Far West

For those that might want to do some FW-style miniatures on the cheap, first go here, then go here, then mash the two together using Illustrator or Photoshop.

Minis can work in a story teller system, they can be placed in view of the players to indicate NPC's of importance or significance to the situation or local. I used to play VTM with a deck of cards reprinted with the NPC's I felt would be important to the players, so you could do the same with minis. Also you'd be amazed at what can be achieved with a few tools, some modeling putty, and a little bit of practice.

BeckoningPuma said:

For those that might want to do some FW-style miniatures on the cheap, first go here, then go here, then mash the two together using Illustrator or Photoshop.

Darn tootin' I like that. Easy Peasy. Quickly beats what I wanted to show off. I am heading home (finally) and I seen something in the movie BUNRAKU that reminded me of something that I once did a couple times. I was thinking about going through one of my save boxes that have these six inch tall illustrated cardstocks I made. I used them once for a Deadlands event, and then I tried doing it again for Jovian Chronicles. Cardstock Cowboys are always great. I think I have the face panels with me, but I wanted to get some pics together showing them assembled.

The rules system isn't a "move this many inches/squares; here's a blast template" kind of thing -- but is as usable with miniatures as, say, Basic D&D was, for example -- where miniatures were used to denote position, as a visual aid for combat, etc.

Did you mention on rpgnet that there might be a range of minis?

Back when I posted that, we had been approached by somebody interested in licensing to produce a miniatures range.

However, it turns out that they a) had no experience in doing so; b) were planning on just hiring sculptors and production -- which we could just as easily do ourselves. So basically, it was one of those "hey, you made money on Kickstarter -- can we have some of it?" things.

I would LOVE to have a range of FAR WEST miniatures -- although honestly, given that I've never been on that side of the business before, it would probably be best for us just to sign a licensing arrangement with an established producer.

So, hey: If you've got any connections in the minis world, tell 'em that we're willing to license!

Ooooo, miniatures eventually, yes, please! In about ten years I'll have need of a tomboy fig with a sword in one hand and a sixgun in the other. (Unless my Cub decides to go for the demure noblewoman with the really big whip instead. Never can tell with this girl.)

I'll just have to get converting in the meantime!

@GMSkarka: Good Luck on finding a worthy company that can accomplish the mission. In the meantime for the kitbashin' mini-makers, have fun building. I know the hard part of this process is finding something that captures the right image or the right flair.

As BeckoningPuma offered, there is a simple solution for the short term. Maybe I have the wrong idea about miniature production, but I think that process will take a little longer. I know, I know. Patience does have a virtuous side. Doesn't mean I like waiting. The links above in BeckoningPuma's post are a fair start. The Cardstock Cowboy set, are from another game, but not bad to use. They too are available from DrieThru.

However, I found some of my old stuff. I was wrong. My tall set are 7 inches, not 6.

...uh oh, what is that creeping up on Austin?

Here is another.

Yes, these are hand drawn.

These are smaller. I used them for a Jovian Chronicles campaign. I included them to show how easy or accessable this type can be. Producing them I think was fairly simple. Don't get me wrong. I love miniatures too. The portrait style came from Front Mission 4. Puppetfox's idea is quite on the mark. A great way to show a significant differeance between major roles and cannon fodder.


Hrmmnn... Maybe, I should be pitching this to Gareth. I can't think of anything specifically different than Cardstock Cowboys. After checking out everything that is available at DriveThruRPG, maybe a FAR WEST line of easy heroes might not be so hard to create.

...uhhh, GMSkarka... What would be the ideal layout for something like these Paper Heroes? Maybe Bunraku has something for me to revisit.

rexroad33 said:

What would be the ideal layout for something like these Paper Heroes?

Not sure I understand the layout question.

That said -- if we did cardboard heroes, it would probably be with Rick's art, since we'd want to maintain the Official Look (TM) :)

But if you're wanting to do some UNofficially, go for it!

GMSkarka said:

But if you're wanting to do some UNofficially, go for it!

hrmn... Now there's a blessing I shouldn't ignore.

Yeah, I agree. An "Official Look" would then have to be Rick's art. Though I don't mind helping.

I guess to be more specific with my question then: @ members, What size? 15mm, 21, 32, or something else? What style? Flat heroes like the type shown thru BPs links, or traditonal tent cards, or like the trifold type I picked-up from Cardstock Cowboys? Quite the commitment. I could possibly do special request on 7 inch types. I won't do that for free. I could do what my friend Fredd Gorham does. He makes art for players at the Nuke-Con Convention at donation rates. I forget his charity at the moment.

Then again, I think maybe showing members how to make their own is a better idea. Suggestions?

I suggest 32mm (or 28mm Heroic *grin*)...there is a veritable ton of paper/cardstock paper terrain out there in this scale. Check out BeckoningPuma's terrain he did for a contest .

we will probably be using it for Far West stuff in the future. ;)

HOT DAMN! That is some speectacular stuff there. I love it when gamers get serious with their craft. Now, when it comes to that level of layout work, that is consistant. Everything looks like it belongs togther. In a live environment, it would be impossible for me to NOT touch. I do often see with my fingers. :) ...lol, sweet

Wow... I guess that means we need to really up our game for the paper-minis model of Prosperity.... :)

I'm really looking forward to miniatures and (especially) rules for tabletop battles in the Far West.
I've been a roleplay gamer for longer than I care to think about, but my real interest and passion in the hobby is tabletop gaming.

While I expect to pitch some stuff for the setting, and vignettes for the RPG, I think I'll actually be much more involved in setting up story-based skirmishes, scenarios, and campaigns for a tabletop incarnation of the game.
Until such a thing officially exists, I'll write the scenarios for existing rulesets, as well as one that I've been working on for the last year. (It's actually almost ready for publication, but the business end of things is the tough part- writing the rules has been relatively easy in comparison.)

At the risk of derailing this a bit, in response to honorable Sixgun Fu-Low:

Best of luck with your project! I'm contemplating something similar, as an old friend of mine has an Old West skirmish game that would be just about perfect for a crossover. I'm waiting until Far West is published before I say anything at his site.

Good hunting!

I've been interested in doing a line of paper minis for Far West since the start. I've done over 300 or so figures of minis for various publishers, so I have the process down. Hopefully soon.

Rick_Hershey said:

I've been interested in doing a line of paper minis for Far West since the start. I've done over 300 or so figures of minis for various publishers, so I have the process down. Hopefully soon.

Any chance of our backer character portraits being made into awesome minis? <-this would be awesome. :)

Oh you fellas are such a tease. What a great idea! Have you seen Rick's other stuff? Man-o-man, I can easily see those sword cards being put to use in Far West. Rick, how about some Gun cards in that format? I already have a bunch of my own that I made for another game. It was going to be a Facebook game, but the hosting developers got in trouble. Oh well, I move on. These are only pictures, which is good since they don't have stats on them yet. The major drawback is they are historical weapons, and not fantasy based pistols. Not that is not really stopping me. I will find a use for them somehow, even if it is only in private.

Probably won't see the portraits. Honestly, it just won't work with the layout/design of the minis. . . not to mention you probably won't be able to see the details anyways.

Gareth and I have talked some about possible game aids, we won't finalize anything till after the book release. I actually had planned on releasing guns as the next set after the swords, if I ever get a chance to get back to that product line.