minis and equipment

Hey guys,

I'd like to ask about how you deal with your minis in terms of representing the equipment they use?

For example the witch hunter mini with a sword and a torch: What if you decide to have him an axe instead of a sword? Do you cut the sword and glue an axe on his hand?

Or do you just try to have an rough representation like one-hand melee weapons, two-handed melee weapons, bow, crossbow, blackpowder weapon?

For me it's the second, so a rough representation. About armour I'm not concerned at all. I know my opponents well and I'm not afraid to ask thrice if necessary about equipment. For me it's a lot about style and fielding these characterful minis. But I also don't like getting my a**e handed to me by my opponent all the time so just equipping the heroes and henchmen with what they have on them anyways is not for me, if that equipment is subpar.
I know of other gaming groups who are very strict on these matters though, even on helmets, lamps, robes and such. The "Weißblaue Strategen" from Munich, for example.

I make sure my models have the right weapons but don't always show other equipment. Armour and shields is most difficult with metal miniatures and so I don't worry about showing it. If I can add a shield or helm to someone's back or belt then I will do it but I don't usually modify metal minis after I've painted them.

However, with plastic models I'm much more willing to modify them to better reflect what's being carried. That's because they are cheaper, easier to convert, easy to replace.

I only play MH with a close group of friends and family so we have a shared understanding of what's acceptable.

We count it a victory if the mini represents the correct race or faction. Currently many giant rats are represented by skaven with spears which is an upgrade from random cowboy models...

I see it as being an "as long as nobody's taking the piss" situation - Mordheim rarely goes over 20 models a side and glancing at the roster is easy enough, so the only "rule" I insist on is that models are distinct from one another at-a-glance if they have different gear. My priority personally is creating visually interesting models that have their own wee stories, so I'm certainly not going to be hacking bits off them or gluing a big wadge of random extra gear to their back as a campaign progresses.