Napoleon Bonaparte once reshaped the entire map of Europe in a matter of years, casting a long shadow over the early nineteenth century. His wars saw emperors toppled, armies repeatedly restructured, and alliances forever in flux. Even today, the Napoleonic era stands as a magnet for history enthusiasts, thanks to its grand clashes of thousands upon thousands of troops, the vivid parade of uniforms from every corner of Europe, and the thrill of ever-evolving battle tactics that demanded both courage and cunning. There is an undeniable drama to the Emperor’s rise and fall: few other periods offer such a heady mix of heroism, political maneuvering, and the raw spectacle of cavalry charges and thundering artillery echoing across rolling fields.
It is precisely this heady mix that has long tempted wargamers to bring Napoleon’s campaigns to the tabletop. And yet, for decades, there was a challenge lurking behind that allure: the sheer scale of these battles could make them cumbersome to recreate. A proper refight of a major engagement could demand unending hours of painting if one were to field entire divisions in larger miniature scales. Even if the painting were done, a relatively modest wargaming table would struggle to accommodate the sweeping movements that made these battles famous. The result was a contradiction at the heart of Napoleonic gaming: everyone yearned to command the full weight of columns, lines, and squares, but few had the space, or the patience to paint, for the epic confrontation that loomed in their imagination.
This is where WoFun’s 10mm Napoleonic miniatures come as a revelation. By reducing the scale of the figures (yet maintaining their detail through a pre-printed, ready-to-play design), WoFun has made it possible to fill your battlefield with entire brigades and corps, all without demanding either a barn-sized table or weeks laboring over tiny paintbrushes. The miniatures come printed in full color on Plexiglass sprues, so the traditional tasks of priming, painting, and varnishing are completely removed. Instead, you simply press the figures from their sprue and slot them into their bases. In a single evening, you might have the nucleus of a French army, or the full might of Britain’s lines, marching across your table and vying for victory.
For those who wish to explore the period’s early to mid-war clashes, the Napoleonic Full Pack covers the armies you would have seen in battles up to 1809, including French, British, Austrian, Prussian, and Russian forces, all kitted out in the uniforms of the time. You can relive Napoleon’s triumph at Austerlitz (1805) or test how the lines might have held at Jena-Auerstedt (1806). The different national contingents come packed with infantry, cavalry, artillery, and command units, providing a kaleidoscope of color and variety that captures the spirit of those sprawling campaigns. There is something thrilling about deploying battalions in their early war regalia, imagining how each coalition struggled to keep pace with Napoleon’s unrelenting mastery.
Yet the Napoleonic saga of course did not end there, and neither does WoFun’s. The Hundred Days Campaign Full Pack shifts focus to 1815, when Napoleon returned from exile for one last throw of the dice. These sprues assemble the armies that converged on the muddy fields of Belgium: the French Imperial Guard in all its finery, the British redcoats and their allies, the intrepid Brunswick contingents, and the ever-vital Prussian divisions marching to turn the tide. This is the perfect gateway to staging the climactic battles of Quatre Bras, Ligny, and, of course, Waterloo itself. Even if your time on the tabletop differs from history, the sense of anticipation when those Guard columns begin to advance, or the British lines brace for yet another cavalry, charge remains electrifying.
The Epic Scale of Napoleonic Warfare: Spotlight on “Waterloo 210”
Some might still wonder how even 10mm figures can recreate the gargantuan scale of Waterloo, a battle that pitted tens of thousands against each other in a final, desperate bid for Europe’s destiny. Steve Fratt, a passionate historical wargamer, games writer and WoFun supporter, has provided a spectacular answer with his “Waterloo 210” project, a project that will be presented in major wargaming events in the US starting in 2025.. On three tables spanning 6' x 16' each, enough surface area to dwarf many a living-room setup, he will deploy a staggering 35,000 WoFun miniatures, all pre-printed and ready for action. By avoiding the usual marathon of painting, Steve was free to concentrate on the battlefield itself. The scale, combined with the crisp and colorful appearance of the miniatures, makes for an unforgettable sight. It feels as if you could walk among the squares and columns yourself, waiting to see whether the fabled Imperial Guard can smash through Wellington’s lines before Blücher’s reinforcements arrive.
