Bases in 7th.

[Guest]

Just got that Skitarii troops kit. Came with 10x 25mm bases and an odd oval small base. Was at GG yesterday, a person was looking for a bag of 32mm bases for his 2nd company of blood angels he was re-basing (the entire company).

 

40k's certainly got a lot of base sizes in 7th and GW still doesn't have a clear coding of which model has what base.

 

How wrong is it to just base the models with whatever base fits the model? How about custom shapes? or WHFB square bases?

 

How much would allowing customization of the basing, break 40k?

[WestRider]

Until you get into the realm of the truly ridiculous, I don't think it would actually break 40K as such. But there's a lot of opportunity for minor advantage, that could add up to make a significant difference. For instance, with 25mm Bases, you can just barely fit three "ranks" of dudes in Engagement range of a Model that's BtB in an Assault. If you've only got one Model in BtB, the difference in how many dudes can be Engaged varies hugely depending on the base size of the BtB Model. IG Blobs sometimes take advantage of this with their Heavy Weapons Teams on 60mm Bases.

 

Or for Units that are Deep Striking, smaller Bases are generally an advantage, because they're less likely to Mishap. But sometimes having one Model in there on a bigger Base can be useful as well, to get the Unit as a whole a little closer to a Buff Aura or something. That can make a big difference with some of the BA Formations where things can Assault on the Turn they Deep Strike, taking an inch (or in extreme cases, more) off a Charge without significantly increasing the chances of a Mishap.

 

It can also make a big difference in the coverage for Screening Units. I was thinking about this when I was converting Flesh Hounds last year, deciding between 40mm Rounds or 25x75mm Bike Bases. For a Unit of 10, that makes for a potential difference of 14" in the frontage I can cover, and a 6" difference in how tightly I can pack the Unit to stay out of LoS if that becomes an issue. It comes up with Nids, too, 15 Gargoyles can screen a 6" wider frontage than 15 Hormagaunts.

 

Now, as I say, none of these are game-breaking, but, especially if people are mixing Base sizes, there can definitely be some substantial advantages if someone wants to take them.

[AbusePuppy]

Officially, the rule is "models should (not must) be on the base they come with." However, even the rulebook notes that this can be flexible; typically anyone will allow you to move up to a larger base size if you want (so long as it's not ridiculous), but using smaller-than-standard bases is somewhat frowned upon.

 

Some models have multiple "valid" base sizes, such as Tactical Marines (which could be on either 28mm or 32mm bases) or Daemon Princes (which could be on 40mm or 60mm bases.) In these cases, it's typically acceptable to use whichever the player prefers, although if someone is trying to "game" things it is typically pretty obvious.

 

Most tournaments have an in-passing mention that modeling for advantage (including base changes) is not permitted, but that is enforced at the TO's discretion and I've never actually seen it come up in more than a decade of playing the game.

[Skkipper]

If i see somebody play a list on "wrong" sized bases and play to the advantages of those wrong bases. I will call a judge over. Basically play what it came/ comes on. Fleshhounds used to be based on Calvary bases but for 40k are now on 50 mm discs. Either is fine in my opinion.

[Skkipper]

double post