Top 5 Miniatures Games with Sam Healey

[@GiantDevilDog]

If you want the actual top five skip to the 6:19 mark...you're welcome!

[@AlGuien82]

You're right, that was a lot of babbling before he got to the list! Thank you for posting the vid tho

[@ralelunar]

Missing Sam a lot! He definitely could've just made this a Top 10, though.

[@joshroberts8278]

Imperial assault has single handedly got me back into gaming

[@doomed2063]

I consider Space Hulk a must own for fans of miniature games. I actually got lucky and found a copy at my FLGS several months back selling for only $75. It was a must buy at that price. I really wish they had expansions for the new 4th edition, but the missions included offer enough variety to keep me and my buddies satiated.

[@waynekautzer913]

While I thought Heroscape deserved honorable mention, it was interesting to learn about games that I wasn't aware of. 👍

[@philheaton1619]

I wish that you had named this "My Top 5 Games with Miniatures". Miniature games, like Warhammer, are a very different category of games from most of the games on your list. When you talk about awesome miniatures, don't forget War Machine and Malifaux.

[@halestorm102]

NOT at all what I was expecting from this list. I was expecting Warhammer 40k, Flames of War, Warmachine, Etc. But I am a HUGE fan of Boardgames with awesome minis. So while the list was different than what I was expecting, it's a pretty cool list. Personally I never figured that those were miniatures games. Just boardgames. But I like the idea that they are.

[@groovygorgar8408]

Sammy boy, great video and all, really, but you sound like you're gonna pass out any second. breathe, my good man, breathe

[@BraxtonSharkboy]

Thanks for the video bro, definitely gonna be picking up a few of these to score some sweet new minis :)

[@kp7008]

Awesome review, exactly what i need. Already own 3 of the 5 and love them so much, will definitely look into the other. Painting the minitures were also fun!

[@marshalll9257]

before seeing any of the picks, I notice that Heroscape castle on the top shelf. This gives me good hope.

[@laughingbandit33]

As you can see from the comments folks are still on the GW gravy. As a vet of 10 years on 40k and fantasy I'm over it. The price jumps in the last 5 years alone make their miniatures cool, but cost prohibitive. IMO They come out with new codex and sculpts all the time that are just more of the same at a higher price point. Now we have hardcover overproduced codex that cost more than many games. I can get a quality board game that utilizes beautiful miniatures for the cost of a box of terminators. And in talking a complete game. There are just so many more options out there now days.

[@KyleJordanGaming]

Jason Lheureux And then... Age of 8thmar... Put Space Marines in Warhammer Fantasy- that worked(?). So... let’s put Space Marines... in 40k... Space Marine Space Marines... Super*er* Super Soldiers... Oh god why....

[@francescospuntarelli7369]

Kyle Jordan Gaming that's because U.s.a. are recruiting supersoldiers

[@davidpetree80]

Title is misleading. These are not miniature games, but board games that have miniatures in them. Big difference

[@elementalsigil]

+david petree How do you define a miniatures game? Needing a measurement system? Having your own set of pieces along with a thing to store and transport them? Price? Assembly required? What make a miniatures game to you?

[@firebatethan]

where 40k falls?

[@EpicGamingNight]

Love this list! Definitely kindred spirits when it comes to games!!

[@randalladkins7452]

Hey Sam, I thought you liked Descent and would at least honorable mention that. Also, I expected Star Wars Rebellion to be on your list as much as you loved it in your review with Tom. Outside of that, great top 5 and honorable mentions :)

[@TheSkepticalApe]

its always hard to get enough people to play twilight delirium but its always worth it

[@xDIABOx]

+Sam Healey Sorry, but I greatly disagree with you. 1. The fact that a boardgame offers you miniatures doesn't classify that game as a miniature game. If that's the case then Caverna is also a miniatures game. Ticket to Ride is also a miniatures game. TtR has 225 Colored Train Cars (as detailed in their website) so it makes TtR a miniatures game. Also, I don't think that pricing ranges would classify a game as this or that. Prices are what they are. TI3 and the new Star Wars Rebellion are ~100 USD and offer a ton of miniatures and you play a game with them. Warmachine starters are about the same cost and I also play a game with them. So, what's the point of comparing prices? I can even buy a Flames of War starter with the same amount and it gives me material to play with another person, and with prolly the same amount of miniatures of some of those games you've mentioned. 2. You bring a strong point in your argument that works against you. You said to imagine me playing one of those games without miniatures... and I say I can do that. I'd use colored pegs that would represent the pieces, because that's what miniatures are in these games, pieces. Now I ask you the same, try to play these games ONLY with the miniatures. And that simple question is what defines, in my book, what's a miniatures game, where the miniature is the central focus of the game. Zombicide is not a miniatures game, it's a boardgame with cool miniatures. Blood Rage?! Even Memoir 44 and the likes have more "miniatures" game feel than this. It's not being snob, it's being accurate. That's why I see your contents, because I trust your opinions. And I came here to see miniatures games and this list has nothing to do with that.

