 Cheap Alternatives For Miniatures, I feel so poor! |
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 Dec 17 2005, 02:55 AM
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#1
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Moving Target  Group: Members Posts: 139 Joined: 14-October 05 Member No.: 7,844  |
Quite frankly, miniatures are expensive. Anyone have a good alternative in place of miniatures? I've been using dice, but they seem to confuse my players (and me for that matter). Any and all help would be appreciated.
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Dec 17 2005, 02:59 AM
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#2
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 668 Joined: 15-February 05 From: Ontario, Canada Member No.: 7,086 |
Little squares of paper with names on them.
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Dec 17 2005, 03:12 AM
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#3
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Running, running, running Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 2,220 Joined: 18-October 04 From: North Carolina Member No.: 6,769 |
for PC's, just tell them to bring whatever suits them. Hopefully, your entire group isn't so strange as to all bring pennies.
for npc's, use the dice (not a d6) using the number to differentiate initative order. Theres a bunch of websites around with mini's that you could prolly print out on some card stock paper (for durabilitity, dont want to have to print them every single week) |
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Dec 17 2005, 03:13 AM
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#4
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Runner Group: Members Posts: 2,598 Joined: 15-March 03 From: Hong Kong Member No.: 4,253 |
The bits of paper tend to get blow around too much. If you are going to go the bits of paper route, print things for 'triagular standups' (didn't some come with earlier editions of SR, I remember the cardboard standups from SR1 or SR2.)
Another good choice is army men, thuogh you will probably have to buy washers to stick to the bottoms so that they will stand up well. |
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Dec 17 2005, 03:27 AM
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#5
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 668 Joined: 15-February 05 From: Ontario, Canada Member No.: 7,086 |
I was thinking "paper" like cue card paper, rather then looseleaf. I've found it tends to work fairly well. Heavier then normal paper, doesn't fold as much. Cardstock works as well, if you want to make standup pieces and glue pennies to add some weight. Although I'd recommend glueing two pieces together for even more stiffness.
Or there's cardboard. |
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Dec 17 2005, 03:30 AM
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#6
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Resident Legionnaire Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 2,136 Joined: 8-August 04 From: Usually Work Member No.: 6,550 |
Get a Whiteboard and Dry-erase pen :)
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Dec 17 2005, 04:08 AM
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#7
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
I know it's a bit of a cash layout, but for 24.95 you can get Steve Jackson's "Cardboard Heroes" If am not mistaken, there are something like 200 or so figures in the set which runs the spectrum from medieval to modern day and even superheroes. A little work to set them up at the outset (you have to cut, fold & tape), but once that's done you have a good supply of figures for NPCs like gangers, sec guards, & cops as well as for the players.
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Dec 17 2005, 04:20 AM
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#8
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Target Group: Members Posts: 61 Joined: 17-November 05 Member No.: 7,977 |
Chess peices?
Painted chess peices? Peices from Risk, Axis and Allies or other war board games. |
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Dec 17 2005, 04:28 AM
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#9
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Prime Runner Group: Retired Admins Posts: 3,929 Joined: 26-February 02 From: .ca Member No.: 51 |
http://www.fierydragon.com/products/prod-cc3.htm should have some useful stuff.
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Dec 17 2005, 04:51 AM
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#10
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 256 Joined: 24-October 04 Member No.: 6,784 |
Poker Chips work well, different colors for different NPCs if needed, and they are cheap.
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Dec 17 2005, 08:23 AM
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#11
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,028 Joined: 9-November 02 From: The Republic of Vermont Member No.: 3,581 |
Candy. Then you can eat your kills.
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Dec 17 2005, 04:18 PM
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#12
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Running, running, running Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 2,220 Joined: 18-October 04 From: North Carolina Member No.: 6,769 |
and i suppose you id your street sam based on who has the most cavities? |
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Dec 18 2005, 02:20 PM
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#13
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 903 Joined: 7-February 03 Member No.: 4,025 |
Poker chips. Board game tokens. Sea shells. Rocks. Beads. Bottle caps. Beer bottles. Screws, nuts, bolts, washers.
Depends on how important it is for your tokens to look like characters. For me, it's not at all. Did you collect GI Joe action figures as a kid. (Action figures, dammit, not dolls!) You can even take them apart and switch the body parts around. A little creative painting and voila. A guy I know made me a 13" figure of my orc merc out of an artist's mannequin and some modelling foam. It was really cool. I always wanted some GM to ask for miniatures so I could use it. |
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Dec 18 2005, 02:28 PM
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#14
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,283 Joined: 17-May 05 Member No.: 7,398 |
A sheet of paper with a map drawn on it, and little X's drawn on it.
