Minifigures for Wargaming: Using Minifigs on the Tabletop
Tabletop wargamers are increasingly reaching for minifigures instead of traditional metal or resin miniatures — and for good reason. They're durable, affordable, endlessly customizable, and instantly recognizable on the table. Here's how to use Major Brick Compatible minifigures in your wargaming.
Why Minifigures Work for Wargaming
Minifigures are tough enough to survive handling game after game, easy to theme into matched units, and cheap enough to field whole armies. Their standing height also makes line-of-sight and cover rulings intuitive compared to flat or crouched miniatures.
Themed infantry and vehicles make for fast, readable units on the table.
Building Your Forces
Start with themed bulk sets to assemble matched squads, then differentiate units with accessories and light customization — different helmets, weapons, or a dab of paint. Use bases or stands to keep figures stable and to mark unit coherency.
Which Figures Wargamers Actually Pick
Three things decide it: consistency, so a unit reads as one force across the table; printing that survives being picked up every turn; and bulk availability, so you can field a full squad rather than a token one. Modern infantry, special forces and historical troops are the most popular choices, because their silhouettes are distinct enough to tell units apart at a glance.
Large squad packs are the workhorse. Add a customization set so poses and gear vary, otherwise a unit reads as stock rather than as soldiers, and use weapons packs to arm figures to their role: riflemen, gunners, snipers, specialists.
Using Minifigures as RPG Miniatures
The same figures work for Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop role-playing games, and the economics are even better there. Every player character can have a figure built to match their concept, and NPCs and monsters are cheap enough to field in numbers. Kitbashing is what makes it work: keep a bin of spare parts and you can assemble a hooded rogue, an armored knight or a desert raider on the spot.
The one rule worth following for grid play is base size. Mount every figure on a consistent base plate so it occupies exactly one square, stands stable on a battle map, and moves fairly. Minifigures sit at roughly heroic scale, so they pair well with most printed maps, larger terrain and vehicles.
Scale and House Rules
Minifigures are roughly a heroic scale, so they pair well with larger terrain and vehicles. Many gamers adapt existing rulesets; just keep base sizes consistent for fair movement and range.
Gear Up Your Table
Browse the military collection for themed troops and bulk sets to field a full army.