[@andrewjeffrey7549]

+Carlos Eduardo Saldanha I agree with your assessment and although I regularly enjoy Dice Tower videos, unfortunately these top 5 have come across to me as made purely for the purpose of mentioning games like Blood Rage + Champions of Midgard again and again and again. Although I own and enjoy both of these, it feels like they are going out of there way to make a category to fit one of these in nearly every time even at the cost of abandoning any sort of standards for what determines the game to be within the category.

[@SamHealey6]

It's okay to disagree...no problem with that at all. The problem here is that we're taking a nebulous and basically undefined concept and arguing about it. I'm all fine for a good debate, mind you, but what's wrong with calling a board game that includes tens, if not hundreds, of miniatures a miniatures game (the ridiculous apple vs. oranges argument of Ticket to Ride aside, of course...I mean, there is a difference between miniatures and simple molded pieces, right)? At what point does a game put miniatures as a central focus? What hoops have to be jumped through by a publisher in order to qualify their game as a miniatures game in your sight? What keeps these games from being called miniatures games?

[@xDIABOx]

+Sam Healey IMO a miniatures game is a game that is based on the miniatures themselves that would work regardless of having cards or a board or not, that way the miniatures ARE the game and not just components but the central pieces of the game. Two good examples are the X-Wing "Miniatures" game (the name says it all) and the new Wizards M:TG game. Both games focus on the miniatures themselves, not cards, not the board, not some random objective nor purpose. Just pure conflict where the miniatures will have their own profile and be the central focus of the game. Of course in the case of X-Wing there are a lot more to add into this, since there are several upgrades and whatnot, but it's still a game about bringing other players' miniatures down. So, Blood Rage is just like TtR as far as a "miniatures" game per se. The miniatures in Blood Rage are not the central aspect of the game and the game can't be played without the board and the cards. Memoir 44 and BLore can be considered sort of "miniatures" game since the primary aspect of the game revolves over the conflict of miniatures, with a boardgam'ish feel into it.

[@SamHealey6]

So, how do the other components of a miniatures game play into your "just the miniatures, ma'am" approach? How many other necessary components (dice, codexes, compendiums, referendums, charts, etc.) can there be and still have a miniatures game? Because, thus far, I'm not seeing a lot of accuracy in the answer you've given. The minis in Blood Rage represent much more than your equating them to TtR implies. They have a strength rating, they represent the special abilities of the clan from which they came, the different sculpts (leaders and warriors) are differentiating factors, too...in TtR, though, the train pieces have absolutely none of that. They simply represent card sets that have been played by that person. In Blood Rage, taking out other player's minis is a definite goal to work towards, unless your strategy dictates otherwise. In TtR, the pieces are not taken out at all, once they're on the board, they stay. In Blood Rage, you could concieveably play without the cards and just focus on the area control aspect of the game...it would be a markedly inferior game, but you could do it. The cards are mainly for choosing what strategy your clan will undertake. But how that strategy unfolds is all about the minis.

[@andrewjeffrey7549]

+Sam Healey Although I am sure there are exceptions to this, I primarily don't consider those miniatures games because the central focus is the board itself and the options and limitations it provides rather than any sort of free form rules that can be applied across variable playing surfaces. One of my favorite games is Empires: Age of Discovery, and that contains hundreds of miniatures. However, absent the board they are simply figures/ toys. The game is actually just a worker placement/area control game and the figures are just to enhance experience, similar to Blood Rage. I certainly think that the miniatures in every game you mentioned also enhance the experiences and I would enjoy them much less if they were absent, I just think classifying them as miniatures games broadens the category so much it makes the term devoid of any meaning. Monopoly has metal minis too. You could make a list of abstract games and almost every single game ever created could fit onto the category, but people realize doing so defeats the purpose of sub-categorizing abstract in the first place.

