Wargames Factory

Wargames Factory, LLC
Limited liability company (LLC)
Industry Miniature wargaming manufacturer
Founded 2007
Headquarters 7224 North 63rd Street, Longmont, Colorado, USA
Key people
 George Sivy
Website Wargames Factory

Wargames Factory is a plastic miniature manufacturer opened in 2007. It specializes in highly detailed, multi-part models in hard plastic for wargaming. Wargames Factory produce models mostly in the 28 millimetres (1.1 in) range, but have done other scales as well. It is unique in the way it chooses the subject of its miniatures, using what they call the Liberty and Union League to produce models submitted by consumers.

Production process

The company is using a "direct to digital" approach which does not use an original physical sculpt. This is unlike many other plastic wargames figure manufacturers who sculpt the figure at three times the eventual size (called three-ups), then digitally scan and reduce them for production. In the design process the company uses the software Freeform from Sensable (which in 2012 was bought by Geomagic). [1][2][3]

History

Wargames Factory was established as a Limited Liability Company in 2007, managed by Anthony Reidy. The company entered partnership with the plastic injection molding company Ghost Studio.[4] In 2010 the company was taken over by its partner with George Sivy as new manager.[5][6][7] The Massachusetts based LLC was dissolved on April 19, 2011[8] as the business moved to Colorado.[9]

2012 saw the company taking on manufacturing projects for several miniature wargaming companies. They produce models for InMediaRes Productions' imprint Catalyst Game Labs boardgame Leviathan's, first released on GenCon in 2011.[10][11] They also produce lines of miniatures for DreamForge-Games[12][13] and Scarab Miniatures.[14][15]

Liberty and Union League

The name Liberty and Union League was taken from the protests of the early American colonists and the raising of liberty poles.

Ideas are submitted by customers and then wait for approval by the Wargames Factory staff. Once the idea is approved as being viable it is listed on the Liberty and Union League, and on the Wargames Factory message boards on the company's website.

After its listing, people are then able to pre-order sprues of that idea for a miniature. The pre-orders are to gauge the interest in a sprue idea, and once they reach a thousand the models are put into production.

Current miniature ranges

Might of Rome (28mm)

War of Empires (28mm)

Alien Suns (Sci-fi) (28mm)

Dark Futures (Sci-fi/Fantasy) (28mm)

Hammer of the Gods (Dark Ages Britain & Northern Europe) (28mm)

Horse & Musket (Gunpowder Warfare) (28mm)

Legacy of the Greeks (Ancient Greece & Persia) (28mm)

Rising Sun (16th Century Japan) (28mm)

World War Two (1939-1945) (28mm & 15mm)

Myths & Legends (Fantasy) (28mm)

Old Soldier Recycling Program

In the past Wargames Factory ran a plastic sprue recycling program in which environmentally conscious wargamers could send in their unused plastic sprues for recycling. The factory could then melt these down and use them in new frames of miniatures. As an incentive for participation in the program, the company entered the names of the participants into a raffle to win Wargames Factory products. This program has since been discontinued and no longer recycles old sprues, however Wargames Factory encourages wargamers to recycle their old sprues locally.

References

  1. ↑ Article on Freeform in Machine Design September 8, 2011, retrieved February 15, 2013.
  2. ↑ Article on Freeform in Product Design & Development April 13, 2012, retrieved February 15, 2013.
  3. ↑ Article on Freeform in Ten Links April 13, 2012, retrieved February 15, 2013.
  4. ↑ Post by George Sivy at freeformthreads.
  5. ↑ State of Massachusetts, Corporations Division.
  6. ↑ Article on Montreal Financial
  7. ↑ Letter from the owner of Ghost Studio published on Tabletop Gaming News on March 29, 2011, retrieved February 15, 2013.
  8. ↑ State of Massachusetts, Corporations Division.
  9. ↑ State of Colorado, Business database.
  10. ↑ Article on Armchair General August 15, 2011.
  11. ↑ Blogpost on Wargames Factory January 15, 2013.
  12. ↑ Blogpost on Wargames Factory December 19, 2012.
  13. ↑ DreamForge-Games homepage
  14. ↑ Blogpost on Wargames Factory December 12, 2012.
  15. ↑ Sarab Miniatures' home page.

External links