Consolidating Counters

Recently, I spent some time consolidating my MicroBattle gaming materials into 2 boxes - one with terrain and markers and the other with counters.

I noticed that my counter box is rather full.

And I still need to mount some counters. Plus I've been toying a project for squad-based pre-modern skirmishes. Which means more counters!

A Consolidation Concept

I began to ponder ways I can reduce the amount of counters I have. I came up with a couple of ideas.

Idea # 1 - One Set to Rule Them All

The idea here is to use the same counters for squad-based actions and big battles. 

I'm not keen on my current counters for squads; there are nearly 100 individuals on a heavy-infantry counter. Instead, I could do use squad-based counters, like these.

Obviously, these work great for squads, but will they work for big battles? I suppose so. I see gamers frequently use a small number of minis to represent large formations. I could do the same, and call each counter a squad, brigade, division, or whatever.

Idea # 2 - Fewer Colors

Right now, I have about 9 sets of pre-modern armies, including 3 shades of blue and 1 purple. Maybe I can pair this down a bit.

I'm thinking red, white, blue, green, and black. I'm debating brown, which I use for native forces. I suppose I could use white or black for natives.