Why cut off a base and put the figure on another individual base?

[Conquistador]

I started to put this on the IMHN sub-forum about some great looking IHMN/Ripper Street figures then realized that it would be a hijack so I will post here under it's own thread.

My Original post:

First let me say this is not a criticism but a reflection that anything that delays my deploying figures on the table means I might never get them there...  

Ok, maybe I don't get it, [wait, make that "definitely don't",] but if there are integral bases  why not put thin metal/wood under it and build up rest of the base to make it look like one piece?  

Obvious issues I am not addressing:  

1) The original base is so high it puts  the figure looking 8' 4" tall

2) You want the bases to reflect the same surface (bricks, cobblestones,  wooden sailing ship  or star ship deck plates, etc.) that other figures have and can't be reproduced by carving or drawing on the base surface - Having star solders board a ship with long grass on the base probably looks funny before the players enter into the game mentally (something like the three foot rule but more willing suspension of disbelief based.)

3) You are creating mini-dioramas with you bases (which I am not competent at) that we will all appreciate the artistic skill shown even if we would never spend that much time ourselves on bases

I understand that some periods/genres the bases are expected to match up in mass battles (7YW for example) by many players but these are both "skirmishy" and "character driven" forces in IHMN from my understanding so why save yourself the time and effort cutting off a base and re-pinning the figure?

Gracias,

Glenn

[Sendak]

Well said!

Wouldn't recommend slowing a fellah down to miss getting figures on the game board, not at all.


I choose--

1. While some figures are appropriate for inclusion in my 'gang', still they do have integral bases, height of the figure notwithstanding--that I just 'need' to cut off so the mini is consistent with my posse.

I may even build up the base of a one-off 'slota' figure that is just 'too cool' to fit in with the other minis that have integral bases put on by the sculptor. I take 'consistency' to demonstrate, 'those guys look like they're together'.

Usually, all this does slow me down a bit though, extra work, overtime, rain-delays, and so forth.

2. Right you are--consistency in base materials is a good goal for me--well sometimes sidewalk, mixed with cobblestone, or other 'obvious' street surfaces, say for my San Fran Police and Detectives or Street Toughs of Chinatown.

3.Mini-dioramas not so much for my gaming needs either, right there with ya. Still...I might give it a go now you mention it.

Oh, one I'll add--

4. Sometimes I really do want to make a 'character' figure 'pop' so I re-sculpt the base, for instance add an action pose to a figure that had no base.

Modifications do add a 'time' cost, however the journey is part of the fun, as is the destination.

I won't even get into 'head-swapping' and 'weapons mods', shiver.

Wishing you the best,

Senders

[Cubs]

2) You want the bases to reflect the same surface (bricks, cobblestones,  wooden sailing ship  or star ship deck plates, etc.) that other figures have and can't be reproduced by carving or drawing on the base surface

If it was those Northstar ones I did, then this is the answer! I needed them to go on nice, uniform cobbles and there was no easy way to try to sculpt that onto the integral base. I knew if I did it right, it would look much better. Looking better = happy customer, since these aren't primarily gaming pieces, they're adverts to sell the range and so have to look as good as I can make them look.

[former user]

I am not sure I understand what Your question is about, however here is my small contribution to the topic:

I thought abot the problem and let myself be inspired by the people who use neodymium magnets.

cut the figure off the base, drill holes under one or both feet. insert steel nail with flat head. make generic base with strong neodymium magnet. this way You can put figures on any base you like, switch bases and need only a limited set of bases for certain games.
you can put your figures on bases, unit bases, vehicles, scenery, as long as you put magnets under them.

unfortunately, I have got only as far as drilling the holes and buying the magnets, because I felt it more urgent to paint my 70 foreign legion figures.     
I will continueto test the concept however, since I want to have legionaires in vehicles too and the next project is about sailors on ships...

[Connectamabob]

For my part it doesn't come up much as an issue, since I favor adventure party and skirmish types of groups rather than huge armies. That gives me a lot more leeway on how much time I can devote to an individual figure. I imagine if I were building armies I'd be pressed to take take every available shortcut regardless of my skill level. Under such circumstances, the thing to do would just be to avoid buying minis with cast-in sculpted bases completely rather than ever even risk having to faff with such concerns.

Also most modern figures seem to be made for slotta bases these days, so it's really only the occasional Reaper figure or something that I have to do this for anyway. To be honest, I kinda consider the concept of figs with cast-in bases like that to be a relic, and companies that stick with the practice to be... well... future-shock ridden oldsters. So the moral of the story is, again, if you don't want to do that kind of work, stop feeding companies that do cast-in bases. The sooner the practice fades into history, the sooner everyone can be happy.

Sculpting a bases goes lightning fast if you already know what you're going for. It's only if you've never done it before or are doodling without a preformed plan/mental image that it takes an afternoon. The real time sink is grinding/cutting away the original metal if it's a thick base. That part is a complete pain in the adz, and every single time I find myself doing it, I also find myself cursing the fool who thought it was a good idea to cast figures that way.

The kind where it's just a plain flat disk aren't bad: nippers and a pair of needle nose pliers makes right quick work of those. And if you were army building I imagine these require little more than the usual bog standard sand and flock treatment rather than replacement anyway. It's the sort where the base is built up with sculpted scenery, especially if the pose puts the feet on unlevel ground, that are the devil's work. Those are both the kind where even an army builder would be driven to mod in order to maintain unit cohesion, and the kind that are the most difficult to remove.

Those sorts of bases would make a(nother) compelling argument for switching to resin, if it weren't for them being completely unnecessary to begin with in metal IMO. Facepalms for everyone!