Target Acquisition: My list of the Top 10 Miniature Wargames of all time

Even though I’ve been a steadfast roleplayer for 3 decades, I’ve been wargaming for about… I dunno… 23 years or so. I play a lot of different types of wargames, from hex-and-chit to boardgame to card-based games – but in this list, I’ll focus on what I primarily play, and that’s wargames with miniatures.

As with all of these “Top 10″-style lists, your particular mileage may very – and you’re more than welcome to tell me how very wrong I am. While there are a lot of miniature wargames out there, I am only basing this list on the ones that I have played extensively.

1. Warhammer 40,000 (3rd Edition) - I have been playing 40K for a very, very long time, but their 3rd edition will always ring true as the most fun of the (currently) 5 sets of rules out there. To me, it is the last version of the game before it started to get “sterilized”.
2. Infinity – One of the best atmospheric games on the market, with extremely realistic and reactive gameplay.
3. Battlefleet Gothic -The spacefleet combat extension of the 40K universe is probably the finest miniatures space battle game ever produced.
4. Battletech – In many ways, BT has become a bloated giant that scares off a lot of new players. In my mind, it is probably the finest name in miniatures wargaming.
5. 1949 Secrets of the Third Reich -
6. Field of Glory – FOG reignited the ancients wargaming scene, with an absolute lack of the pretentious nonsense that typically revolves around this genre.
7. Flames of War - As a WWII history buff, I appreciate the easy-to-lean rules and the fact that you can almost always find someone to play with.
8. VOR: The Maelstrom - FASA’s best-kept secret. The game itself was only on shelves for 2 years, but a fantastic rules set combined with fun factions will let it live on forever in the hearts of those that got to try it out.
9. Warlands – This game came out of nowhere from Aberrant and has given me absolutely months of fun. It is simple to understand and expands on the whole “Car Wars / Dark Future” genre of games to become a whole new level of fun.
10. Lord of The Rings Strategy Battle Game – Games Workshop’s bastard child, yes – but I consider it their finest miniature rules all the same. The rules are solid, tactically interesting, and a hell of a lot of fun.

Honorary mentions go out to AT-43, Warzone (2nd edition), and Heavy Gear.