"Decorate Bases as Motivation for Painting?" Topic

I've never heard of anyone decorating the base before painting the figure/s.

Pure insanity. The man's clearly lost his marbles.

I don't understand painting your figures after you base them. People do that? Decorating the bases is the last thing I do. This poll needed more choices. As it is I voted this is ridiculous because it blatantly is. It defines the category.

The vast majority of my figures (from 2mm to 54mm) are painted before basing but a few 28mm+ are for skirmish gaming and get based so I can hold that to paint them.

Some texturing on a base before painting actually does make sense to me but only the base texture, not 'decoration'.

Can't see why it is thought a silly idea though, just a matter of preference I'd say.

Painting faces and skin first serves this motivational function for me.

Especially for my command bases – which for my senior officers I do as mini-dioramas – I find you have to paint the mini first to get your head around how you do the base

Plus like Flashman14 getting the face done is plenty enough motivation (well, except in 6mm)

Basing is always the last step for me.

Decorating the bases is the last thing I do.

So, how is that different that option F?

So, how is that different that option F?

Not at all? I voted for option F.

That was to Old Contemptible.

I use clear bases from Litko. Saves the time flocking, painting and allows the mat to show through taking away the goofy turf inside a building effect.

I experimented with clear bases. Even with a matte clear coat, I found them too reflective, too much glare, as I moved around the tabletop.

I did find that the mini-diorama bases (grass, mostly, maybe a couple of rocks, or bushes added) elevated the visual appeal of my mini's quite a bit -- vastly more than the clear bases. The rules I play also require a base to define the area of the figure, on the tabletop, for who is/is not in combat. Being able to see the base clearly defined, makes that much easier to judge, at a glance, as well.

I understand the issue with every mini standing on a grassy knoll, even when standing in a cobbled street, or atop a stone tower, or a wooden bridge. Gaming is all about compromises: you pick your level of compromise, and live with it -- until you decide to change your ways, and convert all of your existing mini's to your new, "standard" approach to git'ing 'er done… Cheers!