Weekly Waffle #380 – The Sweet Spot Between Hobby and Life
31st May 2025
I’ve had another really busy week at work that has once again ruined my hobby time. So I’m back into waffle mode and picking a to pick that is close to my heart. So get yourself a brew, nudge the cat off your lap, and let’s have a proper chat about a peculiar little shift over the last few years in the tabletop scene. It’s been creeping in for a few years now, like a sneaky scout on Overwatch – and if you’ve been within two inches of a gaming table lately, you’ll have felt it too.
We’re talking about the rise of small-scale wargames. Or, as the cool kids and clever marketers are calling it: skirmish wargaming. Games like Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team, Infinity, Necromunda, Malifaux and their growing stable of cousins. These compact, fast-paced, model-lite warzones are starting to muscle in on the classic sprawling 2,000 point slug fest that are the backbone of the hobby. In fact in my gaming space I would go as far as to say they have muscled the slug fest out of the way already.
muscling in on the real estate once reserved for sprawling 2,000-point slugfests, and honestly? I’m all in.
I’m going to start with a confession, which for those of you who have been reading the blog of a whole will come as no surprise. I used to be a full-fat wargamer. None of your starter-box-sipping, paint one squad and call it a- day dabbling. I’m talking full Codex flipping, spreadsheet building, shelf buckling stuff. 24 hour nonstop charity Apocalypse games ending in passive-aggressive debates over line-of-sight. Happy days, sure. But like many, I reached a point where the hobby started outgrowing my life.
Family, jobs, bills, that whole “being a responsible adult” malarkey. It’s hard to justify spending months painting 100+ models when you can barely find time to do the washing up. That’s where the skirmish revolution comes in. And blimey, what a welcome one it’s been.
For me it started years ago with my introduction to Malifaux, back when they were still metal miniatures. Not the gorgeous plastics we get now. I then went all in with games like Mercs and Guild Ball cementing my love for the smaller scale games. But what is a skirmish game.
If you’re new to the term, don’t worry – it’s not just jargon. A skirmish wargame is generally characterised by:
Fewer models (usually between 5 and 20 per side),
Smaller boards (2’x2’ or 3’x3’ are common),
Shorter games (an hour or two instead of five),
Focused storytelling, often about individual characters or small squads.
And the kicker? You don’t need a mortgage, a van, or a personal assistant to play them.
Even though my introduction to skirmish games was well outside of the Warhammer realm it’s fair to say that Kill Team has been the poster child for this movement. It’s GW’s slick little skirmish sibling to Warhammer 40K familiar lore, recognisable factions, and enough complexity to keep the veterans happy without scaring the rookies.
Each team feels like its own quirky little soap opera. You’re not just commanding “Tactical Squad Beta” anymore – you’ve got “Sergeant Krass, who always misses his plasma shots,” and “Knife Boy Dave,” who somehow survives every match by sheer narrative willpower.
It’s quick, brutal, and intensely personal. Every dice roll feels dramatic. Every movement matters. There’s no hiding behind your 100-point Leman Russ anymore, it’s just your five lads versus theirs. Mano a mano. Well… servo-arm to chitinous claw, anyway.
And it’s not just the rules the barrier to entry is considerably lower. For the cost of a fancy dinner and a few paints, you can be hobby-ready and on the battlefield within a weekend. Although there are cheaper options out there.
If Kill Team is the big brand blockbuster, then Infinity is the indie cyberpunk arthouse thriller.
Produced by Spanish studio Corvus Belli, Infinity brings something different to the skirmish table: deep tactical complexity and a sleek sci-fi aesthetic that feels like Ghost in the Shell had a baby with Counter Strike.
It’s got a steep learning curve, sure. The rules read like they were written by someone who thinks Chess is too light-hearted. But once you get your head round it, Infinity offers a level of tactical satisfaction few games can match.
Reaction mechanics mean you’re always engaged, even on your opponent’s turn. Camouflage, hacking, smoke grenades, AI-driven drones. The toolbox is vast.
The models? Oh, mate. They’re stunning. Real display-case stuff.
Infinity’s fanbase is fiercely passionate, and for good reason. It’s not the easiest first date, but if you stick with it, it’s one of the deepest tabletop experiences out there.
I’ve already mentioned Malifaux which was my first taste of skirmish gaming. It’s certainly on the weird side of things and has a completely different dynamic using playing cards instead of dice. But the core rules are available free online. The miniatures come with their relevant stats cards so besides a core box of miniatures all you need to play the game is a table top and a pack of cards.
It really is a low entry game. But the gaming combinations are vast so it’s a game that you may never master. You will always have something new to get to grips with.
The final game I want to call out is Carnevale from TT Combat. Like Malifaux the core rules are available on line for free. Although if you do purchase the core rule book you get a wealth of background that really helps to set the scene for you. The game is set in an alternative Venice of the late 18th century. It’s a battle between street gangs, otherworldly creatures and aristocrats.
