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I am finally getting competetive enough that I feel one day soon is like to try my hand at a few tourneys.
My question as a first timer is what is the most common use of points? I understand every tournament is different obviously but in general is it a 1999 to keep the FOC in use or is it a 1500, 1850?

Also again Im sure it fluctuates..? But for the most part does every single model have to have exactly what you buy on it?
For example If I had a storm raven without plasma cannons but wanted to buy the cannons for the upcoming game do the players decide that or is it a general tourney consensus.

Thanks!

Yes, everything needs to be WYSIWYG. Some things(like the new Crisis suit wargear which have no official look) do not need to be modeled on, like bolt pistols on tactical marines. but generally if it is an upgrade, put it on the model

Depending on your exact location, YMMV but a lot of GT's are now using 1850.

A few specific ones are still making use of the 1999+1, but it seems like most are shifting down to 1850 due to the time it takes to play games in 6th. I'd definitely recommend making 1850 lists, and then if a tournament is 2k instead you can just tack on some extra upgrades / swap a unit or two.

As far as WYSIWYG and modeling goes, it kind of depends on the level of tournament. A local one day tournament at FLGS probably will be a lot more lax about something like your storm raven example. At a GT there is an expectation that everything should be modeled for the upgrades it has. Now I would say probably 95% of GT players won't mind as long as your list is correct and you are very clear about any modeling discrepancies before the game, but it may really bother some players, so I would try and be 100% true as possible.

Since I started going to more tournaments I more actively look at either magnetizing my kits, pinning weapons so they can just be swapped out, or making good use of reasonable conversions that could stand in for either gun option (if you follow the last route, it is critical that your conversions are consistent across your army. Also probably a bit easier with xenos races).

If you feel comfortable with your hobby skills, you could probably retrofit a lot of the models in your army.


Edit: Hotsauceman1 reminded me of something - the general rule of thumb for WYSIWYG should be that if it's an upgrade it should definitely be on the model. If it is something it comes with automatically and can't be lost then it's not such a big deal. For instance: Grey Hunters have both bolters and pistols/ccws. If you had some modeled with bolters while others had a pistol in one hand and a ccw in another that would be perfectly fine. Just make sure if any have upgrades like special weapons, banners, etc have their appropriate additions.

IMO the most important thing for WYSIWYG (other than using correct models, of course) is weapons. If you say your Storm Raven has Plasma, it should have a visible plasma cannon on it. If your Tactical Marine has a meltagun, don't take a guy with a flamer.

Basically your opponent needs to be able to tell who has what at a glance. More esoteric wargear is not so important, and a lot of the ways those things are modeled are only clear if you know what you're looking for. In those cases as long as your army list is well written your opponent should be able to figure out what the model is, consult the list, and then figure out what all special bits it has.

WYSIWYG is the most important. There is nothing worse than an opponent who has a bunch of misrepresented models on the table. Are those grey knight devestors (or whatever they are called) or a group of servitors with heavy bolters? Had that happen to me. Didn't target them with the manticore due to me thinking they were in power armor, not servitors.

Thanks guys! Much appreciated.