Traveller Miniatures

[Infojunky]

Does anyone know why the Mega Miniatures Traveller runs were limited. I thought they were pretty good. Also if you're doing 25/28 for your Traveller games they have some nice figures that would work well.

I believe it was part of the license. But it also might just be turn over to get them to sell.

I would Email them and ask about the possibility of a new run. But there is also a chance that was one of the licenses that sunseted when Mongoose acquired theirs.

I suspect that Miniatures specifically for Traveller might have to be a labor of love as it doesn't seem to be that hot of a moving item. But it might just be that a active/expanding line is all that is required, and we haven't seen one in over 20+ years.

 

[Chernobyl]

probably heretical, but I've found quite a few of the plastic SW minis are usable in traveller.

 

[crossmlk]

I have as well.

 

[Burocrate]

probably heretical, but I've found quite a few of the plastic SW minis are usable in traveller.

In addition to fitting onto that "Traveller' look, I have used the painted plastic figures from one game (SW) to hook new role players into trying out Traveller. I let them pick a 'kewl' figure and describe what they wanted; "I want to be Han Solo!", "I want to be a Secret Agent." Then I pull out the various books and let them experience CharGen Traveller style.

 

[SSWarlock]

For those with interest in 25mm Travelleresque minis, the Ventauri line at the Denizen Miniatures website is an incredible fit for Zhodani. Take a look.

http://www.denizenminiatures.co.uk/25mm_new/sf_gallery.htm

Just ignore the unhelmeted green alien. :wink:

A U.S. source of these minis is http://www.historicalminiatures.com/

 

[Infojunky]

probably heretical, but I've found quite a few of the plastic SW minis are usable in traveller.

What ever works for y'all is fine. I wanted the Star Wars figures to be better than they where, meaning matching with other figures in my collection. Back-handedly one of the reasons I move to 15mm.

 

[Tasha]

probably heretical, but I've found quite a few of the plastic SW minis are usable in traveller.

What ever works for y'all is fine. I wanted the Star Wars figures to be better than they where, meaning matching with other figures in my collection. Back-handedly one of the reasons I move to 15mm.

Having a large army of StormTroopers and Clone Troopers was quite nice when we were playing StarWars. I have been a bit hesitant to pull out the SW minis for Traveller as I don't want to imply that my campaign is like StarWars.

Some of the individual figures are ok and fit for adventurers. Things like Jedi, Stormtroopers, Clone troopers, Wookies are too iconic of StarWars and IMHO have no real use in a 3I Traveller Game.

I purchased a bunch of sciFi minis from Hasslefree minis (they are 28mm). I am using some of their Human SciFi Figs along with their SpaceDwarves (Called Grymn in their catalog). The Grymn are looking pretty good and for once I am going for Squad Quality and not the Higher quality of Personality Figurines.

Some of the Figs from Reaper Mini's Chronoscope line are nice.

I just can't bring myself to buy a ton of 15mm minis. I will eventually end the campaign and the minis will be repurposed for different campaigns. If I played /liked Miniatures wargaming I would feel different, but I am more of a RPGer.

 

[Bishop Odo]

I absolutely agree with you about the quality if the SW pre painted minis. I have had to cast my own in resin, this way I can remove the flash, change arms and heads and resculpt details that the soft original plastic made impossible.

I have ranted before about no Minis for Traveller and have given up more or less, try Infinity and Reaper Chronosope

 

[Infojunky]

I just can't bring myself to buy a ton of 15mm minis. I will eventually end the campaign and the minis will be repurposed for different campaigns. If I played /liked Miniatures wargaming I would feel different, but I am more of a RPGer.

SO?

I mean I mostly play RPGs and small scale skirmish. 15mm works fine for that. I had considered 6mm figures and using gross color themes to differentiate figures. Just here weren't enough 6mm characters to economically do it. (With 6mm you can use Quad ruled paper layouts)

At the time I made the switch to 15mm there were not very many Character Figures in 28mm (it was right after the standard of 28mm became the most common figure size in Science Fantasy, but after GW mostly had discontinued their character figures)

Note the "classic" 25mm grenadier Figures are 25mm, and going for serious bank on Ebay. While a much larger selection of Traveller character's and aliens were available in 15mm. Thus the obvious answer was 15mm.

