Minifigs

The term minifig is a contraction of the words miniature and figurine. It is a generic term used to refer to such figures and the name of a company that makes them. Miniature figurines come in a variety of scales and are made from an assortment of materials. Lead soldiers are a type of miniature figurine, but alloys of lead or plastic are commonly used in modern construction. “Scale” refers to the size of the figure, and is usually expressed as the height of a male human figure in millimeters, though sometimes also as a fraction, or in inches. It is one of the more important factors used when defining such figures. A dizzying array of different scales and special terms for these scales has been used over the years.

Some of the more common modern scales are: 15 mm, which is generally used for mass Wargaming battles; 20 mm, which is also called HO or OO, and is the scale common to most model railways; 25 mm, which is mostly used for small-engagement Wargaming and for use in role-playing games; and 54 mm, which is generally a scale used for collectible, decorative figures. However, while these are the most common sizes, there are many other scales, and many individual terms to designate those scales used by particular companies or in particular hobbies.

Miniature figurines are used in a number of different pastimes. Wargamers use them to represent troops in battles. In general, a small-scale figure is used in a large battle. For large battles featuring tanks, 6.2mm is often used; 15 mm is most popular for those eras that feature massive troop deployment, from ancient through medieval, pike and musket, and Napoleonic; and 25 mm and 30mm are used for smaller-scale skirmishes. In games where large numbers of troops are being represented, one figure will often be representative of many men.

The painting of such figures is a hobby in itself, with collectors and gamers alike often taking great pride in how well-painted their figure collections are. Figures are often used in role-playing games, such as Dungeons & Dragons, to help moderate combat. Not all role-playing games use figures, and they are far from mandatory in any such game.

LEGO produces a range of miniature figures, which sometimes are called Minifigs. These are intended to be used in conjunction with environments created using LEGO bricks.

Minifigs is also the name of a company that started life as Alberken Miniatures in the United Kingdom in 1964 and is still in production. Alberken Miniatures became Minifigs in 1968, and specialized in producing figures to be used in Wargames. They produced a very wide range of cheap figures, initially in 20 mm scale and later in 25 mm, which was also known as their S range, and debatably the first true 25-mm figures ever [Page 392]professionally made. Minings were, and still are, a supplier of vast numbers of figures to the Wargames market, and played no small part in pioneering the hobby in the United Kingdom in the 1970s. Although early figures were often criticized as being poorly sculpted, the range of figures they produced was marketed at the low price that Wargamers needed.

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