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How Do You Do It?
Topic Started: 7th October 2009 - 01:40 PM (845 Views)
Warlord Kaskit
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Warlord of Clan Vorsk
Simple enough question, really. I was discussing, with the guys at my local GW, how they put together an army and what is of the most importance to them. One guy, for example, said that he just bought whatever models seemed 'coolest' to him, and didn't really bother about making an army list until he had everything he wanted. Another guy said, in quite the opposite manner, that he worked out a suitable army list and then bought models to fit with that list.

By comparison, myself and three friends work out the 'fluff' first, since that is one of the coolest aspects of Warhammer, in my opinion. We have a nice little system where, if one or more of us is considering creating a new army, we create a campaign that we can use to begin and expand that army.

So, for example, i'm about to embark on an Empire army project, and we've just worked out the campaign for it. It will start with a Captain, regiment of Swordsmen and regiment of Handgunners (all from Altdorf) being sent on a mission to Nuln by the Emperor to secure a shipment of machinery and return it to Altdorf. Along the way they will be attacked by Skaven (played by one of my friends) and in the course of this battle a second army consisting of a wizard and another regiment (undecided) will show up to help. They join the army, and I have some new regiments and a hero for my army. Once we get to Nuln (probably after some more battles) i'll recieve a nice war machine, maybe a cannon or even a steam tank.

So there is my way, and now the question - how do you collect and make your armies?
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SneakyRodent
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A good question.

Usually I go for the approach of your friend, the 'nicest models first' tactic. Obviously I have to bear in mind the necessary core units, but if, for example, I was starting a completely new Skaven Army with the advent of the new Army Book, my first model would undoubtably be the Doomwheel as I think it is excellent. After that it would be Snikch, and so on.

Obviously this means I don't immediately have a force I can start fighting with, but I consider that only a small price to pay. Besides, it gives me longer to study the Army Book and try and devise tactics :P
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bakfire the experimenter
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i normally pick a theme for my army based on a story and try to stay true to that.... my skaven for example are a bunch of misfits wandering around the wastes who banded together for protection - so i didnt take anything that i thought was too good i.e no storm vermin, jezzails etc..... after two years my story has evolved and i am allowed 17 storm vermin and 5 jezzails as they have fled off the battle field in some games i have witnessed so they are out in the wastes some where... so far i have found the jezzails but no sign of the storm vermin
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blader4411
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Well, I always begin with a theme of some sort, which I build my army around. Take for example my High Elves, who began with the idea to do a Nagarythe army, based on a core of archers and spearmen, supported by bolt thrower. Once the groundwork is done, I begin buying models, testing the army as I go along. So my final 2000pts army is a prince on star dragon, a noble, 2 mages, a large block of spearmen, some archers, shadow warriors, chariots, and bolt throwers. An army with a theme and (when I get around to writing it) backstory, and is also effective. With the UDC here, and the new Skaven book right around the corner, I believe that I will be turning Deathmeld into an actual army, so stay tuned! ^_^

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Skavenmasterlip
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Clanrat
Ya I do the Story thing for my main armys then buy and paint the army, then i giot side armys, most of them i create a story for afterword but i buy them cause they look kool and i almost never make an army list till the last seconds unless its some sort of turnament or i want a specific theme to my army.
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visp
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I always begin with the oldest of urges.... the one that is accompanied by the words... 'ohhhhhh shiney' upon seeing a model.

The rest usually springs up around that initial urge!.

My Dark Elves for example... way back when I started them we're started because I painted up the Morathi model... The rest of the stuff came after.

The Skaven started when I saw the Screaming Bell.. followed by 'ohhh shiney'. I had no idea what It did... and didnt even by the book till I'd painted it. The reverse colour skaven followed after several pints one night.
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Hodg-rat
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The most important thing I do when making a list for a new army is deciding if I like the models enough to paint them all. If I don't like the models the process stop there, no matter how good the army might be.

I normally spend hours making a list. Then I come back to it a few days later and see if I still like it and if I still think it is good. Then I revise it again and again. Eventually after a long time I figure I like it enough to spend 300 to 500 dollars on it... Then I buy it box by box when I can afford it.
Do I really have to paint ALL these rats...?
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Stinkhair
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Dabbling GM. Clanrat loon. 6th Edition Aficionado. Bitter.