The miniatures are gorgeous, the story is fantastic and has one of the best rules in any gaming system. If something in the rules is a little bit ambiguous. So you can’t decide if something is possible or not. They advise going with the rule of cool. I had a guild harpooner drag a beast off a roof onto a group of its own characters. There is nothing in the rules to cover this so the rule of cool we used was that it land in the middle and they all have to scatter. No damage or anything like, it doesn’t take any movement off them they just have to scatter. What it did mean was some scattered out of cover.
But it was a very cinematic moment in a very good game. And that for me is what makes skirmish games so much fun because they can be so cinematic.
Away from the gaming itself one of the biggest appeals of skirmish games is the reduction in hobby time required to be able to play. You’re not painting 200 grots – you’re painting ten. And not just painting, but really getting stuck in. Edge highlights. Weathering. Freehand tattoos. Custom bases. You name it.
There’s something liberating about having the time and emotional bandwidth to treat each miniature like a little work of art. Skirmish games make that achievable.
Not to mention the terrain. A 2’x2’ board? You can build that with some foamcore, PVA, and a free weekend. Also if you purchase a two player starter set for a lot of these games they come with a selection of card terrain which is perfectly usable. No more needing a spare room or a church hall to set up a game.
But here is what is probably the biggest win for me. It’s just much more affordable.
Hobby prices seem to be constantly on the increase so anything that helps people get into a game really helps. For a lot of these games all you need is a box of miniatures which will set you back about £30. If you join forces with a friend and buy a two player box set you could be looking at about £100 all in. So £50 each and you have everything that you need.
If you compare that to something like 40k where you are probably not getting much change from £100 just for the rule book and the relevant Codex for your chosen army. You would then be looking at about £40 a unit depending what you pick. If you assume you are going to need ten units then you have spent the best part of £500, not to mention the time investment. Before you can even have a game. And that is still assuming you have a friend who is as equally invested in playing as you are.
The smaller scale also encourages DIY terrain, home-brew rules, and narrative campaigns. Necromunda for example has some fantastic narrative options. It’s fertile ground for creativity.
Another huge plus as I touched on above is that it’s much easier to get people involved in a skirmish game. Convincing a mate to buy and paint 200 models and read a 100-page rulebook? That’s a big ask. Convincing them to try a skirmish game over a weekend with ten minis and a free rules PDF? Far more doable. Especially if you have been the one to buy and paint a starter box. So all they have to do is turn up.
Skirmish games are gateway drugs to the larger hobby, and that’s brilliant. They lower the barrier to entry, the more divers the player base becomes. Injecting fresh blood into communities that sometimes… well, skew a bit beardy and middle-aged. (And I say that as a proud card-carrying member of the Greybeard Guild.)
Here’s something that I have always loved about skirmish gaming, narrative. I love the fluff or lore, especially of 40k, and have always allowed that to lead how I built larger armies. Which is probably why they aren’t that competitive. But skirmish games are built around the narrative and love that about them. You can have your own adventure series unfolding with every game.
These aren’t just faceless squads, they’re characters. Individuals. Your plasma gunner has a name, a backstory, a vendetta. They gain experience. They lose limbs. They get PTSD. Okay, maybe not on the data sheet, but definitely in your heart. Running a Kill Team or Necromunda campaign with friends over a few weeks has been some of the most fun, cinematic, and memorable gaming you can have. It’s like an RPG you can paint.
Now, let’s not put everything on a shiny resin pedestal. Skirmish games aren’t flawless.
Some of the more complex ones, such as Infinity, can be intimidating for new players. Others can suffer from poor balance, since a single overpowered model has more impact in a small game than it would in a full army. And, if you’re someone who thrives on massive set-piece battles with tanks, titans, and enough dice to warrant their own storage solution, then skirmish games might feel a bit… light.
But here’s the thing: they’re not meant to replace full-scale wargames. They complement them. They offer something different. A chance to hobby without burning out. A chance to play without booking annual leave.
For me, the rise of small-scale wargames isn’t just a trend, it’s a lifeline. It’s proof that the hobby is evolving, accommodating the real lives of real people while still delivering those beloved bursts of plastic joy. So whether you’re a grizzled 40K veteran looking for a palette cleanser, or a newcomer daunted by the mountain of sprues and rules, I can’t recommend the skirmish scene enough. It’s leaner, tighter, more intimate, and absolutely packed with flavour.
Just be warned: once you start painting a five-model warband and giving them all names, you may never want to paint another 30-boy Ork mob again. Or you will want every boy in that mob to have a full backstory and individual character. So be warned.
That’s it for this week. I hope that has given you something to think about and made up for the fact that I haven’t been able to get any painting done this week. The manic work load continues but I will have another update for you next week but I don’t yet know if it will be a hobby update or another waffle but there will be an update for you. So until then I hope you have a great week and look forward to catching up with you all again next week.
