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A friend recently convinced me to look into tabletop wargaming, as he was also interested in the hobby as well. We both have a few Dawn of War games, so we kinda know what we're getting into. While he will start with Space Marines and eventually save up for Necrons, I decided to remain pure and go for the Adepta Sororitas. Of course, I have some questions that seemingly no amount of googling can answer. Again, I am a noob, so these questions might be obvious to the pros out there.

1. Do the Battle Sisters Squad come with bases in the package, or do I need to buy them separately? If I do, what size bases do I need?
2. Are there any special for assembling and painting metal figurines? I know that you have to use super glue as opposed to plastic glue, wash in warm soapy water before assembling, and score the contact points, but just making sure.

As I have more questions, I'll update this post, but these are the imperative ones atm. Thank you!

Welcome to Dakka.

Bases should be included. I think the entire SoB line is on the older small bases (one inch rounds).

Metal models are a little harder to clean. I’d get a set of small files to help with mold lines. Some larger bits require pinning, so a pin vice and bits are almost required. You can probably skimp on normal people-sized minis, but larger metal models are more prone to breakage.

Metals are also gong to be on slota bases with foot tabs. So if you want to use other bases, you will need to cut that off and pin them down. You will also probably want some green stuff to fill the empty space in the slot (and to help the tab fit snugly)

All models should come with 25mm slot bases as standard.

Metal is a fekking pain to superglue what I find helps is a small blob of putty helps hold parts in place as the super glue sets, I find the gel version to be better as well.

HI NK,

1. To my knowledge, they come with bases included. I am assuming they will be 25mm round, but ymmv. At the moment, GW says base your minis however you want, so if you are not happy, feel free to substitute whatever you feel happy with.

2. Yes. Though you may want to dust baking soda on the glue joints, it speeds up the drying. I use Uhu glue for metals, with pins.

Good luck with your Sisters!

Ok, hmm.

First sisters of battle are freaken great... *deep breath* don't touch them until the codex and hopefully plastic sisters comeout. We have been waiting nearly 20 years for them... ok never mind if you are going to jump in go for it.

Seriously i have watched our local die hard sisters player table more people than i have. I make a point of tabling a fool, they just do it better. (FYI i hate your faction)

The joy of metal, the answer is always score and pin. Use gel super glue if possible, it generally is easier to work with. If you get loctite/lepage "fancy bottle", once it appears empty crack the case open (use clippers on the black part right near the clear plastic at te top, one snip either side), you have an other 1/2 tube inside.

You will want to pin the jump packs on your seraphim (these are nasty 2 units min are recommended), and the penitent engines, (enjoy them i hate these evil things). Any loose hands with weapons you will want to pin.

Scoring alone is generally enough on lighter pieces until you drop them, then pinning just helps to realign everything for a quick repair if needed.

They should come with the correct size bases.

Do yourself a favor and look at the assassins, they can give you extra punch.

What are some alternative plastic models for the sisters?

 CadianGateTroll wrote:
What are some alternative plastic models for the sisters?

Dreamforge Valkyr with alternate female heads are pretty popular and a bit cheaper. There's also Raging Heroes which are resin and almost as expensive.

Have fun, I am waiting till the "rumoured codex and plastic" comes out.

I really want to start a Sisterhood, but even tho I have experience with metal (first army was Squats) I have no interest in working with metal other than specific units again.

Plastic Sisters or Squats coming back would make me spend waaay too much money.

My reccomendation is buy some (cheap) minis to practice with and a good set of tools (saw, gouge, files..) you should feel comfortable enough to work on nice stuff.

just a bit of warning on the Raging Heroes ones: They're a very different aesthetic when compared to GWs Sisters, and while they're multipose, they're also very much "action" poses, and very fiddly to build.

And they're made of resin which needs cleaning (especially the stuff from RH often feels like half resin, half mould release agent) and superglue, but at least the flash etc is easier to clean than with metal.

I'd not necessarily recommend them to a newbie.

Most of the metal Sisters don't require assembly and are all one part. You just glue on a backpack and your good. Exorcists and Penitent Engines are the most gluing you'll have to do. Other than that off the top of my head only the Mistress Repentia and Cannoness have other parts and thats tgeir hands.

Exorcists are a pain. The little cockpit the missle loading servitor sits in glues to the underside of a hole in the back of the rhino chassis and has a tendancy to fall out since its quite xhunky bit of metal. I glued some props underneath them. Then theres the orgam itself which probably won't sit flat or flush you'll need to gap fill it.

