Using Swap-Out Units
to Get the Most Mileage from Your Minis
One of the main purposes for this oversize Imperial Guard modeling project -
I have currently modeled the entire 1st Battalion of the Ice River Guards in
their close to 7500 point glory (apocalypse, here I come!) - was to create a
versatile force that can be used outside the Warhammer 40K setting.
For example, if I wanted to play Stargrunt II, I could easily translate
the figures I have into SGII terms - the system is designed for that. Ditto
Striker or Striker II. However, if I wanted to experiment with other unit types
or doctrines?
For example, if I wanted to experiment with rough riders I doubt I would use the horse mounted rough
riders (though the Attilan figures would mesh well with my Valhallans). I would
want something a little more hi-tech. I have some Void jet cycles (by I-Kore)
that would make passable Rough Riders (gotta love counts as!).
I also picked my forces to translate reasonably well to other games and
settings. For example, Warmachine is a popular game in my area. My Valhallans make usable Winter Guard in a Khador army. Just add some Warjacks
and we are ready to rock. I could also use them as Red Blok troopers for AT-43
(though I admit, the pre-painted figures for AT-43 are tasty). The Rackham figures would make good Guard
grenadier figures if you took the Carapace Armor doctrine. Being Lyubov is located out in
the Eastern Fringe in the Glimmerdrift Reach, they have access to technologies
the rest of the Imperium might consider to be HeriTek so I don't have to change
my fluff all that much when using the force in other games.
My hover tanks would work in most sci-fi settings - which I intended when I
modeled them. The standard GW tanks are usable in a low tech setting but in most
situations, the hovers make more sense. In a WH40K game, the hovers are strictly VDR
(Vehicle Design Rules).
For my opposition forces, the Tau make good generic aliens and the Tyranids
make good generic space monsters. I happen to have a Chaos Marine army on hand,
while not particularly generic they mesh well with my general collection. Adding
my old Warzone figures to the mix lets me field Genestealer Cults, Lost and the
Damned, Chaos Cult or Traitor Guard forces.
I have added a few figures from the AT-43 line (the pre-paints are great,
ready to play out of the box), some old Void figures from I-Kore (they have some
figures that make good snipers and partisans), a few warjacks and some
scratch builds. I also have a Mobile Infantry company than 'counts as' Space
Marines or Grenadiers to round out the human forces collection.
This broad selection of figures allow me to go to my collection for an army
for almost any game. My guards have seen action under Starship Troopers,
Stargrunt II, AT-43, Battlefield Evolution, Striker, and Warmachine rules with
reasonable success in each case. The swap out figures for these games include a
few Warjacks (warmachine) and some infantry walkers (AT-43). They have even
functioned as Israeli and American troops in the Traveller 2300 setting campaign
a few years back with a friends Orks standing in for the Kafirs.
They can serve as Khador, Terran Federation, New Israeli, Red Blok, Imperial
(Third Imperium), Russian, Israeli, or even American troops(I have built
standard bearers to carry American, Israeli, Terran Federation, Red Blok,
Soviet, Russian and Third Imperium colors as well as my regimental colors). Pretty versatile if you ask me and they
give me good value for my gaming dollar. I have gotten some ribbing from my
mates over my approach - and of course, after giving me grief over it they
adopted it themselves. But on balance, I can pretty much play whatever my
opponent wants with the figures I have on hand.
In case you haven't noticed, I tend to collect armies that represent a
particular theatre of operations. This is true of my fantasy collection (Orcs,
Night Goblins, Common Goblins, Army of the Necromancer, Chaos, Dwarfs,
Averlander Empire and Bretonnians) with the Averlanders being my primary force.
The collection representing actions that might be fought in and around Averland
(web site coming soon).
My 40K collection represents actions that might be fought on or around Lyubov.
Even my Battlefleet Gothic collection follows this pattern - allowing me to play
BFG or any other generic space game with my figs (I like Full Thrust quite a
bit).
By looking at what games are being played in your area, you can choose an
army or armies that are reasonably similar and have analogs in a variety of
settings. The Guard is well suited to this approach because practically all
games include men with rifles. (The same reasoning makes Empire, Bretonnian, or
Dogs of War good choices for fantasy generics). Keep your forces reasonably
generic and you can stretch your gaming dollar and the value of your painting
time.
I wouldn't, for example, invest in a Dark Eldar army; not because the
figures aren't cool - they are - but because they are too closely tied to the
40K universe and don't translate well to other settings. However, while
pontificating on this very point at my FLGS, I was asked by a newer gamer who
had just purchased a nicely painted Dark Eldar army from one of my mates in
anticipation of the new Codex, if I couldn't think how to make her new army
portable. Being the great and gallant Graybearded Sage that I am, I decided to
try and help the young lass out. Dark Eldar, as the more erudite readers of this
site may be aware, are the current incarnation of the Eldar Pirates of Rogue
Trader fame. Space pirates have been a staple of science fiction since David
Langford wrote "Sex Pirates of the Blood Asteroid" in 1979 (which, by the
way, is a rousing good read and definitely a must see for a budding Dark Eldar
player). The stealing the idea right out of the title, I suggested being Dark
Eldar are everyone's favorite bondage freaks why not play up the space pirate
angle even going so far as to adopt the Sex Pirate angle. After thinking about
it for a minute or so, the notion began to grow on her - sort of like athlete's
foot - and much to my surprise she decided to go for it. Space pirates raiding
isolated colonial outposts of just about anyone makes the army very portable.
Being against all flags, it doesn't matter much what setting the battle occurs
in. The opposing side is the 'Law and Order' force while the Cabal of the Blood
Asteroid are the pirate force. She liked the idea of her pirates being sort of
an Amazon-type force bent on stealing unsuspecting citizens to use as pleasure
slaves/breeding stock by this hearty band of rogues (shades of the Slaneeshi
'Cult of Pleasure' from Warhammer Fantasy's Storm of Chaos
campaign).
What I learned from this brief exercise in fluff building for a fellow gamer
was that given enough thought, you can invent a reason for your army being
almost anywhere - by maintaining an eye toward portability in your fluff you can
greatly expand the reach of your gaming dollar while allowing yourself to
indulge in whatever army strikes your fancy.
So there you have it, keep it simple and reasonably generic and you can use
your collection in a variety of settings. Keep your collection consistent within
itself and you have ample fodder to teach someone else how to play your favorite
game(s).
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