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I saw someone selling a firstborn IG army and just had to ask... why do people like the army? I realize that this is strictly a matter of opinion and not fact but I find them strangely proportioned (even considering the skewed GW scale) and simply ugly with their quasi-russian hats and disjointed mess of busy style choices. My old IG army's theme was one of everything (I had one unit of every IG model type released with Mordians as the command) yet I specifically avoid the Vostroyans when they came out. I find even the old 1st edition breastplate IG plastics preferable stylistically to them. Despite how the above sounds, I'm not trying to troll but simply asking what features draw players to make an army out of these figs.

Because their design is awsome.

You just simply happen to be in the 1% that don't like their looks.

Could you be a bit more specific? What is it about their design that draws you in the most?

The russian/cossack feel of the models, steampunk style weaponry, mustaches, fur hats...

I have to agree that it's the feel of the models that I like.. only not the mustaches..

Russians.

IN SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE.

warboss wrote:Could you be a bit more specific? What is it about their design that draws you in the most?

The awesomeness?

In terms of appearance, they seem more distinctly 40k than other IG armies. Cadians are sort of generic sci-fi, and post-Rogue Trader incarnations of the IG are straight-up late 19th/20th century with lasguns and the odd bionic device.

Catachan= Vietnam/Rambo
Tallarn= Lawrence of Arabia
Praetorians= Victorian Anglo/Zulu War British
Vahallans= Russian WWII (even more so than Vostroyans IMO)
Attilans= Mongols
Mordians= Dress uniforms of any number of 20th century countries

I think of the Winkies in Wizard of Oz whenever I see Vostroyans, rather than Russians, but that might just be me. I still like the look of the very early metals and plastics, but they don't fit the current aesthetic either.

There's just something about the big furry hats, busy moustaches and kinda steampunk look of them that is just inherently appealing to me. They definitely have more style points than Cadians or Catachans IMO.

There seems a bit of a sense of humour about them too.

Vostroyans vs Valhallans gives you the Russian Civil War.

They're also very, very well sculpted. They were specifically designed as a "painter's" army, and one of the few concessions to veterans GW's made in recent years. They're also one of the few Imperial armies with a real "art" to their designs. Their equipment isn't strictly utilitarian and doesn't look so mass produced as most IG stuff does. Also, those moustaches are irresistible.

You are not alone, OP.

I cannot find a single redeeming feature about the Vostroyans.
The one exception is the fact that they are/were all metal so I rarely run into them.

I like 'em, but the figures (as most of GW's products) just don't match the art and backstory.

DKOK are really the most 40k grimdark of all the IG armies... and the FW figs are outstanding.

Grey Templar wrote:Because their design is awsome.

You just simply happen to be in the 1% that don't like their looks.

This. Honestly better than the generic cadians or the ugly Catachans. Fluffwise I like the idea of them repaying their debt to the Imperium by simply working double shifts and fielding lots of Guardsmen while not being as grimdark as Krieg. Granted the only models I use for Cadians are for my horde army because Catachans don't make a nice horde army and I won't spend $800 building a horde army out of good models.


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Brother SRM wrote:They're also very, very well sculpted. They were specifically designed as a "painter's" army, and one of the few concessions to veterans GW's made in recent years. They're also one of the few Imperial armies with a real "art" to their designs. Their equipment isn't strictly utilitarian and doesn't look so mass produced as most IG stuff does. Also, those moustaches are irresistible.

Vostroyan Gas Masks> Vostroyan Mustaches.

Grey Templar wrote:

GREY YOU ASS! YOU OVERLOADED MY COMPUTER WITH THE RAW AMOUNT OF AWESOME!

If I ever made a Guard army, it would either be Vostroyans or DKoK. I'm not sure which has more awsome.

Buttons wrote:
Vostroyan Gas Masks> Vostroyan Mustaches.

Everyone's got gas masks! They're so passe. Moustaches are where it's at

I think they are gorgeous models. Anything but the bland cadians and apesh Catachan.

It's all about the coats and gas masks.

Brother SRM wrote:

Buttons wrote:
Vostroyan Gas Masks> Vostroyan Mustaches.