That ambitious wargaming project named “Waterloo 210” because it commemorates, in wargaming style, more than two centuries since the actual battle, demonstrates just how far 10mm can take you. It also shows how quickly an undertaking of this size can be achieved when each figure is already fully illustrated, saving countless hours that would otherwise be spent painting. With WoFun miniatures, your focus shifts from finishing an endless painting backlog to planning maneuvers, building terrain, and fleshing out orders of battle. Whether you want to re-create a particular historical deployment or try out your own approach, perhaps giving Marshal Ney more cavalry support, or meeting the Allied forces at different choke points, you are free to do so without the usual painting hurdle.
Steve’s grand display is set to appear at major conventions, including Adepticon [March], Little Wars [April], and Historicon [July], where we invite you to witness the spectacle firsthand or even take part in the unfolding drama. The possibility of watching entire corps move across the tabletop, and of hearing the rattle of dice as the French columns clash with Allied lines, is sure to enthrall veterans and newcomers alike. It is a living, breathing example of how these pre-printed 10mm figures make even the grandest battles of the Napoleonic age well within reach.
Yet one need not command thousands of figures to appreciate the convenience and charm of WoFun’s Napoleonic range. Even a modest six-by-four table can offer an enthralling engagement when battalions are scaled down to 10mm. Imagine refighting a portion of Wagram or a key sector of Waterloo on a typical weekend gaming session. Rather than looking cramped, the battlefield can accommodate full maneuvers. Infantry lines do not simply bump into each other, and cavalry charges can actually unfold with the drama these moments deserve. There is a special joy in watching your massed columns approach the foe, realizing you have room to form square, position artillery, and pivot your reserves around a flank, just as the historical generals might have done.
From an affordability standpoint, too, the 10mm approach holds clear appeal. Because these miniatures rely on efficient printing methods, whole armies remain well within budgets that might balk at the cost of larger metal or resin figures. When combined with the absence of painting expenses, paint, brushes, and the unquantifiable value of time, a huge chunk of wargaming overhead simply disappears. It can open the door for new players who might otherwise be intimidated by the dreaded “pile of unpainted figures,” while offering longtime hobbyists the chance to stage epic showdowns in an afternoon.
Finally, there is a sense of immersion in seeing so many figures lined up on the tabletop. Traditional single-based units, often used at bigger scales, can only approximate the look of massed ranks. In 10mm, those ranks become visibly denser and more impressive. If you step back from the table to take in the entire scene, you can almost picture what a historical observer might have felt gazing across those fields of Europe two centuries ago: the tension in the air, the colorful lines forming an unbroken battle front, and the heavy thud of artillery marking the start of a momentous engagement.
There is a reason why the Napoleonic age continues to captivate generation after generation of wargamers, and there is a reason why so many are turning to 10mm to bring these battles to life. With WoFun’s pre-printed sets, one can leap straight into re-living, or rewriting, Napoleon’s greatest triumphs and defeats. Whether you prefer the grandeur of a full-scale Waterloo, complete with tens of thousands of troops, or the smaller, more focused clash of an earlier campaign, the magic of the Emperor’s era is at your fingertips, ready to be explored without the usual hurdles.
So if you have ever wanted to see your infantry hold the line against the Old Guard, or if your dream is to unleash swarms of cavalry across the flanks of unsuspecting foes, take a closer look at WoFun’s 10mm Napoleonic miniatures, beautifully illustrated by Peter Dennis and designed by Mirko Brunner. With an ease and affordability that still surprises many seasoned gamers, you can assemble an entire army in days rather than months. You can walk in the footsteps of generals who shaped Europe’s destiny, orchestrate the fate of empires, and discover new dimensions to these iconic clashes. And if the battle cries of Quatre Bras or the final thunder at Waterloo beckon to you most, consider paying a visit to one of the upcoming conventions to behold Steve Fratt’s awe-inspiring Waterloo 210. In the world of wargaming, where the line between history and imagination grows pleasantly blurred, it may just be the largest slice of Napoleonic wonder you’ve ever seen…until, of course, you create your own.
Visit our 10mm Napoleonic collection or our Waterloo collection to start your own Napoleonic adventure.