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I want to encourage a couple of my friends to play 40k but they won't to hear about investing in miniatures :(
So I plan to create paper ones that can be printed in many copies.

It will take me some time to design two races and a couple of different units.(becouse of coronavirus It's not a problem) I wonder which way should I go. Colored looks nicer and professional but the black and white are much faster to draw.
Which version you like better? Which one you would use?

Thanks for opinions.

Do your friends want to play with paper models, or was them saying they didnt want to do plastic models a way for them to say no diplomatically?

In reply to your actual question, I think it would be easier to tell them apart if they had a bit of colour. I like the black and white ones best in your example, but would personally take a felt tip to them to block in a couple of basic colours.

Another, perhaps better, option is to paint up two armies yourself - even if they are just small point values (under 1K). Then let your friend borrow one (since chances are they won't be playing on their own without you at this stage). It might change their mind and transform them into wargamers.

Yeah, but I am not experienced as well (I don't have miniatures for my own but played 40k several times).
I am ready to buy a small army but not armies for them. I guess my friends don't want to buy minis because they don't know anything about wargaming.
It would be good to show them some basic rules and hopefully go to wargaming together.
So... the question is if fully colored miniatures really matter here.

It might be easier and quicker to go to the GW site, find coloured pics of the models, front and back, and print those out.

ie.

I want to force

Nope. I'll concede this might be a mistranslation, but if this is accurate, just nope.

 Daemonslave wrote:
It might be easier and quicker to go to the GW site, find coloured pics of the models, front and back, and print those out.

ie.

That's funny. GW unwittingly providing you every model (in color!) you'll ever need to play for free.
Pics by GW, Rules by Army Builder....
And once the games done? You can toss it all in a shoebox with no real worries.

While I'm pretty sure you don't mean to use the word "force", and you probably meant "encourage"...I'd skip this effort.

I know you do paper models for fantasy stuff, and that is a good idea because there are so many RPGs out there that use them. 40K is a pretty crap game, honestly...the only reason people really lean toward it is because of the models. Playing a mediocre game with just paper armies (and you'd need...a massive amount of paper miniatures) would end up seeming kind of pointless.

Do I think there is room for sci-fi standees/paper miniatures for role-playing games? Perhaps.

You could try playing Kill Team to get their feet wet.

It's close enough to give them an idea how wargaming/40k works on general level, and you probably have enough models to split between several teams.

I use paper templates all the time to try out and test new games with folks.

If you want to do it, and think it is fun..... go for it!

if you start new and your friends are on the same boat, no problem here

and for Papercraft you will find all kind of models not only for 40k and depending on the work you want to put into them they can look better than poor done GW models

 Elbows wrote:
...I'd skip this effort.

I know you do paper models for fantasy stuff, and that is a good idea because there are so many RPGs out there that use them. 40K is a pretty crap game, honestly...the only reason people really lean toward it is because of the models. Playing a mediocre game with just paper armies (and you'd need...a massive amount of paper miniatures) would end up seeming kind of pointless.

1) There's also plenty of people who do actually like the game though.
And there's 8 editions of it out there, some better than others IMO.... Also wether you're doing it with metal minis, plastic minis, or paper, nothing says you have to play it using the worst version.

2) Don't discount people playing because of the other people involved. Playing with friends trumps even the models.

3) "A massive amount of paper minis"..... OH NO! NOT THAT! Not the same amount of minis you'd need if you were doing it in metal/platic/3d printed.... What an insurmountable burden.
The thing is? You'll spend far less time & $ on the paper ones. Even if you have to buy more paper & replace every cartridge in your printer. And the printer.
You could start with nothing, have multiple full color armies done one day (barring running out of ink), & be on to playing the next.

 Elbows wrote:
Do I think there is room for sci-fi standees/paper miniatures for role-playing games? Perhaps.

There's already companies & people filling that need. Has been for years (decades). For every genre. Catch up please.
But that's irrelevant as the OPs question was about playing 40k this way, not RPGs.

As other folks have alluded, there's already a large amount of paper miniatures (for 40K) out there already. Just searching for papercraft should get you access to most of them.

There's even vehicles - I've personally put together a paper Land Raider Crusader, a Thunderbolt and a paper StormRaven - and seen paper Valkyries that I had to get real close to realize it wasn't made of plastic.

I think you should go for it. Don't invest money into something you don't enjoy or that you can't find people to play with. I would be perfectly fine playing a game with paper icons as long as everyone is playing with paper icons. If I take the time to buy, assemble, and paint my large army of metal/plastic/resin miniatures and you put paper down I'm probably not going to play with you.

If there is a GW store near where you live after the quarantine and all that you may be able to go and play a couple games with their tutorial models. Most GW stores I've been in have a few armies that the store owner will let new players learn on.

I wouldn't get comfortable however because they won't let you keep playing on them.

 PaperMini wrote:
I am ready to buy a small army but not armies for them. I guess my friends don't want to buy minis because they don't know anything about wargaming.

Also the standard problems in trying to lure players away from 40K. The former option's easier when small armies don't come from GW, so paper minis are a reasonable stopgap. (I remember back when I bought the 3rd ed book... I was cutting out 25mm paper circles and writing 'termagant' and 'genestealer' on them.)

So... the question is if fully colored miniatures really matter here.

No. But nice drawings. Honestly.

So I wouldn't be too fussy about delicate shading if you decide to colour them but don't want to work too hard. Just give 'em a pass or two with your green and grey copics or the paint bucket tool. Think of it like getting your army tabletop-ready rather than mucking about with transparent layers, dreaming of a golden demon.

Reminds me of this ork dread lol

why not use https://onepagerules.com/ they have paper mini's and quick game play

I say go for it. It's a cheap way to put armies on the table and learn the rules. Worst case scenario is your friends aren't into war gaming. Best case is your friends love it and you start working on 3d armies together.

You may love 40K (my friends and I do) and you may not. The idea here is to introduce your group to the idea of tabletop gaming. if 40K is not for you there are a ton of fun rule sets out there.

I think you have some really nice artwork. Good-looking stuff.
You may also want to look into maybe even selling them on places like drivethrurpg

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?keywords=miniatures&x=0&y=0&author=&artist=&pfrom=&pto=

Thank you guys for the comments, some of you suggested me to take them a try.
Yeah, GW has 360 previews so making paper units would be quicker and easier thst way.
The point is I like to draw characters and design them from scratch.



And yesterday I have finished a working prototype. I added grayscales but I will probably not go with colors.




The miniatures are set to 1inch metal washers so they are paper ones but heavy.

I am not sure if this forum allows to attach PDF printable templates so you could try by your own.

Cool.

I remember the original Rogue Trader 1st Edition book had the scenario 'Battle at the Farm" in the back and it included paper standees right in the book.

A "modern" version of it....
http://1000footgeneral.blogspot.com/2016/02/oldhammer-40k-battle-at-farm-scenario.html

If you're looking for a cheap way to play there's a lot of options out there as others noted.

But if you're looking to express yourself and hone your art, cool go for it!

As for the Rogue Trader paper dudes...

The color ones look nice.

I’d rather see paper “minis’ than bottle caps and soda cans, but for me the miniatures are a core part of the hobby. I enjoy the building and painting, and the spectacle of two well painted armies clashing on the tabletop. If you want to use them to get your friends hooked on the game, go for it. But they should just be a stepping stone.

Paper models? Peter Dennis, wargames artist supremo, already done it. Also on sale in some bookshops, as well as online.

https://peterspaperboys.com/

Yes, paper "standee" wargames and papercraft modelling are a whole sub-genre of the wargaming hobby.