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Hey guys! I am verynew to the game, so pardon my ignorance here. I have been reading over the core rules this week, and ordered most of the individual codexes this weekend. I am still in the process of choosing my army, and havent purchased any miniatures specifically to build one (I have bought individual ones to use in Pathfinder and DnD for years.)

With that being said, I have become aware that there are some smaller companies that make fantastic units that are basically generic versions of GW and FW units. I really like some of these, especially some of the conversion pieces (there is a Thousand Sons set that is SICK!).

Are these allowed to be used when you play? Can I include a whole "generic space marine" in my Grey Knight army? Can the conversion pieces be used if not? Are conversions even allowed to be tabled, or are they just showcase pieces?

Final question: Are there any female space marines available through any of these smaller companies?

Thank you for any info guys!

You can use any models you want as long as your opponent agrees with it. It has to be the right size as well. If you are playing at a GW store they may not allow it. And yes conversions are allowed and welcomed! And no, no such thing as female space marines, that's heresy

Awesome! I was afraid every one would be super strict on it.

As to Heresy.. Well, a CSM army of Slaanesh that is fielded entirely by female CSM, daemons, etc sounds fairly heretical- but awesome- to me!

I found a company that sells female Adeptus Mechanicus that are the correct scale- and nude, so they fit the theme- but no SM. :(

Generally, most people won't care. Anvil Industries and Kromlech both produce great models, I know, and there are a bunch of others. You might run into some flak at a GW official event or Warhammer store, but that's about it.

 themourningstar wrote:
Awesome! I was afraid every one would be super strict on it.

As to Heresy.. Well, a CSM army of Slaanesh that is fielded entirely by female CSM, daemons, etc sounds fairly heretical- but awesome- to me!

I found a company that sells female Adeptus Mechanicus that are the correct scale- and nude, so they fit the theme- but no SM. :(

The problem with female Space marines is that it can't be done according to fluff. Space Marines are made by gene implants that work with male hormones. But if you want to do it, then who am I to stop you, go for it

Just an FYI, feel free to do what you like with your own toy soldiers, but, canonically, female Space Marines cannot exist. In universe justification is that it simply doesn't work with female physiology. So you're unlikely to find many options for third party models, other than pseudo Sisters Of Battle.

Prodos make and sell some female space marine types;

http://shop.prodosgames.com/72-space-crusade

I know it won't work, canonically, but.. It would be awesome, and a fun project. Female daemons, female soul grinder, CSM, everything.. It would be fun. I enjoy the modelling aspect; the game I have yet to play.

Besides, if I design it, wrote up a Chapter Codex, maybe GW will see the sense in it and publish it.

Or not. I play Pathfinder, where everything and anything is designable!

 themourningstar wrote:
I know it won't work, canonically, but.. It would be awesome, and a fun project. Female daemons, female soul grinder, CSM, everything.. It would be fun. I enjoy the modelling aspect; the game I have yet to play.

Besides, if I design it, wrote up a Chapter Codex, maybe GW will see the sense in it and publish it.

Or not. I play Pathfinder, where everything and anything is designable!

I mean go for it man! I also enjoy the modeling/painting aspect and have yet to play. Chaos would be the perfect army for me because I love the painting, modeling and playstyle but just can't get behind the lore

If there was an army to pull off female space marines it would be a Slaaneshi CSM army and you could just say the warp corrupted them to become female for reasons.

As for using 3rd party stuff its generally considered by most players to be 100% fine as long as the models represent the unit in a readable way (aka you can figure out what its suppose to be by looking at it). Rule of Cool plays a big part in this because the more effort or creativity put into the conversion/scratch build the more tolerant people are of the model being different from the original unit design. Google Mr Potato Head Stompa and you can see an incredibly beautiful looking Ork Stompas made from the structure of a Mr Potato Head toy.

 Vankraken wrote:
If there was an army to pull off female space marines it would be a Slaaneshi CSM army and you could just say the warp corrupted them to become female for reasons.

I know this was not your intention but put in this way could have some unfortunate implications

Perhaps sisters of battle that went into chaos and became exalted to CSM level?

