What scale is 40K?

[sketchesofpayne]

I remember reading in a white dwarf a while back that 40k vehicles are intentionally built to a different scale than infantry- vehicle models are something like 25% smaller than they ought to be. If they were built to true scale, either the infantry would be too small to allow for the current level of detail, or the tanks would be too large to be practical for gaming and transport.

Some of the infantry models are sculpted out of scale, too, for similar reasons. Guardsmen and Eldar should be a smaller than they actually are (compare the height of a space marine model to a guardsman).

Yes, truth is they made the marine models first. If they had made the other models first they likely would have thought to make the marines taller.

In the books each marine has a seat with a place to stow their gear above the seat. The Rhino is supposed to be able to accommodate a squad for extended field operations.

As an ork player, scale is even worse. I made some of my orks have cowboy hats and I had to use 54mm cowboys to get the right size hat.

That is the silliest and most brilliant idea I've heard all in one.

[imperialsavant]

One of my mates who plays Historics, Flames of War & 40K & has been a gamer for about 30 years reckons that 1/24 th scale Plastic Tank kits are about right for IG Tanks for what that may be worth.