A Budget Shugej on Longma? Stormcast Proxy Hunting
We love those tiny hobby moments when an army-building idea appears out of nowhere and suddenly turns into a very practical budget plan. This time Michał was looking for a proxy for a Shugej on Longma, and the discussion quickly turned into the classic question: can we make something cool out of a cheaper model instead of buying the official kit?
Right at the start, Michał dropped a candidate into the chat:
And, because this is exactly how these conversations usually go, the first reaction was immediate guessing about what the model even was. Ender first thought it might be something from Fyreslayers, but then backed off just as quickly — too big, too much armour, and definitely not enough of that classic bare-chested dwarf energy.
For completeness, here is the same candidate image as it appeared in the conversation:
A bit later Michał clarified the mystery: it was actually a Stormcast model. And honestly, that immediately made the whole idea more believable as a conversion base. Stormcast kits often have that heroic silhouette and enough decorative detail that, with some work, they can be pushed into other fantasy directions surprisingly well.
The real heart of the idea, though, was the price. Michał summed it up perfectly: a used model for 70 zł, probably 72 zł after converting it into a Shugej, versus roughly 200 zł for a new Shugej. That is exactly the kind of math we respect.
Ender’s response was short and to the point: sounds like a plan.
Then Michał posted the actual Shugej reference for comparison:
And that is where the whole thing started to click. The shapes are not identical, obviously, but they are close enough that with the right conversion work this could absolutely become a convincing stand-in on the table. It is the kind of project where the base model does not need to be perfect — it just needs to get us most of the way there.
To round it off, Ender also shared the dwarf model he had in mind earlier, noting that it was similar at first glance, but ultimately a bit different from the actual candidate:
Why we like this idea
What we enjoy most here is that this is a very relatable army-building decision. Not every unit or character needs to come straight from the official box if we can get something that:
- fits the role visually,
- can be converted without too much pain,
- and saves a decent amount of money.
A used Stormcast model as a base for a Shugej on Longma feels like exactly that kind of hobby win. It is cheaper, it opens the door for a more personal model, and it gives Michał a chance to build something unique instead of just assembling the stock version.
The verdict from chat
Our takeaway from this little discussion was simple: if the used Stormcast really is available that cheaply, then it is probably worth trying the conversion. Even if it takes a bit of extra work, the price difference compared to the new Shugenja is big enough to make the experiment feel very reasonable.
And honestly, these are often the most satisfying additions to an army — the ones that start with “wait, could this work?” and end with a custom character that nobody else has in quite the same form.
If Michał goes through with it, we are definitely curious to see how far the conversion can be pushed.