I think it depends; even a GW store might not care if it's like bits, as long as you aren't loudly saying buy X company's stuff instead of buying the GW products. If it's a totally new model I'm not sure, it's probably up to discretion of the individual store but again I would imagine it depends on the number of models and how discreet you are about it.

Oh wow...female space marines.

No one ever thought of that idea before.

Seriously, this place is like frigging ground hog day sometimes, I don't mean to be negative I seriously don't, it's just that this gets regurgitated so much that when it comes up you have to wonder if it's being done in an ironic way now.

I'd advise against using the nude admech models. I know which ones you're talking about and they're technically well sculpted, but you don't wanna be "That creepy pinup guy" using a bunch of fetishy models.

Beyond that though, third party models are a-okay with most people. I've got a couple that I use as well, so long as they fit the aesthetic.

 General Kroll wrote:
Oh wow...female space marines.
No one ever thought of that idea before.

Yup you do Hobby better than everyone else, well played, we bow to your overarching knowledge. Check the post count and admission to being new before being a dick.
Do whatever you like OP. It's your world now and I actually prefer it to Kroll's.

Imagine my shock and dismay to discover that someone else has thought of female space marines! ...Except a cursory google shows that there are a million pages discussing why they dont exist.

Now, I was annoyed when I found someone had already converted the soulgrinder and made a female version. I thought for sure I had that niche down.

Still, as unoriginal as I may be... I havent seen anyone actually MAKE a female CSM army, even if the idea is out there. It will be fun, and hey, let's face it. I'm just a casual. ^-^

Thank you for all the positive feedback guys!

On a side note.. There are fetish models?! I didnt even realize the admechs were naked until I visited the actual site- I would just paint them as if they has skin tight clothing on.

Be mindful of where you intend to play.

Some GW stores don't allow some/many/any 3rd party miniatures if you want to play at that store, whether pick up games or special events or tournaments.

Otherwise, it's your hobby, so knock yourself out!

No one can stop anyone from building/painting whatever they want, regardless of fluff. There are some general guidelines if you want to find general acceptance pretty much anywhere you go:

1) Same size/scale as the replaced model.

2) Same weaponry as the replaced model (i.e. none of the "well that naked lady with two swords? Yeah she's a Space Marine with a Missile Launcher")

3) Should be easily identifiable as a unit (again, running a large mass of Cthulu horrors and saying they're Tau figures will be confusing/rejected by many folks)

And there is a last point which many people will debate endlessly - spirit of the game, or in this case, spirit of the fluff. A lot of people play 40K for the fluff and aesthetic, so while you could theoretically buy a bunch of My Little Pony figures and run them as a Tyranid force...you'll get a lot of kick back from that. Just respect the fact that the IP is the basis for the game. A handful of folks would gladly play whatever you put on the table - most want at least a nod to the IP at minimum.

If you want to run female Space Marines, you could just buy Sisters of Battle models and say they were captured/twisted, etc. Might be a bit heretical etc., but would fit fine.

 themourningstar wrote:
Imagine my shock and dismay to discover that someone else has thought of female space marines! ...Except a cursory google shows that there are a million pages discussing why they dont exist.

Now, I was annoyed when I found someone had already converted the soulgrinder and made a female version. I thought for sure I had that niche down.

Still, as unoriginal as I may be... I havent seen anyone actually MAKE a female CSM army, even if the idea is out there. It will be fun, and hey, let's face it. I'm just a casual. ^-^

Thank you for all the positive feedback guys!

On a side note.. There are fetish models?! I didnt even realize the admechs were naked until I visited the actual site- I would just paint them as if they has skin tight clothing on.

Go for it! (I find the general hammering of "no lady space marines" boring and overdone.) I would love to see some on the table, and Chaos is a great way to silence all the haters.

Another thing I have heard that works pretty well from some executions that I have seen so far are standard marine bodies with unhelmeted female heads. Plenty of companies make heads that fit well (my personal favorite are Statuesque).

Also, yes, naked breasts generally count as or are considered fetish, especially if your gaming store plays host to any number of women gamers. Slaanesh gets away with a little more than most armies though, although that is usually relying on non-standard skintones such as the ones shown on the daemonettes boxes. I also have a tendency of painting what is supposed to be skin as colored bodysuits, but if they are totally naked, make sure you give at least some consideration to some slight alternations to the chest area (nipples do not stick out that much in spandex suits unless the lady is really, really cold, and even with a catsuit, it is often considered cheesecake/fetish if the nipples are showing).