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Dec 18 2005, 03:28 PM
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#15
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Shooting Target Group: Retired Admins Posts: 1,784 Joined: 28-July 04 From: Cleveland, OH Member No.: 6,522 |
Here's a couple of options a little more expensive than those suggested, but still much cheaper than pewter:
Grab one or two of the sparks fonts from S.John Ross these can be printed out to make the standups others have mentioned. Sparks ($5-$10) Try the Microtactix line of printouts on rpgnow. They've got several genres of buildings and figures: Cheepsville USA city dwellers ($5) A cheap fix for the blowing away problem -- put a penny in the bottom of the tri-fold. |
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Dec 18 2005, 08:40 PM
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#16
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Target Group: Members Posts: 46 Joined: 6-October 05 From: Toronto Member No.: 7,819 |
I thought you could find cheapo miniatures for 1 dollar apiece?
If not, then try those packs of green Army Men. Man I miss playing with those things. |
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Dec 18 2005, 08:59 PM
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#17
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Horror Group: Members Posts: 5,322 Joined: 15-June 05 From: BumFuck, New Jersey Member No.: 7,445 |
Just be careful that Shadowrun is not forgotten in the midst of your green and tan army man battle. Flamethrowers? Check. Riflemen? Check. Mortars in support position? Check. Recon jeep? Check. Ass about to be whupped? Double-check. Actually, that might not be so bad.... |
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Dec 19 2005, 12:41 AM
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#18
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Target Group: Members Posts: 62 Joined: 14-January 05 Member No.: 6,976 |
One thing I've tried is printing a large floorplan and attaching it to a bulletin board. Use pushpins to represent combatants, grenades, etc. You can use a ruler or string to measure distances if your map is to scale.
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Dec 19 2005, 03:12 AM
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#19
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Neophyte Runner Group: Members Posts: 2,086 Joined: 26-February 02 Member No.: 364 |
Sleeping housecats curled up on the gaming table can make good stand-ins for dragons. Mine usually like more comfy spots like the couch, so I have to wait until they're dead asleep and move them.
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Dec 19 2005, 06:17 AM
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#20
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Resident Legionnaire Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 2,136 Joined: 8-August 04 From: Usually Work Member No.: 6,550 |
:notworthy:
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Dec 19 2005, 06:34 AM
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#21
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 777 Joined: 18-February 03 Member No.: 4,110 |
can't believe nobody's mentioned lego men :(
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Dec 19 2005, 07:58 AM
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#22
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 715 Joined: 4-September 05 From: Metaplane GEPLK136 (The one with the lizards. You remember the lizards, don't you?) Member No.: 7,684 |
My brother's iguana used to join us for shadowrun sessions occasionally. He was there to steal pizza crust rather than be a miniature, but dropping down from seven feet out of the closet onto a pizza plate gave a couple of the players a good startle. I had no idea until then that iguanas liked pizza crust. My savannah monitor is pretty lazy sometimes, he might be a good dragon miniature. Though, he's over a foot long and growing fast, "miniature" might not be the word for long. I have turned one of my turtles loose on the game board, after shouting "juggernaut attack!" My old D&D DM used to use little blue glass beads for whatever enemy we were fighting. As this was usually orks, both me and my wife (who played in the same group) now shout "Help, orks!" whenever we see small blue glass beads. For "paracritters" and the like, they sell little plastic animals in bags similar to those green army men. We keep a set in our dice bags to use as miniatures. Make sure to get "jungle animals" or "dinosaurs" -- instead of "farm animals." Goats aren't scary unless they have wired reflexes 3 at least. Play-doh only really works if you are getting attacked by blob-like creatures; and there aren't many of those in SR. |
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Dec 19 2005, 08:53 AM
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#23
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Neophyte Runner Group: Members Posts: 2,086 Joined: 26-February 02 Member No.: 364 |
Toxic Nature Spirits, Blood Spirits, a manifested Nomad, some of the species of awakened jellyfish such as the Fideal, or my personal favorite, the Protean. (The protean is hands down, just about the grossest paracritter in SR, even beating out that awakened flying squirrel that poops on you. Take a colony of human dysentary bacteria, awaken it, and give it engulf and the ability to mimic its victims. Gah!) |
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Dec 19 2005, 03:57 PM
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#24
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Shooting Target Group: Validating Posts: 1,618 Joined: 29-January 03 From: Montevideo, Uruguay. Member No.: 3,992 |
Dammit, I was about to say M&M chocolates (we did that a few times). :D |
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Dec 19 2005, 04:00 PM
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#25
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Creating a god with his own hands Group: Members Posts: 1,405 Joined: 30-September 02 From: 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:1 Member No.: 3,364 |
sweet/ewww!!! what book is that in?
uh, people will get distracted from the game REALLY quickly. "Hey, I'm gonna build all my drones and vehicles in lego too!" "We're in a bar? I'm gonna build it in lego!" |
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