[@willyum3108]

I really don't care about the definitions in the comments. It was stupid and I had to stop reading them. Thanks for the list Sam. Your assessments on quality and game play are all that matter to me no matter how a game is classified. I hope you can update this list to reflect the increased production of miniature games that we have seen over the last couple of years. Look at how many hits you received for this video. It's a hot topic.

[@DukensteinA1]

I wouldn't define any of the actual list as miniatures games. They would be board games that have miniatures. Another list in the "top war games" vein.

[@jamesbaldwin5343]

+DukensteinA1 I have to agree. I enjoyed the list, but to my mind they're ALL board games with miniatures in them, as opposed to the honourable mentions which were in the main, actual Miniatures games! I think Sam sort of disqualified the entire category with his exclusion of anything which requires a non-standard playing surface. I would call X-Wing a hybrid. It's a miniatures game with free(ish) placement of models, but incorporates a lot of board game mechanics- card driven etc. Probably the best game mentioned in the video IMO. Games Workshop make great miniatures, but awful games. There are a slew of small producers which make miniatures which as as good or better, and are accompanied by excellent rules sets also.

[@DukensteinA1]

+James Baldwin The arguments that Sam uses is analogous to a person stating that any game with a dice is Amerithrash or any game that doesn't have dice is a Euro. I would love it if Sam would go to Adepticon or the Nova Open and present this list to the attendees. The reactions would be priceless.

[@jamesbaldwin5343]

I for one am glad for different kinds of games, and different kinds of gamers. I like board games, I like miniatures games, I like games which cross over and have a foot in both camp!

[@koalabrownie]

Maybe not but this is exactly the sort of list I want

[@caleb8888]

I've been trying to tell them the same thing for months now and they just REFUSE to change the content of the channel that 90% of their viewers enjoy for me and it's starting to wrinkle my collar. Not only that, but I'm NOT a fan of the intro. They call that intro work?! I've had better introductions to C. Diff from dirty doorknobs at the hospital, seriously, clean up the intro act.

[@SwitzerPlays]

I'm curious, did you make this list before or after playing Star Wars: Rebellion?

[@westprogamer3294]

Warhammer was honorable mention.. Definitely not the top 5 minis game I was looking for.. on to the next vid..

[@jgtogi6839]

Warhammer is a unfun, bloated, over expensive game. I like my Ork army but the game is just old at this point. It had it's time in the sun but now there are far better miniature games out there. Conan, Blood Rage, Mythic Battles, SMOG, Time of Legends and Gotham Chronicles are going to suck the GW fanbase. I wouldn't be surprised that if in a few years games workshop loses shelf space to far better miniature games or is forced out of the market entirely.

[@jorgedelapena4361]

jg togi I believe you’re mistaken blood rage is a board game , miniatures games have a stile of play that scratch a certain itch, is like saying I want to play football and end up playing baseball both good sports but you will be disappointed if you expected the first and not the other, games workshop have their way not my favorite and I love other sistems like malifaux but miniature player really enjoy GW so nothing bad at least taking a look

[@TheByteknight]

These are mostly board games with minis.. not pure miniature games with 3D terrain.

[@robertmoffitt1336]

That was a great video, I really enjoyed the list! Old wargamer here, but thinking about going online to price TI3...

[@ShadowKen74]

Nice list Sam, including the honorable mentions. Would have added Arcadia Quest in the list myself however.

[@startrekfanman]

I really love the intro animation for your channel!

[@wyrdhunter]

I think the real criteria to distinguish between a miniatures game and a game with miniatures is the physicality of the miniatures being a factor in the game's rules. A lot of these games mentioned don't utilize the physical miniature into the rules. They are put into spaces and zones and their placement within don't matter. You could replace them with cardboard tokens and it would not alter the game in any way per the game's rules. In miniature games the placement and location of the figure is the primary factor of the rules (determining range, line of sight, cover or concealment, claiming objective, etc.). So games like all of GW's games, X-Wing, Armada, even Imperial Assault, along with many unmentioned miniatures games (Warmachine, Deadzone, etc.) better fit the category. Additionally, many miniatures games only requires an area from 2'x2' (Mars Attacks, Deadzone) to 3'x3' (X-Wing, Frostgrave, and similar small skirmish games) which doesn't really require much more than a standard table's space.

[@elementalsigil]

+Alex Hunter You can replace any miniature with a disk of the appropriate size. The only thing that would matter is forms of low cover that would only afford partial protection. For that you could just put a number on the disk to reflect the value gained from it.

