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Hello all, I have a rather random question to ask, was wondering if anyone had some thoughts on the topic.

I've wanted to collect Sisters of Battle for Warhammer 40k for a while, however they are completely unaffordable. At $80+ for ten Battle Sisters, I cannot even remotely justify the cost.

So... is there an affordable way to put together an army of them? Whether by putting together parts from other kits, or using alternative models? I've considered messing around with 3d printing to make some of my own components, however that isn't much cheaper.

For Sisters of Battle I'd be collecting them almost purely as showcase items, perhaps using them as Space Marine proxies when playing with friends. I don't see myself putting together a full force, really it's just the Battle Sister models that I like the look of.

So thoughts?

My first stop would be ebay. Then maybe the swap shop. Also try to trades/buy from other players at your lgs.

Sadly the short answer is no I my opinion. This is because I feel that very few of the alterative models available (of which there are relatively few) do justice to the faction.

You might get extremely lucky and pick up some Battle Sisters of ebay for a reasonable price, but my experience has been that the models I see on ebay are typically a similar price to buying new.

You never know though, you might get lucky.

D

From my point of view its all about being patient and not expecting to have a massive army very quickly. Ive collected nearly 8k of SoB now, and not a single model of that has been bought directly from GW or for more than 50% of the RRP they charge.

I got my army from eBay and one decent sized collection i bought from a friend at a FLGS.

You have just got to bide your time and only bid up to a specified cost on eBay, if you dont get that model then just wait for the next auction.

The good thing about SoB is that there are many models in the army that can stand in for many different unit types. So if you win an auction that has a few of a model that you weren't particularly after, then you can use them for something different.

The only models you may struggle to get hold of cheaply are the special characters (Celestine, Uriah Jacobus), the current canoness (although i picked up one of two of these in other mixed lot auctions) and the penitent engines. Ive used alternative models for a few of my centre piece models, the DE range is quite useful for female models.

PM me, there is a very cheap way

PM sent

Pretty much what scrunty said. I have a Dark Angel force but I'm slowly collecting Necrons and adding to my DA's cheaply from ebay. I imagine if the Necrons where my primary force it would be frustrating waiting to play. Regarding ebay, I just set my price limit and never go above. If I don't win it, fine. There is always next time. Some recent buys have been. Predator £6.50, Shotgun scouts with HB £3, Sniper Scouts with ML £4. and that's inc P&P. So it easily doable. I like to find the auctions I'm interested in that end at odd times. E.g, early hours of the morning, during school/work hours etc but I've already said too much SHHHhhhhh

The most affordable way is to only play kill team

In seriousness they are metal models, so buy the worst painted models on ebay that go cheap and get some industrial strength acetone. Give them a little dip for 10 minutes and then scrub all that paint off with an old toothbrush (or an enemy's toothbrush) and voila; good as new again!

Not an ideal solution by any means, but SoB war-gear is nearly identical to space marines. The power armor worn by marines could also be worn by women and look the same, so with very little conversion work you can use marine models for the bulk of your army.

One thing which occurred to me, anyone have any experience with casting their own models? That is, creating a mold then creating components with that mold? Anyone know what goes into that? (It occurred to me that with the right materials I might be able to start creating some pretty cool stuff, just don't know where to start out.)

I'll also throw my lot in with EBay. I was able to amass a pretty sizeable force of sisters mainly through ebay a few years back for well under retail, but it took over a year. Patience is key, as is vigilance. Filling out special weapons through GW might be the way to go now, to fill in gaps from eBay lots.

Hmmm...that's a good question.
Sisters of Battle are very expensive. You have no idea how surprised I am to see that the Battle Sister Squad is $80!
So, short answer is, no.
Long answer is, no, unless you have a lot (and I mean A LOT) of money.
But that's only GW's webstore.
Try Ebay. You might get better results there.

This might just be relevant, from the Dreamforge N&R thread:

 Jehan-reznor wrote:
Finally there is hope for the SOB players!

From the Bols forum
Spoilered because of lots of pictures

Spoiler:

Bols link http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/showthread.php?52847-Non-GW-Plastic-Sisters-of-Battle&p=475852&viewfull=1#post475852

Bit too bulky for my tastes, but the theory is fine, and Dreamforge have some thinner female troops coming soon that would do just as well, with a similar amount of converting. Still fairly expensive per-model once you get the aftermarket heads (these are from Statuesque minis, I believe), but cheaper than GW and approaching Space Marine prices overall.

 Paradigm wrote:
This might just be relevant, from the Dreamforge N&R thread:

 Jehan-reznor wrote:
Finally there is hope for the SOB players!

From the Bols forum
Spoilered because of lots of pictures

Spoiler:

Bols link http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/showthread.php?52847-Non-GW-Plastic-Sisters-of-Battle&p=475852&viewfull=1#post475852

Bit too bulky for my tastes, but the theory is fine, and Dreamforge have some thinner female troops coming soon that would do just as well, with a similar amount of converting. Still fairly expensive per-model once you get the aftermarket heads (these are from Statuesque minis, I believe), but cheaper than GW and approaching Space Marine prices overall.

Good news, dudes! I might just try it!