Author Topic: 'N-scale' scale what is it?  (Read 3404 times)

Cergorach

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'N-scale' scale what is it?
« on: 12 May 2011, 13:40:10 »
We all know that when faced with Battletech scale is not important, at least that is what we keep telling ourselves ;-) Ral Partha didn't care, IWN doesn't care, Wizkids didn't care, so why should we...

But 'N-scale' is defined rather unprecisely:
Quote
Depending upon the manufacturer (or country), the scale ranges from 1:148 to 1:160.

N scale is considered generally compatible with 1:144 scale for miniature wargaming.

So we have a range of 1:144 to 1:160 for gaming, only a 16 point difference ;-) But that is pretty big, an inch is anywhere from 3.66m to 4.06m ~10% difference, not a huge difference (I realize while I type this). But the mathematician still wants a fixed scale, so what would be your actual scale preference for 'N-scale' gaming, if you have any? DP9 uses 1:144 for Heavy Gear, but even that isn't accurate (they had vehicle dimensions in older books).

My current point of view is that "anything that looks good and isn't obviously out of scale" is good enough, but if at all possible I aim for consistency.

Sigma

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Re: 'N-scale' scale what is it?
« Reply #1 on: 12 May 2011, 14:03:53 »
My general rule is that 1/144 is ideal, but I'll take what I can get. A 1/200 Scorpion crosses your path and snatch that thing up. I've very rarely seen the 1/144 version.

Also, when looking at Unseen, their other universe size is not exactly proportional to their Battletech size so you have to account for that. A 1/144 Dougram Blockhead is way bigger than a 1/144 Battletech Wolverine but a scaleless Blockhead Gashapon is just right. Same deal with the Glaug/Marauder.

I'll use stuff from 1/200 to 1/95 if it fits fairly well or if there are no other options for that chassis.

OverKill

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Re: 'N-scale' scale what is it?
« Reply #2 on: 12 May 2011, 14:48:15 »
I knew, even before looking at the responses, that Sig would be the guy to answer it. LOL  [rockon]
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spaceman spiff

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Re: 'N-scale' scale what is it?
« Reply #3 on: 12 May 2011, 14:56:35 »
i can back up Sigma...any scale between 1:200 up to 1:144 will pass for N-scale. however, there are some minis outside of that range that could easily pass. i've been eying a few 15mm ( HO scale ) minis that i want to experiment with...
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LordNth

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Re: 'N-scale' scale what is it?
« Reply #4 on: 12 May 2011, 21:10:32 »
12-15mm works great.  I have some 15mm infantry that looks really nice.

If wanting N-scale Battletech games you'd want Mechs that are 5-8cm tall.  I use cm because most of the stuff you'll want is from another country.  If you can't read the font (I'm looking at you Hobby Link Japan) you should be able to find a size somewhere.

Does that help at all?