I just found this Kickstarted which basically allows you to use an online "dress up" game to create avatars which are then 3D printed and delivered. The company is called Hero Forge. I'll put the link at the end, check it out.

Personally I think this is really exciting. 3D printing is a fantastic new technology and is only getting better and better, the resolution is improving, the cost is decreasing and it's perfectly suited for miniatures!

3D printing has a number of benefits over conventional injection moulding. It's possible to print objects which would be impossible to mould in one part so goodbye mould-lines! Excluding initial start-up costs it's cheap as chips and comparatively environmentally friendly. It requires a lot less skill time to produce computer models and print it than scratch sculpting miniatures and all the rest.

I'd love to see Games Workshop invest in 3D printing but I doubt that will ever happen. It would end the days of limited poses and unavailable miniatures. It's pretty much impossible to get casting bubbles or flash.

I know there are some sculptors here that may take issue with this but I don't think new methods take anything away from the amazing skill and talent of those people. 3D printing does have limitations and scratch sculpting will always be impressive and valuable.

I'm really excited about this and hope to one day be able to purchase, from Games Workshop (if this was twitter I'd #loyalty), high quality, cheap, diverse and customisable miniatures. Imagine being able to print a whole army in only the poses you liked. With a computer program that allows position customisation that automatically rendered the folds in cloaks and position of armour no two miniatures would need be alike. Never again would I have to pay for unnecessary Warriors of Numenor!!!

What do you think?

Link to Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/he ... miniatures

Wow! This is really cool find Dom. I'm very interested to see where this goes in the future and if the technology will allow for more companies like GW to use this.

I see where sculptors would be uneasy about this. Having computer modelers replace your work is a scary idea, but what if the technology advances to the point where they can make a miniature and just have it scanned onto a computer and then printed out?

Also, this could be weird for conversions. Instead of swapping swords for axes, you just swap it in the process of buying it, that way the conversion isn't second hand cut and glued. It will all be part of the miniature and you won't have to worry about an unstable conversion falling apart. But at the same time, would this be a killer to conversions? Ending it? Making conversions is an awesome part of the hobby but this could lend to less of it.

But both of those aside, I'm really interested in this idea. It could lend itself to a whole host of new ideas for miniatures that already exist and do not already exist. We could create miniatures for corsair reavers by just swapping weapons around. Instead of sticking a spear on the back of an archer with glue, you could give the miniature a pose that has a spear in one hand and a bow in the other. Or even give us the option to buy High Elves with the option of a sword AND shield without converting anything. Even though this probably won't be an option to us anytime soon I can still dream.

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It is a really awesome way to get one off unique minis. However at the moment the expense and process of it doesn't lend itself to mass production, the methods that are used now are more cost efficient for the companies producing them.

There are also already 3D scanners, even desktop sized ones, that could do exactly that, scanning in an existing model or something else. Something that would be interesting to see would be something like getting a bigger scanner and getting an actor dressed in costume and doing lots of different poses, then scaling down the scan and printing that out. There is the technology to print out in nano (or something like that) sizes so the possible detail could be astonishing.

My first thought for this kickstarter though would be to use it for Dungeons and Dragons, you could get really cool characters that look as you imagined when creating them, I might even back the project just for that.

Honestly this is the way I see it.
People are worried about sculptors and sculptors are worried.

I feel for them. Im sorry their beautiful work can be overshadowed by something like this.

Gone are the days of the local bakery thats open till mid day churning out fresh loaves of bread. Now wal mart is the simpler solution, and its sad for businesses and for quality.

Fact of the matter being....im a consumer. I have things I need to buy for my girlfriend. My future children. Gas money. Car Insurance. Everything. Ill be a homeowner some day.

If GW sells me 10 Mirkwood Elves at 40 dollars, Im not going to buy them. If a sculptor sells me 10 cooler Mirkwood elves at 35 dollars Im going to buy them instead, or say no anyway.

If someone sells me 10 3d printed fully customizable Mirkwood elves for 25 dollars, they get ALL my money for this hobby. Its economics. Im not going to shed a tear for advances in human nature. Sorry.

Every job changes over time, and this is just another. What does it mean for the hobby? Its not going to destroy it. Plenty will find new light and can still convert whatever they want.

And plenty like me, will create their own models, and have a blast doing it for cheaper prices and that makes everyone happy. Spending less money makes people happy so boo hoo. The rest of my life comes first, even if this comes first as a hobby.

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3D printing is something that I have been excited about for a while now. I suspect that in 10 years we will all be buying codes so that we can print our miniatures at home, or in dedicated shops. The potential for scanning your own body to produce poses would be great as well as different head and weapon options.

Still nothing like sending a few minis off to uk Freddy bear and being sent back a unique masterpiece

Not yet!

I know people doing 3D printing for WWI aircraft models and they are talking about using it to get some custom models for age of sail ( Sails of Glory game specifically ). So it's already in the hobby.

