Games Workshop Stock Plummets By 24 Percent

[Mangod]

Hmm, I know you're a massive tolkien fan (god that sounds creepy so sorry) but just out of interest, how much would you consider paying for those figurines? Because people like you are a benchmark of why GW aren't the brightest cookies in the box, they're failing to attract new interest with such a diverse and interesting IP, where they could get SO many more people involved if the cost of a starter set wasn't astronomically high, or even bothered to give reason or rhyme to their actions and improve their (abysmal) public relations.
(Also Yay! on having a Dark Eldar, they're pretty much old school Celtic elves with the addition of jetbikes and drugs)

These two items are the things that drew me to Privateer Press and Warmahordes, actually. Their games, while not necessarily cheaper in the long term, are considerably cheaper to get into, and they actually maintain a legit forum where people can discuss their product and air their greivances with decisions, ask questions about the fluff, etc, etc.

Games Workshop, meanwhile, charge more and more money for less and less models, while also decreasing the number of points a single unit/model is worth, so you need more and more to reach viable tournament levels.

And, personal gripe; they force you to buy certain amounts of unis of a certain type to make your army legal at all: 25% of your army must be Troop Choice units, for example Guardsmen. The same Guardsmen that are sold at 10 models for $29 a box. How many points is a Guardsman? 10? 9? Less? At tournament levels, 2000 points or so, you need to buy at least 50 of these guys, so that's $145 for the basics of a tournament army. And then you need the HQ general on top of that...

 

[Eamar]

Hmm, I know you're a massive tolkien fan (god that sounds creepy so sorry) but just out of interest, how much would you consider paying for those figurines? Because people like you are a benchmark of why GW aren't the brightest cookies in the box, they're failing to attract new interest with such a diverse and interesting IP, where they could get SO many more people involved if the cost of a starter set wasn't astronomically high, or even bothered to give reason or rhyme to their actions and improve their (abysmal) public relations.
(Also Yay! on having a Dark Eldar, they're pretty much old school Celtic elves with the addition of jetbikes and drugs)

Hehe it's cool, I mention Tolkien a hell of a lot on here

Hmmm, good question. Depending on the figure, I suppose I might consider the asking price... if I didn't have to do the assembling and painting, seeing as how I'd be buying them purely as figurines. As it is, you're paying through the nose for the privilege of doing a hell of a lot of work, and it's not even like they're particularly big or anything.

(and yeah, Dark Eldar are pretty badass. Sick and twisted, but badass )

 

[Megalodon]

No, you don't sound like a dick. I knew my comments would draw in some of the fans. I understand that building and painting are part of it. And when I was young and penny-less, I would have have loved that. But today, I think it's just strange how they throw up all these roadblocks in just playing the game. I wanted to get into it because that is the go-to for everyone when it comes to miniature games. For me, I would just rather play the game with friends without all of the roadblocks than have to spend copious amounts of money and time just to be able to play with my friends.

Also, thanks for the info on the points. I was reading over the rules and point values and all of that and I was clearly very wrong. I was just reading guides online and they are like, "for an intro army you should get 20 Grey Hunters with assorted weapons (including 3 Melta guns which these two sets don't come with), a Rune Priest, and 2 Rhino Transports."
In order to get 20 Grey Hunters you need to buy multiple sets like I did, and the Battleforce came with a Drop Pod which is a fine stand in for a Rhino Transport and as I understand it, of equal points. It was described to me that the layout described was 580 point, but clearly required me to buy more Melta guns, a Rhino Transport, and a Rune Priest.

You don't need to buy a separate Rune Priest, you get enough bits on the pack sprue to knock one together, plus if you're putting squads in Pods/Rhinos they can only carry 10, so you have to make one squad 9 strong, or your Priest has to walk (so there's a spare body from the 20 in the battleforce). Melta vs plasma is an enduring dispute, but really there's nothing wrong with plasma guns, especially at low points where the big vehicles aren't likely to show up. So really you just need a Rhino. The Pod isn't ideal tbh, I'd much rather have a Rhino in that set. The other thing worth considering, is that vehicles have taken a serious nerf this edition, so running pure infantry isn't a terrible idea, especially with Wolves.

I mean, anyone would have to agree that we are talking a substantial monetary and time investment, even if you aren't going to paint them. For me, I just want to get together with my friends and have some battles and a good time. But the roadblocks are ridiculous to just get to that point.

