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Kevin48220 wrote:
!!! ... there's something not quite right about an entire horde of well-groomed rats with a hygiene fetish.

That's like finding an Orc with a Ph.D..

My big Mek, Doktor Orktapus (Ph.D - University of Armageddon), would like a word with you.

I personally find painting an army where everything is identical is maddening. That's why my Tyranid progress is so slow. Every model is the same. Prime red. Wash. Relayer red 7-8 times. Paint parts black. Feather highlights. Base. Prime red. Wash...

With Vampires, if I get bored painting skeletons, I can switch up the colours for the next batch of 5. Then switch it up on the next batch. And I end up with a random, rag tag looking regiment, which makes sense. In the middle of that, if I'm getting bored painting bone, I can switch to some Ghouls, and paint skin for a while. Then switch to zombies, and paint rotting skin and fabric in different colours.

For me, painting needs variety. I get through Tyranids for love of the army. With VC, I don't have to force myself through painting.

Sure its numbing, but you can at least get assembly line painting going. I'll spend a couple mindless hours so I can get minis painted.

RegalPhantom wrote:

Kevin48220 wrote:
!!! ... there's something not quite right about an entire horde of well-groomed rats with a hygiene fetish.

That's like finding an Orc with a Ph.D..

My big Mek, Doktor Orktapus (Ph.D - University of Armageddon), would like a word with you.

I'd go to his office hours, but I believe that he destroyed the planet that formerly housed his office...

 Grey Templar wrote:
Sure its numbing, but you can at least get assembly line painting going. I'll spend a couple mindless hours so I can get minis painted.

That's exactly why I can't paint an army of models in one scheme. Because I can't assembly line paint. My gaunts get painted one at a time. I tried assembly lining, but it just resulted in nothing getting done, because I paint in 10-15 minute sessions, not for hours on end. The only reason I've been able to do skellies in batches of 5 is because my scheme is very simple for the end result.

I assembly lined my space marines, but only for the priming and basecoats, and a few things that were going to be common on all of them (like the backpacks). Past that, I had to do them all in small batches, and more or less individually, because I varied the details on my color scheme for each type of unit (ex: Fast attack units had green shoulder pads with white trim, while the Tacticals had khaki pads with white trim).

Anymore, my painting and modelling takes place in 20-30 minute lengths of time, so doing a true horde army in an efficient manner could be problematic.

My plan is to take a good 6 months to focus on modelling and painting my new force (while also ingesting the WFB rules and such) before they even hit the table. I couldn't let the boots of my SM's hit the ground until they'd all been varnished and based, and I'm sure my WFB army will go the same way. Besides, I enjoy the creative process of painting and modelling.

After looking at the army books and having a good conversation with the Fantasy players at my local GW store, I've settled on starting Fantasy with High Elves.

I made the choice based on wanting to have an army that was pretty decent-to-good in all phases of the turn, and could potentially be very effective in the magic and movement phases. I prefer to build "all-comers" lists, and from what I have seen, HE look to be very solid in that regard.

Just wanted to make sure to thank everyone who chimed in on this thread. I know I made a different choice than was originally discussed, but all the comments here did really help me figure out what I was looking for. Very pleased with my choice and grateful for the help from the community here!

Not a bad choice, especially for something you can grab cheaply. Ebay a couple of Island of Blood High Elf sets, and you'll have a good core to build on for less than a battalion usually costs.

Exactly. I figure that I can build something decent for not a huge amount, and learn the rules with them.

And, once I have the rules down...well, then we'll be looking at building some Vampire Counts. Those models are just too cool to be left alone...