[@wyrdhunter]

+elementalsigil a lot of games using true line of sight require more than that. Games with cylinders of space could swap out like that, but many cant (40K vehicles and large figs for example).

[@elementalsigil]

I've played Warhammer 40k for years as the Tyranids before I left the hobby. I'm familiar with the LOS rules from that game, D&D and other board games. You could use a toothpick or similar item of appropriate height to base your eyes vision but a straight edge of sufficient length held over both disks at an estimated height would easily work and if it had no path due to terrain then you cannot see. You could even turn disks on their sides for a quick and dirty method since most bases are as big as the creature or have some sort of height dowel that is color marked for troops, vehicles and monsters. Sure some models are long and/or tall but simple fixes for that are plentiful. You could practically do a table up with Tannhausers colored line of sight circles and it would be a somewhat decent approximation. You could even make the circles hexes to really tighten the board up. Minis look nice but in the end they are just the best looking representation of a game piece with the negative of not being able to contain much visual information that could be easily displayed on a token. They are all games and it is just splitting hairs

[@bradhouston4734]

Gamers sure are a nit picky bunch!! Dude, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts and put this together!

[@bartglorie3380]

Bloodrage would have been my number 1 for sure, but still a really cool list. Nice to see that Tannhäuser is getting some love aswel really like that game

[@rustedbeetle]

Board games with miniatures list as opposed to miniatures games list. Since this is a board games channel, the list is appropriate, but a definition at the beginning that this was a board game list would have helped focus the conversation I think. Still, there are some good board games on this list.

[@garesonc9672]

Great list, Sam...thanks for another great Top 5.

[@SnowDragonka]

Very good choices. My favourite board games with miniatures are Gears of War and Super Dungeon Explore. Nice video, Sam, good job :)

[@blister4walken]

I have lots of Games Workshop miniatures, some painted, some not. So i agree they deserve an honorable mention, and that the games they come from are variable in quality/playability. I enjoy the Dungeons & Dragons board games, i have the old Parker version, even older TSR version and newer WOTC (Drizzt, Ravenloft ) games. I love the games but find the miniatures vary in quality, even within the same game. I also agree that Memoir '44 is an awesome game with average miniatures, but at least that makes it affordable. I would love to get some of the top-notch miniatures games but cannot justify the £60 and more they usually go for here in the UK.

[@doomed2063]

Space Hulk son. I've rarely seen a miniature board game with such high production quality. Price has always been a barrier to entry for me to WarHammer 40k but Space Hulk has me reconsidering because the miniatures are gorgeous and painting them appeals to me. It's just the price point really and that I don't personally know anyone who plays.

[@brandonsims1223]

I don't play a lot of games with miniatures, because the mechanics aren't usually my cup of tea. However, some of my favorites are Imperial Assault, Specter Ops, and Empires: Age of Discovery.

[@Syncopator]

+Brandon Sims Yeah, I would agree, I like miniatures in principle, though I'm not really interested in spending time painting them and finding someone else to do it for an affordable price is near impossible. And, like you with a very few exceptions I don't care for the mechanics-- I especially abhor dice-based battle games, and war games in general are not my cup of tea. I did pick up Blood Rage though, not as much because of the miniatures, but because of the game mechanics, I'd say it's not your typical "war game."

[@dnaseb9214]

Why is twilight imperium no 1 ????? I am so confused, I can understand Blood Rage.

[@GrandAdmThrawn]

2:56 ekhem....Failcast....ekhem 3:10 it depends....they do have the highest prices on the market though My list (without any places) - Warhammer Fantasy Battles (especially 6th ed) - Warhammer 40K - Warzone Resurrection - Star Wars Armada - Risk Star Wars Original Trilogy Edition - Horus Heresy - Flames of War - Dropzone Commander - Battlefleet Gothic - Blood Bowl

[@willsobel2187]

Wait. Disqualify Armada and X-Wing from the list because they take up too much room... but TI3 is still your number one?

[@knifeparty88901]

Agreed. X-Wing requires what a 3x3 table at minimum? That's pretty tiny when we're talking board games

[@theHuGoroN]

Yep, my thoughts exactly. He disqualified TI3 with his starting speech and still put it on top. THIS is why I dislike Sam as a reviewer he is inconsistent and has fan boyish or even cult like neurosis about putting TI3 everywhere on his lists and praising it everywhere he can.

[@gpks22]

Can you suggest another reviewer that doesn't do that?

