The Stand-Ins

I’ve never been a fan of using proxy models in my games. Back in the glory days of Necromunda, all of my characters or odd additions were scratch build or converted and I always tried to steer towards using all GW minis and parts. This is probably mostly due to the fact that, in my heart, I am more of a hobbyist than a gamer. I would much rather not play a model rather than play it by using an empty base or something like that.
During the tournament however, I decided I wanted to be able to run with a viable list in any game I played, which meant I wanted access to a few models I do not own in Malifaux. So before the tournament, I went digging through my figure cases to look for a few things my Malifaux Ressers and Guild were missing.

The first and most obvious choice was to look to Puppet Wars. This instantly gave me 3 extra Death Marshals (because there clearly aren’t enough sculpts for them) as well as extra Belles, Bette Noire and an Executioner. I also ended up taking my Seamus Puppet to stand in as the Copycat Killer. This was originally my plan as I detest that model (the V2 Killer looks much improved though). I also brought a pair of Nurses, an extra Austringer and a Zombie Chihuahua in case I decided to run with McMourning or the Guild. Of course, Puppet Wars is the easy answer to proxying a model, mostly because they have been declared legal in tournaments by weird. The harder part is finding non-wyrd models that can be used to fill some other gaps.

So I decided to start looking around in my Necromunda collection, where I found some good substitute models that, in my opinion, would be allowed by most Event Organizers who are willing to consider proxies at all. Among the unfortunate consequences of collecting Necromunda is that inevitability that you will end up with wonderfully painted models that have never been put on the table for a game. That was the case for several of these guys.

My first option was the Bookman. Those of you who have followed the blog for a while or even those familiar with my work with Specialist Games may remember this model from my Guild Trader’s retinue in Necromunda. He is actually a 40k Inquisitorial model, I believe a Sage. In Necro, I’ve always used him as something of an objective. He is not particularly strong, but he has a high position as a Guild representative. Visually, he also makes a very nice Malifaux Governor’s Proxy.

Next up is a model I’ve had on this blog before. This guy was originally intended as a mutant for a Nurgle Chaos Cult in Necro. The model is original from Mordheim, a Carnival of Chaos Strongman with a weapon I made using ork bits and wire. At the tournament however, he served more than adequately as a Flesh Construct and I think I will continue to use him moving forward. While the newer sculpt corrects a lot of problems, the original Flesh Construct was enough to talk me out of ever picking up the McMourning box set. This guy however, is rancid, dirty and full of awesome.

My last addition were some good Canine Remains. Now there are Zombie dogs for many many games out there, but I’ve always had a hard time finding ones that scaled properly. Instead, I opted to use my pack of Scavvy Dogs, again from Necro. These guys were released alongside the rest of the newer Scavvy gang that came out but, rather quickly, disappeared. I ended up with a sizeable pack of them, 6-8 or so and I think they are perfect for Remains. They are even similar in appearance to their Malifaux counterparts, so I may even go on using them into the future.

So what do you think? Would you allow these as proxies? Do you play with proxy models yourself? Where should be draw the line?

More to Come.
-Nick