In case you missed it, there was a rather big announcement today, February 7, in the world of tabletop gaming. WidKids ( “HeroClix,” “Quarriors”) and Wizards of the Coast (“D&D,” “Magic: The Gathering”) have come to terms on a licensing agreement to produce a new line of pre-painted miniatures. These miniatures are scheduled to coincide with the release of the highly anticipated next edition of the “Dungeons & Dragons” role playing game slated for this summer of 2014.

According to the press-release, “The new line of Dungeons & Dragons miniatures will feature creatures and characters that players have come to know and love, allowing them to wage their battles and experience their adventures with a greater level of immersion and tactical interplay.”

If you remember in 2003, Wizards of the Coast originally produced these caltrops and unfortunately stopped production in 2011. Even weirder was that they let a group known as the “DDM Guild” take over the development of the skirmish game in 2008. No matter, though, the game was really fun to play, and the “DDM Guild” did a good job of maintaining the game. It’s a shame that it stopped getting the love it deserved in its later years.

Battleground Games & Hobbies was very involved in the “Dungeons & Dragons” miniatures scene back in the day. If I remember correctly, they held booster drafts, sealed events, and constructed tournaments, and one of the game’s premier players played and ran the organized play at the store. Now you may be wondering, how do you hold booster drafts with miniatures? Well, it’s pretty easy. Each participant purchased one booster and within that booster you had to make a skirmish group using a limited number of points. Each miniature had a certain point value. The more powerful the figure, the more points it was to run in your skirmish. Constructed tournaments raised the point value of armies allowing for more powerful characters.

We played on these laminated maps which provided for a lot of critical and tactical thinking.

My first time playing in one of the booster drafts was a little intimidating. I had played Dungeons & Dragons with my friends, but from what I observed of other groups that played, we had some unorthodox playing styles, and it translated onto the skirmish scene once I started playing. Nevertheless, the important thing was that the group I played with, and the individual members were really welcoming and very friendly.

This is refreshing news. The “Dungeons & Dragons” miniatures player base was pretty big from what I remember. Since the game died out in 2011, I haven’t seen some of those players. With this announcement, maybe some of their faces will show back up at the new store.

There is something important I should mention though. It wasn’t clearly stated whether or not the new miniatures would be compatible with the old ones. Actually, I don’t even know if it will be a game. As far as the press-release goes, these miniatures are more of a supplement; something to help you visualize the scene as you and your friends role play. Hopefully, I’m getting worried over nothing. We are talking about WizKids, here. All they do is make miniature games.

Finally, if you’re ever in the Abington store, take a look at the display case. In the section facing the back of the store, you’ll notice a large supply of the original miniatures. It will be great if they end up being compatible with the new game. At least the store will be ready.

About the author

Simeon is an avid gamer who loves to play board games and video games. He graduated college with a degree in Political Science, and now serves the public by writing about games. You can check that out here. Don’t forget to “like” him on Facebook as well. It’ll update you on all of his newest content. Best of all, you can follow Simeon on Twitter (@SimeonCortezano) for some real time hilarity. Thanks for reading!

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