I've not assembled a penitant engine (I kitbashed mine) but I've seen the words "pin" and "everything" used in reference to them.

First off, I would seriously recommend you to pick another army, any army, rather than SoBs. This is not because of the power level or anything, but it's because the range is ancient . Not only are you gonna break the bank trying to get a decent sized army (you'll probably go through a few hundred just getting basic troop choices) but you'll also find the army to be extremely fiddly to work with. Like others have said, smaller casts are ok, but larger ones like the Pentient Engine and Exorcist will have you tearing your hair out. While I've never personally assembled either, I have assembled something similar to each (the old metal Greater Daemons and various old Space Marine Tanks with metal bitz, like the old whirlwind, predator and land raider crusader). Warping is often an issue with metal models, meaning that you'll be considered ungodly lucky if your pieces fit together properly. This is why pinning is important. You'll also need to know how to properly gap-fill for them, or you will have unsightly cracks in your models. I would say a Pin Vice drill, a good selection of wires of all gauges, and some greenstuff/epoxy putty to be manditory equipment for dealing with metal models. All of these I would consider moderate modelling techniques, so if this is your first time jumping into it, it might be an issue.

(However if you've done other metal miniatures before, then feel free to ignore all of that. This is an issue with metal miniatures in general).

On SoBs specifically, I would also recommend getting either liquid masking fluid or masking tape and a sharp knife. the two SoB tanks comes with a clear plastic dome that you do not want to get paint on.

All of that said, SoBs are one of the more flavourful armies still available, and honestly one that a lot more people would play if not for the above issues (I still insists that if GW ever put out plastic SoB infantry boxes, they would outsell every single space marine set combined). One good thing about being largely one-piece metal is that if you find them on the second hand market, you can largely be sure they're not missing pieces (as there's barely, if any, pieces to lose). Just note that people are aware of their price and desirability and often ask for ridiculous prices for them.

NightKnight wrote:
A friend recently convinced me to look into tabletop wargaming, as he was also interested in the hobby as well. We both have a few Dawn of War games, so we kinda know what we're getting into. While he will start with Space Marines and eventually save up for Necrons, I decided to remain pure and go for the Adepta Sororitas. Of course, I have some questions that seemingly no amount of googling can answer. Again, I am a noob, so these questions might be obvious to the pros out there.

1. Do the Battle Sisters Squad come with bases in the package, or do I need to buy them separately? If I do, what size bases do I need?
2. Are there any special for assembling and painting metal figurines? I know that you have to use super glue as opposed to plastic glue, wash in warm soapy water before assembling, and score the contact points, but just making sure.

As I have more questions, I'll update this post, but these are the imperative ones atm. Thank you!

First off, yes they come with bases like every other set. Each model has a tab that fits into the slot. Sometimes it doesn't because it's too thick, and you have to file it down a bit.

I'd recommend painting before gluing their backpacks on, but that goes for plastic models too.

Penitent Engines are an absolute nightmare, to assemble.


Also, you're going to want to look into getting precisely what you need for you list, at least when starting out. You're going to want a lot of meltaguns and storm bolters.

Welcome along! Dont listen to the naysayers- you want to start with Sisters of Battle then go for it! They were my starting army and now my sole army. You start with these girls and no other army will ever compare to them as they shall forever reside in a special place in your heart.

I wont answer the questions youve asked as theyve been answered several times over.

On obtaining models. Youre welcome to sell your firstborn to pay for the prices GW wants. Or, you could jump onto ebay and acquire models through there much more cheaply.

Grishnak is another source of alternative sisters. Alas i do not have the link handy.

As Katherine mentioned above, youll definately want to plan your purchases. Plan what sort of force organisation youwant to go for, write up your army list and work from that.

Special weapons you can never have too many of. So of you can get your hands on them, jump on it.
That said, there is a basic sister model that is posed too be ready to throw a grenade. The bolter can be cut off this model easily enough to be replaced with a plastic meltagun.