[@tyrussleightholme7261]

@@theHuGoroN it's his favourite game he is obviously gonna out it wherever he can, also all reviewers do that nothing wrong with it

[@theHuGoroN]

Tyrus Sleightholme There is a lot wrong with that. Let me put it this way: I love Scythe and I would never put it in miniatures games category even tho it has miniatures. TI3 like Scythe has miniatures but they are not the focal point so they never even should be in this category. If he didn’t make this point blatantly clear in the intro (exclude games because this exact reason) I could play with the rules bending.

[@HenrikForsberg]

Sam always manages to define things weird, the videos where Sam, Zee and Tom share their top games in a specific category are always fun to watch just to see how Sam defines things differently. :) But Twilight Imperium as a Miniatures Game...? I don't think Sam would have any problems arguing for X-Wing as a Card Game, Small World as a Dice Game or Ticket to Ride as a Deduction Game. :D

[@arthurfranklin9315]

Blood Rage is a cool game, but if it is a "miniatures game" then so is Axis & Allies and Talisman. I'm looking for a list of miniature combat games; things like Mordheim, Test of Honour, Frostgrave, even CMGs like HeroClix. If you expand the definition then where are all the dungeon crawl games?

[@Zazee]

Please help, I can't remember what this game is called. It's got octagonal pieces that you use to build the board and they're kind of thick plastic about the size of oreos that lock together to make the board, which can be 2 tables kind of big. It had a bunch of miniatures ranging from knights to ww2 soldiers. Last time I played it was like 8-10 years ago.

[@mikejonesnoreally]

I guess I have to agree with you about the price of WarHammer 40K (and no argument from me about table size. 6 X 4 is *not* most folks tables.) but I guess for me it doesn't seem that way because I just add a little at once, like an expansion that I have a massive amount of choice about. It was nice to see it get some love at least! I went with Galaxy Defenders over Star Wars because I was trying not to get another all vs. one game and after looking at the mechanisms I thought I would like the exploration element more and I do. Maybe I should give Zombiecide: Black Plague another look though, it's just that when those kinds of games came out at first I was so very done with all the zombie stuff....

[@giantewok]

Really good list. I have friends that have played Twilight Imperium on a couple occasions and really enjoyed it but from what I've heard it's a long play-session. Freaking love Imperial Assault, I do feel that depending on hero choice you can get screwed during the campaign real hard so I prefer the skirmish mode. Blood Rage is probably one of my favourite games of all time, have had a really great time each play session and them card synergies can go real real deep.

[@vergeofwar538]

"Verge of war" is also a board game with miniatures in it :)

[@Vagus32000]

Just watched this and #1 for me would be Classic Battletech/Alpha Strike. Love the game and the setting.

[@jimsmith7445]

Love this list Sam! I'll have to look into "Battle Lore"... I love mini's . Tannhauser is amazing! I have four of every figure. You didn't talk about the boards and other other aspects of the physical game... great review

[@cosmorocket6285]

I am just getting into games like this and I am overwhelmed by the number of games like this. I was wondering what game I should get for me and my friends to start off with. I don't want a small boring one, but I also do not want to go to fast. Can you please help me out?

[@thomjones9935]

DBA, Rally round the flag, Warmachine, Bolt Action, StarWars Armada, SAGA- Just my opinion.

[@omnitheus5442]

This is a poor list Sam. Retitle top 5 board games with minis

[@pangalacticgargleblaster2610]

my favourite is Shadows of brimstone. got some additional packs the serpents the burrower, as well as the slugs, and they are amazing, the heros of the gunslinger and saloon girl seem like beginner heroes, the bandito and indian scout gives you more of a challenge

[@andrewstrickland8800]

Nice top 5. Miniature games are scary in the classroom. The cooler they look the more they tend to be handled. The more they get handled the more they tend to break.

[@giantlobsterboy644]

This should have been titles miniature BOARD games. There was only one actually miniatures game and it was the worse example (I have no love for Gee Dubs). I was diaspinted because I expected Sam to mention cool miniature games like field of glory, DbA, Infinity, flames of war, Warzone resurrection, Force on Force, Sangin skirmish, DbMM and other actual miniatures games. The table space comment was what told me this was another board game list. Oh well. I cannot disagree with anything because it is Sam's opinion. Good for him. I hope you enjoy those games, Sam.

[@michaelmahn4373]

3:40 You pronounced the 'ä' correctly but the first 'a' is actually pronounced like the 'u' in sun.

