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Can You Use Alternative Miniatures in Warhammer: The Old World?

One of the best things about Warhammer: The Old World is seeing armies return to the table.

Some are collections that have been sitting in boxes for twenty years. Others are completely new armies built from modern plastic kits, old metal miniatures, conversions, 3D prints or models from independent manufacturers.

Which raises an obvious question:

Can you actually use alternative miniatures in Warhammer: The Old World?

For most games, the short answer is yes – but there are a few things worth knowing before you build an entire army

What do we mean by alternative miniatures?

An alternative miniature is simply a model you’re using to represent a unit in your army without using the official miniature normally associated with it.

That might mean using:

A third-party fantasy miniature
A commercially printed 3D model
An old miniature from a previous edition
A heavily converted model
A different miniature that clearly represents the same battlefield role

For example, you might find a unit of heavily armoured fantasy dwarfs that you prefer for your Dwarf army, or a range of undead cavalry which fits the theme of your Vampire Counts collection better than another option.

DWARF EMPIRE - IRON DRAGON GUN COMPOSICION 1

This isn’t a particularly new idea.

Using conversions, older models and miniatures from different manufacturers has been part of fantasy wargaming for decades. The huge number of sculptors and manufacturers now producing excellent fantasy miniatures simply means players have more choice than ever.

Can you use them in casual games?

Usually, absolutely. If you’re playing at home, at a gaming club or with friends, there is no miniature police arriving to inspect your army. The important thing is that your opponent can understand what everything represents.

If you put a regiment on the table and say:
“These are my Grave Guard with great weapons.”
…your opponent should be able to look at them and reasonably understand that they are heavily armed undead infantry. Problems tend to appear when an army becomes confusing. If three almost identical units are being used to represent three completely different things, your opponent has to spend the entire game remembering which is which.

That’s not really an alternative-miniature problem. It’s a clarity problem.
A good alternative miniature should make the game more interesting, not harder to understand.

What about tournaments?

This is where the answer gets particularly interesting, because the UK tournament scene is generally very welcoming towards alternative miniatures.

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The major independent Warhammer: The Old World tournaments in the UK allow third-party miniatures and 3D prints, provided the models are suitable representations of the units being used.

forgotten north 5 ticket — Forgotten North — Newcastle

In fact, UKResinPrint sponsors most of these events, so we’re fortunate enough to see first-hand just how common alternative miniatures have become within the competitive Old World community.

Walk around a large UK tournament and you’ll see armies containing everything from classic Games Workshop miniatures to independent sculpts, conversions and fully 3D printed forces.

For many players, that’s part of the appeal.

It allows people to build armies around a particular theme, find models for units that are difficult to source, or simply choose miniatures they prefer.

You should still always read the tournament pack before attending an event. Individual organisers may have requirements around model size, unit identification, painting standards or particularly unusual proxies.

But in the mainstream UK independent tournament scene, third-party and 3D printed miniatures are very much a normal sight.

What about Games Workshop events and Warhammer World?

This is the important exception.

Games Workshop itself will not allow third-party miniatures at Warhammer World or similar company-owned gaming venues and events.

If you intend to play regularly at Warhammer World, or attend Games Workshop-run events, you need to check their specific modelling requirements before building your army.
This creates an important distinction:

An army can be perfectly acceptable at an independent tournament while not being permitted at a Games Workshop venue.

So before choosing your models, it is worth thinking about where you are most likely to play.

If your hobby mainly revolves around local clubs, independent tournaments and gaming with friends, you have an enormous amount of freedom.

If Warhammer World is going to be your primary venue, your options are considerably more restricted.

Getting the base size right

This is arguably more important to the actual game than who manufactured the miniature.

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Warhammer: The Old World uses specific base sizes for its units, and the rules assume models have the correct footprint.

That matters because base size can affect things such as:

How wide a unit is
How many models can fight
Movement and manoeuvring
Templates
Charging
How units interact on the battlefield

Fortunately, using alternative miniatures doesn’t make this particularly difficult.

Simply mount them on the correct bases for the unit they’re representing.

Older collections can also often be adapted using movement trays that give the regiment the correct overall footprint rather than rebasing dozens or hundreds of models.

If you’re looking for movement trays, we highly recommend MiniMagTray. They make some of the best low-profile magnetic movement trays we’ve used, and they’re especially good for keeping ranked units neat without adding loads of extra height around the bases.