Dont worry about plastic sisters. No idea when thatll happen, its just the "plastic privilege" crowd turning their noses; so just get into them now. No self respecting sisters player should be without 20kg of models- easily accomplished by having half a squad XD

 MechaEmperor7000 wrote:
First off, I would seriously recommend you to pick another army, any army, rather than SoBs. This is not because of the power level or anything, but it's because the range is ancient . Not only are you gonna break the bank trying to get a decent sized army (you'll probably go through a few hundred just getting basic troop choices) but you'll also find the army to be extremely fiddly to work with. Like others have said, smaller casts are ok, but larger ones like the Pentient Engine and Exorcist will have you tearing your hair out. While I've never personally assembled either, I have assembled something similar to each (the old metal Greater Daemons and various old Space Marine Tanks with metal bitz, like the old whirlwind, predator and land raider crusader). Warping is often an issue with metal models, meaning that you'll be considered ungodly lucky if your pieces fit together properly. This is why pinning is important. You'll also need to know how to properly gap-fill for them, or you will have unsightly cracks in your models. I would say a Pin Vice drill, a good selection of wires of all gauges, and some greenstuff/epoxy putty to be manditory equipment for dealing with metal models. All of these I would consider moderate modelling techniques, so if this is your first time jumping into it, it might be an issue.

(However if you've done other metal miniatures before, then feel free to ignore all of that. This is an issue with metal miniatures in general).

On SoBs specifically, I would also recommend getting either liquid masking fluid or masking tape and a sharp knife. the two SoB tanks comes with a clear plastic dome that you do not want to get paint on.

All of that said, SoBs are one of the more flavourful armies still available, and honestly one that a lot more people would play if not for the above issues (I still insists that if GW ever put out plastic SoB infantry boxes, they would outsell every single space marine set combined). One good thing about being largely one-piece metal is that if you find them on the second hand market, you can largely be sure they're not missing pieces (as there's barely, if any, pieces to lose). Just note that people are aware of their price and desirability and often ask for ridiculous prices for them.

Going to have to agree with most everything here. Sisters are well beyond what I would recommend for a modeller starting out.

If you want to get some experience under your belt while still leaving the door open to expand into Sisters, I'd recommend starting with another Imperial Force. Doing so would give you the ability to develop a detachment of Sisters down the line, be it when they get an update (not likely going to happen, GW hates sisters as a symbol of their older, cooler, grimdark and crazy aesthetic), or when you're more confident as a hobbyist. Moreover, it helps to add dimension and depth to a Sisters force, which is currently a super one dimensional faction built upon the back of a single character (who is, fortunately, available in plastic and can be easily thrown into any Imperial Force, who I'd argue gives better benefits to non-sisters forces anyway).

Sisters are for the most part just the sister herself and her back pack. Heavy weapons have three pieces. I dont pin my packs on or the heavies. Just clean the contact point, file to make sure the metal plug fits the hole and use a bit of glue. I never have issues with them, easier to assemble than multi part marines.

PenEngines are probably the fiddly model I have ever put together, real pain in the rear, don't start with those...

Celestine is going to be innyour list at some point, great place to start your purchases.

Plan your purchases for sure, I wouldn't wait for plastics, I have been waiting to see them for twenty years.... Ebay is your friend, if you know what models you want drop me a PM. I have more than I should and would be willing to let some go cheap to help a new player out.

The Emperor Protects!

As others have pointed out, you are getting yourself into the most expensive and hardest to acquire army with the least model support in GW's range. I also find metal models harder to paint than plastic, as even with good primer it doesn't seem to stick as well and somehow always looks darker. So, be ready to put in the work and the cash.

However, the Sisters are fun as heck to play, and they are better now than they've been since 2003-2004. Tactically you have a mobile army that excels in close range firefights but isn't great in hand to hand combat. To win, you need to get right up in the enemy's face and shoot them to death. It's hard to get good at, and you will take some beatings early on, but once you figure it out and get some of the models you need you will wreck a lot of faces. I have put my Sister's away after starting 8th edition 7-0 with them, with most of my victories the result of causing crippling damage by turn 3. The Sisters are probably the best army in 40k at putting overwhelming force in a small section of the table exactly where and when you want it. It takes some finesse, but you can sledgehammer every enemy model off the board in about a 20 inch diameter circle at the time of your choosing, deleting a huge chunk of the enemy in one swift action and leaving the rest of the opponent's force staring in gaping mouthed horror as they are too far away to take much counter action. Then you'll load up and do it again two turns later on whatever is left.

Also, Saint Celestine, one Geminae, and a pack or two of Seraphim with Inferno pistols will do magical things once you get the hang of some basic rules and Acts of Faith.

I'd argue the opposite. Since they really only have a single viable build that can really only be played in a single viable way, the army is extremely one dimensional and not really interesting to actually play. As part of an auxiliary of a larger Imperial force, they can add some tools to play around with, but otherwise, they're super point-and-clicky.

