The majority of tabletop gaming groups use battle maps and minis in order to coordinate the combat encounters. A grid with small plastic minis is the preferred method of judging distance and area of effect for many gamers and RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder accommodate this style of play.
A lot of DMs prefer to use plastic minis for their games, but there are other options out there that are cheaper and easier to assemble. Paizo sells a cardboard alternative in its Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary Box set that might be better for many groups.
The Merits Of Cardboard Over Plastic
A lot of purists prefer to use plastic minis for their tabletop games, but these come with some caveats. For one thing, it can be pricy to find a group of specific monsters. There are some gamers who will purchase a group of generic bandits or skeleton👍s and use them for most encounters, which means they will often be pulling double💝 or triple duty in each game and the effect of using them is lost.
The vast majority of plastic minis come unpainted, which adds extra expense if the DM wants them to actually look good. There are people who sell painted 🤪minis online, but these are usually more expensive. If the DM isn't s♉killed at painting minis, then they will have to stare at the horrific fruits of their labor throughout each game.
There is also the issue of carrying plastic minis around. DMs are often stuck carrying the most gear to each game and thr𝓡owing a box of minis on top just adds to their burden. It helps if the DM knows exactly what they plan on using each game, but players have a tendency to throw a wrench in the works and force DMs to think on their feet, meaning that they might need minis that they don't have.
The Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary Boxes
The official website is now selling a PDF of the Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary Box for less than twenty dollars, which the player is meant to print out onto cardboard (or onto paper which is then glued to cardboard). These can then be slotted into mini bases, which are incredibly cheap to find online. The Bestiary Box contains images of different monsters from the game whiܫch can💮 be used as flat cardboard minis.
The benefit of cardboard minis is th🦄at the player can quickly make as many of the same monster as they need for cheap. They weigh very little, so it won't break the DM's back. If players use plastic minis (which most do), then it will be easy for everyone to tell between the PCs and the monsters at a glance. The DM can also easily write numbers on the cardboard minis for note-keeping purposes.
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