Miniature STL Files

Classic D&D and Pathfinder miniatures use 28mm heroic scale (a human stands 28mm from base to eye level). Modern fantasy miniatures — including popular patreon-style monthly releases — increasingly use 32mm heroic scale, which prints slightly larger and shows more surface detail. Warhammer 40K uses 28mm (infantry) to 32mm (Space Marines, after the 2019 base size update). Check each STL listing for the stated scale — most creators list it in the description. You can always scale to taste in your slicer software.

Resin printers (MSLA/SLA, e.g. Elegoo Mars, Anycubic Photon) produce far more detail than FDM — ideal for faces, fine armor details, and delicate weapon parts. Most dedicated miniature STL files are designed for resin. FDM printers (e.g. Bambu Lab, Prusa, Creality) work better for terrain, dungeon tiles, and larger scatter scenery where fine surface detail matters less. If you're printing character miniatures at 28–32mm scale, resin is the right choice. Many creators on Proofly mark their listings with the recommended printer type.

Pre-supported STL files include support structures already built into the model by the creator — you load the file into your slicer (Chitubox, Lychee) and print without adding your own supports. This is a major time saver and ensures the supports are placed correctly for the design. Unsupported STL files give you a clean mesh without built-in supports — more flexible if you want to orient the model differently or use automatic support generation. Many listings on Proofly include both supported and unsupported versions in the same ZIP package.

This depends on the license the creator chose. Personal license: print for yourself, no selling. Commercial license: you can sell painted physical miniatures printed from the file (but not the STL itself). Extended license: includes reselling the STL or using it in a product. Check the license section on each Proofly listing before purchasing. If you're a commission painter or run a miniature painting business, look specifically for Commercial-licensed files and message the creator if the listing is unclear.

Buying an STL file gives you a digital file you print yourself — no shipping wait, and you can print as many copies as the license allows (usually unlimited personal copies). Physical miniatures from Games Workshop or Reaper cost more per model, ship in weeks, and you get one copy. The tradeoff: printing requires a printer and post-processing time (cleaning, curing, removing supports). The economic math favors STL files once you own a printer: a $10 STL file can yield a full warband, while the same warband as physical minis can cost $80–$200.

Most miniature listings include STL (universal — works in Chitubox, Lychee, PrusaSlicer, Bambu Studio) and many also include 3MF (preserves scale and orientation, opens in PrusaSlicer/Bambu Studio with no rescaling needed). Some creators include OBJ for use in Blender if you want to kitbash or modify the model. ZIP packages often contain pre-supported and unsupported variants, multiple poses or base sizes. Check the Files tab on each listing before purchase.