In the Land of Minis

Figures, flats, minis, dice, tokens, we’ve used all of them. Sometimes, to mark where enemies are on the map, I’ve gone so far as to actually draw them on, in pen, because it’s all I had. Although I’d have to say that using LEGOs with custom made weapons is a new one on me, but that’s exactly what one Savage chatter has done. Andrew Linstrom aka entonfire was discussing in #savageworlds this week that he actually uses a combination of LEGOs and BrickArms weapons packs to up the ante on his games and bring a more hands on approach to the minis.

“We were running Day After Ragnarok, so players dressed up and armed their minis appropriately. When they defeated enemies with different or better guns, they had a tangible piece that they could take and arm their mini with. We also used the vehicles that came with the Indiana Jones sets, so I built ambush encounters around the jeep, truck, and tanker that their convoy consisted of.”

He said that he found that the players just seem more engaged when they could actually pull the weapons off the enemy’s corpses and put them on their characters. “[It] was cool being able to watch your character evolve directly from session to session or even scene to scene, switching a gun or a sword or a hat or hands or something; [e]ven swapping to a head with a different expression. I like being able to evolve your mini as you evolve your character.”

LEGOs and BrickArms weren’t the only props he brought to the game table. “Oh! And I commissioned little plush, coiled snakes from one of our friends who does plush monsters. About the size of your palm, but sized against Lego minifigs, perfect scale for a Day After Ragnarok giant snake.”

The ideas of swapping out guns and weapons to your figs just sounds like a great way of really connecting with your character. Often times I feel removed from them because I can’t hold the weapon in my hand or have much of a sensation of it beyond the stats on paper. I think swapping out parts on a figure might bring back the joy of finding a new shiny.

What props do you use on your game board? Anything different than the normal mini fare? Or do you have some extra special minis you want to share?