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When you assemble and paint your models for the glorious adventures and battles that await them, do you also paint and decorate their bases too? TBH, I'm not really a big fan of doing it due to there being a chance of the base not matching the table (e.g. a model with a desert-themed base while playing on a snow-themed board) and that's more of my own problem then anything, but that's beside the point.

What about you though? Do you like to base your all your models? Perhaps only doing it with those special guys? Or maybe you don't wish to base your guys? Please, share your thoughts and if you want to inspire others to do so, maybe share some pictures or something of your nice looking bases?

I don't like painting anything, including bases! That said I always base the model as the last step in painting it. There are so many variations in boards that you can't match everything. A medium dark brown would probably come closest. It would blend with a black board, match a brown board, look like patches of dirt on a green board and patches of open ground on a snow board.

For me basing is a key part of the whole thing.

Currently I'm working on Judge Dredd figures and Empire of the Dead - they both get genre relevant resin bases.

Later this year I'll be working on some Finnish and Soviet Winter War figures that have integral bases - these will get glued to coins, covered with sand and PVA, painted to look like Earth, then covered with patches of snow and Silflor Grass tufts.

I always do most to all of the basing before painting the figure, as some of the techniques I use for bases (Heavy washes, rough drybrushing) will go onto the figure. It's part of my semi-batch painting thing - all the figures for a unit get based together and their flesh/ eyes done together before they mostly get painted individually for skirmish games or in batches if for more mass combat games,

9/10 when I complete (or get close to completing) a model I'll base it.

The trouble is the 'completing' part...

Never. I could never decide what I wanted, so I usually left the mechrite red slathered all over it. I guess it looked kind of cool. Cooler than brown and sand and crap.

Always. A model is not finished until it is properly based.

Well, I feel bad for not basing now.

I always base my models, even if its just a quick dip in fine sand before I undercoat. Although I've recently started to create much more scenic bases for the rank and file rather than just characters/leaders.

I think that even though you run the risk of it not matching a gaming board, a plain black base will most likely NEVER match a game-board. In my opinion an unbased model just looks unfinished.

I tend to wait until I have a bunch of models and then base them.... which means I have a lot of unbased models from all the armies I started and never got that far

But I like to see how an army is coming together before basing. I'm not very artistic and suck at choosing things that will work well together, so I prefer to wait and see it all together before finalising my basing plan.

For showcase models, I just base them when I finish them.

I don't hate the look of plain black bases, as long as they are plain black and don't have random paint splashes or messy bits from the slots. Plain black might not have the character of a modeled and painted base, but I think there's something to be said for simplicity and black does a good job of fading in to the background (that's why I paint all my flyer stands/bases black, I think it actually fades in to the background better than those hideous transparent flyer stands).

Always.
I just don't feel my models are complete without it.

Also, i don't think it can be thought of like "well i can't base them because then they won't suit the terrain they may be playing on".
As miniatures are static, i think of each one as an individual frozen in time, on their homeworld, or fighting the fiercest battle. That sacrad ground beneath their feet, claws or mighty tread is part of that frozen moment.
You men and women of war aren't reflecting the battle they are fighting now, they are reflecting their shining moments of your own division.
They take the fight wherever they want, and with the fight they take their shining glory - be it snow, sand, forest, mud, lava or otherwise.

 gnoise wrote:
TBH, I'm not really a big fan of doing it due to there being a chance of the base not matching the table (e.g. a model with a desert-themed base while playing on a snow-themed board) and that's more of my own problem then anything, but that's beside the point.

If this is a big concern for you, why not base them on clear acrylic bases? My infinity models are based on clear acrylic for this very reason.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Also, for clarity, I always base my 40k stuff (generic ash wasteland).

It makes a huge difference to how they models look when they're sitting on my shelf. Where they easily spend 99% of their time.

I almost never do it unless it's a model that's going to be posted in the Showcase forum.
I don't really know how to base very well so I use green stuff to base them. It usually winds up looking kind of bad, but it works.

 alanmckenzie wrote:

 gnoise wrote:
TBH, I'm not really a big fan of doing it due to there being a chance of the base not matching the table (e.g. a model with a desert-themed base while playing on a snow-themed board) and that's more of my own problem then anything, but that's beside the point.

If this is a big concern for you, why not base them on clear acrylic bases? My infinity models are based on clear acrylic for this very reason.

I actually prefer the look of flat black to clear acrylic.