Eh, the costs of the hobby overall are still less than getting into PC/console gaming from scratch. I personally really enjoy the model assembly aspect of the hobby. But I can't tell you that you're wrong if you find the modelling aspect/cost a roadblock.

 

[Megalodon]

And, personal gripe; they force you to buy certain amounts of unis of a certain type to make your army legal at all: 25% of your army must be Troop Choice units, for example Guardsmen. The same Guardsmen that are sold at 10 models for $29 a box. How many points is a Guardsman? 10? 9? Less? At tournament levels, 2000 points or so, you need to buy at least 50 of these guys, so that's $145 for the basics of a tournament army. And then you need the HQ general on top of that...

You're getting your systems crossed here. Only Fantasy currently has % points that must/can be spent on specific areas. 40k is still using the Force Organisation chart, where you need 1 HQ and 2 Troops to be legal in normal games. For a barebone minimum guard set up you only need 2 boxes of guardsmen (to use as veterans) and a command squad. Which comes in at £51:50 ($84.50). A 1500 point (the standard tournament army size) mechanised Guard army (which are among the most expensive armies to collect), will set you back around £300 ($492) to £340 ($558). Which is cheaper than next gen console atm (PS4 £349, Xbone £429).

Not saying the hobby is cheap, but it's not really any worse than many other hobbies people indulge in.

 

[Mangod]

And, personal gripe; they force you to buy certain amounts of unis of a certain type to make your army legal at all: 25% of your army must be Troop Choice units, for example Guardsmen. The same Guardsmen that are sold at 10 models for $29 a box. How many points is a Guardsman? 10? 9? Less? At tournament levels, 2000 points or so, you need to buy at least 50 of these guys, so that's $145 for the basics of a tournament army. And then you need the HQ general on top of that...

You're getting your systems crossed here. Only Fantasy currently has % points that must/can be spent on specific areas. 40k is still using the Force Organisation chart, where you need 1 HQ and 2 Troops to be legal in normal games. For a barebone minimum guard set up you only need 2 boxes of guardsmen (to use as veterans) and a command squad. Which comes in at £51:50 ($84.50). A 1500 point (the standard tournament army size) mechanised Guard army (which are among the most expensive armies to collect), will set you back around £300 ($492) to £340 ($558). Which is cheaper than next gen console atm (PS4 £349, Xbone £429).

Not saying the hobby is cheap, but it's not really any worse than many other hobbies people indulge in.

Right, thanks. Sorry, it's been a while since I played the game last, as I said, I've started playing Warmachine/Hordes instead (Long live the Supreme Archdomina! Long live the Skorne Empire!).

 

[shintakie10]

[And let's not even get started on Matt Ward (may his name be cursed for all eternity). In fact, let me just quote word for word from an interview with him from White Dwarf.

"By the same token, if slaying their Battle Sister allies provides the pure blood needed to enact a banishing ritual against Warp-spawn, then a Justicar may well order it."

Putting aside the Grey Knights' pragmatism for a moment (Mat spoke with a little too much relish when extolling that previous example), let's focus on their tabletop presence.

That's completely unedited. Games Workshop's own official magazine acknowledges that Matt Ward's a creepy little fuck. And Grey Knights killing Sisters of Battle for a banishing ritual actually got put into the codex as fluff, despite how it didn't make any sense.

Matt Ward fucks with the Sisters of Battle to a terrifying degree. They're raped, killed, corrupted, killed, raped, utterly destroyed in minor footnotes, and raped/killed a lot.

I don't know what the heck is wrong with that mans head, but seriously...the fuck?

 

[Geo Da Sponge]

And let's not even get started on Matt Ward (may his name be cursed for all eternity). In fact, let me just quote word for word from an interview with him from White Dwarf [footnote]It's on page 24 of edition 376, talking about the then new Grey Knights codex. I know it seems really weird that I have this to hand, but it really stuck with me.[/footnote].

"By the same token, if slaying their Battle Sister allies provides the pure blood needed to enact a banishing ritual against Warp-spawn, then a Justicar may well order it."

Putting aside the Grey Knights' pragmatism for a moment (Mat spoke with a little too much relish when extolling that previous example), let's focus on their tabletop presence.

That's completely unedited. Games Workshop's own official magazine acknowledges that Matt Ward's a creepy little fuck. And Grey Knights killing Sisters of Battle for a banishing ritual actually got put into the codex as fluff, despite how it didn't make any sense.

