In space or amid war-torn fantasy worlds (and everything between), miniatures games bring tactile, tactical battles to your tabletop. Unlike board games and more traditional war games, miniatures gaming is a two-part hobby, with the assembly, design, and painting of your miniatures offering a wholly creative enterprise that meets its other half on the table. There, your customized force can go up against friends, casual opponents, or tournament brackets in organized play. Below, in this category showcase, we’ll explore some of the major miniatures games out there, so you can pick a universe and dive into this unique branch of tabletop gaming.
In our Minis & Games category at Noble Knight, we’re looking at science fiction and fantasy games. For games like Bolt Action and Black Powder, take a jump over to our Historical Minis category and, for the best results, combine the two – I’ll bet Napoleon conquers Russia with a Tyranid swarm at his disposal…
Miniatures Games Across the Spectrum
You’re going to have a hard time exploring miniatures games without running into Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Fantasy: Age of Sigmar. These two giants of their respective settings have been evolving for decades, offering both reams of lore (much of it well written and worth reading whether or not you play the games), numerous starter sets, and a vibrant play community at Noble Knight and just about anywhere else. Like most games in this category, matches here 
consist of two assembled armies, capped by unit point values, going at one another over a table topped with terrain features (think buildings, rubble, hills, etc.). Objectives cover the gamut, from annihilating the enemy to holding points to escaping across the far side with your force intact. Narrative campaigns, numerous adjacent titles like Kill Team that focus on smaller forces, and guides aplenty to build and paint your forces make either Warhammer game a great time.
For those wanting to venture further, though, you’ll find plenty of fascinating options. Battletech brings mech-focused gameplay to the fore, encouraging you to customize your great war machines before embarking on missions. Breezy starter sets make it easy to start tinkering too, and the game’s long history ensures you’ll likely find a community nearby.
On the gnarlier side, with oozing personality, is Warmachine, a steampunk fantasy miniatures game built for speedy sessions. Varied factions led by war casters combine technology and fantasy, along with mechanized terrors called warjacks. While other miniatures games can take hours per play, Warmachine often sees its combatants laid to waste within 60 minutes, with far less time spent in the rulebook. More battling = more fun, after all.
Infinity, now in its fifth edition, is a high-tech skirmish spiced with reaction gameplay, where both sides are involved in every action. The ability to stack orders (rather than every unit moving, you can instead spend multiple actions on a single unit) gives Infinity a cinematic feel, where your key player might run, jump, and annihilate a key enemy in a fantastic sequence. Then, you know, the rest of your team sits around watching, but hey, it’s neat, different, and intense.
Also different is Malifaux, which is a bit like if you had Stephen King and Lewis Carroll design a miniatures game. Armies are smaller and battles revolve more around accomplishing objectives than slaughtering the opposition, but when you’re fielding mutant teddy bears and, er, giant murder fish, things are bound to get weird. Malifaux is the steampunk horror you’re looking for, a great entry point for anyone staring at the vast array of cyber ninjas and grizzled knights and wanting something manifestly unique.
Difference comes in gameplay too, which you’ll find in Conquest: The Last Argument of Kings and its associated skirmish title First Blood. Conquest is a rank-and-file game, meaning units move in bunches rather than individual models. This gives the feeling of leading great armies into battle, swinging blocks around in flanking maneuvers, pushing through defensive lines, or cackling as your giant obliterates whole ranks of enemies. Excellent miniatures quality, great entry options, and a newly created campaign system make Conquest a special game to dive into.
But why dive when you can duel, preferably at high noon, on speeder bikes with gatling guns? Wild West Exodus takes you to a land of steampunk cowboys for a skirmish game with more style than your local saloon. With innovative options to mitigate unlucky dice and otherwise simple rules, Wild West Exodus leans into its ridiculous premise to create snappy fun. Perfect if you’re looking at the huge games above and want something more approachable, easy to build and paint, and with just a hint of real history.
Miniatures Publishers
While the games list above covers many of the core miniatures publishers, there’s more to find if you dig into a particular maker. Take Games Workshop, the aforementioned publisher of Warhammer 40,000. Step into their publisher section and you’ll find Citadel paints and primers, a great choice for anyone seeking to
turn those gray figures into colorful art. Beyond supplies, Games Workshop publishes a slew of other games, from related forks like The Horus Heresy to cool options like Necromunda or The Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game.
You’ll find that spread is common among publishers in this space – Gale Force Nine, perhaps best known for publishing Dune, also makes terrain, accessories like dungeon master screens, and, uh, World of Tanks? Ditto with WizKids, which is where you’ll find HeroClix but also tons of great Dungeons and Dragons minis. Privateer Press and Steamforged Games handles Warmachine and its cousin, Hordes, while Wizards of the Coast dips way back to the original Heroscape in its deep catalog (make sure to use the Product Type filter to get past all those Magic cards).
Other publishers, like Reaper Miniatures, focus entirely on producing top-notch figures for the many, many tabletop RPGs and miniature-agnostic games out there. 4Ground builds detailed terrain, ranging from houses to sci-fi turrets, while TT Combat covers a broad range with an eye towards affordability. And Iron Wind Metals, unsurprisingly, offers miniatures across numerous games all cast in metal, which has a beauty all its own.
Most miniatures can be mixed and matched across publishers. Obviously, if they’re the only publisher for a game like Conan, then that’s your option. But if you’re looking for minis to go with your latest Pathfinder campaign, mixing and matching is viable. Just make sure you’re keeping an eye on the miniature’s scale so your halfling rogue doesn’t tower over the red dragon.
Tips for Starting a Miniatures Game
If you’ve read the above and thought building an army of dinosaurs or space marines or cyber ninjas sounds cool (and it is), then there are a few tips to keep in mind before diving in that ought to make your experience just that much better:
- Miniatures games are generally designed for two or more players. The best way to get into a game is with a friend or several that’re also interested. Or look at stores in your community with scheduled game nights. This hobby is a blast best shared with friends.
- Decide how much of the building and painting you’re interested in. For many miniatures games, the literal construction and coloring up of your force is a key
part of the hobby. If that’s not your thing (or time is tight), but you’d still like to rock a Legion clone army, then you can commission both builders and painters, either online or at the aforementioned community nights. - If, though, you’re intrigued by the creative aspect, then I suggest some starter kits. You’ll need one set of tools to get the miniatures put together, and a whole other for painting them up. It’s great fun, very zen, and I’d recommend everyone give it a shot.
- When buying into a game, begin with the most recent starter sets. Most will come with opposing factions, letting you play at least a partial game out of the box. They tend to be the best value and help you figure out if this is your game fast. Even if you wind up picking a different faction to dig into, you can always give extra forces to pals to help get them invested.
- Don’t ignore all the ways to play and engage. Many of these games have multiple modes, from skirmish games with low unit counts (making them cheaper and easier to play) to campaigns to, yes, novels and video games. Embracing the lore is a big part of the fun, and helps give the units on your table real history. It’s not just a game on a Saturday afternoon, it’s Grothnar Slaytongue’s last chance at vengeance against the plague demons who destroyed his childhood home (or something).
All told, miniatures games bring an incredible toy factor (building and painting are hobbies of their own) while also creating games filled with memorable, action-packed moments. Embark on a journey with one or more of these titles, and you’ll find yourself immersed in a fresh, fun universe.
