Laser Pointers

[Haskeer]

Hi all,

ive been thinking about buying a pointer, never used one but seen them used so thought I’d give it a go (getting down to model eye level gets harder by the year!)

live seen on the Warlord site that you can get a pointer and a laser line, can anyone please explain the difference, and is it best to have both?

Thanks,

John

 

 

[Master Chief]

The difference:

Laser line: Creates a thin red line between the firer and target. If the line crosses any obstacle, line of sight is blocked. You hold the pointer in the air between the firer and target, and shine it onto the map.

Laser point: Creates a red dot on the target. If the line of sight is blocked by an obstacle, the red dot will appear on the obstacle instead of the target. You hold the pointer in front of the firer and shine it towards the target.

 

My preference is for the laser line pointer. Either one works.

[Nigel Heather]

I bought a laser line for this purpose.  It was only cheap and primarily aimed at the DIY business but it does create a nice line along a flat table ….. BUT ……

the challenge is it tends to be too big when you try to put it to real use.  You usually have to move the spotting unit to put the gadget in place and even then you might find that surrounding units and scenery are in the way and if the path isn’t flat you will lose the line part way through its journey.

Maybe there are tiny wargaming versions, but for me, nice idea in principle but doesn’t work in practice.

 

Cheers,

Nigel

• This reply was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by Nigel Heather.

[Master Chief]

I found an image of how the laser line is used in wargaming.

 

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[Nigel Heather]

Ahh, so is that line being created by the gadget in the hand.  That is very different to what I have.

Would be interested in one of those, where do you get them from.

 

Cheers,

Nigel

[Nigel Heather]

Okay, clearly I am well behind the technology curve.  Just seen a video of one working (the Army Painter one) and very impressed … BUT …..

None of the videos give an idea of range, the line seems to top after a short distance.  Is that the case or is it just a matter of hooding it at a different angle.  My query is whether it will work for targets a metre or two across the table or is it just for targets less than 50cm away?

 

Cheers,

Nigel

[Master Chief]

Hi, the length of the line is variable and depends on the height the pointer is held above the table. The higher the longer the line. It should be able to measure anything within the standard 6×4 table.

I got my Army Painter one from a local hobby store. Warlord Games has come up with their own version on their online store.

[Haskeer]

Thanks for the swift answers!

 

one further point though- the laser line looks good, but surely if you’re holding it above the figures, it doesn’t give you a model eye view, rather a model base view, and an obstacle only (say) 3mm high will stop the line, when in fact the figures eye could actually see the target

 

Am I understanding it’s limitations correctly?

 

John

[Haskeer]

Scratch the last bit about blocking the line, I’ve realised how it works. I can see the benefit of having both now.

Thanks,

John

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