Goatboy’s Warhammer 40K: Competitive Thoughts – 3D Prints & All
Goatboy here again, and this past week we had some fun discussions about the whole 3d printing thing. Here’s what I think from a competitive point of view.
I don’t want to dive into my thoughts on what it hurts in the long run. But instead, think of it from a competitive player’s experience – one more clouded by Hobby love than just pure ‘murder hobo’ nonsense. For one, I love cool-looking models. I always have and while there is something to be said about playing with the actual official thing having a model look cool usually jumps over any thought about it being the right model.
Can We Have Some Standards, Please?
This is where the issue is most of the time with me for 3d models. I have seen a lot of bad models on the table. They are poorly printed, not painted, and not immersive to the game. One of the reasons I keep playing this dang money pit is I do enjoy the experience of throwing down toys I built and painted. I love watching them try to complete the mission or die a glorious death. I like the idea of being pulled into the battle and engaging in battlefields of mouse pad material filled with plastic destroyed buildings. When the other army is just badly painted, built, or printed, and I am at an event I paid good money to go to, I feel cheated by having my experience ruined.
I always go with the rule of cool for any 3d, 3rd party, or converted model. If it looks rad, fits the same overall profile of the model, doesn’t look done to gain an advantage, and is well painted, I am fine throwing down with it. The entire experience is about having a fun game with cool-looking models, and while a lot of the time it is a GW model – an awesome model is still a fantastic model. Heck, some of my favorite Daemon sculpts are made by other manufacturers.
Make it Easy to Understand
For those wanting to play with their prints/other models, I think the big rule is to ensure you have the right size, base, and overall look for the model. I have seen some rad models that look cool but do not fit into any idea of what the army should look like. I shouldn’t have to ask if that weird gun is actually this gun. That throws me for a loop, and having some visual dictionary is not a good way to start the game. Especially if the models are not always based right or do a good job of confusing you.
I’m not saying that is malicious – but as a player, you should always consider the experience you provide to your opponent. No matter how crappy they could be. It is just the nature of this game where it isn’t just you versus the machine, as you need an opponent to smash your models against. I always say to think about the questions people might ask and what you can do to try and make the game flow as easily as possible.
A 3d Bits Future?
What I like about 3d printing models, though, is the idea of having extra bits you need to fulfill your dream of a model. There are a ton of awesome sculpts for cool weapons that don’t have you trying to glue a hand to a small wrist. Or finding the perfect weapon for your left-handed model. I have used a ton of 3rd party parts over the years on things like guns, cool heads, and awesome weapons that fit my aesthetic.
Heck, I never understood why GW doesn’t just sell some STLs for their weapons. To help people get a chance to build some things, keep some money for themselves, and just let the hobby keep moving forward. It is the same with some of the basing options and modeling options for those. I use a particular GW base for most of my army and would love bigger ones to keep my theme thru all my bad guys. Having the ability to get bigger versions would be a great tool to have and just something fun to juice up your models.
In the Balance, Rule of Cool Wins
The rule of cool is what I live by for most of my 40k stuff. I also don’t want to have to ask what that weird looking thing on a model is from the codex. The 3d printing stuff is probably why we see fewer cool upgrades on HQ choices like Jump Packs, bikes, and other fun things in the latest books. I also expect a heck of a lot more pairing down of future 40K codex releases, as the GW Design Studio sure looks like they don’t want to write rules for things they don’t plan on investing time in making.
What do you think? I know many people love 3D prints; if they look cool, I am always excited to see them. I hope they are painted and look sweet.