[@boliveirabr]

Wow! I'm impressed that the new version of Zombicide is on this list! Now I'm eager to play it!

[@doomed2063]

Sam and I seem to have about the same taste in board games. I love war games and love miniature games with dice rolling just so long as it has mechanics to minimize the randomness. Really am a fan of Memoir 44 however and it's WWI expansion.

[@V1Troger]

My number 1 is Ticket To Ride. It does not have a miniatures, but its a fucking great game so it must be in every top!

[@jonanjello]

10:35 that's my image from the Geek! Cool stuff

[@denisd3639]

XWIng needs a 3 x 3 surface...what tiny tables do you use?? Yes Armada requires a larger surface, but XWing??

[@pettipasb]

My exact thoughts

[@cptmark427]

Fantastic job. Well thought out and explained reasoning, and your love for the games comes though. I'll be on the lookout for Battlelore 2.0. Thank you Sam! As another commentor mentioned, I am curious what you think of Descent 2.0. Especially vs. Battlelore 2.0.

[@almister]

you can always paint unpainted minis: mind blown right?

[@almister]

Im crap at painting everyone starts somewhere aswell. Prepaints on that scale would be very tricky but with a brush its just a couple dots of paint here and there nothing atall as hard as painting a 28mm miniature. Sure the strictly- boardgames crowd is different but so what, just don't paint the squadrons. I don't think they have a leg to stand on when it comes to that particular complaint Justin.

[@nanorider426]

Hmmm, based on the comments Sam Healey did not do well. A lot were negative in that sense that they disagreed. Sam Healey could have named the video: "Top 5 Table top games"; that were the name mainly being used in the 90's and have Warhammer, Warmachine, Malifaux and BattleTech on the list, but now many, many games use miniatures in place of tiles and cardboard pieces. At first I thought like DukensteinA1 did but then I did think a lot about it. I'm an old roleplayers and GW-gamer (though I have not played for ten years because I disliked the prices and the rules) and I've have always liked minis. But now, like I said, many games have minis. War of Warcraft, Doom, Gloomhaven, Sedition Wars, Robo Rally and Tides of Iron have minis, just like Risk, Shogun (Samurai Swords) and Axis & Allies have them.....(and Ticket to Ride, though they have no stats on their own). Sam focused on the minis themselves and gameplay; that was the first of his caveats! Accessibility was another thing he was thinking about in his caveats. When you start making a warhammer army (or any other GW army) you have to spend loads of money. GW minis ARE expensive. And you have to paint it. When you HAVE painted the army you still have produce the terrain and a suiting table. I have a table top board (in two pieces) which I mount on my living table when I play warhammer or Epic. But I haven't the space to put the models that have died,- cue chairs. That's right: I have no gaming room. If you are member of a gaming club then hurray for you. It properly has the tables and terrain. But you have to go there and it also properly has closing times. That is all inaccessibility for you. Sam didn't want to go there, but he mention GW all the same. (And that is true for all minis one has to paint in order to play.) Second is "a large footprint". Two week ago I was at a board game con - also with table top games, and I saw a X-Wing tournament take place. They had brought two tables together to play a single game of X-Wing in order to have the tokens and the ship cards. I should say that they had Star Wars playmats (3' by 3') on the tables. I can play Twilight Imp.3 on my regular table. So I think that the flak he was getting was unfair because of the caveats and because it was the minis he was talking about. Whether it was warhammer minis or blood rage minis.

[@egolibrae]

I already donate in kickstarter my friends of dice tower ;). A hug from Chile!

[@johng283]

These aren't miniatures games. Except of course for the 1st honorable mention...

[@gamera2351]

Cool list Sam. You are truly the closest to my own tastes out of the Dice Tower crew. I have to ask though, did you play Star Wars Rebellion before or after making this video? Just wondering if you felt it was good enough to change your list or get an honorable mention.

[@ValKorry]

Mordheim, Necromunda, Frostgrave, This is not a Test, Last Days

[@MeanNGreen17]

Except for the mentions of GW games and Star Wars games, the rest aren't miniatures games! These are board games that have miniatures, big difference.

[@elementalsigil]

+Jeff Connell If your only beef is that there is a board your position is pretty flimsy. Any mini can be replaced with a disk token and achieve the same thing. Measurement can be settled with a table covered in 1 inch hexes. This level of hair splitting is nuts and just fractures the gaming community.

