Interesting.

Why must Heroscape continue to release nifty expansions...

WHY!!!

Huh. Always looked at the Heroscape stuff but never bought it. Might have to check this out just because.

I think my head just exploded.

I... don't... understand...

Isn't Heroscape a miniature battle system that is in competition with Dungeons and Dragons and the D&D miniatures products?

I've been tempted to buy Heroscape figures before but the bases are so big.

No! No! No! I do not need any more HeroScape sets! ~cries~ DRAT!!! Now I know what I will be ordering next year!

I think my head just exploded.

I... don't... understand...

Isn't Heroscape a miniature battle system that is in competition with Dungeons and Dragons and the D&D miniatures products?

I've been tempted to buy Heroscape figures before but the bases are so big.

Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures as a minis battle system was canned prior to the launch of 4e. And as you pointed out, the bases are too big to be useful as gaming minis. No competition.

May have to buy this set, even though I gave up on Heroquest awhile back.

I think my head just exploded.

I... don't... understand...

Isn't Heroscape a miniature battle system that is in competition with Dungeons and Dragons and the D&D miniatures products?

I've been tempted to buy Heroscape figures before but the bases are so big.

I've used 'em before. Some are big, but some fit just fine. Once in awhile I'll go to the toy section in a retail store to see if there's any that's suitable to use as minis.

This does have me curious, though! Wish there were better pictures to view.

Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures as a minis battle system was canned prior to the launch of 4e. And as you pointed out, the bases are too big to be useful as gaming minis. No competition.

May have to buy this set, even though I gave up on Heroquest awhile back.

Dungeons and Dragons Miniatures as a minis battle system was canned after the launch of 4e. The 4e Green Dragon starter set, Dungeons of Dread, Against the Giants, and Demonweb all come with cards that contain stats for both 4e and the second edition of the miniatures battle game (which is very similar to 4e).

I played the second edition miniature battle game once, it was pretty fun. Since the 4e side of the cards didn't interest me, I thought I might still get use out of the miniatures game side, but then they did away with it. Of course, as I said, the new miniatures game was based on 4e anyway so I guess I could just adapt the 4e cards themselves to that use.

Anyway, that has little to do with Heroscape except that I find it odd that Heroscape has a D&D branded product. (Then again, I think they're both Hasbro.) I don't think having the base be a little too big is a total deal-breaker for using Heroscape minis at my D&D game, but it does deter me nonetheless.

...I find it odd that Heroscape has a D&D branded product.

Hasbro moved Heroscape out of their "games" division and over to WotC a year or so ago. WotC has been trying to figure out what to do with Heroscape exactly (it's somewhat outside the norm for them).

There are enough differences between Heroscape and WotC's other miniatures products that there isn't any real competition between products. Heroscape has a different vibe and is marketed to the casual (and younger) gamer audience. Heroscape can also serve as a good introduction to gaming, seeing as how the target age is 8+. This set is part of WotC's efforts to revitalize the game and cross-brand with their other products (namely D&D).

I think this is an ok move. No one will be fooled. Heroscape and D&D have practically nothing in common. If Hasbro were smart, they would start making expansion sets along the vein of the Marvelscape set they sold. Marvelscape wasn't a very good set because it came with just enough terrain to tease you, but not accomplish making a decent board AND the superheroes just weren't very compatible with all the other cool stuff they have (compatible from a power level versus point cost POV). Plain ole sets of figures would work better. Marvel heroes would be cool with some revamp. But keep in mind that Hasbro also makes GI Joe, Transformers, and hold the Star Wars toy license. Can you imagine a Star Wars Clone Wars expansion set for Heroscape? What about Jedi versus Transformers Versus GI Joe? they're sitting on a potential goldmine of popular cross-universe products and they're not doing anything with it. Shame really.

I've been using Heroscape figures for years and my biggest complaint has always been that the frigging bases aren't 1". Beyond that, the figures work pretty good for "D&D."

-Skeld

...this does look interesting - i wish we could see more details

Better pic

It looks like all the figs are just rebased D&D minis.

Better pic

It looks like all the figs are just rebased D&D minis.

That's clearly a hand-made mockup box, so those may be placeholder images. (Or they may not be...)

What about Jedi versus Transformers Versus GI Joe? they're sitting on a potential goldmine of popular cross-universe products and they're not doing anything with it.

-Skeld

Now I have the image of a squad of clone troopers riding across tattoine in optimus prime whilst shouting "Yo Joe"

Interesting indeed.

We've been using my heroscape terrain for battletech (makes good for terrain types, elevation changes, etc). I'll have to look this over, It should give me enough for two oversized mapsheets.

I can't believe they are glorifying a thieving, low down Ambershard as their iconic dwarf . . . hurumph . . .

Even though this is labeled as a Master Set, I would still highly recommend trying to get your hands on a Rise of the Valkyries set. You get more terrain and more figures. A much better sample.

That said, I may still pick this one up.

For those who care, re-basing HeroScape minis is easy and reversible.

