Fantasy miniatures have always intrigued me, and I have often found myself wanting to use them in tabletop RPGs. At the same time, however, I have always felt standard metal minis are too expensive (two or three dollars for a single orc is not my idea of economical). Steve Jackson Games has solved this dilemma with the reprinting of their standup cardstock miniatures appropriately named Cardboard Heroes.
For your twenty dollars, you get 436 cardstock fantasy miniatures. These are 25mm scale, and painted in full color on both their front and back sides. The diverse array of figures ranges from the mundane (common animals and adventuring types) to the unusual (elementals, harpies, and living weapons). Also, Cardboard Heroes contains extra sets of minis for what the back cover describes as "foul creatures who favor horde tactics," such as orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, and undead. In addition, CH includes a number of Far Eastern-themed figures like samurai and ninja that would be perfect for games such as Dragon Fist.
The Cardboard Heroes miniatures come in a spiral-bound book containing thirteen sheets of figures and a sheet of flat counters for items such as dropped weapons, piles of treasure, and traps. Denis Loubet's excellent artwork is colorful and detailed, resulting in minis that are visually appealing as well as practical. The sheets are a fairly heavy cardstock with a glossy finish; this results in miniatures that are durable and heavy enough to stand without added weights. Assembly of the minis is simple and quick: just cut around the four edges, fold in half, make a small cut in the base, and fold the base halves together. A few words of advice: use a hobby knife instead of scissors, and cut on a mat or other good cutting surface to get clean edges.
I have only two criticisms of Cardboard Heroes, and they are both very minor. One is that the cutting and folding lines can be difficult to see, as they are printed in light yellow ink. However, this can be overcome by cutting out the miniatures in a well-lit area. Also, some minis on sheet edges have incomplete cutting lines. This requires eyeballing the cuts, but this is easy once you have cut out several figures.
Cardboard Heroes is a great buy for anyone who, like myself, wants ready-to-use miniatures of high quality at an affordable price. Steve Jackson Games deserves thanks for reissuing this product.
Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)