EDIT: Welp, this thread has now made me find out about the Space Marine Centurions, and OH GOD I CAN'T HANDLE THIS SHIT ANYMORE

Would you say the Centurions are better or worse than the Dreadknight?

*Dreadknight image snip*

And yes, Matt Ward is a terrible fluff-author who should be slapped to death with a hardcover copy of the 6th edition rulebook.

Actually, if they post that on youtube they'd probably get the worlds biggest salespike...

Me and my friends always called them "Robo-papooses". I mean, the Centurions are better, but only by comparison. It's still a Space Marine in a Space Marine, built on the logic of "Hey guys, what if we made our Space Marines bigger?" Like Terminators, but with a design which is a million times more stupid and screams "power creep" all over it.

But, ugh, nothing can compare to damn Dreadknights.

PS. I know I'd pay to watch that video.

Matt Ward fucks with the Sisters of Battle to a terrifying degree. They're raped, killed, corrupted, killed, raped, utterly destroyed in minor footnotes, and raped/killed a lot.

I don't know what the heck is wrong with that mans head, but seriously...the fuck?

Yup, pretty much. Shit happens in Warhammer 40K, but it never normally gets that creepily specific and detailed.

 

[MorganL4]

Y'know, saying British Pounds is a far clunkier way of saying, like, £. Plus it is, to be pedantic, British Pounds Sterling. Still, your word choices baffle me.

I hate to break it to ya dude, but our American keyboards don't come equipped with the £ symbol. In order to find it you either need to go through a long emblem list in word (that isn't easy to access) or google "pound symbol" and then copy and paste it in to your paper. As such for us Americans it is just simpler to type British Pound, or as you said British Pound Sterling.

This begs a question on my part. Is the $ symbol on your keyboards?

 

[Moloch Sacrifice]

Y'know, saying British Pounds is a far clunkier way of saying, like, £. Plus it is, to be pedantic, British Pounds Sterling. Still, your word choices baffle me.

I hate to break it to ya dude, but our American keyboards don't come equipped with the £ symbol. In order to find it you either need to go through a long emblem list in word (that isn't easy to access) or google "pound symbol" and then copy and paste it in to your paper. As such for us Americans it is just simpler to type British Pound, or as you said British Pound Sterling.

This begs a question on my part. Is the $ symbol on your keyboards?

At risk of derailing this thread, all I can say is "$".

OT, I've had aspirations to collect some of the more fringe miniatures that GW produced, such as the Battlefleet Gothic ships, or Epic 40k, once I had the cash and space to handle it. Of course, now both those games (and more besides) have been sunk, my aspirations have been rendered moot. Which is a shame, as I think a lot of their more distinctive miniatures came from these side ranges, especially Battlefleet Gothic with the fantastic Imperial cruisers and their armoured prows.

Now I've had to resort to trawling ebay, which is not only proving more expensive, but cuts GW out of the picture entirely, so nobody wins!

 

[ccggenius12]

Also, for your conveniance and entertainment I leave you with this, which fits GW Company Policy to a T by a scary degree X3

You forgot the following MAJOR exception; That video only applies if you're playing for the Imperium. By and large, Xenos can go in the corner over there and weep. Then spend another fifty on codex supplementary material, and still be worse.

GW said "fuck you" to that army (as they do to everything else besides Space fucking Marines) and pretty much dropped all support for it after only a couple of years. That meant no new codex, no new models, hardly any rules updates, and all their units were pretty much pulled from brick and mortar stores. They remain an extremely niche army to this day.

Sisters got a codex update literally a few months ago... I can see why you didn't know, it's digital only and they didn't put out any new models to go with it. As far as I can tell, they had a bunch of back inventory gathering dust, so they said piss on it, and banged out a new 'dex to trick people into paying them for the privilege of doing their spring cleaning.

 

[Sir Shockwave]

Also, for your convenience and entertainment I leave you with this, which fits GW Company Policy to a T by a scary degree X3

You forgot the following MAJOR exception; That video only applies if you're playing for the Imperium. By and large, Xenos can go in the corner over there and weep. Then spend another fifty on codex supplementary material, and still be worse.

Geh, true - blame FlashGits Animation for that one. Still think they should be pummeling a dead Tyranid or something...

