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Hello all!

Awhile ago, inspired by a picture i found online of someone kit-bashing to create an IG army called the Bretonnian 1st, i decided to model an entire army of Tallarn Imperial Guard. I can't find the pictures online anymore, so i attached them. (They are wargaming related, so i hope not to have any problems with that.)

After browsing the selection of GW models available, i decided to base my Tallarn Guardsmen off of the LotR Middle-Earth Rangers of Gondor.

However, after posting in the LotR forum, someone politely informed me that while WH40k models are of a heroic 28mm model scale, the LotR models are all of a wimpier true 25mm scale. While this meant nothing to me as i am an American and eat the metric system for breakfast, those crazy LotR players told me that there IS a noticeable difference in size between the models.

Only slightly discouraged, i bought some WHFB Wood Elf Glade Guardian bitz online. I got some torsos and legs, and now that they have arrived, i realize, while they are the same general height as the 28mm WH40k guardsmen, they look very thin to the point of malnourishment when put back-to-back with a normal guardsman model. This matters because i was planning on using the normal IG arms to outfit my Wood Elves with Lasguns.

So, the Middle-Earth Rangers are too tiny, and the Wood Elves are too skinny, what do you guys think i should do?

You are Just gonna have to buy Tallarn metals or make them out of greenstuff... cause i don't think there are any Fantasy armies that fit the look of the Tallarn... so a couple hundred dollars in Metal figs and Boom you have your Tallarn... I know cause i did it...

jep'ray wrote:...a couple hundred dollars in Metal figs and Boom you have your Tallarn... I know cause i did it...

The Tallarn models that GW sells are from the 90's, and they look absolutely awful. The Middle-Earth Rangers would look Tallarn (with the right paint job) if you took away their bows and arrows and gave them Lasguns, and the wood elves would look Tallarn (again, with some inventive painting) if they were a little meatier...

Alright the Brettonian IG look amazing. I would just do the regiment all them.

dude, those are some nice metals, I like them, and its a good looking army...and they are closer to the 80's but thats another story... they are a desert people now... the rangers look to much like Tanith 1st and only infantry than Tallarn desert raiders. Cloaks and all...the Glade Guard are too rangery looking to fit the bill for the Tallarn Desert... thinking it also looks more like Tanith.... and yeah, the bretonnian IG looks great

The old metal guards were all very fine models, and a large section including most Tallarn models can still be mailorder:
http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/armySubUnitCats.jsp?catId=cat1490651&rootCatGameStyle=
Later Forgeworld made some additional models:
http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/acatalog/TALLARN.html

As much as you all insist that the GW Tallarn models are "fine" models, i completely disagree. While they may have been fine models when i was in elementary school, they definitely show their age when placed next to a new Cadian model, or even a Grey Knight model from about the same age.

From a modeling perspective, what looks best about them is their turbans, which is something that can be easily replicated with Green Stuff. Soon i'm going to get to work on this army and i'll display my work in the P&M Blogs.

Awe come on, theye arent that bad. Thay have more poses than most IG forces I can remember and with some clean bases and paint they do just fine. I have almost 75 of these painted up with about 30 or so heavy weapon teams left to go. The smocks they wear, covers up most of their body and the turbans set them apart even more as you mentioned. The probelm I see is if you put turbans on cadins you have cadians with turbans. Tallarns have a distinctive look so unless your gonna start free sculpting them akin to what the gehius of a guy is doing with his steel legion free sculpts, I fear your just gonna have your figs look like they are what ever you used with some turbans added. Good luck with that for sure, I want to see what you come up with.

Yeah, i had all the metal guard at one point or another, and they do have the most poses on all the metals...i think the only exception was the Catachans, those metals looked better than the plastics... enough to ensure all the guard in one squad are all diffrent. and with exception of their guns being oldschool style, they are still great looking figs... have fun with the green stuff, i agree with Captain Vyper, unless you can match their clothes to the head garb, it just isn't gonna look right.

Outside of the old metal Tallarn models the only successful plastic conversion i've seen on the net are these beauties:


Obviously just cadian models, but little additions like pouches, and a simple and crisp painting make these models some of my most favourite.

Beyond that i'd have no idea how'd you do it effectively. The Tallarn imagery is very peculiar, something of which had been fostered in no small part by their metal counterparts. I've searched and thought over it myself but i've never been able to find a solution which matches the appearance i was going for. I also doubt anyone would be able to find a look which imitated the metal tallarn appearance effectively, partly because i imagine no matter what you'll do it'll take alot of conversion work, and also because you'd have to spread it over a fair few models.