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Would it be acceptable to only put 3 scarabs per base or is it going to require the full 4 to be tournament legal?

Many put only 3 scarabs on the base, arguing that it has only three wounds.

Just going to want scarabs for spiders to spawn so debating on how to base my current scarabs

There is no 'legal' number of scarabs. One scarab chilling on the base all by his lonesome is just as legal as three, four, or nine of them all crammed on there.

Technically they come with 4 in the box per base.

Three is perfectly fine. I wouldn't really use any less though, if only because it looks bad.

Use two, and a half, make it look like the last one is burrowing or surfacing. that might be a cool conversion with a dirt looking base.

That way you get even more bases out of them.

DeathReaper wrote:Use two, and a half, make it look like the last one is burrowing or surfacing. that might be a cool conversion with a dirt looking base.

That way you get even more bases out of them.

I'm planning on doing something similar to this. I have only a limited number of scarabs but quite a collection of various space marine and chaos space marine bits. My plan was to go out and get some stuff to make the bases look like sand, and then cut up and leave various space marine bits look like they are being eaten / buried with one to two scarabs visible on each base. I figure, no one really complain, so long as I make it look decent and not like I am being cheap about it

I have actually bought smaller bases and assembled them on the smaller 25mm bases so that I can spread them out more. Plus attaching them to Lords and Spyders helps me remember that some of them have scarabs as well. I also painted some a blood red color and placed them with Imoteck for his blood swarm... so you can try that as well.

I will not change base size as that would deffinilty get people upset.

Kroothawk wrote:Many put only 3 scarabs on the base, arguing that it has only three wounds.

Ah, but they have four attacks

I can see a few non-Necron TFGs kicking up about this, but I don't think there's any rule that states there has to be a given number of miniatures on a base for a swarm (although kicking around in the back of my mind, I think there used to be). Anyway, there's definitely precedent these days for only using part of a miniature or even no miniature at all (e.g. unit fillers in Fantasy) to represent something.

It all depends on what your definition of swarm is really, but it's definitely >1 I'd also say that if you model something else on the base, so that it looks cool, people are less likely to complain.

I like the idea of 3 scarabs per base and maybe something plastic to hold a die for wounds... Now to think of a clear plastic or something that would go well with my bases that are coming in soon.

Flashman wrote:

Kroothawk wrote:Many put only 3 scarabs on the base, arguing that it has only three wounds.

Ah, but they have four attacks

So do some Marines on the charge, yet they only have two arms.

runmymouth wrote:I will not change base size as that would deffinilty get people upset.

But you are willing to alter how many you put on a base when they come four to a set?? Doesn't seem like your logic is there? Even in the new codex it shows attaching scarabs to 25mm bases in conjunction with other models... if you are willing to alter how many you have on a base why not alter the base they come on? With my technique I am not altering how many swarms I have just how they are place on the field. So far no one I have played against has really had a problem with it.

The difference is modeling for advantage. There is no advantage to be gained by altering the number of models on the base, thus there is no rational reason to object to it one way or another. CIP, the FW ripper swarm base has about 20 of the little buggers on there but it doesn't alter the stats one whit.

Changing the base size affects how they play... that's where you run into problems.

SGrimhart wrote:

runmymouth wrote:I will not change base size as that would deffinilty get people upset.

But you are willing to alter how many you put on a base when they come four to a set?? Doesn't seem like your logic is there? Even in the new codex it shows attaching scarabs to 25mm bases in conjunction with other models... if you are willing to alter how many you have on a base why not alter the base they come on? With my technique I am not altering how many swarms I have just how they are place on the field. So far no one I have played against has really had a problem with it.

If only extremly casual game I'd let you get away with it. I would not let you shrink base size period. Ask a thread on what people think of shrinking base size for scarabs and you will get almost the same response from people.

SGrimhart wrote:

runmymouth wrote:I will not change base size as that would deffinilty get people upset.

But you are willing to alter how many you put on a base when they come four to a set?? Doesn't seem like your logic is there? Even in the new codex it shows attaching scarabs to 25mm bases in conjunction with other models... if you are willing to alter how many you have on a base why not alter the base they come on? With my technique I am not altering how many swarms I have just how they are place on the field. So far no one I have played against has really had a problem with it.

Shrinking the base size is a fundamental alteration to how the model's rules are applied on the tabletop, allowing more/less models into base to base contact. It's technically cheating, if you want to be strict in definitions. If people haven't complained, it may be just because they don't know the Necron models well enough to know that you've done it.

Using less models is simply a financial decision. Technically, in looser, friendlier gaming settings, people might let him use a blank base as a proxy if he just hadn't worked up the money to buy them yet.

1: base size alteration is cheating. 2: You can use just three. all of mine only use three.
3: is this what you had in mind with the burying thing?

Veteran Sergeant wrote:

SGrimhart wrote:

runmymouth wrote:I will not change base size as that would deffinilty get people upset.

But you are willing to alter how many you put on a base when they come four to a set?? Doesn't seem like your logic is there? Even in the new codex it shows attaching scarabs to 25mm bases in conjunction with other models... if you are willing to alter how many you have on a base why not alter the base they come on? With my technique I am not altering how many swarms I have just how they are place on the field. So far no one I have played against has really had a problem with it.

Shrinking the base size is a fundamental alteration to how the model's rules are applied on the tabletop, allowing more/less models into base to base contact. It's technically cheating, if you want to be strict in definitions. If people haven't complained, it may be just because they don't know the Necron models well enough to know that you've done it.

Using less models is simply a financial decision. Technically, in looser, friendlier gaming settings, people might let him use a blank base as a proxy if he just hadn't worked up the money to buy them yet.

Thank you sir for the rules definition. I wasn't aware of that discrepancy and will adjust my army to correct the infraction. It was an oversight on the rules as I was placing them more for aesthetics than anything else. Or I will adjust and move them to 40mm bases and do the same . This is one of the main reasons I love this forum as I tend to learn something new all the time.

Both guys at the flgs brought their armies in with the same idea. Magnetize the base, and each scarab. Drop three to a base at the start of the game. Instant swarm with wound counter built in.

The look on their faces were priceless when they tried to show it off at the same time.

Veldrain wrote:Both guys at the flgs brought their armies in with the same idea. Magnetize the base, and each scarab. Drop three to a base at the start of the game. Instant swarm with wound counter built in.

The look on their faces were priceless when they tried to show it off at the same time.

OMG thats a great idea... I have lots of magnets from fantasy I think I am gonna have to put extra magnets on bases... Wow thats such a great idea!

Portugal Jones wrote:There is no 'legal' number of scarabs. One scarab chilling on the base all by his lonesome is just as legal as three, four, or nine of them all crammed on there.

Lol, Just picturing that many scarabs on one base made me laugh.

Would be awesome to see a conversion of that.

Now I want to see an actual swarm of scarabs - just something like 50 of them, all glued together in a giant scarab katamari on the base...

runmymouth wrote:I like the idea of 3 scarabs per base and maybe something plastic to hold a die for wounds... Now to think of a clear plastic or something that would go well with my bases that are coming in soon.

Magnetise 2 out of 3 scarabs - as the wounds drop - remove single scarabs