The point of clear acrylic seems to be like it's "not there", however it actually has the opposite effect IMO, it draws the eye to itself because it reflects/refracts light. Matte black is the best colour for not drawing attention to itself.

My eldar only have green painted bases (the ones that I have finished painting do anyway!) but my iron warrior chaos army all have ruined battlefield scenic bases, painted black with metal objects and drybrushed grey to make it look like ash falling onto the battlefield from fire bombing.

I did this for the Iron Warriors as they started as a Tale of Gamers event at my local club and I wanted them to look good.

AllSeeingSkink wrote:

 alanmckenzie wrote:

 gnoise wrote:
TBH, I'm not really a big fan of doing it due to there being a chance of the base not matching the table (e.g. a model with a desert-themed base while playing on a snow-themed board) and that's more of my own problem then anything, but that's beside the point.

If this is a big concern for you, why not base them on clear acrylic bases? My infinity models are based on clear acrylic for this very reason.

I actually prefer the look of flat black to clear acrylic.

The point of clear acrylic seems to be like it's "not there", however it actually has the opposite effect IMO, it draws the eye to itself because it reflects/refracts light. Matte black is the best colour for not drawing attention to itself.

Yeh, kinda see your point with the reflections (depends on lighting and things though). I just think that plain black bases look unfinished, even if they are clean of splatter and things. And while a plain base will highlight the model and not detract (the eye) from it, I do think that they detract from the over all impression. Only because I think they look unfinished. All only my opinion of course.

I was also only trying to answer the OP's concern over bases not matching tables. I do think clear bases help this, I've used these models on a variety of surfaces/terrain and I think it looks decent. Not perfect obviously.

And, I should say, I've never used bigger clear bases than these, not sure a dreadnought wouldn't look like he's iceskating on a frozen pond.

 alanmckenzie wrote:
And, I should say, I've never used bigger clear bases than these, not sure a dreadnought wouldn't look like he's iceskating on a frozen pond.

Spoiler:

Those look great - I usually don't use clear acrylic, but one of my Dredd figures was too big for a 60mm resin base and a 120mm one would have been overkill, so Fenris custom cut me a 75mm acylic (IIRC) which looks like this:



Not too Ice-skatey I hope

At one point I based my Undead army. Goblin green & flock. Only about half of them are based these days, due to army expansion.

For the longest time the "Not matching the table" thing held me back. I'm over that now. I'm going to arctic base my Ultras. Eventually. It's on the to-do list (like so many other things).

But for the moment, when I'm done painting a model, everyone just gets a coat of black paint on the base to hide the splatters. It's simple and doesn't look bad, just not as nice as a finished base.

I base all my models.

Generally, I'll PVA glue the sand/rocks to the base before I prime the model, so I can paint it as with the rest of the mini. Painting the base whilst I wait for a wash on the model to dry is quite a handy timesaver.

richred_uk wrote:

 alanmckenzie wrote:
And, I should say, I've never used bigger clear bases than these, not sure a dreadnought wouldn't look like he's iceskating on a frozen pond.

Spoiler:

Those look great - I usually don't use clear acrylic, but one of my Dredd figures was too big for a 60mm resin base and a 120mm one would have been overkill, so Fenris custom cut me a 75mm acylic (IIRC) which looks like this:

Spoiler:

Not too Ice-skatey I hope

Yeah, that looks pretty good. Also, just had a look at your EotD stuff. Very nice work. Lovely models too. I like a lot of that stuff.

Cheers - the EotD stuff is great fun to work on and a bit of a change from the cartoony colours of my Dredd stuff that made up most of last year's painting.

If I ever get my blending and fine brush control up to scratch I might look at Infinity stuff with something other than fear and cowardice

I always base my models, I find un-based models just don't look finished IMO.

I suck at basing my minis but I always do it. Just some glue then sand and then prime the model and dry brush the base... Not the best but better than black base.
Sometimes I'll throw on some grass too depending what look I am going for.
I either use sand, kitty litter or a mix of both.

With my Eldar I am making simple snow bases. Just get some wall plaster (the stuff to fill cracks and chips in drywall, comes in a little jar for like 3 bucks, poly fill maybe?)
Just take a flat knife and slap it on the base and sorta lift it up as you go across and it looks like a wind swept snow base. You can paint it yellow and it looks like wind swept desert.
Oh the stuff is pink but drys pure white so if it's a snow base no need to paint.