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So I live in the US. We're staring at a recession. I haven't finished (barely started) my 4th edition army and there's a new one about to drop. I can't get my friends interested in the game because of the cost.

Poking around the GW online store I realized that you can build a 1500-2000 point guard, eldar, marine, ork, or chaos army for about $100...if you use Epic Armageddon minis.

I'm planning on going forward with this. I assume somebody else has thought of it before. Are there any changes you'd suggest to the core 40K rules considering the models are about 1/6th the size? If figure 1 inch becomes one centimenter, template and blast weapons become d6 hits plus 1 for each base in the enemy units, but I can't think of anything else.

honestly I don't want to seem rude but I would suggest trying another game. You could try Necormunda, Mordheim or 40k Kill Teams (if you play Kill Teams your hobbying interest could lie in terrain and playing with the rules)

You could also look into Privateer Press, a 500 point army in Warmachine or Hordes comes in at about $125 to $150.

The other thing I would suggest is using Epic minis to play ... Epic! You can start with those plastic starter sets w/ some terrain and proxy your super heavies and vehicles.

Another suggestion would be the Classic Battletech Starter Box (or whatever it's called). It comes with 60 minis, maps, fluff and rules. After that you can probably get a deal on ebay to get some Clan mechs and fill your armies out. Four friends could easily share the cost of the starter box + an ebay auction or two.

That said if you really wanted to try this you could use 40k sized bases, you could even put maybe two of those little guys on one base to make it look better.

If you want to change the scale you could use half sized bases on a half sized table with half sized terrain and half sized templates. For your 3" template you could just say it's d3 hits on a unit.

As far as sympathy is concerned, my brother's problem with getting people interested in playing in his area wasn't the minis but the cost of paint, brushes, glue, terrain, playing space, etc, etc, etc. But it is a hobby after all .

actually, it could totally work.

I remember some years ago, maybe back in say '99, I attended a games day and saw something that I vowed to copy but just never got around to it.

These guys had a game called "Travel 40k" The used the epic minis with rare earth magnets as bases, a miniature "gaming table" made out of metal along with tiny terrain again with magnets. I think they were playing a 1500 pt battle with orks and marines. It was really neat, they figured all the conversions for size and everything.

...not that its a true substitute for haveing your army fully assembled at full size. I just thought it was really neat.

It really depends on what you want.

if you like the 40k universe you could play Necro or Inquisitor (using 28mm models) or the upcoming 40k RPG. Videogames are another option.

If you like the game and the rules, there's a thread in this forum about playing 40k on Vassal, an internet porthole.

If you like modeling then buying off ebay, swaping or just saying @#$% it and buying model kits (cheaper, better quality) is the way to go.

What do you find rewarding in 40k? Suss that out and you can proceed from there.

For a long while I toyed with the idea of playing 40k with Epic models - basing models on standard 25mm-diametre bases. This would give me a game that I felt addressed one of those things that always jarred with 40k for me - the fact that gun ranges felt so short! At a scale of 1mm = 1ft then a 6' long table is actually 1800' or 600 yards long. Much more like the effective range of a "real" firearm!

Just one of those personal niggles that all gamers have!

Its not something I ever followed through though as I began to fall out of love with 40k as a game and moved on.

As KK says, figure out what you like about the game and move from there. Everything else is disposable.

For me I decided I didn't like the normal 40k rules enough and preferred to play Epic with Epic minies, so there was no point in going through all the rebasing and such for a game I wouldn't play.

I've tried some other games and, sad as it is considering how they treat their customer base, nothing grabs me like the 40K world. One of the other reasons I thought this might work for me was that, because of me weird hours, I'd need to play 40K with my friends. They're interested but balk at the cost/storage commitment of having 2500 points of models & tanks. I like the gaming and I love the modeling & painting aspect but I live in a pretty small apartment here in LA (still gigantic compared to what we were used to in NYC) and finding space for two armies, a gaming table, and a bunch of terrain is going to be tough. However, if it's only 1/5 the size then I know I can swing it. I should also clarify I'd use the epic bases with 3-5 guys each & shrink down the playing area, too, my table is really small and most of my friends don't even have kitchen tables, just desks & whatnot.

It just sounds fun to me. Maybe it's a weird pipe dream, people's reactions here surprised me. I guess it does make it a closeted, at-home-only kind of game as opposed to something where I can go out and make friends with anyone.

Why not just play epic?

Dead Horse wrote:So I live in the US. We're staring at a recession. I haven't finished (barely started) my 4th edition army and there's a new one about to drop. I can't get my friends interested in the game because of the cost.

Poking around the GW online store I realized that you can build a 1500-2000 point guard, eldar, marine, ork, or chaos army for about $100...if you use Epic Armageddon minis.

I'm planning on going forward with this. I assume somebody else has thought of it before. Are there any changes you'd suggest to the core 40K rules considering the models are about 1/6th the size? If figure 1 inch becomes one centimenter, template and blast weapons become d6 hits plus 1 for each base in the enemy units, but I can't think of anything else.

