Play now, paint later

Unfinished but usable

My first attempt at basing-before-painting (my 10mm American Civil War armies) was a rather mixed experience. I was very pleased with the result but I found the process slow and fiddly, partly because I wasn't ruthless enough in adapting to the new approach. More recently I not only based but began to use my ships for Galleys & Galleons before they were completed.

I have a compelling reason not just for attempting this again but for adopting it as my default option: I often lose interest in a period before I can finish painting the models and I have boxes and boxes of unpainted and half-painted armies to prove it.

I was originally considering basing-before-painting as a plan that would allow me to get playing with a number of new armies/games, but I'm also now thinking of it as a solution to the lead mountain. It would also allow me to revive those armies which are painted but require rebasing. If I can play with unpainted or semi-painted figures, I can certainly play with unfinished bases.

Some clubs have very strict policies about playing with unpainted figures and I once fell foul of that in a previous life, but I no longer live under such a draconian order. Tabling unpainted or half-painted figures will be a huge incentive to complete them. I do however promise that I will play with unfinished armies only once, and will not use them again until I have done some more work on them!