 Fafnir wrote:
I'd argue the opposite. Since they really only have a single viable build that can really only be played in a single viable way, the army is extremely one dimensional and not really interesting to actually play. As part of an auxiliary of a larger Imperial force, they can add some tools to play around with, but otherwise, they're super point-and-clicky.

The dude and his friend are just starting off. I don't think being top tier competitive is a major concern.

I'm not talking about competitive viability. I'm saying they're boring to play.

 Fafnir wrote:
I'm not talking about competitive viability. I'm saying they're boring to play.

You're saying they're boring to play if you play them as competitively as possible. I don't think that's likely to be very relevant to a beginner, and may change with the codex, 9th edition, or some other thing before OP gets past the beginner stage.

My two cents

learn to Pin. if you get the Pen Engines you'll need to pin every joint. also a little trick i've learnt is the have a bowl of water beside you when using superglue. when you glue the model, dunk it into the water. it supposedly helps set the glue off.

SOME moisture will help activate the superglue (moisture in your breath is generally enough). TOO much will just cause a weak bond (if it cures too fast, it does this).

If you're waiting for them to go full plastic, the heat-death of the universe will happen while you wait. GW are stuck in a rut - the metals didn't sell well so they are reluctant to go to plastic (because it's a substantial investment to turn them into dies for plastics) and if they don't sell, it's a waste.

No amount of "I'd buy faaaasands of them if they were plastic" from the frothing masses will sway them.

DO NOT BUY SOB RETAIL EXCEPT VEHICLES.

Trying to build an SoB army that isn't a wallet screaming nightmare is an excersize in ebay and patience.

The immolator, penitent engine, and canoness are reasonably priced...the rest isn't.

Grab as many melta guns, and heavy bolters as you can find on ebay and pray I don't beat you to the stormbolters.

Seraphim are pretty common atm, basic battle sisters are also fairly cheap, exorcists pop up pretty frequently for cheaper than retail.
Celestine is MANDATORY

You WILL have to convert things to use all the options and the best vehicle SoB have access to has been OOP for years now.

Good luck.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 chromedog wrote:
SOME moisture will help activate the superglue (moisture in your breath is generally enough). TOO much will just cause a weak bond (if it cures too fast, it does this).

If you're waiting for them to go full plastic, the heat-death of the universe will happen while you wait. GW are stuck in a rut - the metals didn't sell well so they are reluctant to go to plastic (because it's a substantial investment to turn them into dies for plastics) and if they don't sell, it's a waste.

No amount of "I'd buy faaaasands of them if they were plastic" from the frothing masses will sway them.

Pfft, they made genestealer cult, deathwatch, AND thousand sons when like 4 people total were asking for any of that.

They made necromunda when 8 people on the planet actually gave a crap.

Bloodbowl is a niche of a nich of a niche.

Shadespire...just...shadespire.

The 'THEY DON'T SELL REEEE! thing needs to die.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Fafnir wrote:
I'd argue the opposite. Since they really only have a single viable build that can really only be played in a single viable way, the army is extremely one dimensional and not really interesting to actually play. As part of an auxiliary of a larger Imperial force, they can add some tools to play around with, but otherwise, they're super point-and-clicky.

Every army only has one viable build. Space marines? GUILLYRAVENS or suck it. Admech? Hope you like Cawl. Heretic astartes? SOUPS ON! AM? Conscripts are dead so I guess it's SOUP OF THE DAY! Tau? Drone Commander Necrons? Lol no. Grey knights? lol no. Nids? lol no until codex. Orks? 200boys and weirdnobs sound good? Deathwatch? Lol no. Dark angels? I think you meant Ultramarines. Blood angels? Red Ultramarines with girlydude cosplaying astaroth. Spacewolves? Ultramarines but like in their furry stage. Harlequins? Fusionquin. Dark eldar? Dark lancedar.

What you meant was 'they don't have a whole lot of options' which is true of many armies. They have more different setups than things like admech, harlies, talons, pure GSC.

SoBs are kinda limited since the majority of their weapons are very close range (unless you stock up on Heavy Bolters and Exorcists) and a lot of their units prefer to be either in close or flat out in close combat, so the army as a whole is pretty predictable (anything outside of 24" is probably not gonna do anything, with again the exception of the Exorcist). This is in contrast to the other armies who can field different viable builds (Swarm Nids VS Nidzilla, Infantry blobs VS Armored Company VS Superheavy Company and everything in between, "everything you can do, Space Marines can do beeetteeer~, anything space marines can do better than yoooooou~", and so forth. Even Grey Knights can at least do the Monster Mash with a Grand Master in Dreadknight).