Everyone's got gas masks! They're so passe. Moustaches are where it's at

Some have gas masks, some have fluffy hats. Only Vostroyans have both fluffy hats and gas masks.

Grey Templar wrote:If I ever made a Guard army, it would either be Vostroyans or DKoK. I'm not sure which has more awsome.

Definitely DKOK. By orders of magnitude...


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Grey Templar wrote:The russian/cossack feel of the models, steampunk style weaponry, mustaches, fur hats...

Yeah, I'm generally not too big of a fan of scifi steampunk (it's the reason I've never gotten into warmahordes). Maybe its the old ork player in me but I don't think blunderbusses belong in any other army. Lasblunders... ugghh..

Coolyo294 wrote:Russians.

IN SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE.

Everything they can do Valhallans do better!

Brother SRM wrote:They're also very, very well sculpted. They were specifically designed as a "painter's" army, and one of the few concessions to veterans GW's made in recent years. They're also one of the few Imperial armies with a real "art" to their designs. Their equipment isn't strictly utilitarian and doesn't look so mass produced as most IG stuff does. Also, those moustaches are irresistible.

While I can see the effort and detail involved in sculpting them, I don't really like the details. Funny thing is that I actually like the concept art and drawings they have (especially from the old IG book where you had a Vostroyan general dictating orders to a servo-skull scribe surrounded by other attendants). I don't think the translation to the wonky GW scale of models with their fluid overload swollen hands and weird proportions was done very well. I'd probably be fine with them if they were closer to the art and more realistically scaled ala the DKOK.

Grey Templar wrote:If I ever made a Guard army, it would either be Vostroyans or DKoK. I'm not sure which has more awsome.

If you want to stick to proper IG, Vostroyans, the DKoK have a mini codex of their own, so to speak.

I love 'em because they have amazing models. For example, have you seen their standard bearer?

And because I can just imagine them going about in airships with olde steampunk goggles...

warboss wrote:I saw someone selling a firstborn IG army and just had to ask... why do people like the army? I realize that this is strictly a matter of opinion and not fact but I find them strangely proportioned (even considering the skewed GW scale) and simply ugly with their quasi-russian hats and disjointed mess of busy style choices. My old IG army's theme was one of everything (I had one unit of every IG model type released with Mordians as the command) yet I specifically avoid the Vostroyans when they came out. I find even the old 1st edition breastplate IG plastics preferable stylistically to them. Despite how the above sounds, I'm not trying to troll but simply asking what features draw players to make an army out of these figs.

I bolded what I like about them. I want my 40k armies to be overly busy, blinged out and silly. I just wish Vostroyans had more skulls on them.

tuebor wrote: I just wish Vostroyans had more skulls on them.

For that, there is every other Imperium made army.

The day they release a full range of plastic Vostroyans I will start an IG army.
All the other flavors of IG are just too generic for my taste. But crazy over the top russians of the grim dark future? Yes please.

The black shirt here in Vienna has a beautiful fully painted Vostroyan army with over 50 vehicles. It's crazy and really a beautiful sight.

I don't really dig them. I like their background and all, but I think it's the hats that ruin it for me. Nothing against big Russian-looking hats, but they look uncomfortable and ackward to me.

Were I to start a IG army(and I would), I'd stick with Cadian models. I see a lot of people say how Cadians look "generic" and that's probably why I like them. I figure that's kind of the point: IG isn't an army of flashy soldiers that look awesome. It's an army of faceless bodies with lasguns.

Other than that I really like the Tallarn and DKoK models.

Buttons wrote:

Brother SRM wrote:

Buttons wrote:
Vostroyan Gas Masks> Vostroyan Mustaches.

Everyone's got gas masks! They're so passe. Moustaches are where it's at

Some have gas masks, some have fluffy hats. Only Vostroyans have both fluffy hats and gas masks.

There are several Valhallans like that too...

IMO: There are several Guard armies that seem out of place or that look ugly in my eyes, but who cares. It's the Guard after all and it dies in droves!

I've never been a huge fan of the Vostroyans, but there's different strokes for different folks.