Mannahnin, May 2008 wrote: Everyone I've met and/or played against plays with the Chronicles 2004/ White Dwarf article as still applying. Or is a newbie and is confused as hell. Its being left out of the main book (and the darn FAQ!) is the single biggest and most annoying editorial oversight in 7th edition.

Basically that if a character on a larger base is in a unit, for rank bonuses he counts as being as many models as his base takes up the space of. With 20mm and 25mm infantry bases being considered interchangable.

So a character on a cav base in a block of 20mm or 25mm infantry counts as one model wide in each of the front two ranks. So there would only need to be 18 models in the unit (other than the character) to get full rank bonus.

A character on a 40mm or 50mm base counts as four 20mm or 25mm infantry (two models wide in each of the first two ranks) for ranks. A character on a 40mm or 50mm base counts as one model if within a unit on 40mm or 50mm bases, or two models if in a cavalry unit.

It's really simple, and makes sure that units on the table don't wind up in weird formations with the first rank or two wider just because there's a character in them.

Mannahnin, Dec 2006 wrote: As noted, this one is a massive editing failure on GWs part which the players are discussing, and pretty much universally deciding to work around.

WH Chronicles 04 (actually reprinted from a WD, though I don't recall which issue) had a very simple and clear article, with diagrams, detailing that a character on a larger base counts as as many models as his base takes up space in place of, for purposes of rank bonus. So Skarsnik and Gobbla would count as three models in the first rank, and three models in the second rank, and a Goblin unit would only need another 14 models to claim full rank bonus (full ranks of 5 in the 3rd and 4th ranks, and only 2 more models each in the first and second in addition to Skarsnik & Gobbla).

There is really no excuse for this having not been added to the 7th edition rules. It's a gross oversight. Every player I know who is aware of said article is playing that it still applies. Otherwise this is literally not covered. And you wind up with stupid and aesthetically displeasing ideas like Mauleed's suggestion that you would need an additional 4 models in the first and second ranks of a Goblin unit to form full ranks with Skarsnik & Gobbla, thus creating a unit which is 140mm wide ONLY in the first two ranks, and 100mm wide in the ranks behind. This is pretty obviously not the way it's meant to work.