THAT SAID, Acts of Faith and their position as "Space marines but cheaper" does offer a unique position to play as; You can enjoy the playstyle of something akin to Scions or elite guardsmen (in terms of bringing units) while having the durability of Space Marines. They also have a host of rules that generally don't appear in other armies (such as the Shield of Faith) that can often catch people off guard, which makes them an interesting opponent as well.

Also if you're up for the challenge (I know I mentioned earlier that this already requires advanced modeling techniques but bear with me), you can convert SoB models cheaply out of spare space marine backpacks and bolters, a file and some female Dark Eldar parts; the DE armor is form fitting and has that "armored corset" look, especially if you can get the Wych variant instead of the Kabalite one. Then it's a simple matter of filing off the spikes and gluing on a backpack. The only real issue is finding female heads that don't look like the Wicked Step Mother (or you can use the Skitarii Vanguard heads, which are a very good approximation of the Sabbat-pattern helm). The only problem is hunting the pieces down for a not-stupid price.

I find the best conversion starting point is Sisters of Silence. Just got to find some sabbat helms and you're passable.

 chromedog wrote:
SOME moisture will help activate the superglue (moisture in your breath is generally enough). TOO much will just cause a weak bond (if it cures too fast, it does this).

If you're waiting for them to go full plastic, the heat-death of the universe will happen while you wait. GW are stuck in a rut - the metals didn't sell well so they are reluctant to go to plastic (because it's a substantial investment to turn them into dies for plastics) and if they don't sell, it's a waste.

No amount of "I'd buy faaaasands of them if they were plastic" from the frothing masses will sway them.

If you don't think a SOB mini-release is inevitable after plastic celestine got released, I'm not sure what to tell you.

They're too scared to release SOB in plastic but we have full plastic releases for GSC and Harlequins? An SOB plastic release would include at least 45$ price point kit that includes the fully paid for 10000 times Rhino dies, a single MPPK that makes 5+ different units (practically every unit could be made from the same basic sisters torsos/legs and they all use the same sets of specials/heavies), and 1-2 small run elite kits.

You don't release a new full subfaction when production is borked. They were almost unable to keep up demand for the new GSC when they dropped, and they had already released the board game with most of their stuff in it anyway. If they can't keep their current range in stock and they can't even close out the 2 new races from the starter kits, they're just slowing everything down while they sort that out. But SOB plastics are almost certainly waiting in the wings at this point, if they haven't been for years.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Sisters, the Inquisition and their aesthetic represent a time when 40k was really weird, really dark, and really silly. It's part of 40k's early identity that doesn't really mesh well with the much more generic Noblebright(TM) heroic direction that GW really wants to push things in. The problem is that that darkness, silliness, and moral ambiguity is what defines the identity of these two factions. For this reason, GW really has no idea (or desire) to work with them, since any recreation fitting within their current agenda would serve to rob them of their essence entirely.

Sisters and Inquisition are still an integral part of the lore, the Inquisition in particular is used frequently in novels that aren't 30k marinewank garbage, and Sisters are also actually showing a presence more in the lore than before.

My money is still on the "no one buys them so there's no interest" horrible feedback loop being the primary cause of SoBs not getting a faster release. The only hope is that the fandom shout hard enough that GW takes notice, since they're already taking notice of the other stuff. Otherwise SoBs are doomed to a horrible catch-22 until their inevitable death.

I for one will pledge to start a SoB army if they make dem plastics. I made the same pledge 5 years ago that if they lowered the cost of an army by half, I would immediately start that army (this ended up happening when Imperial Knights Renegades happened, which technically lowered them to half price. I am now the owner of 4 knights because of that).

It looks like you have plenty of respondents already, but just so you know, I have an SOB army and welcome another into the fold.

GW won't drop us; we're in the lore, have seen one plastic model release (Celestine) that doesn't really fit with any other army (maybe she'd be in an Imperial Agents book if sisters were squatted?), and are still featured in pictures on the GW website and in White Dwarf, etc.

Don't listen to all the doom and gloom and instead take pride in being one of the most elite armies around (in terms of number of players) that is still quite good on the tabletop and actually has aged fairly well - the models look far more splendid than, say, 3rd Edition Space Marines do.