Hey there! I was unsure about where to put this post but figured this sub-forum is as good as any. But, the title says it all. Do you convert your minis? I can understand that tournament players do this to have models represent their list correctly. But for the people at home, do you bother? Personally I have been considering doing this, but compared to simply saying “this rifle is a sniper rifle” it seems a lot of work(and money) for minimal improvement to the gameplay. And for the people doing this, do you purchase several boxes/blisters just for the weapons? I come from a GW background, where weaponry and conversions are easy. But I’ve found that I’ve grown more detached from the chopping-minis-part of the hobby. Rather putting the hobby effort in painting and basing. I presume I can’t be the only one? I’m curious of how other people tackle this issue, and it would be great to hear your thoughts and ideas regarding the matter. Cheers!
I do my best to get as many wysiwyg models as possible, but I am quite fond of the sneaky pistol proxy. IE if the model only has a pistol or a similar weapon common to all of that unit's profiles then technically its wysiwyg for them all, and it cannot reasonably be disallowed since CB does it already... Converting metal minis is a somewhat lost art, and honestly for some things you need to go to fairly extreme lengths to get the parts, so I can see why people would prefer to use proxy instead. There are ways around the problems, I'm not sure CB would appreciate me covering some of them in detail, but the option to use @ShaeKonnit for donner models is probably pretty safe...
I do it for fun a lot of the time. I enjoy modeling and conversion projects. For example, I acquired several of the old-style BSG Yaogats, made some into Combi models, and then used the spare weapons to make shotgun versions of the Kurgat, Rasyat, and Zerat. I also used parts from a Vanguard missile launcher to make a Rodok ML before the official model was released. I'm sure I've done a few other conversions or arm swaps as well, but I can't think of examples at the moment. You'll find that Infinity tournaments are not very strict about WYSIWYG, however. The general ITS rules say that the model used needs to accurately represent the unit/loadout, but the exact terms of that are pretty vague. There are a number of unit boxes that include models armed only with pistols or CCWs, and these are generally considered to be universal proxy figures that can stand in for any other loadout.
IF CB made weapon sprues it would be a big deal, but they dont, so it isnt. As long as its not confusing, ie this rifle is a hmg, this rifle is a spitfire then i have never had anyone care.
They do have *some* weapon sprues (in the spec-ops model blisters) but they aren't available as an item on their own. I've converted some of my models to have the "correct" weapons - using arm and weapon swaps from other blisters/boxes and from those sprues. It also means I have more models for a given unit type than I will ever use at a time but it means when you look at the model, you can usually be certain that it's carrying what it has.
I tend to rely mostly on "this mini has this kind of weapon" if the weapon I want to proxy looks like the one it's pretending to be (for example I use the sniper Agema as a mk12 Agema, as both the sniper rifle and the mk12 look somewhat alike). But mostly it depends on your gaming group and if they complaint about using proxies. In almost every match I had in the past, just by clearly stating what weapon is holding each figure was enough. However, I do not shy on weapon swapping (or modelling them myself) if what I need is not available. You can read about those conversions in my blog (shameless self promotion). The posts you'll need to look for are these ones: Spitfire Deva for Aleph Female Aleph Posthumans: MK4 Female Aleph Posthumans: MK5 Neoterra Conversions I hope you find those helpful.
I do, your conversions are pretty great as usual, and i do want to copy some of these as i too prefer a fully female generic ALEPH. No idea when though.
For me it's a constant struggle between the need to have all the loadouts I actually use as WYSIWYG (at least unit+main weapon, not including stuff like grenades etc.), and the more realistic plan to have at least one faction painted & playable and not add to the Pile of Painting Procrastination.
I have spent $100 on janissarys to just have same ARMOR in a 5 man. I don't want to count in tonnage the metal I have cut and filed to get all weapon options in aleph and haqq. I have a problem and need help....
I don't have a problem. I'm not in denial. I'm also not OCD, so I can live without changing the small things.
For me the main reason for converting miniatures is just the fun of modelling, and I also don't like to have few clones :) The plus of having WYSIWYG is just another positive thing. I'm also not so sure that converting metal miniatures is hard - it just need a bit of practice. And a good saw (that doesn't mean expensive :P). I converted myself a Ghulam Doctor from my favourite scuplt (Snake Plissken) and a multi-role Ghulam/Engineer/Halqa by simply adding some addtional stuff on miniatures. More fun was with my third Daylami, which I wanted to show WYSIWYG for the Inferior Infilitration / Limited Camo / Panzerfaust + Light Shotgun profile ;) And if I play with unpainted minis, I paint their main armament on the base, like "HRL" for Muyib, "HMG" for Ghulam, "KHD + SMR" on Leila etc. Not only when the weapons don't fit - it's my usual way of making playing against me easier ;) PozdRawiam / Greetings
I'm a big fan of personalizing my armies. So when the oportunity arises to convert a mini to get WYSIWYG, it's just another excuse for me to personalize my army even more. I must also point out that I have a wonderful, indulgent wife andI'm extremely lucky to have her (she said yes to @theGricks 's bits box idea for Infinity, I still don't know how)
Did you not read my previous post about converting models to have appropriate weapons for their profiles? Of course I have models I don't use. I'm a miniatures gamer, FFS. I have a necron (40k) monolith and a Tau hammerhead tank bought purely because I wanted to light them up (never bought into either of the armies, though). The "not having OCD" is because I'm willing to let the little stuff slide. Grenades don't get modelled. I'm not overly fussed if I have models with older versions of weapons if it means they still have the right sort of weapon. Both of these give OCD peeps conniptions. I still use no BS weapon shown models, too. The main reason I get into playing miniatures games is BECAUSE of the models. The main reason I stop playing them is the rules. This means I also end up with models from rulesets that I no longer play (but that's fine. It's all because of the models - without the pretty 3d models, we may as well be playing tabletop with meeples).
I probably didn't. lol. Either way, it was just a joke, buddy. We don't play WYSIWYG in our community either, and as a TO, i'm totally fine with proxies. That being said, all of us hobbyists have a problem - it's just how it manifests itself (either through obsessive conversion or collecting models we don't necessarily need).
Thanks for all the great answers guys, sure some food for thought! It's interesting to see how different people reason around the issue, both depending on the situation (tournaments) and passion(people truly enjoying the personalizing aspect of an army). For now, I think I will settle using models straight for the box. But I do feel the urge to make an army "my own". So, once I figure out what my second army will be I think I'll plan ahead with purchases to convert them, and not just only the weapons. However, to be quite honest I think one thing holding me back a bit is the price. I have to admit that buying several boxes/blisters (like the janissaries above) however tempting, ends up being crazy expensive. I mean look at the CB promoted conversion of a flying Scarface, no matter how cool it looks, that conversion is CRAZY expensive. Of course that's an example that might be over the top, but still. As a side note, since you all have been very kind on your input. Do any of you guys know a good site for fluff/concept art? Seems impossible to find. Perhaps buying the books is the only way to obtain it? Cheers!
Some fluff and art is available on the Human Sphere page. https://human-sphere.com/index.php?title=Main_Page Also, some art is up on Deviantart or Pinterest - but yes, most of it can only be seen in the books. The free rules are the hook - if you want the fluff, you've gotta pay for that ... :D