It’s one of the easiest ways to bring an old Warhammer Fantasy army back onto the table.

Does the scale need to be exact?

Not necessarily.
Different sculptors interpret “28mm”, “30mm” and “32mm” fantasy miniatures slightly differently, so two ranges can technically be described as the same scale while looking noticeably different beside each other.
That doesn’t automatically make either unsuitable.
What matters more is whether the models look sensible as part of the army.

A character being slightly larger than the rank-and-file rarely causes a problem. In fact, it can look great.

A supposedly ordinary infantryman towering over every Ogre in the army might be a little harder to explain.

If you’re building a complete unit or army from one miniature range, small differences in scale become even less noticeable because the collection remains visually consistent.

Make sure the model represents the unit

You don’t need every miniature to be an exact copy of an official model.

You should, however, try to make its battlefield role obvious.

If a unit is carrying great weapons, modelling them with large two-handed weapons makes sense.

If they’re archers, bows are helpful.

If one cavalry unit has lances while another has hand weapons, being able to distinguish them at a glance makes the game easier for everyone.

Characters offer considerably more freedom.

A wizard can be represented by almost any suitably magical-looking character. A general gives you an opportunity to find a miniature which really captures the personality of your army.

This is one of the areas where alternative miniatures can actually improve an army.

Instead of choosing a model simply because it is the only option available, you can choose one because it fits the story you’re trying to tell.

Building a visually consistent army

This is probably the biggest piece of advice we’d give anyone using miniatures from several manufacturers.

Think about the army as a whole.

There are hundreds of excellent fantasy miniature ranges available, but that doesn’t necessarily mean models from all of them will look good together.

Sculpting style, proportions, weapons, armour and clothing can vary enormously.

Before mixing several ranges, look at things like:

Head and hand proportions
Armour style
Weapon size
Height
Overall level of detail
How exaggerated or realistic the sculpting style is

Paint can then do a huge amount of work tying everything together.

Consistent basing, shields, colours and unit markings can make models from several different ranges feel like part of the same army.

Alternative miniatures are also great for missing units

This is one of the biggest reasons we use and sell alternative miniatures ourselves.

Fantasy army lists often contain units or characters that either don’t currently have an obvious official miniature or where the available model doesn’t quite fit the army somebody wants to build.

That’s where the wider miniature hobby really comes into its own.

There are sculptors creating everything from classic rank-and-file troops to monsters, war machines, unusual cavalry and extremely specific character concepts.

With ranges covering dozens of fantasy factions, there’s a good chance you’ll find an alternative for the unit you’re looking for.

Browse Alternative Miniatures

Can I build an entire Old World army using alternative miniatures?

Absolutely.
In fact, a complete army from one alternative range can often look more coherent than an army assembled from lots of unrelated kits.

Several manufacturers now sculpt complete fantasy armies rather than individual models, meaning you can find matching infantry, cavalry, characters, monsters and artillery designed with the same aesthetic.

You can also mix ranges.

Perhaps you love one manufacturer’s infantry but prefer another sculptor’s cavalry. Or you’ve found the perfect character model somewhere completely different.

There are no hobby points awarded for loyalty to a single box.
Build the army you want to put on the table.

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So, should you use alternative miniatures?

If you like the models, they fit your army and the people you’re playing with are happy with them, then yes.

The Old World is at its best when two distinctive armies are lined up across the battlefield.

That could be a lovingly restored collection from 1998.

It could be an army made entirely from current Games Workshop miniatures.

It could be a fully 3D printed army.

Or it could contain models from five different manufacturers that you’ve spent months converting and painting into one coherent force.

The important things are simple:

Use the correct bases.
Make it clear what your units represent.
Check the rules of the events and venues you’re attending.
And build an army you’re actually excited to paint and play with.

There have never been more fantasy miniatures available to hobbyists.

You might as well enjoy them.

Looking for alternative miniatures for The Old World?

At UKResinPrint, we print a growing range of fantasy miniatures from independent sculptors, covering infantry, cavalry, characters, monsters, war machines and complete army options.

We also support a number of the UK’s major Old World events, so we’re very familiar with the armies, models and alternative ranges appearing on tournament tables around the country.

Whether you’re looking for a single hard-to-find unit or building an entire army, have a look through our ranges — you might find exactly what you need.

Browse Alternative Miniatures