You sometimes still need to make multi-part models and you are still limited on undercuts and such but in different ways than sculpt molds. And it is NOT cheap yet to print these. But using something like this for some one-off like a Hero (where you don't mind the extra overhead), or to make a master that you then duplicate can be cost effective and practical.

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GW has been using some digital sculpting software for quite a while now if I'm not mistaken, so the 'traditional' sculpting has been subject to changes already.
I definitely expect 3D printing to become an important part of the miniature hobby.. but not for a while now.
Those figures in the kickstarter already look better than some I saw a year ago, but it will be a good while before large-scale production of all kinds of pieces becomes viable.

Besides, they simply are not even close in details to things like this:
(Dark Sword Miniatures: Ser Gregor Clegane)


Or this:
(Perry Miniatures: Man-at-Arms)


Although there will be a time when software can reach such levels.. until then, I'll rely on old-school-green stuff-sculpted-minis!

I see it for a while being like an air-brush. Highly useful but somewhat limited

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It's probably easier to sculpt detail on Gregor Clegane! A miniature of him at 28mm scale would be what, 60-70mm But like you say, currently 3D printing can't produce miniatures at anywhere near this level of detail but I think a couple of years in the future and we'll be seeing this quality for a fraction of the current price.

There is a bit of concern about this amongst sculptors, but most of the pro ones are already moving with the times and learning 3D modelling. I'm not that fussed to be honest. This isn't my career. It's just something I do for a bit of pocket/hobby money on the side. What happens when 3D printing goes colour though? Pre coloured minis will detract from a big part of this hobby, although lazy gamers will love it. Thats a long way off yet though, so don't bin the brushes just yet.

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I think this is an inevitable evolution affair. It will happen it is just a case of how soon before high quality 3D minis appear in the shops. It could be a few years away.

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Adapt or die (well lose a bit of cash) I suppose. To be honest UKFB I can't see myself buying pre-coloured miniatures no matter how low the cost. I'm not currently gaming with my miniatures so I only buy them to paint them and I'm sure lots of other people do that too. I'd have no problem gaming with someone who used pre-coloured minis though, we all enjoy and dislike different aspects of the hobby. My least favourite part is walking out of GW with an empty wallet but it's worth it to sit down and do a bit of painting. For me, 3D printing makes me hopeful for a time when I can leave GW (or other miniature shop) with less burden on my wallet with beautiful miniatures that I can customise before buying to give me my perfect army! I know that's a long way off but I can see in my mind a shop where you go in and say to the staff, "Hi, I'd like 8 elves with elven blades and shields please. I'm adding a warband to my army and these are the only minis I want. Oh and I'll take a Glorfindel mounted please too."
They then go over to a computer and put in your order and the printer at the back of the room creates 9 beautiful miniatures in the poses you chose. The shop guy then says "There you go, that's £10 please." Okay, maybe that last part is a little optimistic but the rest I can see happening in the next 5 years or so. I'd love to start a business doing that. One day...

I cant see that happening in 5 years. Printing hasnt even got to the high def stage for the scale we use yet. It's all very soft basic detailing. It will be at least 10 years, and just as expensive to buy I would guess. Just because something is cheap to manufacture, doesnt mean it will be cheap to retail. GW have demonstrated that perfectly clearly over the years.

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That's a sad thought. Let's wait 20 so my son can experience the same pleasure of painting his own minis and enjoy the hand-sculpted models.

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I think the pre colored figures will raise the bar much like home computers and color printers have. Most role players and 40K players play with unpainted figures. The grease pens are giving way to printed card stock. D&D pre paints are very common now. Reaper Bones may have saved causal figure painting too. It is not unusual at the game shop to see half a dozen roleplayers painting Bones figures on Sunday afternoon.

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I suspect that eventually people will have these things at home, and a lot quicker than most people will anticipate (as with practically every other piece of tec). I dont see painting dissappearing as figures will be cheaper to produce in monochrome!

I agree Bilbo, I definitely see this being developed very rapidly. The uses of this technology are far more widespread then just miniatures. Already there are researches printing biotech parts such as joint replacements and there are people working on nano-printers for printing a kind of matrix that can be used to as an artificial basal laminae over which cells can regenerate more easily in damaged or degenerative tissues. 3D printing is already being used in industry particularly for prototypes of mechanical parts.

All this industry driven progress, which is happening rapidly because even now for the larger companies printing something in plastic is a heck of a lot cheaper and faster than casting something in steal or aluminium, will filter down into leisure activities. The miniatures that the guys in the kickstarter are producing are already almost as good as some sculpted miniatures and pretty much the same cost as most GW heroes.

I know the nano-bio-tech-cyborg stuff isn't a particularly valid way of looking at miniature production but it shows that this technology is evolving fast. I think miniature gaming is due a bit of a revolution soon and maybe a change in production is part of that. Hopefully it'll all work out for the best for hobbyists and I really hope Games Workshop adapt and survive in the printed future.

If not, I'll be learning me some graphic design!

I think that you have hit the nail on the head DomyHill,
and I suspect that investment for industrial use and medicine will pay for the development leaving a benefit for the miniature enthusiast as a pleasant by product!