I took a theme and ran with it ^_^

I run a clanrat and slave horde with globadier support, led by a Warlord and a BSB - My only real concession to effectiveness at the moment is two naked Warlocks with two dispel scrolls apiece - although an anti-magic plan is a sensible tactic in the warhammer world, and fully explainable with fluff ^_^


So, yes. Fluff first, with small tweaks based on making the army viable in the field ^_^
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Warlock Rageaganish
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Beleive me, it's surprising to face Stinkhair... I only did it once, and back then he was lacking the anti-magic plan... It was interesting to see his troops totally filling his table side after deploying... To the point there was no place left in his deployment zone, mind you...

On subject now:
I'd have to say it depends on the army... When I see an army with a look that appeals to me, I go with the "looking cool" approach... That was the approach I had when I first started the hobby, so my oldest armies were purchased that way... My Skaven were chosen that way, and even while there are units that I never use, I still got them for their look... And others that I'd like to field, but that I find the model to be too ugly to waste money on (yes, I'm looking at you mister globadier :lol:)

Nowaday, when I choose a new army, I'm looking more for a combined look/battlefield tactic meld... When came the time to choose a new 40K army, I chose Tau because of a combination of their look and the way they play on a battlefield. They're not the most performing force, but the theme/strategies were the appeal.
Going exclusively for performance I'd be another space marine player... LOL But I don't like their theme...
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MonsterZero
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Carpe Cerevisi
Fluff is foremost in my mind when I choose an army. Once I decide that an army is worth taking a closer look at based on fluff, I'll purchase their book (if I've not already got it) and look through the rules to see if I'd enjoy playing with the army. Then I look at the models to see if I'd enjoy painting them. Many lists have come and gone across my computer screen, but a lot of them fall off my desk (and into the trash bin) after they fail the playability and/or the paintability test. Bretonnians, Dwarves, Elves... They've all been sacked for one reason or another, so skaven and lizardmen are my only armies that occupy my hobby cabinets at the moment.

Nice topic! B)

MZ
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deathmaster riddick
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i would say that it's a mixture of all three. the first thing i do is look for the coolest models in the army. i base my force around one or two of these units(or heroes). i then think of a new type of unit i'd like to try(fast cavalry, war machine, uber scouts, 500 point 10 model units). from this roughly 600 point base of units, i devise a battle strategy around the 3-5 units that i already have. once the army is together i dig through the book, looking for fluff and brainstorming a background for my army.
The best way to configure an army is to go play demons.-Nevamore Posted on Nov 6 2009, 04:02 PM

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Pestilent Lord
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Doomwheel Driver
It's kind of funny to me looking back, but I bought a Skaven army without actually seeing any of the models of the army. I'd played a few games borrowing armies from my friends, dwarves, Orcs & Goblins and some Ogres. Then another friend brought along the army book for Skaven and mentioned he was considering selling them. I looked into the book, found the page on the army special rules and I was in. A race that is brave only in numbers? Their leaders can choose to avoid getting into hand to hand AND they're willing to shoot their own guys to take a few of the others down?? What's not awesome about that??
As for deciding what I was getting, I didn't really do that, I just bought the entire army off of him, and it included a bit of everything. To this day, the only things I have bought that the army didn't have at least some of have been a Warlord and some Night Runners.
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Halceon
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I began by buying the barest necessities and some ooh-shinies. Which, oddly enough, was also a sound tactical choice. Then some lore came along and i'm sure i won't be buying Moulder stuff anytime soon.
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mrtn
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It depends. My beastman army started with the idea for the paint scheme. "Wouldn't it be cool with some beastmen looking like lions, living on the savannah? Yes, it would, let's start a Mordheim warband, and possibly even an army!"

My skaven army has been bought almost exclusively second hand on an internet auction site. This means that I've expanded it in bits and pieces, and haven't really had a plan. Well, apart from the plan "don't buy a lot of monkey-rats, hope for new plastic clanrats in a year or two instead". That plan has been quite successful, the army now includes more of the old monopose clanrats than the monkeyrats.
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outbreak
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My tomb kings were bought based on a list then once i had a nice force i looked at what else is cool i'd want.
My dwarfs were bought in batches of used models so whatever i found cheap i grabbed then fit into my lists.
Skaven so far have been the same as the dwarfs but they will be made more to a list now.
I semi theme my lists but i usually just try to fit in units that will have a role/are cool to paint.
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