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Hey all,

I was thinking of starting another IG army to use in smaller games, around 1000 pts or so. I don't currently have a jungle army, and I really don't like the catachan minis, so I thought, why don't I convert the army? I really have nothing better to do anyways I eventually decided on doing a WW2 theme Imperial Japanese Army. Problem is, I really have no clue what models would be the best for this. I thought about using OOP metal cadians, as they seem like they would fit the bill looks wise, but they're so hard to find in any decent amount. I would like to actually build this army, so any suggestions on what models to use, how to convert, or even composition of the force, feel free to comment!

You should check the Warstore site under Sci Fi Models. He has many different ranges---and while it wouldn't fit the Japanese theme, Pig Iron has excellent counts as IG models.

There are other things you could do too.

For instance Heavy Infantry, or Light infantry. Try converting gaunts ghosts for instance.

IF you are dead set on catachans, and you want the metal ones and you are not finding anything, try ebay.com.au or ebay.co.uk as well as ebay.ca.... you get more search results, as some are not advertising internationally, but half the time you can still bid on their stuff. Most times you can also message the seller and work something out with them to have them post internationally even though they said they wouldnt. Keep your search terms broad too. Try alternate spelling etc. And sometimes, its not under catachan but buried under imperial guard. I just checked the UK site, and seatrching "Catachans" got me 90% hits for metal models. Bear in mind shipping and conversion costs.

Poda, I was talking about the original Cadians, the same ones that were in Vogen cityfight way back when. (TBH I haven't played long enough to really know about the campaign, but I remember seeing the models in my friends old codex. I just felt they would look good done in tan with white shoulderpads, 1 having the rising sun on it. Just me though.

AgeOfEgos, I'll make sure I check the site, maybe see if they have anything that could fit with some of the many themes I would like to do

oh, so they're older than the previous edition? cause i knw plastic catachans are fairly new

I'm not talking about catachans at all The current Cadian Shock Troopers were pre-dated by metal models, ones that looked like this



I really think that they could be pulled off as WW2 Japanese soliders, whereas the new ones, not so much

edit: Image doesn't open properly, just right click and go open in new window

I occasionally come by some old metal cadians (commonly for a very good price. If I see a full squad with a heavy weapon for around $25, I'll buy it).

I like the old 'relic' models. Prefer them to the current plastics in many respects.

You have pictures of what the army actually looked like?
If not, Osprey do a good series of books on various wars and armies.

.... ignore the person who cant read.

You can still go online and use my methods and still find metal cadians though.

I guess I'll have to start looking harder then So far my only big issue behind finding the models is actually paying for them. I have the money, just no credit card, so I can't by them online And as much as I would like to get one, I'd probably wind up just buying stuff for the sake of buying stuff

orkboy232 wrote:I really think that they could be pulled off as WW2 Japanese soliders, whereas the new ones, not so much

you know, i could kind of see that. i think it's the helmets personally.

the down side is your limited in poses to choose from.

Sounds like an awesome idea for an army. Sounds like you already have an IG army, so if you're just interested in an interesting model project and if you're concerned at all about repetition of metal figures, another option might just be to build one platoon that could be added to your existing army as needed. It's not done much anymore, but back in the day, it was common to see IG armies with platoons from different planets.

As to the figures, metal cadians arent' that hard to find used. Take your time and in a couple months you can probably source all you need from here, ebay and bartertown and at less $ than new plastics.

Check these guys out also. These are from the same era as the metal cadians and were obviously inteded to be used as such. They are size compatible and mix well.
http://freeboardgamesnow.com/sciencefictionfrontierdefenseforce.aspx
They are reissues of the Demonblade Shock Force Megacom troopers. The other figures haven't been released yet (should all come back into production over the next year), but there were other basic troopers and near copies of special weaopns, lascannons, autocannons, heavy bolters, comissars officers and even techpriests in the line.

Also, if youre looking for a WWII ish mount for heavy weapons, check the link in my sig and scroll down to my carriage mount HW pics.

Honestly the limited amount of poses isn't a huge deal for me. The army isn't going to be huge, at most 750pts, so hopefully I won't lose interest in painting the same models as there will only be a few duplicates. As for the context of the army, I was considering taking it to Armies on Parade (assuming I get it done of course ) as it will be one of the few absolutely unique armies there.

I took a look at the gun carriage you had the lascannon on. That looks really good! I might give it a shot to make in fit in with the old metal lascannon though. All I think I would need to do is widen the frame and protection plate on the front a little, maybe even make some new wheels. Thanks for the suggestion though. I will have to check out bartertown as well

One note, The gun carriage I used is twice the size in every dimension of the oop metal HW's and the wheels are almost 4x the size. If you do use it in the same army as some metal HW's, it might be a good idea to use it for one kind of HW only. In my army, Autocannons were standard plastic kit, but all the lascannons had the artillery mounts.

Whatever you decide, good luck with the project. It's always good to see uniquely themed IG forces.

I'll have to keep that in mind. As for the comment regarding the unique armies, I'm all for stuff like that. It gets boring playing all the other IG at my flgs because its all Cadians, its all gunlines, and they always ALWAYS lose

Maybe Canadians and Americans should trade armies. Around here (Chicago), it all seems to be mechanized Vet IG armies. I'm the only gunline, infantry-heavy IG I've seen in a while. One thing is the same though. Like the gunlines you have up there....

... I always lose.

Its all in how the gunline is used to be honest. I can run one with my newer guard army (one of the bonus's of having a ton of stuff) at 2000pts, and its actually pretty effective. My mech list is good too, but it costs so much to actually buy...stupid chimeras...

http://www.theassaultgroup.co.uk/store/home.php?cat=16
Here you go mate 28mm ww2 japs !

Thanks for the suggestion! I do want to use this army in Armies on Parade, as well as small point local tournaments which means I have to use games workshop minis Otherwise I would definitely pick some of those up!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I also have another question. What special and heavy weapons came with the old cadian minis? I don't think I have the know-how to get rid of a models lasgun to give them a plasma gun or something, so I want to tailor my purchases towards what special weapons they actually came with