Wolfthulhu wrote:

Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures as a minis battle system was canned prior to the launch of 4e. And as you pointed out, the bases are too big to be useful as gaming minis. No competition.

May have to buy this set, even though I gave up on Heroquest awhile back.

Dungeons and Dragons Miniatures as a minis battle system was canned after the launch of 4e. The 4e Green Dragon starter set, Dungeons of Dread, Against the Giants, and Demonweb all come with cards that contain stats for both 4e and the second edition of the miniatures battle game (which is very similar to 4e).

Before, after. Whatever. The fact remains that D&D Minis is no longer in production as a game system.

For those who care, re-basing HeroScape minis is easy and reversible.

I've sliced a few bases off Heroclix before. Is it any more tricky than that?

I must have this set.

I've sliced a few bases off Heroclix before. Is it any more tricky than that?

HeroScape minis have a plug (usually an extension of a foot) that fits into a slot on the base. This plug is accessible from the bottom of the base, so you just 'push' through to pop the mini off the base. The plug then fits readily into a 1" slotted base (I use round, but square works also - you can also find black plastic ones that are much cheaper, but for the life of me I can't remember what company makes them).

Side note: there is a very slight difference in scale between HeroScape and the standard plastic D&D minis. You really only notice it in a few rare instances.

HeroScape minis have a plug (usually an extension of a foot) that fits into a slot on the base. This plug is accessible from the bottom of the base, so you just 'push' through to pop the mini off the base. The plug then fits readily into a 1" slotted base (I use round, but square works also - you can also find black plastic ones that are much cheaper, but for the life of me I can't remember what company makes them).

Thanks for the info.

Now, who makes black plastic slottabases? Hmmm? Let me see?
LOL

I'll be keeping an eye on this to see if it matches the mock-up. I would finally get that elusive black dragon!

Yeah, I've got a friend whose been pretty successful rebasing Heroscape minis, although scale seems less consistent. It would be great if this was the beginning of a trend in Heroscape.

It would be great if this was the beginning of a trend in Heroscape.

That this is a Master Set indicates there will be follow ups, and though I can't find the link it was somewhere on heroscapers.com that I read there are two D&D expansions in progress for 2010.

I've re-mounted several HeroScape minis on 28mm bases and they work great for D&D and PF RPG. I think the HeroScape minis are better sculpts than many of the newer D&D minis. The crystalline looking terrain would be great to use for D&D too.

But from looking at pictures on other sites, it seems as though Hasbro has simply re-based figures originally released as D&D miniatures to make them work for HeroScape.

Curious about wassap with this set?

[edited by admin]

The sample scenarios in the back involve 4 "rooms" built with the terrain, each with a different situation to face. Player 1 plays the heroes, and Player 2 uses the bad guys.

It's not a very big "master" set, per se. But the diehard fans are quite gaga for it. In a couple of months, a small expansion set is scheduled (20 more figures to use, Heroes of the Forgotten Realms, I believe).

[I deleted a link to a fan-scanned copy of the rulebook, as it seems highly likely that that's a violation of Wizards' copyright.]

[I deleted a link to a fan-scanned copy of the rulebook, as it seems highly likely that that's a violation of Wizards' copyright.]

Understood.

Those who are curious can head over to Heroscapers.com and find the link there instead.

Hmmm... this seems like a way better deal than WotC's latest sets of minis, given the number of figures included and the terrain pieces. But the sets rely on hexes rather than squares, which can complicate things for those playing Pathfinder or the D&D RPG... to buy or not to buy, that is the question. And how big is the dragon?

the power of cthulu compels me not to

and I dont even like that world

Hmmm... this seems like a way better deal than WotC's latest sets of minis, given the number of figures included and the terrain pieces. But the sets rely on hexes rather than squares, which can complicate things for those playing Pathfinder or the D&D RPG... to buy or not to buy, that is the question. And how big is the dragon?

The Dragon looks to be a large set. If you can find a copy of Unearthed Arcana (3.x version) it had rules for hexes in 3.x. Shouldn't be too hard to export to 4.x I think.

The number of tiles are too small for me, I've been buying other master sets to build Battletech terrain with.

Is this a stand alone game or do you need anything else to play?

Is this a stand alone game or do you need anything else to play?

The 'Mastersets' are fully functional as a stand alone game. Though the different Masters compliment each other nicely.

Is this a stand alone game or do you need anything else to play?

It is both a stand-alone game, and a piece of a larger universe. You can buy any of the 'Master Sets' (The original, the Marro swamp, and this one) and play the game, no problem.

The dragon is an Adult Black, size Large, standing (crouching really)about as big as the Feral Troll in the same set.

And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

However, the fun with Heroscape is that you can have a colonial militia backed by robots, vikings, and elves, facing off against ninjas, dragons, undead/zerg critters, and Marvel Superheroes. .... And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

Somehow, I missed the Colonial freedom-fighters D&D miniatures...

