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I'm getting ready to paint up my next iteration of IG and I would like your opinions on which bases to use for my heay weapons, based on the following information.

As the proud owner of way too many RT IG, all of my heavies are man portable, shoulder fired, weapons. The only bases that were provided with them were the standard 25mm round bases.

Per the rules, one is supposed to attach their minis to the base provided.

While checking out BoLS, I took a look at their Adepticon coverage. One of the armies was a RT era IG force. The owner had actually put 2 RT Troopers on the current Cadian Heavy Weapon base.

There are advantages and disadvantages to both bases.

Small base:
+smaller foot print
+no need for wound counters
- Different from the current HW base specifications
- Potential to cause hard feelings

Large Base:
+Much better modeling options
-Larger foot print
-Wound counters

Opinions

Flagg07 wrote:Small base:
+smaller foot print
+no need for wound counters
- Different from the current HW base specifications
- Potential to cause hard feelings

And you need house rules to govern what happens to the weapon when one crewmember dies.



Personally, I like the large bases. More potential for modelling, and less conflict with the rules.

I always base Heavy Bolters and Las Cannons due to the fact one man is in control of it directly... there is a second space left open, so I can remove the non-controlling operator and use him separated if I need. No wound counters needed.

I usually base mortars on the large base but leave the men separate... so you can take them off it... eg: large base, with the men on small bases... put them beside or resting on top of the larger base... this allows you to not use the mortar and use them men normally, if you decide to not pay for one... etc... see what I mean?

As for rocket launchers. I never base them on large. Period. No need for this at all.

What I did for mine, was I used the big base, but I just modeled the gun and the gunner firing it on one side of the base, leaving enough room for the 2nd guy.. but for the 2nd guy, I just stick a regular ole small base guardsman right on top of the big base next to the gunner. I don't bother having a guy carrying ammo or anything like that. So this way, I have 2 guys on a base and I can easily remove one if I need to, but I can keep the big base there till the HW gunner finally dies, and he's always the last to go...

As a guard player I have never used the large bases. I never liked the fact that they suddenly decided the (plastic) cadian and (plastic) catachan heavies should come with the big base. I've never even heard of anyone who plays the models correctly, besides insaniak. In other words, two models on one base as opposed to just a 2 wound model that can fire two weapons.

I think the big base just makes for a more clunky game when you try to fit a heavy weapon team in a window of a building and end up having a huge base turned sideways sitting in the balcony or something.

I have also never had anyone I ever played give me grief for basing them seperately.

also for your older stuff that is separate, you could always just buy some of those empty large bases, flock em, and just stick the 2 guys on top of it.. if you really want the big base thing.

I agree though that it's not something that really should be necessary.. if you like you guys on all small bases, go for it.. if someone complains, just take your ball and go play someone else who won't

Give the Gunner a Rough Rider base, and the loader a 28mm base. Problem solved.

I too have the 'old school' models. And as the rules say, I have set them on the bases provided. The frak if I'm going to remodel my forces because it looked like a good idea to make weapon teams and then write rules for them later.

And come to think of it, there is a loader model provided anyway for the ML (I have Steel Legion, Valhallans, Praetorians and Tallarn). So as the rule says, if the gunner is killed, then the loader is assumed to take control of the weapon, so it's a moot point anyway.

The new IG FAQ is thankfully fairly supportive of separate basing. Indeed, it says that for all rules purposes, heavy weapon team members should be treated as having "imaginary 25mm bases" if based together on the big 60mm disc. As such, basing the team separately on infantry bases appears perfectly justifiable.

The "gunner killed, loader takes over" rule is also in effect (though it only comes into play in exotic circumstances like when fired at by a Vindicare), so for clarity's sake, you'll need to mark out a loader. This need be nothing more elaborate than a mark on the underside of the base as far as I'm concerned, though a good conversion never goes amiss.

The FAQ does make it easier to field seperate bases... but I'd still want a house rule forcing the two models to remain together.

I have my IG Heavies based on 25mm round bases.

But then my IG are "old school" and predate the whole "include a stupid 60mm base with each Heavy team" business, so from a RAW standpoint, I'm required to base them on 25mm bases because those are the bases that came with the models...

With the cadian h-weps i like to base 'em behind a fallen dead tree on the large bases.

I use the large bases. All my "loaders" are on small bases with magnets underneath. The large base also has a magnet underneath where the loader goes (make sure poles match). I'm planning on painting the empty spot where the loader gets removed with blood, guts, and bones.

40mm bases for each weapon. then use seperate crewmembers on 25mm.
1. you may use ALL of the heavy weapons provided in the box, making the HW boxed set a great deal for the price.
2. modeling options are much better with a 40mm base then the stale 60mm too large to do anythign with ones provided.( only have to worry about the weapon, and not having to fill up at least 40 more mm of wasted space
3. You vary up your options for the crewmembers. You can do alot with seperate troopers then you cn with trying to make a carbon copy of the same old stail cadian poser looking crews.
4. Ease of build. Its faster and more efficiant to build heavy weapons, and work on detail then it is to try to just slop them on a base and think that they are doing anything for you.

I do it for convenience. I buy 1 heavy weapon box. For this example we'll use the one with just one set of guys. I do the following:

Build 1 Autocannon/Lascannon/Heavy Bolter with a kneeling guy shooting it on the base provided. I stand a normal guardsmen next to him.

Base the other kneeling model shooting a mortar on a 40mm (plastic terminator size) base and put the loader on a 25mm base next to him standing.

Build a missile launcher guy standing on a 25mm base and a loader on a 25mm base.

Sure it uses 4 guardsmen from the Guardsmen boxed set, but I have three heavy weapons now. Sounds fair to me.

Something like this?

Flinty

I'm planning on basing both the gunner and loader seperately, but make a 60mm metal hoop to place them both inside so I dont have to deal with the hassel of getting them into/out-of terrain and there carry case. This way they both end up togather but without all the other bs. It would have been SO much simpler if GW had just said that hv-weapons teams must maintain crew coherancy inside there own units.

Centurion.