X-Wing and Armada both use cardboard tombstones to identify which ships belong to which player and to differentiate between multiples of the same model.
It looks like IA uses stickers to do something similar. The problem I see with the stickers is that they are a little more permanent than removable tombstones. How do you keep track of which models belong to whom if both players decided to use the black 1-3 stickers on their Stormtroopers?
I paint my stuff, and I make them all slightly different so they are differentiated from each other. For example, My stormtroopers are divided into 3 groups. Regular White-Armored troopers with Red Base, Regular White Armored with Grey Base - and Dirty White Armored with Grey Base. My Rebel Troopers are all the same colors except for their BOOTS - one set has black boots, the second set has BLUE boots. These differences should usually be enough to distinguish my miniatures and squadrons from an opponents figures, or from my own figures when fielding multiple squadrons.
And worst case scenario I'll just use stickers. I've seen people put stickers on teh BOTTOM of the miniature - so that it is available if you want to see it, but doesn't detract from the look of the figure itself. I'm not a fan of that method though, I prefer to re-color a single aspect of each squadron.
I want to be a painter. But between my incredibly unsteady hand, my kids, and my inability to color within the lines, I can't paint my minis. However, that didn't stop me from getting a red and black sharpie to color the edges of the bases on my minis. 3 storm troopers have red trim on the side of the circle base, 3 have black and 3 are uncolored. I did the same for other units with duplicate groups (probe droid, royal guard, etc). The nice thing is that you can use the red ones for elite, but you don't have to. I'd include pictures, but I'm so inartistic, I can't even do that.
I want to be a painter. But between my incredibly unsteady hand, my kids, and my inability to color within the lines, I can't paint my minis. However, that didn't stop me from getting a red and black sharpie to color the edges of the bases on my minis. 3 storm troopers have red trim on the side of the circle base, 3 have black and 3 are uncolored. I did the same for other units with duplicate groups (probe droid, royal guard, etc). The nice thing is that you can use the red ones for elite, but you don't have to. I'd include pictures, but I'm so inartistic, I can't even do that.
How old are your kids?
Maby you could get them to paint the figures? 
Easiest way I've found was to paint the edge of the bases different colors. Painting the edges allows you to keep a consistant basing look across all your minis and yet keep them seperate. Red for an elite group. Grey and blue for generics. Not too many things in the game offer a chance at personalizing a group unless you want your own color schemes on the minis but I've seen most people paint theirs up in the standard SW color schemes.
Edited by FilterMy minis will probably be staying unpainted unless a friend of mine that paints is really bored and is looking for something to paint.
So it sounds like painting the base is probably the way most people mark group membership but how do you know which model is which?
@OddBall: My kids are 1 and 3. Although they are already exhibiting more left-brain-ness (?) that myself. So maybe in a few years.
@WWHSD: I don't think I understand the question. You mean how do you differentiate each Storm Trooper in a group? I just stack damage and other tokens on the base of each figure. Sometimes I've stacked the damage tokens and placed the figure on top of that.
@WWHSD: I don't think I understand the question. You mean how do you differentiate each Storm Trooper in a group? I just stack damage and other tokens on the base of each figure. Sometimes I've stacked the damage tokens and placed the figure on top of that.
Yup - that's what I'm wondering. I've only ever play with someone else's minis and they all had the colored number stickers on them. We had the damage tokens stacked next to the matching numbers near the deployment cards.
Easiest way I've found was to paint the edge of the bases different colors. Painting the edges allows you to keep a consistant basing look across all your minis and yet keep them seperate. Red for an elite group. Grey and blue for generics. Not too many things in the game offer a chance at personalizing a group unless you want your own color schemes on the minis but I've seen most people paint theirs up in the standard SW color schemes.
I'd even go so far as to paint only part of the base edge in the different colour, that way you also have a "field of view" or "facing" indicator for other uses
I paint the bases different colours by squads and my uniques are mostly just white.
@WWHSD: I don't think I understand the question. You mean how do you differentiate each Storm Trooper in a group? I just stack damage and other tokens on the base of each figure. Sometimes I've stacked the damage tokens and placed the figure on top of that.
Yup - that's what I'm wondering. I've only ever play with someone else's minis and they all had the colored number stickers on them. We had the damage tokens stacked next to the matching numbers near the deployment cards.
I think your friend misunderstood how the tokens and stickers are meant to be used and will eventually run short. 
