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I have been told that as long as you use GW parts a converted model will be approved for GW tournements... but how much of the model has to be GW? If i sculpt my own models and place them on GW bases (which i have done for my Flamers) would they work in a GW tourny? What about if i sculpt my own models and then add GW bits to them (again i have done this with my pink horrors which have gene stealer arms) and place them on GW bases? I am pretty sure my Daemon Prince of Tzeentch, which is an Old One Eye with feather wings and a staff, would be legal but the staff and wings are not GW so im not sure. Can anyone tell me how it works?

It's up to whoever is running the tournament.

So if i show up with my self sculpted model expecting to play they can be like "No the stick up my butt prevents me from letting you sue those becuase you didnt spend as much money on them as that guy over there" ?

Rules differ by store/tournament. I think GW stores used to have a policy of 'the model must be majority GW parts' or '60% GW parts' to be legal.

Although if it's self-sculpted then there tends not to be a problem as you're not using models by another competitor in their store..

Oh so the main issue is with non-gw professional items? so self made items are fine?

Typically. No one online will be able to tell you for sure.

GW don't want to advertise other competitors. Even if you do make your own mini's, the judges may still tell you not to use the models as they don't know for sure if you're telling the truth.

Rule of thumb, if it doesnt look like a GW mini then they won't accept it.

For me, I wouldnt go to one of those things anyway due to this rule. I like my non GW minis'.

Just remember to say yes, when they ask if it was GW greenstuff. And yea, ask a tournament organizer to see if its cool to use them. Ive heard some places are really cool about converted things, and others are really hardcore about you not using converted minis

I don't believe GW have a problem with self scuplting at all. I saw an amazing winged nightmare in GW Oxford Street that was sculpted out of green stuff. As others have stated, the use of parts from other companies may well be frowned upon though.

Most of the local events I attend in the US would applaud you for sculpting your own mini. Has been a non-issue really.

The only time I've heard of hard core application of the "GW Only" rule has been at GW stores themselves or GW events like Gamesday.

This shocked me

"please do not combine our intellectual properties with IPs owned by third parties"

Its on GW legal page under the conversations bit

http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/content/article.jsp?catId=&categoryId=§ion=&pIndex=3&aId=3900002&start=4

Basically as far as GW is concerned they don't want you adding anything to their models that is made by anyone else, you could even argue that you are a 3rd party so can't add anything that you have created.

I haven't played a game in a GW for the best part of 20 years so I have no idea if or how far they go with enforcing this policy...but they can.

I believe that many aspects of IP are just ridiculous, not just GW but IP in general. Nothing I can do about it though, it's just the world.

They mean intellectual property. Let's say I love pokemon, and I want to make a space marine army where all the marines are anthropomorphic pokemon so I sculpt pokemon heads on all my marines and give them tails and such.

I have combined Nintendo's POKEMON IP with Games Workshop's Warhammer IP.

They don't want those models at thier events because basically they can't photograph them without possibly having other companies IP saying 'hey whatttayoodoing! you can't do that!' This also goes into the whole people using 'toys' as models like having star Wars AT-AT walkers based off hasbro Star wars toys.

Doesn't mean it doesn't happen and that people don't pay homage to other IPs in thier conversions, they just don't want it to happen and may have issues with those models.

Edit: Double post :K

Regardless of whether or not they allow those minis you mentioned in a tourny; I would like to see them! Post pictures!

I wonder if using GW components - plastic from sprues, card from GW boxes is considered legit.

For extreme example the sprue necrons (click the photo for source):


I know it's extreme, but if most of a model was made from plastic from GW sprues, with a sprinkle of GW bits on top, would it be legit for GW tournaments?

Sprue army! This is epic! Love it!! Anyone running a torni would have to let you play with something like that!

Those would certainly be legal at any event I was running. They're brilliant!

They wouldn't meet the minimum 3 colour rule though, would they?

Flinty wrote:They wouldn't meet the minimum 3 colour rule though, would they?

Well obviously not because they aren't painted yet...

Those Sprue Necrons are hilariously great. I love them!

Crimson Cobra wrote:

Flinty wrote:They wouldn't meet the minimum 3 colour rule though, would they?

Well obviously not because they aren't painted yet...

ACtually they are close. Black base, grey minis. Just put a dab of some random color on the top and PRESTO 3 colors

one word................ CHROME

your fine as long as you sculpt it yourself.

id love to see more from the sprue necrons.they are around the warhammerforums for a couple of years now and those pics are the only ones available.

would love to see more ^_^

shade1986 wrote:I have been told that as long as you use GW parts a converted model will be approved for GW tournements... but how much of the model has to be GW? If i sculpt my own models and place them on GW bases (which i have done for my Flamers) would they work in a GW tourny? What about if i sculpt my own models and then add GW bits to them (again i have done this with my pink horrors which have gene stealer arms) and place them on GW bases? I am pretty sure my Daemon Prince of Tzeentch, which is an Old One Eye with feather wings and a staff, would be legal but the staff and wings are not GW so im not sure. Can anyone tell me how it works?

No one can tell you how it works. Only the event organizer. The Internets cannot answer this one for you.

Take a look around.

Thread 1

Thread 2

Thread 3

Thread 4

Initially unclear but somewhat related Thread 5

Just to name a few. While the Rule of Cool trumps most things for me, GW stores have guidelines that they are supposed to follow. Is the model obvious in its intent, is it over 50% GW bits, is the player a jerk that you feel like punishing, and so forth.

Best of luck.

Homesculpted stuff is pretty much immune to the "X% of GW bits" ruling, so long as weapon options and upgrades are modeled on the piece in a manner that makes it immediately obvious what you're doing.

As for the Sprue Necrons...
They'll let you do it, but don't expect them to go easy on you during the day for anything relating to rulings, as it's kind of a dick thing to do and argue that you should be "allowed" to do it. They'll look a bit more favorably upon it if you bring your actual Necron army alongside of it in case any disputes about size of the models come up.