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Now, 30k has a lot more in common with historical games than 40k, because 30k is a storyline, not just a setting, and we know how it ends.

Example: I play Word Bearers, but I have mixed in Night Lords parts, CSM models and even third party components and my army is painted with white armor.

What are your thoughts on things like this? Do you feel it is more important to be true to the lore than in 40k? Obviously, everyone can do what they wish with their models, but it does not mean you can't have opinions.

It's your toys. Do what you want with them. That said... I pride myself on having "period correct" armies. I wouldn't turn my nose up at someone using Mk. 7 parts in their forces for example but I try to avoid it. I paint my army about the right shade of blue and I try to use decals and other markings accurately. I am kind of anal-retentive like that.

Like you, my Word Bearers are a mix up of different faction parts. Specifically, Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines, Necrons, Daemons, and some WHFB and 'off-brand' parts, as well. I think Word Bearers are in a unique spot here because they're the first ones down the Kos path (if I have my fluff right). Furthermore, I play a 'custom Chapter' of Word Bearers, so I don't feel beholden to conform to any pre-existing color schemes, art, etc.

It doesn't bother me in the least how people go about making their Legion out of what parts. I am happy just to find a decent human being to play Horus Heresy games with.

It always feels a little more epic to me to have 2 fully painted, "correct" armies slugging it out on a table with well painted terrain. The more factors you take away from that, the less I'm into the game. When I played things like WMH they were all basically game tokens to me but 30k is different.

there's a little bit of "what" that can be applied, though that's in specific cases and it's never actual disdain. Using CSM parts for Night lords (and later heresy Word Bearers) makes perfect sense since it fits with the legion's fluff. Word bearers we grey before they all painted their armor red, so white shouldn't be an issue. I think you are right though, there is a bit less freedom in 30k than 40k, but that doesn't mean there's no freedom.

It's when you paint your Night lords hot pink, and have them act like no other night lord when I start questioning it

 Brennonjw wrote:
It's when you paint your Night lords hot pink, and have them act like no other night lord when I start questioning it

I'd still happily play 'em, and probably even give my opponent an extra VP for painting an army hot pink! Night Lords - Chapter Fancy Pants! Or , ya know, their base is on a planet that goes hot pink at night, and they've got the best camo ever!

 jasper76 wrote:

 Brennonjw wrote:
It's when you paint your Night lords hot pink, and have them act like no other night lord when I start questioning it

I'd still happily play 'em, and probably even give my opponent an extra VP for painting an army hot pink! Night Lords - Chapter Fancy Pants!

Oh, I'd still play him no problem, I'd just question why.

Really, the group that bothers me more are the cheese players in a game that is remarkably non-competitive. Funny thing is, most stereotypical 30k cheese lists are just 40k cheese without the master of relics

Yeah, fortunately I've never met a 30k 'optimizer'. It's all about fun fluffy games for us, but that's the way we try and play 40k too.

While 30k is very fleshed out. i think there is still some wiggle room to do things of that nature. besides its everything from 30k-40k and those marines had to be converted to chaos space marines over time right?

Another thing to keep in mind is, even according to the HH fluff, not really much is known about the HH, and what is known is always questionable. For example, there are many HH-era Word Bearers chapters in which nothing at all is known besides the name.

The way I think about HH and 40k, even the existence of the Emperor might be a total myth. But I'm probably going off on a tangent here.

My opinion is you should be able to identify the legion at the table from looking at its colors.

Plenty of variation within that, but if you have white WB with red trimming certainly those would most likely be recognized as White Scars.

I suspect my daemonic units and general spikiness would kind of give away the Legion?

40k weapons are fine since it can be assumed that pattern existed in some form. Same with using normal 40k preds and vindi's since we see the plastic rhino in the books. Just convert any 30k upgrades and/or loadouts on the tanks.

As the armour I'm a bit more picky about. No one in the army should be wearing reconizable mk7 or post heresy power armour. So as long as yout mindfull of the csm bits you use this is fine! Its more or less seeing 40k tac squads in a 30k list that just feel realy disappointing to see.

Nothing you described sounds that different from my own 30k marines TBH. (Check them out in my gallery.)

I'd say it depends more on who you play with. 30K got big in my group, and we're all trying to stay as fluffy as possible.

I wouldn't tell someone to piss off for showing up with white Word Bearers though. Whose to say they aren't some obscure chapter/company that got a special scheme or something?

Personally, I stick to the fluff as much as possible. Which isn't difficult, there still is a huge amount of flexibility in the story, the legions were massive and there's room to take them in many different directions. But what other people do with their stuff doesn't really bother me, as long as they're having fun.

As for your Word Bearers, they don't sound like anything that couldn't be explained with some simple backstory, so I wouldn't even say it isn't true to the lore.

I thought only the Serrated Suns Chapter of the Word Bearers had the all-over red armour pre-Istvaan V? What was their normal Great Crusade-era colours, anyway? Wasn't it like a stone grey/dull steel? So, with that in mind, you could make your WB a specific chapter and give them whatever colour scheme you wanted.

 Anfauglir wrote:
I thought only the Serrated Suns Chapter of the Word Bearers had the all-over red armour pre-Istvaan V? What was their normal Great Crusade-era colours, anyway? Wasn't it like a stone grey/dull steel? So, with that in mind, you could make your WB a specific chapter and give them whatever colour scheme you wanted.

I think it was a grey-ish color during the Great Crusade. IIRC one of the Ultramarines in Know No Fear even mentions it/has a moment of "WTF" when he first sees his old Word Bearers buddy in the new dark red armor.