Still, that all depends on A) How much you care about potentially offending someone and B) How uptight the gamers in your area are.

If you are talking female slaneesh chaos marines give a look at hydra casts newest model.

NSFW
http://hydracast.blogspot.com/p/demon-princess.html

A solid replacement for a demon prince in that style.

Advice above is good too. Kit bash a loin cloth or some such onto her.

 Lance845 wrote:
If you are talking female slaneesh chaos marines give a look at hydra casts newest model.

http://hydracast.blogspot.com/p/demon-princess.html

A solid replacement for a demon prince in that style.

...and it's naked. Because of course it fething is.

Ruin wrote:

 Lance845 wrote:
If you are talking female slaneesh chaos marines give a look at hydra casts newest model.

http://hydracast.blogspot.com/p/demon-princess.html

A solid replacement for a demon prince in that style.

...and it's naked. Because of course it fething is.

I agree! I mean... it only really works for slaneesh which is what he mentioned and why I bought it up. But yeah... could have not been naked.

It's a real nice base for some real good conversions though.

Alex Kolodotschko wrote:

 General Kroll wrote:
Oh wow...female space marines.
No one ever thought of that idea before.

Yup you do Hobby better than everyone else, well played, we bow to your overarching knowledge. Check the post count and admission to being new before being a dick.
Do whatever you like OP. It's your world now and I actually prefer it to Kroll's.

I should have phrased that differently to be honest. My point was more about the repetition on the site more than a slight against the op. Sorry if any offence was caused.

Naked admech sound fun although I wouldn't want to catch my old chap in a mechadendrite.

Keep in mind with most "fetish" models, you could always just shave the nipples off to make spandex or use green stuff to give them armor or even just a loin cloth or something. With a little bit of work you could easily fix these models to not be fetish and be more "acceptable" in public.

As for female space marines, chaos would be about the only way you could justify it. Chaos causes way weirder stuff than that to happen after all. You'll still get push back, but at least with chaos it makes sense. Make sure you do a good job with it though. If it looks like you were lazy people will assume you're being a troll.

As for 3rd party stuff in general, it needs to generally follow 3 rules

1.It matches the original model/idea in some way. I.E. 3rd party guardsmen must clearly be humans armed with basic rifles and armor for example, or at least a human equivalent such as beastmen. If you go with anything thats clearly not a sanctioned mutation, such as Cthulhu heads, then you pretty much need to accept your army will be traitor guard.

2.It must be well executed without being phoned in. Using guardsmen again, an army where someone just took a bunch of dollar store green army men and slapped them on bases would be poorly recieved. But if the player took the time to convert their own regiment with a good paintjob, nice bases, and made an effort to modify some of the green army men into different poses or weapons, it might be different.

3. It makes sense. With the IG example again, you are given a good amount of leeway. Female guardsmen are game because the background clearly mentions they exist. However a regiment sporting a wide variety of mutations as a loyalist regiment wouldn't, as the imperium kills mutants on sight usually. This requires a bit of research and is where you see the push back against female space marines. It's been a part of the lore for a LONG time and has been pretty cut and dry. If it was something like "it's very difficult but possible" people wouldn't care, but the lore always states it's impossible. Then again this doesn't stop GW from adding random new pieces of gear to the Imperium armories when supposedly the Imperium rarely, if ever innovates, but there you go.

Female space marines get the most flak usually because it's never done well in my experience and is also considered a red flag that someone is going to ignore huge swathes of the lore. Given that the lore is one of the major reasons most people play this game, it's like seeing a guard regiment that doesn't worship the emperor but is considered loyal, or an Eldar group that isn't a bunch of backstabbing jerks . It immediately jerks you out of the setting in a "that doesn't make sense" way, which for a setting with chainsaw swords and millenia old tanks is impressive. For a sake of comparison, imagine if you were reading a Star Wars book and a Light Side jedi shot force lightning out of his hands to kill a prisoner, but still didn't fall to the dark side. It feels like that.