[@zenzin7725]

elementalsigil you're wrong. Xwing has a stat chart, firing arc and other info right on the mini that no fucking button or replacement piece will give you. Golem Arcana literally has game info stored in a RFID in the game pieces! No stupid pop cap is going to do what that mini does...... it isn't a hard concept elemental...... requires very little thought. Can you see basic truths?

[@elementalsigil]

Clint I wish you thought a bit harder about your response since it is laughable. The information for X wing minis is on the base. You know the bottom part under the stand the mini sits on. The mini is irrelevant. As for golem arcana, you said it best. The only thing you need is the RFID to get the battle info. Everything else is just plastic. You could use a standee and the game is the same. I used to play warhammer 40k so I'm familiar with Mini's game but trust me they aren't essential and for what GW charges you can use anything in their place.

[@zenzin7725]

elementalsigil yep you're an idiot. End of story. The mini IS the base, idiot, it comes together. Just like a base on a D&D mini or the base of your lamp or the base of your thick skull, you can't have one without the other. They are incomplete if not together. Get it dumb F? Prob not. You can't see basic logic and truths

[@elementalsigil]

Actually Clint the base is a flat circle or square. It can convey a lot of information. Like a game token. So you made my point for me. Then you had to resort to attacking me further undermining your position. The mini is not needed. It really looks cool and I can appreciate the effort behind it but you can play nearly any mini game with tokens. I'm pretty sure you are just trolling at this point and my position is solid so I'm not worried about your response and won't bother posting again unless someone with a better point comes along.

[@stinebrandtjensen9493]

I wonder why WarmaHordes isn't mentioned, just because I am curious to hear how Sam Healey would review it in comparison with others games.

[@GT-ie7uu]

I miss sam

[@raillery2443]

Anyone else surprised he didn't have star wars rebellion on the list? Lol totally thought that was his #1

[@davidotto9845]

Umm what about Battletech Sam?

[@aaronnatera3685]

Sam I always enjoy your reviews and all your arguments are 100% valid as to why these should be considered miniatures games. Unfortunately that doesn't matter, because the term "miniatures game" already has an established "general" meaning for many gamers that differs from yours. Perhaps another analogy: You put together a list of your top 5 Star Trek "Movies". But all of them turn out to be fan films made by amateurs. You could make many valid arguments as to why "Fan Films" could be considered "movies" and they would all be valid. But it still would not be what people were expecting when reading the title. Defining exactly what the words "Miniatures Game" should be interpreted to include or exclude is a pointless debate. But the games in your list don't fit the general expectation. (However wielding your towering juggernaut influence upon the game industry you may be able to single handily redefine it.)

[@jimbraden4909]

Just wondering if Star Wars Rebellion would have made the list if it was out or not as new?

[@xDIABOx]

Now for some REAL miniatures games, Warmachine+Hordes is by far the best miniatures game in the market. It's one of those games that are easy to learn and difficult to master, and it's totally thought to be a competitive/tournament game. It's a breed of chess and Magic the Gathering with a huge strategic weight in it. Another good game is Flames of War, not the original WWII version but this new one, Team Yankee. Is based in the last set of FOW rules but... a LOT better!! FOW suffered from slow pace and this new set of rules correct that, not having the turteling factor FOW has. But all-in-all is a good replacement for those who like Warhammer 40K but dislike GW rules. Also, a couple of mentions: Infinity and Malifaux. These are small posse games, games where you field 6~10 miniatures that count as your posse. Infinity is a futuristic game with actions and reactions and rolls of D20s. It's a cool game with a cool setting and very tactical. Malifaux is a Western Horror / Pulp game without any dice, instead players use a deck of cards (normal deck of cards like poker) and work their "results" from there. It's a strange game and out-of-the-box from the average miniatures games.

[@blazejbch]

So how is it in 2019?

[@diamend85]

please show more of the minis boards! its nice to see the face thats talking to me once in a while but its still about the games isnt it

[@CesarIsaacPerez]

Gonna check out Blood Rage and Zombiecide Dark Ages. I love Descent 2nd Ed which is basically Imperial Assault.

[@MaxsonAtTheFort]

Heroscape?

[@boardgameknight2791]

This was an interesting category, Sam. I think it might need a top 10 though - I guessed 3 of your 5. Then again, maybe I just watch too many dice tower videos... =P

[@3Minotaur3]

Funny... Behind Sam, a box of a mech for Dust... I wonder where on the list Dust Warfare would be?...

