12/16/2024

Welcome back to Tabletop Thoughts!

Today, I thought I would take a look at 3D-printed miniatures from some of my favorite creators as well as look at the differences between using an FDM printer and a resin printer.

First up are some models from Brite Minis. This was one of the first creators I found on the Internet for supportless miniatures. I had just got my Ender 3 Pro and wanted to create miniatures and terrain for my tabletop.

Using the stock 0.4mm nozzle and the Ender profiles I got from Fat Dragon Games (Thanks to Tom Tullis for all of the community support), I was able to print out some models for my table. While these models are not the best printed and painted models I have ever done, they did the job.

Here is what they look like from a few feet away, like the players would see them. They are definitely table-ready. With time and experience with the slicer and printer, I got better results from my Ender 3 Pro.

While my purchased models had better details, I was able to create armies for my One Page Rules games and have monsters for whatever my players would encounter.

Another creator I really enjoy is Tom Tullis and Fat Dragon Games. He has a wide range of models that look great and of course, they are supportless. While it usually means that the portions are a little larger, that is fine with me. I never wanted to move up to a 0.2mm nozzle since I also like to print terrain, which would cause print time to increase dramatically.

I have always tried to avoid models that required supports since it usually meant poses that had little parts away from the body that could easily break off when removing support or gameplay. I went back and began to print some of my supportless miniatures with the resin printer to see the difference.

The model on the left is from my resin printer and the one on the right is from my FDM printer. You can see the resin model has a better definition and no layer lines, but both are usable on the game table.

Plus, from where the player would see the models, you can’t tell the difference.

Here are some more suportless models from Fat Dragon Games printed on my resin printers. The details are good and the models are sturdy effort for handling on the game table.

Here are some Greek warriors from Brite Minis. I am going to use these for soldiers in my Shdaowdark campaign (if I ever get a chance to run it).

These models are from EC3D Designs. He has a set of supportless miniatures called Everyday Heroes that I printed out and used for various games. These were printed out in resin. While they are a little lacking in detail, they are great for the table. There is a large selection of different races and classes so you can usually find something close to what you are looking for.

These models are from EC3D Design’s Ghost City set. The details are better than the supportless models. I am printing out a bunch of these for Neon Skies. When I get the book, I should be ready to give the game a try.

Since I have a resin printer, I started to look for creators who had models that required the use of a resin printer to get the best details and quality. I got a Humble Bindle that had a lot of different models in it as well as just looking on THingiverse and MyMiniFactory.

One of the creators I follow is The Printing Goes Ever On. Their miniatures have a Lord of the Rings feel to them which drew me in.

Since then, The Printing Goes Ever On has started to add in a different set of monthly models that are more RPG in flavor (The original models feel more like army building). Some of the monsters are awesome and I can’t wait each month to print them out.

These hags were fun to print out and finally paint. The orc is from another creator that I get models from on occasion.

A few more models from TPGEO RPG sets. The details are great and I would definitely use these on the table. They even have PC models for the RPG sets as well.

Here is an example of a hero model.

While I really prefer the resin printer’s models, my FDM printer is still a great item to have especially when creating terrain pieces.

This ruined church from The Printing Goes Ever On prints supportless on an FDM printer. This looks great on the tabletop.

Keep on gaming!