A question of bases

Hey all,
I originally got into the OldHammer community as a curiosity to see what people were able to do with the older miniatures. I began gaming in the mid 1990s, so I missed out on the majority of the older ranges as GW moved into 4th edition WHFB and 2nd edition WH40k. Now, through the power of the internet, I'm able to find and buy some of the models I've coveted for quite awhile.
This has led to a bit of a conundrum about basing. Predominantly I've been a 40k collector and painter, but I've recently gotten back into WHFB stuff- namely Chaos and Skaven.
I have a few Realms of Chaos Beastmen... should they be on 20mm or 25mm bases? I've put my warriors and champions onto 25mm bases, but lately I've been second guessing that as well- something about the appearance of the round base appeals to me.
So... round or square bases for models that won't ever see a gaming table?

If you do not plan to use them in a mass battle game then round bases could certainly be an option. Either slottabases or coins/washers can look nice. I sometimes use 30mm round bases for some of the larger miniatures.

If you want to follow the fantasy battle conventions then beastmen should be on 25mm square bases, same as chaos warriors.

I use round 25mm bases for Warhammer 40k, any edition And square bases for Fantasy. In some miniatures, like terminators, big orks,etc ... I use the GW new 32mm round bases. And some hexagonal for an older feel But mostly the classic round and square bases, yes.

yep 25 mm sqaure bases is the proper way to go, although they're your minis so you can base them wahatever way you like, so if you fancy round bases go for it, in the worst case if they do ever hit the gaming table you can use movement trays so I wouldn't sweat it and just base them as you like

I refer to the Warhammer Rulebook, more or less. Beastmen 25mm square for Fantasy or round slotta for 40k. The biggerones sometimes did not fit onto the given sizes, so I tend to use the next higher one.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.
I'm just going to go with round bases for everything, as I prefer the aesthetic. That the Skaven Jezzail and Warpfire Thrower teams I recently acquired fit onto a 32mm round base was kind of the deciding factor, and the Jes Goodwin Rat Ogre looks much better on a slightly smaller round base as well- the 40mm square base is much too large.

Badaab":3i86ttwo said:

I'm just going to go with round bases for everything, as I prefer the aesthetic.

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Good on ya!

I'm a round base sort too. Much more pleasing appearance and none of that feet hanging over the edge nonsense you end up with when using 20mm square bases.

stone cold lead":39lvm095 said:

Badaab":39lvm095 said:

I'm just going to go with round bases for everything, as I prefer the aesthetic.

Click to expand...

Good on ya!

I'm a round base sort too. Much more pleasing appearance and none of that feet hanging over the edge nonsense you end up with when using 20mm square bases.

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I likely wouldn't wind up with too much of that, since the models I do have which would call for 20mm squares are all Jes Goodwin Skaven, so they're pretty small.

20mm round bases are pretty easy to find online.

ardyer":1yae6j7l said:

20mm round bases are pretty easy to find online.

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Indeed they are! I've bought some to base my Necromunda beasties on (giant rats, milliasaurs, and ripper jacks)... perhaps I might do the same with the Skaven giant rats when I reach that stage in the collection!

Since this is Oldhammer I would point out that many of the EM team back in the classic days based plenty of 40k and FB minis on both round and square bases. Many customers did also at GW shops, of course I would also point out that these were mainly "display" minis, in the case of FB the only reason those bases are advised is because they have to rank up and are designated those sized ones for those units, outside of this it does not matter at all.

Advanced HeroQuest used round bases, and Mordheim could use round ( although they kept them officially on square ), also WFRP could use round, square and even hex bases for combat.

Personally speaking...and even though I am an FB fan, fantasy always seems to look much better on round bases, although a fully ranked up big block of troops painted well is truly stunning on squares.