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Post by zuludon on Sept 2, 2019 15:17:13 GMT
I love the original Magnificent Seven film and ran a couple of shootout games using 25mm figures and the games just felt flat to me. The little figures lacked "presence" for want of a better word. In 2013, I found a set of 54mm custom terrain and Weston painted figures for the Magnificent Seven which had earlier appeared in Wargames Illustrated for sale online. The price was right and the seller offered free shipping, which sealed the deal. Here's a link to the set: www.tmterrain.co.uk/historical-projects/magnificent-7.html Since then I have collected figures for the AWI, ACW, Indian Wars, Indian Mutiny, Sudan, Boxer Rebellion, FFL in North Africa and Mexico, NWF, WW1, WW2 and the Napoleonic Wars. Even with a 7X7 foot shed, storage, especially terrain, is a challenge and I will never be able to park my car in garage. But it's worth it!
Now that I am known to fellow gamers as "The 54mm Guy", I get news of collections for sale and I've been known to drive 100 miles to pick up a bunch of painted Napoleonic figures.
Nick Stern
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Post by jhonpog on Sept 2, 2019 22:12:07 GMT
yes I think 'presence' is the right word for this scale
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Post by twogunbob on Sept 4, 2019 18:41:45 GMT
Ever since I saw Pilum40's 54mm AWI game I was sold on just the presentation. The figures are just huge and look so impressive on the table. I can't imagine why wargamers would turn their noses up at it. I've heard that they cost too much but I think they're a far sight cheaper than a lot of the 28mm stuff coming out right now. Soft plastic isn't the easiest to paint but techniques I've been taught prevent flaking for the most part. I just like the look of these giants on the tabletop.
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Post by pinotnoir01 on Sept 5, 2019 23:51:26 GMT
Have a vineyard with a wine-tasting room. Can set up tables (and have) for about 1k 54mm Napoleonics. Just having a game that big pegs my "that is so cool" meter. That and my now-declining eyesight appreciates a bigger model to paint. Takes me about 20 minutes a soldier regardless of scale. A 15 or 28mm battalion is pretty nice....a 54mm battalion really stands out. Currently buying cheap Britains hollowcasts to build "A Gentleman's War" armies.
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Post by jhonpog on Sept 6, 2019 0:12:22 GMT
Have a vineyard with a wine-tasting room. Can set up tables (and have) for about 1k 54mm Napoleonics. Just having a game that big pegs my "that is so cool" meter. That and my now-declining eyesight appreciates a bigger model to paint. Takes me about 20 minutes a soldier regardless of scale. A 15 or 28mm battalion is pretty nice....a 54mm battalion really stands out. Currently buying cheap Britains hollowcasts to build "A Gentleman's War" armies. nice wow 1000 figures that's alot of painting
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Post by pinotnoir01 on Sept 7, 2019 21:21:39 GMT
Paint long enough and the numbers add up! Some of the gamers on this site probably have collections over 5K.
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Post by napoleon1944 on Nov 3, 2019 3:26:55 GMT
When Conte playests hit the market and included the buildings I was hooked. Then 21s Cen toys hit the market and provided all the armor and trucks I needed.
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Post by jhonpog on Nov 3, 2019 23:13:31 GMT
When Conte playests hit the market and included the buildings I was hooked. Then 21s Cen toys hit the market and provided all the armor and trucks I needed. My problem is I want to buy more stuff than I have time to use..... trouble is the buying part is so quick and easy
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Post by Quantrilltoy on Jan 2, 2020 12:51:53 GMT
54MM was the scale I have always played with and smaller scale games have been lateral developments - for example GW 28mm gaming (but eve there there are bigger aliens and creatures).
I have permanently set up large tables for gaming. Table tennis tables provide part of the tables. Otherwise I game on the ground.
What I like about the scale is the cheap source of plastic figures. You can even use super cheap figures that are only a few cents each. it is actually possible to convert army men and cowboys and Indians into any other period, including science fiction. Even old hollow cast figures can be bought cheaply, especially if damaged.
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johnl
Lance Corporal
Posts: 19
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Post by johnl on Aug 12, 2022 8:04:10 GMT
I started playing 54mm war games ever since Airfix brought out their range of soft plastic figures. I then started making model kits in 1/32nd scale and then 1/35th scale kits came out and I have been playing in that scale ever since.
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Post by Brian Cameron on Aug 21, 2022 12:44:26 GMT
I think Mike's right that it always seems fine to improvise in larger scales and games can look rough and ready. I think the high presentation standards at wargame shows (though I'd suggest quite a few are dioramas rather than games) have conditioned many people in 28mm to expect similarly high standards of figures and terrain for 'club night' games. It's noticeable that soloists improvise more - there's no one to please other than themselves.
Brian
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Post by rossmac on Aug 21, 2022 13:35:32 GMT
I'm one of those who grew up in the 60's with both 54mm and 1/72nd soldiers. By the time I was 12, inspired by a book by Henry Harris, I was starting to convert the 54's to "model" soldiers for display while I longed to play wargames because I had a read an article talking about it but had no real idea as to how it was done vs playing with toys. Once I came across Featherstone's Battles With Model Soldiers c 1970, I was off and running and put 54's out of my mind until the mid-90's when two things happend. There were two wargame magazine articles published showing gamers building 54mm armies for wargaming and I became friends with a collector (not a "Collector" collector, just someone who liked 54mm plastic figures and would paint some of them etc. I coaxed him into playing a game and talked my regular wargame opponant into trying 54's Next thing you know I was building armies in 3 periods.
The thing really took off when a call came out for 54mm figures for a 54mm La Haye Ste game at Cold Wars 97' and I volunteered to bring my 1812 British and some of the Canadian and early war US troops to use as Dutch etc. Next thing I knew I was tunning a Yahoo group called Little Wars and making all sorts of friends and at home was gaming in 54mm with 4 friends in 4 periods.....
I don't have as much room as I did 20 years so I've largely shrunk to 40mm apart from one pair of 54mm armies.
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Post by thereferee on Aug 22, 2022 20:54:17 GMT
I picked up a bag of cheapo knights on holiday as a side project to my normal 15mm games, and then entered the blogosphere soon after which led me here. I love the simple charms of a toy quality paint job, scratch building terrain and customising models!
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