Replastering the wall despite rustic plaster and wall panels

Hello everyone,

I am new here in the forum and hope you can help me. I will soon be moving into Grandma's old house. However, the wall plaster is somewhat problematic. Up to a height of about 1 meter, the walls are covered with wooden panels, behind which there is only a thin base plaster. From the wooden panels upward, the wall was plastered with really thick rustic plaster, which apparently has already been painted over a few times. I have attached two photos so you can get an idea.

I definitely want to replaster the entire wall.
Now the question for me is whether to remove the rustic plaster in the entire living area (with a grinder?) or simply plaster over the rustic plaster. Is it even possible to plaster over the rustic plaster?
If it is possible, then I would have the problem that I would need to plaster the lower area much thicker to get the entire height to the same level.

Do you have any tips for me?
Thanks for your help
Best regards

That looks like well-crafted paneling. Would it be an option to replaster the top and paint the paneling white?

I would also tend to preserve the wood, paint it, and cover the rough plaster with drywall panels. If this is not an option, then everything off -> removing the plaster will be a messy job, I think.

Regards Yvonne

If you want to remove the paneling and plaster over it, you have to consider that you won't be able to get the transition right; the joint edge will always be visible. Otherwise, you would have to chisel off all the plaster to achieve a clean result. From my point of view, I would paint the paneling, possibly remove the top edge. Or as described above.