And in 15mm running around in the docking bay is possible on your average dining room table while the interior of the average PC ship is hard pressed to fit in the same space.

 

[Tasha]

Yeah, I got a box set of the Grenadier Adventurers. They are 25mm, but don't look that out of place with my Hasslefree and Reaper minis. I am still hoping to get lucky and find the Grenadier Imperial Marines. There's got to be some boxes of those outthere somewhere with someone willing to part with them for less than the US mint.

I just don't want to collect any more 15mm. Hell, I gave all of of my 15mm Orcs to a good friend (hi). I am not sure that I want to collect more of them. I do admit that I have seen some nice 15mm figs and vehicles. I just don't want to convert. Having one scale of minis make it easier to use them in many different games. Whether I am playing Champions, Fantasy Hero, Traveller, Star Hero or whatever, I like having a variety of minis that can be used in different games. Yeah, I can't use Jedi in a Fantasy game (normally), but I can use them in a Superheroic game. Also, Stormtroopers are an easy to recognize stand in for any bad guy troops (even though my preferences are to not confuse folk by putting starwars figs in a Serenity Game).

Tasha

 

[spinwardpirate]

The next time I play Traveller, I'm kicking around the idea of using both, switching from one scale to the other as situations warrant. 25/28 works great for those up close and personal encounters, but for long range stuff, and encounters requiring vehicles, or even small ships, you can't beat 15mm.

 

[GamerDude]

I like your thinking, and damm it allows for larger scale battles without needing a larger table.

Might just be time to start looking for some 15mm minis

 

[spinwardpirate]

One of the great things about 15s is they are dirt cheap. Adding a few to your collection takes no more money than the price of a cup of coffee.

The other great thing about 15s is that they are easy to paint. I can finish a 15 in less than half the time it takes to do a 25/8.

 

[GamerDude]

One of the great things about 15s is they are dirt cheap. Adding a few to your collection takes no more money than the price of a cup of coffee.

Wait, is that the $1.55 cup of standard joe from the local fast food joint, or the $5.95 cup of fancy ass packaged same joe from the nearby espresso stand?

*grin*

 

[spinwardpirate]

The answer is "yes".

(It depends on how many you want.)

 

[IanBruntlett]

Coffee at the Kiff Kaff, St George's Park - 50p
Coffee in Contact, Morpeth - 10p

 

[spinwardpirate]

One Man in Black from the Scene Uk - 42p.
http://thesceneuk.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=16_57&products_id=351

 

[GypsyComet]

The only thing I wish is that someone would come out with the ubiquitous open top 4-6 man grav vehicle that every free trader and scout ship tended to carry - a must for player characters. I know they are made as paper vehicles but I would love to have it in lead or resin (in 15 and/or 25mm)

GZG does do one in 15mm, right down to the beveled sides, though theirs is probably only about 2 tons of actual displacement instead of 4. It'll still take up 4 tons on a ship unless you dead-store it, though. You did want to walk into a room and climb into it and drive it out, right?

4 tons of half-deck air/raft is a houseboat that flies...

 

[Lysander]

The only thing I wish is that someone would come out with the ubiquitous open top 4-6 man grav vehicle that every free trader and scout ship tended to carry - a must for player characters. I know they are made as paper vehicles but I would love to have it in lead or resin (in 15 and/or 25mm)

GZG does do one in 15mm, right down to the beveled sides, though theirs is probably only about 2 tons of actual displacement instead of 4. It'll still take up 4 tons on a ship unless you dead-store it, though. You did want to walk into a room and climb into it and drive it out, right?

4 tons of half-deck air/raft is a houseboat that flies...

Oh, I have the GZG version (several of them, in fact) - I have been buying GZG stuff for 15 years or so and am one of their biggest fans. I even have a much larger version (Martian Metals?) that is more on point. But no one is currently making the larger version anymore - not even GZG. I recognize that there may be issues as to accuracy regarding displacement but you really need to have at least 4 seats before it has the feel of the classic grav raft. Jon's (GZG) stuff just doesn't have that feel. Maybe Jon will come up with the extended version in the future. He has a market of one (me) at this point.

 

[spinwardpirate]

Like this?

http://www.travellerbibliography.org/mm/2802.html

I actually have a box of Martian Metals Zhodani sitting here, unpainted and unopened even. If I start up a Traveller game in a month or so, I may have to crack it open and paint them.