A given deployment card should only have one token on it, and all the figures in its group should have the matching sticker. That's why you get three copies of each sticker, but only one of each token.
@WWHSD: I don't think I understand the question. You mean how do you differentiate each Storm Trooper in a group? I just stack damage and other tokens on the base of each figure. Sometimes I've stacked the damage tokens and placed the figure on top of that.
Yup - that's what I'm wondering. I've only ever play with someone else's minis and they all had the colored number stickers on them. We had the damage tokens stacked next to the matching numbers near the deployment cards.
I think your friend misunderstood how the tokens and stickers are meant to be used and will eventually run short.
That's a shame. It certainly made it easy to keep things straight.
I paint things slightly different, then use MTG colored sleeves to keep all the things straight. I have two sets of royal guards, one set has a silver staff and the other has a blue staff, then I use a regular sleeve and a blue sleeve to differentiate them. Same with the Trandoshans, one set has an orange jumpsuit (orange sleeve) and the other has a brown jumpsuit (regular or brown sleeve)
The imperial officers were a little tricky... I painted one more green than the other and put orange chevrons on his shoulder (orange sleeve), then I have a blond officer (yellow sleeve), and a brown haired one (clear sleeve).
I also clear base all my figs! Looks great on the board.
Someone over at boardgame geek uses loom bracelets to mark his minis.
It's a great idea for non painters such as myself who don't want to put stickers on their mini's.
A loom bracelet is a childrens kit that uses what looks like mini rubber bands that they piece together to make jewelry. You can use a single rubber band thingy to wrap around the base of your minis. The kit comes with lots of colors so it's also good for campaigns when you have multiple storm trooper units on the board. You can put 3 red bands around the base of one storm trooper group and then put a red token on the deployment card to match those bands.
http://www.amazon.com/DIY-Rubber-Band-Bracelets-Loom/dp/B00FADI4X2
Edited by ReirycGenerally, I just remember - this group of Storm Troopers is over here, this group is over there. Not ideal, obviously! In time I shall paint them.
Someone over at boardgame geek uses loom bracelets to mark his minis.
It's a great idea for non painters such as myself who don't want to put stickers on their mini's.
A loom bracelet is a childrens kit that uses what looks like mini rubber bands that they piece together to make jewelry. You can use a single rubber band thingy to wrap around the base of your minis. The kit comes with lots of colors so it's also good for campaigns when you have multiple storm trooper units on the board. You can put 3 red bands around the base of one storm trooper group and then put a red token on the deployment card to match those bands.
http://www.amazon.com/DIY-Rubber-Band-Bracelets-Loom/dp/B00FADI4X2
That's a great idea!
Someone over at boardgame geek uses loom bracelets to mark his minis.
It's a great idea for non painters such as myself who don't want to put stickers on their mini's.
A loom bracelet is a childrens kit that uses what looks like mini rubber bands that they piece together to make jewelry. You can use a single rubber band thingy to wrap around the base of your minis. The kit comes with lots of colors so it's also good for campaigns when you have multiple storm trooper units on the board. You can put 3 red bands around the base of one storm trooper group and then put a red token on the deployment card to match those bands.
http://www.amazon.com/DIY-Rubber-Band-Bracelets-Loom/dp/B00FADI4X2
I do something similar with my obstacles in X-Wing.
When you use the stickers, do you put 1 (black for example) on all three stormtroopers or do you use 1,2 and 3?
Like I was saying earlier, you get three of each color/number combination's sticker, but only one of each combination's token, so clearly the intended use is to mark the whole group with the same combination. I mean, you can do it however you want, but I think you'll run out of tokens if you try to assign a unique combination to each figure.
I paint small colored dots on the edge of the bases.
There is a "red" unit of Stormtroopers, one of them having 1 red dot on the edge of the base, one of them 2 red dots, one of them 3 red dots.
I have made additional cards to put damage tokens, focus, etc. on. Therefore, I needed to clearly differentiate the troopers of one group.
Why hasn't anyone thought of painting the underside of the bases?
That way the troops look the same on the board, but if you start getting confused, you just have to lift the mini up and look at the base.
Splattered with the blood of my enemies!
I have put clear bases on my regular troops and score cuts into the edge of the base and then paint the colours to identify elites or not. 1 score for number 1 unit, 2 scores for the second etc. i found that its less intrusive than a mark on the face of the bases.
Here is my solution, I put them up on bbg
Here is my solution, I put them up on bbg
I really like this idea.