Sunday 10 July 2022

Glorious 6mm: Go Small to Go Large

6mm Wargaming has many detractors. But I would humbly suggest they are overlooking several major advantages of a much-maligned scale. Whether it be, cost, space, speed or range I think everyone should take another look at 6mm.

8 comments:

  1. Hi Lee. Couldn’t agree more with everything that you said. Painting used to be a chore until I started with 6mm. They are easy to paint - the Baccus painting guide is an eye-opener.
    There are fantastic ranges available from the likes of Baccus, Irregular and Heroics & Ros. Gaps can easily be plugged using proxies. In fact much more easily than with 15 and 28mm.

    Chris/Nundanket (Horse and Musket Gaming blog)

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    1. Thanks Chris, sorry its taken so long to reply (to everyone that has commented on this post...lets just call it 'technical issues' and leave it at that!). I'm happy painting any scale, and I'm by no means disparaging other scales, I just think too many people dismiss 6mm without truly appreciating how easy they can be to paint.

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  2. All really good points Lee. I’ve always admired your 6mm Indians. I mainly game with 28mm and some 15s but have been getting into 2mm with S&H.

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    1. Oh Yes, S&H is tempting me to go 2mm as well. I'm resisiting...my I'm weak and I know I'll give in eventually!

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  3. 28mm is cheaper than 6mm. I made a comparison: https://amsterdamwar.game.blog/2020/03/31/6mm-wargame-cheaper-than-28mm-beat-it/

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    1. I see your point about hard plastic being cheaper than the equivalent 6mm base, and you are correct...However, I consider Plastic or resin to be an inferior product to metal/pewter so its not an entirely fair comparison. Apples and oranges I think. Don't get me wrong, I have some plastics in my collections (and the likes of Victrix or the Perry's are amazing figures) but I also have a lot of plastic figures with missing spears or bayonets because they snap off if handled roughly. My preference (if I can get it for a project) is for metal models and therefore I prefer smaller scales for their economy over 28mm.

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  4. You are echoing my view on the merits of 6mm (and smaller). I’m lucky enough to have space for a table 6’ x 4’ and at a pinch I could go to 8’ x 4’. However, even on those tables I prefer to play 6mm for the visual impact of large bodies of troops with a closer relationship between figure scale and ground scale. I still use the base sizes meant for 15mm figures but with more 6mm figures on each base. Goodbye to the six men taking a flag for a walk look!

    It also gives me more battle field to play with. There is space on my flanks and to my rear that I need to manage so I’m dealing with additional tactical issues just by using 6mm.

    I had a similar ‘rant’ on my blog about 6mm deniers with regard to painting. Most 28mm gamers are painting to a very high level of detail which would transfer to 6mm. The key point is that with 6mm you are not replicating the detail of a 28mm masterwork, you are painting for mass effect.

    Cheers Elenderil (Small but perfectly formed blog)

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    1. Thanks for your contribution to 'the cause' 😆. Seriously though, as I've said many times, I'm not against other scales I just think for some wargamers there is a definite prejudice against 6mm that doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

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