Have you ever wanted to go a step further and get right into the tabletop action? Well, Minuteman Miniatures can help, creating a miniature that not only represents you on the tabletop but looks like you as well!
Whether you take part in sci-fi, ancients, American Civil War or World War Two gaming, this company has you covered. At the heart of the process are a number of basic body sculpts, from Roman Legionaries through Civil War generals to fantasy heroes, plus more on the way. These bodies are stored as CAD data and printed out using a 3D printer. The only thing missing? The head.
And that’s where the gamers come in. Using 3D scanning technology, a free scan of the front, back and sides of a person’s head is made, then used to create a 3D computerized render. This is then matched up with the gamer’s choice of a body from a suitable genre, and then the whole thing is 3D printed as a complete figure. All of this is done with a handheld scanner whilst the gamer sits on a chair. Props such as headgear may be added, and, at larger shows, it is possible to have one’s whole body scanned in a booth and printed out from the relevant file.
In the photos above you can see Alan Perry being scanned at Historicon 2018, a gamer being transformed into a miniature tank commander and Minuteman Mike Elices both at work at Historicon and in his 28mm miniature guise.
This is an unusual way to create a unique figure for tabletop use. Although this is a service for wargamers’ that is currently only available in the USA, it is probably possible to find similar technology in the UK and Europe. So, next time you’re thinking of buying the gamer in your life something special (or for yourself, let’s be honest), get in touch with the company and prepare yourself for battle!
This is one of our ‘Spotted at Historicon 2018’ products, all of which also feature in WI371.
UPDATE FROM MINUTEMAN MINIATURES
We have plans to make this process available in Europe in early 2019. We are making arrangements to attend European gaming expos and are searching for European manufacturers to produce our products within the EU.
Currently we have over 50 male and female models available, with our next release including twenty different RPG miniatures for Gen Con.