Seriously, for those of you who've played the game, how does HeroScape compare to the old D&D Miniatures game, as a miniatures combat system, independently of how well either might interface with a role-playing analogue?

I use the heroscape miniatures but the bases are larger then the standard 1 inch base released by D&D miniatures. I wish they used new character models versus repeating previous ones.

Seriously, for those of you who've played the game, how does HeroScape compare to the old D&D Miniatures game, as a miniatures combat system, independently of how well either might interface with a role-playing analogue?

I haven't played the DnD minis game. Heroscape uses 6-sided dice. Half the faces are a skull, two faces are a shield. When you attack, you roll the number of Attack dice shown on the power card for the mini. You do the same when defending using the Defense value. You get bonuses for height advantage and other factors. Skulls count for hits during an attack, shields count for blocks during defense.

Squad figures (multiple minis for one card) only have 1 life each. Heroes generally have more than one life.

The game weights heavily towards the die rolls, even if you play a very strategic game.

So, it's quite different from the d20 attacks against AC that DnD uses.

Better pic

It looks like all the figs are just rebased D&D minis.

They are rebased minis. I saw them at GenCon. Very Disappointing. Perhaps WotC is moving all their games into a "plug and play" style. Especially move to a hexbased movement (which is easy enough). Then they can go with Heroscape style games that double as minis for 4e. This would get rid of the current model of selling minis. Could work...

SirGeshko wrote:

However, the fun with Heroscape is that you can have a colonial militia backed by robots, vikings, and elves, facing off against ninjas, dragons, undead/zerg critters, and Marvel Superheroes. .... And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

Somehow, I missed the Colonial freedom-fighters D&D miniatures...

Seriously, for those of you who've played the game, how does HeroScape compare to the old D&D Miniatures game, as a miniatures combat system, independently of how well either might interface with a role-playing analogue?

HeoScape is a fun game - my son and I played often when he was younger. It's certainly a great way to spend an afternoon.

SirGeshko wrote:

And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

Somehow, I missed the Colonial freedom-fighters D&D miniatures...

Oof, that was lost in translation. I meant all the minis in this set. Oy, I need to proof my posts better.

And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

You mean "repaints," I think...

SirGeshko wrote:

However, the fun with Heroscape is that you can have a colonial militia backed by robots, vikings, and elves, facing off against ninjas, dragons, undead/zerg critters, and Marvel Superheroes. .... And from what I hear, ALL Heroscape Mini's are rejects from the D&D mini's line.

Somehow, I missed the Colonial freedom-fighters D&D miniatures...

Seriously, for those of you who've played the game, how does HeroScape compare to the old D&D Miniatures game, as a miniatures combat system, independently of how well either might interface with a role-playing analogue?

If you ever played the old HeroQuest game, it uses a similar mechanic as its bases, with more options thrown in.

Thanks, Pygon.

If you ever played the old HeroQuest game, it uses a similar mechanic as its bases, with more options thrown in.

I'm afraid I haven't, pres man*. (I'd bought the basic set and a couple expansions, but I never found anybody willing to play through them, and I gave them away when I moved from Minnesota.) What are the strengths of the system?

*Well, I played the very, very old HeroQuest portfolio game, but I don't think that's what you're talking about...

For me, the strengths of the system are flavor and coolness factor of some of the figures. Also, I really like the castle expansion. I can put together some pretty elaborate maps with it, even if they aren't always all that playable:

Rivergarde, my most recent map. That one took 2 Rise of the Valkyrie, 2 Road to the Forgotten Forest and 2 Fortress of the Archkyries to build.

As for Heroscape's other strengths, I can't say, because I have yet to play an actual physical game against someone. *snif* It's a very easy game to learn though. I hear there are a lot of strategic nuances.

Figure pics look like D&D minis glued onto hex bases. The old Heroscape figures were a tad bigger than D&D minis. Are these figures regular mini size now?

They are in fact recycled DnD minis. SO from what I hear, their scale is a little smaller than the normal Heroscape minis. The same will probably be true of the small expansion that will be released in March.

Figure pics look like D&D minis glued onto hex bases. The old Heroscape figures were a tad bigger than D&D minis. Are these figures regular mini size now?

I compared the Heroscape minis to the D&D minis and they are slightly different repaints, but for all technical purposes, they are the same. A different silver on a sword. A different color on the clothes. Not sure why they would change the paint schemes, but they did slightly. The bases are bigger on the Heroscape minis, but not so big that they can't be used for a D&D game.

-Lisa

My twins decided they wanted to buy this (XMas Money) , which is good for me also, since the hex tiles will work perfectly for me when running Earthdawn games since it now uses a hex based system. (Something which I'm looking at doing for D&D as well. Fireballs are not Square! Goodnight!)

i cant wait to buy this. i love herocsape. and captain america leading a group of samurai to kill a dragon if teh awesome.

WotC has since made the DnD Heroscape rulebook available on their site for those that are curious about the rules:

WotC Heroscape Page