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I hope the title makes sense. So, I've been wondering lately how people feel about things being painted in colors that aren't quite the same as the fluff. I was painting up some High Elves, and I realized that I really didn't want to paint them all with blonde hair. So I'm giving some of them red hair, some of them black, or brown, etc. I just don't like doing the same thing over and over any more than I already have to.

Now, that's a fairly minor thing, and I'm sure that most people wouldn't think anything of it. But it got me thinking about other units and factions. Some of them seem kind of strict when it comes to color conventions. Do dark elves always have to be all pale and unhealthy looking, done up in purples and blacks? Do pink horrors always have to be pink? Do bloodletters always have to be red? Or, to ask the most dangerous question: what about orcs that aren't green?

What do you think? Would it bother you if someone did things wildly different from the fluff?

What you are describing is pretty much exactly what the painting side of the hobby is about. There nothing at all to stop you from painting your Dark Elves with brown skin and wearing nothing but white if that's what you want and it certainly isn't for other people to decide how you should be painting your miniatures.

Personally I have normally favoured traditional colour schemes but I certainly don't stick stringently to what you see in the Army Books and the like.

My High Elves are supposed to be Nagarythean, so they're phenotypically similar to the Dark Elves and they're all pale with black hair. I also don't like the white robes so most of the cloth in my army is dark red.

 AnomanderRake wrote:
My High Elves are supposed to be Nagarythean, so they're phenotypically similar to the Dark Elves and they're all pale with black hair. I also don't like the white robes so most of the cloth in my army is dark red.

Nice.

I guess this isn't that big of a deal, so instead I'll ask, if you have tried any unusual color combinations what were they?

Its your army and noting stops you from painting them the way you feel represent them the best. As mentioned the colours one chooses for ones army should reflect the background you want to give them.
For instance, I have most of my Bretonnians painted in a dark copper tone with red & blue banners, and ligthly tanned horses. They are a crusader army and have deciated themselfs to the godess of war(whoms name eludes me atm).
And all my Ogres have differenct coloured pants to resembel their somewhat poor tribe, and thus forcing them to scavange cloths and such.

My elves are Host of the Eternity King, which is a nice ret-con way of me justifying why my elves have blonde, black, auburn, brown and even some grey hair.

Paint 'em how you want 'em to look is what i say.

Hey. My drow dark elves are painted up with white hair and black/dark blue skin!

The fluff is a guideline and changes a lot. Plus, with High Elves, it has never stated that blonde hair is universal in at least several editions, IIRC.

 thedarkavenger wrote:
Hey. My drow dark elves are painted up with white hair and black/dark blue skin!

The fluff is a guideline and changes a lot. Plus, with High Elves, it has never stated that blonde hair is universal in at least several editions, IIRC.

This is a sign that I should get an army book that isn't like three editions old, isn't it? (It's not quite that old)

I'm glad that people are ok with armies being painted every which way though. It may seem strange, but back when I was playing 40k with a small Imperial Guard force, a friend poked fun at me because I gave me guys more than one skin color. And their uniforms also didn't match. But that was how I wanted them, so I kept em like that.

Made fun of you for making an army that can recruit from an entire galaxy but doesn't have a variety of skin tones? That's just stupid.

Non-green orks might seem a little weird, but if that's what you want, go nuts.

You are free to paint them in any way you want...albeit...ye know, swastika etc. aren't a good idea on models. And yes, people have done that before.

I once refused to play someone with MLP marines before. Not because of the show itself (despite it breeding the most weird people...), but because it just doesn't go with 40k and I'd not have fun playing a game that heavily breaks immersion.

 Sigvatr wrote:
You are free to paint them in any way you want...albeit...ye know, swastika etc. aren't a good idea on models. And yes, people have done that before.

I once refused to play someone with MLP marines before. Not because of the show itself (despite it breeding the most weird people...), but because it just doesn't go with 40k and I'd not have fun playing a game that heavily breaks immersion.

Yet I seem to remember you advocating ETC...

 carlos13th wrote:
Made fun of you for making an army that can recruit from an entire galaxy but doesn't have a variety of skin tones? That's just stupid.

See, that's how I felt. He was a very by the book guy, though. As in, exactly by the book; if it didn't look like it looked in the books, it wasn't right.

 thedarkavenger wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:
You are free to paint them in any way you want...albeit...ye know, swastika etc. aren't a good idea on models. And yes, people have done that before.

I once refused to play someone with MLP marines before. Not because of the show itself (despite it breeding the most weird people...), but because it just doesn't go with 40k and I'd not have fun playing a game that heavily breaks immersion.

Yet I seem to remember you advocating ETC...

ETC? Is the site right when it says European team championships? If so not really sure why it would be immersion breaking..

 carlos13th wrote:

 thedarkavenger wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:
You are free to paint them in any way you want...albeit...ye know, swastika etc. aren't a good idea on models. And yes, people have done that before.

I once refused to play someone with MLP marines before. Not because of the show itself (despite it breeding the most weird people...), but because it just doesn't go with 40k and I'd not have fun playing a game that heavily breaks immersion.

Yet I seem to remember you advocating ETC...

ETC? Is the site right when it says European team championships? If so not really sure why it would be immersion breaking..

The ETC is a tournament where you travel halfway across Europe to hide your army behind hills for a draw.

There are no rules for how armies must be painted. And each army has multiple factions within it, most of which are unlisted. So go nuts!

I do have an objection to pink skinned Ogres, but thats more me being cheesed off on GW changing the normal skin tone from real ogre grey to "big fat human" pink.

I asked a similar question over on the Infinity section, but I am very new to that system!

But otherwise, I love seeing alternative colour schemes!

Red Orks/Orcs look brilliant imho.

I'll be painting my ArcWorlde Wild Elves black/dark green skin with white hair.

Thing is, they're your toys! Do what you want! If it looks sh*t, bust out the Fairy Power Spray/Simple Green and start again.