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I'm just wondering why you or people you know don't get around to painting their models.

It's not required for tourney play. I'd love to take a week off work and paint them all, but 1) I don't have a week of time to take off, 2) if I did take a week off, there's more important things to do around the house (at least, according to my wife there is.....).

I don't own any but one of my main problems is also time.The figs are nice,and most are nicely detailed.So I wouldn't want to rush off a mini and make it look like gak.

I've noticed that too. I think because there is no requirement or prize for it. I wish there was because every time I play an unpainted army I feel like I'm playing against a power gamer who just went out and bought the best stuff to win...40k flashbacks.

malfred wrote:I'm just wondering why you or people you know don't get around to painting their models.

Personally, I think it is because the game is so well designed and flexible.

Most of my friends and I are too busy optimizing our lists and play testing our armies. We want to paint up our tournament lists and prioritize models but the darn "tournament lists" keep changing. Heck, some of them's had their army for years and still can't decide on which warcaster to paint first. I am returning to the hobby, but aside from starter box battles, I honestly can not say I've played against the same 500-750 point army twice. Solos are swapped out, squad sizes changed, updated beasts/jacks combinations, and warlocks/warcasters are replaced, etc.

Which makes the game extremely fun and competitive, but painting definitely takes the sidelines over building the killer list.

At my LGS most all of our Hordes/Warmachine armies are painted... the few who don't paint either are busy with school or just have their hands in too many other things at the same time.

I don't paint for any game system, so...

I've seen that in my area. Half the time they don't even bother to put primer on. I think Salisar hit the nail on the head. With a decreased amount of models (in comparison to 40k or Fantasy) you worry more about changing stuff in and out instead of working with what you have.

I've also noticed that. I'm the WM noob in my region but have more painted models than anyone else.

barlio wrote:I've seen that in my area. Half the time they don't even bother to put primer on. I think Salisar hit the nail on the head. With a decreased amount of models (in comparison to 40k or Fantasy) you worry more about changing stuff in and out instead of working with what you have.

Well, there's no point to putting primer on a model if you're not going to paint it. The
primer will just rub off or get grease spots on the places where your fingers have
held onto the pieces for all those games you're playing.

I think it is simple:

Because it isn't 40K NERD RAGE to force a painted model on the field.

Warmachine doesn't care if you can paint or model. They just want you to play the game.

GW wants you to model and paint, and don't care if you play as long as you buy models.

In my area, most players don't paint anything but those that do only paint them in the same paint scheme PP uses. I tried Hordes, great game, but several players were angry at me for wanting to have the differently. In 40k, models can be painted any which way and most players, if any I met, care.

Just my observations.

around my area, i see more armies painted then not, and its a tossup to studio color or not.

my cygnar aren't studio, but my friends khador are, and another guy has a menoth list that drifts between studio colors his fraternity colors

LiterateWolf wrote:In my area, most players don't paint anything but those that do only paint them in the same paint scheme PP uses. I tried Hordes, great game, but several players were angry at me for wanting to have the differently. In 40k, models can be painted any which way and most players, if any I met, care.

Just my observations.

That's dumb. They didn't want you to have a different paint scheme?

personally, i rather enjoy seeing peoples alt schemes generally. though i did see some really ugly trolls at a game store once

I also tend to spend more time per fig when the game has lesser models on the table. Therefore I still haven't fielded fully painted Cygnar force after playing for 3 years and my skorne are getting slowly painted.

It was the same thing when I played confrontation, but with 40k and WHFB I'm comfortable in fielding core troopers painted in simple and quick fashion.

Metsuri wrote:I also tend to spend more time per fig when the game has lesser models on the table.

That's actually VERY true. Nearly all the painted WM/Ho armies I've seen have been much, much, MUCH better done than 40K and WHFB ones. Nearly all the modesl, especially the warjacks/beasts have actual shading, high lights, color depth, etc. Many of them are quite impressive.

Only reason I'm painting more of my Khador at the moment is because mikhaila has this thing about enforcing all painted armies at tournaments his shop runs.

Given that I want to go to a tournament he's running, I'm going to attempt to paint some stuff for it.

Up until that point, I only painted two jacks, because I "wanted to paint them". Been over a year since I've painted a model for them.

That said, I hate painting. I like gaming, but I like my stuff too much to do a half assed job on them.

Sounds like a cultural difference to me.
Where I live almost every army is painted, some by the owners other by commissioned painters.

I have about 1500pts cryx atm with a fair bit of new additions waiting to be painted.
I wouldn't have it any other way.

Painted armies > unpainted/primered armies.

my .02$

//Hoffen

Some of them aren't too quick when it comes to social interaction and they're a bit too obsessed with the settings, et al.

malfred wrote:

LiterateWolf wrote:In my area, most players don't paint anything but those that do only paint them in the same paint scheme PP uses. I tried Hordes, great game, but several players were angry at me for wanting to have the differently. In 40k, models can be painted any which way and most players, if any I met, care.

Just my observations.

That's dumb. They didn't want you to have a different paint scheme?

Guess the store I used to play in was the odd one. Most everyone painted their stuff. I was the laggard in the store since I am a super slow painter...I take a really long time on each model, even when I try to speed up. One of my regular opponents was a prolific (and skilled) painter.

I'm finally getting close to having 500pts of fully painted stuff though!

Frankly, I bought warmachine for the game, not the assembling or painting....But, personally, I am a perfectionist, and there are about 10 models in my army that look very good (if I do say so myself, ho ho ho) but most are just primed :(

but, fielding a painted army does make you feel all warm and fuzzy! lol)

Oh, also, has anyone noticed that when you have an excellently painted model on the field you feel quite reluctant to have it die?
My friend has always said that a painted army does better, and I was like pst! load of crap! But, I think I play less recklessly with a well painted model lol

Well, to be honest, having painted models helps you keep more situational awareness. Colorless lumps of metal, no matter how well sculpted, are still lumps of metal on the table when you stand up and look down on them from table height.

