacturers. Also includes book and miniature reviews, how-to articles, and much, much more.
Eureka Miniatures Manufacturer and distributor of quality gaming miniatures and associated items. Full online store.
Wargames Foundry 28mm Ancients, Medieval, Rennaissance, ECW, Thirty Years War, League of Augsburg, Seven Years War, Napoleonics, Crimean War, Colonials, WWI, WWII, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
