Hero Forge lets you bring your tabletop RPG character to life in a way that no miniature you’ll find in your local game store can.
For tabletop RPG players, finding a miniature of your character can be a challenge. The options for mass-produced figures can be a little limited, so the right species and class may have the wrong hairstyle or clothing that your character wouldn’t wear in a million years. It’s a pretty minor problem, and with a little paint, it’s possible to have a totally passible character gracing that grid paper even if they’re not totally perfect.
But launching in 2014, Hero Forge aimed to make that issue a thing of the past with entirely custom miniatures. Designed by you to look just like your character, this site lets you bring your character to the table instead of something similar enough. And since its inception, it’s only gotten better.
How to Use Hero Forge
As a website, Hero Forge is pretty darn easy to you. A simple point-and-click interface makes mini-designing as simple as can be. In fact, if you’ve played any video games that allow you to design your own character, you’re already done this part. The hardest part of mini-creation on Hero Forge may be how many options you have. Because it can be a truly overwhelming number.
There are forty-seven different species and fifty-two different faces to choose from.
After you figure out what your character looks like you can start designing their clothing. And while the website offers you a decent selection of premade outfits, you can also take your mini on a shopping spree with separate selections for head, shoulders, chest, gloves, legs, feet, and masks. And once that’s all taken care of you can make sure your new mini captures your character’s personality with special designs for your stages, poses, gear, and even familiars.
Once your mini is perfect, you can order it and have your one-of-a-kind miniature created just for you and sent to you in the mail.
Bonus Features
Back in 2020, Hero Forge launched a Kickstarter to get Hero Forge 2.0 off of the ground. This wildly popular campaign was quickly funded and saw most of its stretch goals met. As of just a few years ago your selection of familiars, mounts, weapons, bases, and character customization was increased tremendously. but possibly most exciting is the ability to get your characters now fully painted for you. Using the same system of sliders and selecting, you can design a miniature printed in full color.
For those of us who aren’t quite as skilled in painting our own miniatures, this option was something of a blessing. Printed plastic may never look as beautiful or artistic as a mini that’s lovingly painted, shaded, and aged by a skilled hand. But if you- like me- have never managed to paint a miniature without googly eyes or an entire line of color in the wrong place, sometimes it’s nice to have one that just looks right.
Print Your Hero for Yourself
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Of course, Hero Forge also lets you go hard in the other direction too. For the adventurer with their own 3D printer set up, you can design your own character and then just by the stl. file for home printing and painting. The benefit here is that with your one file you can print as many copies of your character as you want or need. And of course, you don’t need to wait for shipping.
This is actually a route I’ve taken personally. And there is something very satisfying about watching your D&D character print on your printer in your own home. But if you’re not familiar with 3D printing, this can also be finicky. Some poses are easy to knock off of balance before the print is done. And depending on the age or quality of your printer, finer details may get lost in the printing or even finishing and sanding process.
To make a custom mini for yourself, you can check Hero Forge out here.
Do you have any miniatures that you designed or ordered from Hero Forge? Which of their customizations or features is your favorite? Have you tried 3D printing your own mini, and if so how did it turn out? Let us know in the comments!
Happy Adventuring!
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