Whereas if you have them painted, and well, it's easier to pickout units at a glance. Also, it provides more visual cues for your brain to hook memories into, which also help you better remember your model's abilities and stats.

I run across unpainted GW armies all the time, just as i do Wm armies.

I play both games and rarely field unpainted models if I can help it, but i meet people in both camps who never put paint to model.

A lot of people that play WM play it for the game itself, and the tactical depth and combo building nature of the game has attracted more "pure gamers" (CCG players, etc.) then GW games which tend to attract more "hobbyists".

Also PP's policy of not requiring painted models was surely part marketing ploy early on as a way to be the "anti-GW" and be seen as more inviting to casual hobbiests and true gamers interested in WM that might get turned away by similar hardcore painting elitism that is a renowned characteristic of the GW community.

Thus people that had some curiosity about miniature gaming but that might have avoided it previously due to being intimidated by the exspense and time required to paint everything saw an opportunity to delve into miniature gaming without being required to demonstrate artistic credentials as well...

I've heard horror stories of people showing up to national events using just legs mounted on bases... I've also heard stories of people out and out cheating at the same event, privateer doing nothing then the craptastic player winning the tourney and getting his photo in NQ.

PP should consider tightening up their standards if the game is to be taken seriously.

Folks are just lazy and have little respect for other tourney goers who do put the time into painting. WhoreMachine armies are not that big and I accept no excuse for models not being painted at the tournament level. I'd seriously consider just giving the game away at a tourney rather then face an opponent who put Zero effort into his army. Prolly why you will never see me at a big event.

beefHeart wrote:I've heard horror stories of people showing up to national events using just legs mounted on bases... I've also heard stories of people out and out cheating at the same event, privateer doing nothing then the craptastic player winning the tourney and getting his photo in NQ.

PP should consider tightening up their standards if the game is to be taken seriously.

Folks are just lazy and have little respect for other tourney goers who do put the time into painting. WhoreMachine armies are not that big and I accept no excuse for models not being painted at the tournament level. I'd seriously consider just giving the game away at a tourney rather then face an opponent who put Zero effort into his army. Prolly why you will never see me at a big event.

Good job dispelling that "elitist attitude" I mentioned...

Legs on bases is a bit extreme. However, those people generally mark their bases (or
they should at the minimum) if they're running without heads or shoulders.

I'm stubborn about marking my bases. i.e. I don't. I won't. I just don't like it at all, and
of course base markings is some kind of gold standard among the tourney players. I paint
everything, though.

Voodoo Boyz wrote:Only reason I'm painting more of my Khador at the moment is because mikhaila has this thing about enforcing all painted armies at tournaments his shop runs.

Given that I want to go to a tournament he's running, I'm going to attempt to paint some stuff for it.

Up until that point, I only painted two jacks, because I "wanted to paint them". Been over a year since I've painted a model for them.

That said, I hate painting. I like gaming, but I like my stuff too much to do a half assed job on them.

I hate painting as well. I'm not very good at it and I find it tedious. I'd NEVER frequent a LGS who enforced a policy like that. The local guys here switch armies and swap minis so much that we're lucky anyone has a complete army to play with without using proxies. We don't give a hoot about anything being painted. Most of the guys I game with see painting models as a necessary evil. We only do it so the models are a little bit harder to break during transport because they've been painted and sealed. (I'm the only one who pins my stuff and I go WAY overboard on it. It's my 2nd favorite part of the hobby. I LOVE to assemble minis!)

So it's elitist to expect folks to at least assemble their models or not to cheat? I don't even think it's too much to want only to play games with people who put the same time and effort in their armies... It may even motivate a few to step it up a bit...

I see you're in CT. Later this summer My Club will be hosting a small SteamRoller event in Northern NJ... You should come bring a few friends even. And yes, their armies will need to be painted....


Automatically Appended Next Post:

malfred wrote:Legs on bases is a bit extreme.

It's the reason why, three years after the event, my friend refuses to play Warmachine or Hordes. I'm talking about a guy who was like #27 on the PP message boards. He is an awesome painter and pushed to get ALL his stuff done for the tourney... Looks across the table at not even assembled cheese army then turns to Matt Wilson, who is standing behind him, and sighs... I don't he has played a game since...

beefHeart wrote:So it's elitist to expect folks to at least assemble their models or not to cheat? I don't even think it's too much to want only to play games with people who put the same time and effort in their armies... It may even motivate a few to step it up a bit...

I see you're in CT. Later this summer My Club will be hosting a small SteamRoller event in Northern NJ... You should come bring a few friends even. And yes, their armies will need to be painted....


Automatically Appended Next Post:

malfred wrote:Legs on bases is a bit extreme.

It's the reason why, three years after the event, my friend refuses to play Warmachine or Hordes. I'm talking about a guy who was like #27 on the PP message boards. He is an awesome painter and pushed to get ALL his stuff done for the tourney... Looks across the table at not even assembled cheese army then turns to Matt Wilson, who is standing behind him, and sighs... I don't he has played a game since...

Refusing to play someone who doesn't paint even though the company/event doesn't require it IS elitist. It is perfectly your right to do so, but its still elitist.

I would never use assembled models, and I try to always use painted models, heck I don't use terrain in one game that is identifiable as belonging to another game or setting (no Imperial buildings on my WM tables, etc.) but I don't refuse to play people over such things unless they are TFG.