[@hamfastgamwich]

In my opinion: all of the games on your top 5 are more board games(that have miniatures) than miniatures games

[@BGBarbarian]

Someone tell Sam "off the chain" went out years ago lol

[@dboussios8694]

I've heard that that expression lives close to the flip side! :)

[@Fissi0nChips]

+Demetrios B lol, touche..It's just down the road from keepin' it real town.

[@GeekFactor]

+Apocrypha2012 you couldn't be more right ... however when you consider that board games are kinda an old school type of entertainment (when compared to video games for example) I think it sort of works :)

[@joaocamilo8106]

+Michael Cross HOLY POTATOES! It did?!?

[@GeekFactor]

+Vaole it is? dammit ... it's getting hard to keep up ;)

[@tomthewizard971]

Board game with the eyeball tentacle. Very top left of the shelf... what's it called please? Looks interesting!

[@goodsound4756]

Why should Black Plague be better than Zombicide S2 or 3 beside the player boards? There are so many games already set in (fantasy) medieval.

[@orthotech2001]

Here are my top 5 "miniatures" games,,, not a board game in sight. 5 : Corps Commander. 4 : DBM. 3: In The Grand Manner. 2: Circa 1863. 1: Warhammer 40K

[@davidbell5528]

A dust mech over your shoulder and it doesnt merit a mention?

[@stephenheninger8498]

Was curious if Decent 2.0 would make it or not. Game wise though it is really similar to Imperial Assault though. Did you paint your TI3 mini's?

[@kommodore6691]

No honourable mention for Descent 2.0? And Star Trek Attack Wing as an alternative to X-Wing, although X-Wing has better balance and minis but I would put it up to which theme you prefer or even Dungeons and Dragons Attack Wing as they are all the same system.

[@doomed2063]

I consider A vote for Imperial Assault as a vote for Descent 2.0 since it's basically a modded version of the Descent system and we all know FFG produces excellent minis. I often struggle between the two when deciding which to bust out when my group is looking for a campaign driven dungeon crawl.

[@richyasi7424]

Good list Sam. Would love to hear your take on the BattleLore 2nd Ed expansions, especially the undead.

[@meshark03]

enjoyed the list and vid, did find it a bit odd that about 1/2 the vid was honorable mentions... lol, didn't count, but in total seemed pretty close to 10.

[@shaneannigans]

I like this list and hope you do another one! Wonder if Gorechosen and/or Shadespire make the list if you increase it to a Top 10? ☺

[@prime4221]

DUST! The game is still going and Tactics can take up a small space.

[@arcadia5096]

still a fan of original FASA Battletech and FASA Star trek tactical combat simulator.

[@alex411ist]

This was a great list! I don’t like the miniatures non board game style it gets to expensive to fast. I love the board games that have miniatures in them. So this list was for me! I’ve been debating on getting blood rage and this sold it for me. I know this is a two year old list but would you put massive darkness in this list now or descent? Which should I pick of those two games?

[@Ranerdar]

Haven't started the video yet, but what's the over/under on Cool Mini or Not mentions?

[@colewrathman4472]

Your awesome Sam. Love your vids....

[@Me3stR]

Would Cyclades count as a miniature game? I really enjoy it.

[@dankcrablegs2633]

whats a few good board game (thats not too hard( with nice monsterlike minitures

[@lawrencestanley8989]

What someone needs to do is take the "Hard West" PC game, and turn it into a miniatures/card/dice game!

[@random0bat]

Is Shadows of Brimstone close enough for you?

[@lawrencestanley8989]

random0bat Wow, looks fantastic! Thanks for the suggestion!

[@random0bat]

No problem! I can't wait to get it myself!

[@24hourclassroom]

Forbidden Stars over TI3 for minis. Plus, BGG rankings under 'miniatures' covers it.

[@Rob_D74]

Seriously, you say X-Wing and Armada take up too much table space but Twilight Imperium is not only "small" but it is your number 1? Try and be more consistent in your evaluations next time.

[@hughmyers8583]

This list made sense to me until I saw Twilight Imperium on it. I'm sure it's a fun game but it is a miniatures game in the same way that Monopoly is a miniatures game.

[@DanielPerez-ey1jg]

Do you recommend blood and rage? And the fifth player expansion?

[@lukasklees3081]

Waiting for a miniatures game to be listed. So far only one miniatures game got a nod but everything else is a board game where the minis could be replaced with flat tokens.