This is a very good idea, FWIW.

You can leave scales and distances alone - it'll look great, with more "realistic" model scale to ground scale.

The big issue you'll need to address has to do with scale of unit translation - coherency, and such.

If you don't mind restricting your army options (i.e. NO Tau), you might get a copy (or two) of the 3rd Edition Rulebook (cheap) and use the army lists contained within instead of buying the new Codices. They'll be close enough for budget play.

Or, you could just get the Epic Armageddon rulebooks and play Epic. It's arguably a better system, anyways.

I actually own the 3rd edition handbook. I love those little army lists in the back--so convenient!

I'm not averse to Epic, the system does seem better, it's just that this is a cost and space issue and a full epic army looks like it costs around the same as a full 40K army. If I go this way I think I can have 2000 points each of guard, orks, and eldar for the cost of one of those armies in the regular scale.

I started 40k 10 years ago, thought it was too expensive then. What I did then was start with a commander and a squad of troops and played alot of combat patrol. Spend $50 or less on ebay and you're set.

For me, it grew to 10,000 plus points, my own full size (4'x8') table and lot of terrain. I have dropped all my other expensive game hobbies (including x-box and ps2) and have dedicated all my extra resources to 40k. Starting small gives you a chance to learn the game and build up a force. You may find that you don't like it and drop it, then you're out only $50.

This makes more sence to me than buying epic and trying to revamp rules to fit scale. Plus, you won't be stuck with models that don't resell well if you decide to get out. I'm sure you can find people who will scale down their normal point size to accomodate what you can afford at the time.

That makes sense.

I didn't realize epic armies costed that much.

malfred wrote:That makes sense.

I didn't realize epic armies costed that much.

the tanks and the titans are what kill you.

my brother and I dabble with it we just use tokens.

I hope you figure something out dude, whatever it is you should let us know it sounds interesting one way or the other.

Epic and 40k armies cost what you want them to cost. You can play small Epic, or you can play big. Your choice.

A lot of people only play 40k/ GW games it seems for the ridiculously awesome minis they put out, but if you're more interested in playing 40k for its rule set than the minis, I'd suggest checking out minis from other games. Another member suggested it to me when I was looking for something not really available in a GW mini, and I found out pretty quickly that other games are a lot cheaper.

Your here in LA? Whats your schedule like? I'm sure gaming can be scheduled at some point with one of us other SoCal people

I'd play 40K with cardstock figures and vehicles before I used Epic Minis.

You could print out evertything in full color on cardstock for pennies a figure and maintain the scale.

That way you can play with people who have actual 40K models, and add actual 40K models to your collection if you wish.

eBay is the way to go I think. Especially if you want to play common armies (marines, and nids seem the most common) you can get some really great deals. Other than that, start small like people are suggesting. 750 points plays easily enough with proxies since remembering what is what is simple, and a 4x4 playing surface will do. A peice of 4x4 plywood isn't too expensive and is easy to store behind your couch.

this sounds like a great idea and one ive kicked around myself in the past.
i say go for it.

@adamsouza: We are not all as good at modeling cardstock dreadnoughts as you.

Why thank you

I learned how to play 40K with the cardstock marines and orks in the back of the Rogue Trader rulebook.

I even used the plaster of paris building cast in sand.

Dead Horse wrote:So I live in the US. We're staring at a recession. I haven't finished (barely started) my 4th edition army and there's a new one about to drop. I can't get my friends interested in the game because of the cost.

Poking around the GW online store I realized that you can build a 1500-2000 point guard, eldar, marine, ork, or chaos army for about $100...if you use Epic Armageddon minis.

I'm planning on going forward with this. I assume somebody else has thought of it before. Are there any changes you'd suggest to the core 40K rules considering the models are about 1/6th the size? If figure 1 inch becomes one centimenter, template and blast weapons become d6 hits plus 1 for each base in the enemy units, but I can't think of anything else.

Why not just play Epic? its cheap, the stuff is available on a mad scale, and the rules wont keep changing, because its a dead game.

Grot 6 wrote:
Why not just play Epic? its cheap, the stuff is available on a mad scale, and the rules wont keep changing, because its a dead game.

It's cheaper than 40K, but not by much. I just got on ebay, there are auctions with the equivalent of 1000 point armies for less than $20! It's crazy. Plus Epic means learning a whole other system, which entails teaching my friends a whole other system...it was hard enough getting them to read the 40K rules. I'm certainly not opposed to it, but it's budget, time constraints, and the tiny, cramped closets in my little Hollywood apartment.

You could always play with Epic models & rules, but use 40k for your points cost and army make up. If you chop the board size down to 1/2 size or 1/4 size then the scenary will be suitable for playing with. It's not ideal but could be a way to try things out. You only need a few sprues of troops and between 3 - 6 vehicles then as well.