...Although your statement does leave out the Sisters of Battle, who are currently bed buddies with the Tyranids in terms of how much GW cares about them (it's been reported that the 6th Edition book is WORSE than the book they had 5th Edition. Hopefully they can pull an Imperial Guard sometime later, or they may die out altogether).

 

[rees263]

I was a massive fan of GW all through my teens but got out of the hobby about 6 years ago because I didn't have anyone to play it with at the time so I lost interest. I still have all my models, I'm still a fan of the stories, love Dawn of War etc, just couldn't justify carrying on.

Recently I got the urge to have another go at it - after all I still have a load of models so it shouldn't be too hard right? I couldn't believe the prices of stuff now. It looks like models have at least *doubled* in price in those 6 years, and the books are even worse. It would cost me over £70 just to buy the rule book and one army book.

I would definitely still be willing to play the game with my old models and the old rules. I have very fond memories of playing, but from what I've read people just hate the direction the hobby has taken now. One of my friends worked in a GW store when I was playing and even back then he hated it because of all the bullshit coming down from the management.

I think I got out at the right time. If I wanted to take up tabletop gaming again I would absolutely choose a different system. It would mean starting from scratch, but it feels like I would be almost starting from scratch with Warhammer and I don't think I could take any more GW crap.

 

[rapidoud]

I bet it didn't help that they capped the amount of figures non-GW stores were allowed to order. That led to several popular stores closing.

But yeah, the figure price gouging is certainly the biggest problem.

If any of you people read any of the financial reports you'd know the company was doing pretty poorly before they started increasing prices.

 

[Me55enger]

£.

I hate to break it to ya dude, but our American keyboards don't come equipped with the £ symbol. In order to find it you either need to go through a long emblem list in word (that isn't easy to access) or google "pound symbol" and then copy and paste it in to your paper. As such for us Americans it is just simpler to type British Pound, or as you said British Pound Sterling.

This begs a question on my part. Is the $ symbol on your keyboards?

At risk of derailing, I can indeed. In fact, my keyboard supports £, $ and ?. It's odd but not necessarily surprising that there is no £ on US keyboards. I'll bear that in mind next time I criticise, thanks.

OT: Got a Games Workshop in the next-town-over to me. It's been suffering ever since a little local company called TrollTrader moved in behind it. Trolltrader does literally every single potential competition for Warhammer and then some. The air of satisfaction when I walk in there is tangible.

 

[Zykon TheLich_v1legacy]

OT: Got a Games Workshop in the next-town-over to me. It's been suffering ever since a little local company called TrollTrader moved in behind it. Trolltrader does literally every single potential competition for Warhammer and then some. The air of satisfaction when I walk in there is tangible.

Trolltrader...GW...would happen to be Truro? They were dicks in there (well, one guy) every time I went in there I got the hard sell. Shame, the gamers in there were pretty friendly, if it hadn't been for Mr. Overenthusiatic I'd probably have gone there quite a bit and spent a lot more money. Also do they go GW stuff? I know they do second hand GW on ebay.

 

[Random berk]

No matter. The emperor protects. Doubt is for the weak. We all know that the hidden chest in the armory of the Grey Knights holds the key to revitalizing the entire franchise...

Wrong. You think that this news coming out at the exact same time as the new Tyranid codex is coincidence? The Great Devourer has arrived, and this is the first death knell for the Imperium of Man and the Warhammer 40K galaxy.

 

[Idlemessiah]

I stopped collecting years ago when a pot of Citadel paint went above £1.50 and my pocket money couldn't cover it any longer.

Now I doubt even my wages could cover the cost of putting an army together let alone having to re-buy all the rule books.

I think I'll stick to Dawn of War.

 

[Thaluikhain]

If any of you people read any of the financial reports you'd know the company was doing pretty poorly before they started increasing prices.

Before they started increasing prices? When have they ever not increased prices? There's been a constant (and in many eyes, excessive) increase in price for the last 15-20 odd years.

 

[Me55enger]

Trolltrader

Trolltrader...GW...would happen to be Truro? They were dicks in there (well, one guy) every time I went in there I got the hard sell. Shame, the gamers in there were pretty friendly, if it hadn't been for Mr. Overenthusiatic I'd probably have gone there quite a bit and spent a lot more money. Also do they go GW stuff? I know they do second hand GW on ebay.

Truro, yeah. Good catch.

I can't vouch for all thier staff. The ones I know are good folk, Louis especially. It's a shame you found a bad egg. I don't know how it works, but they don't sell GW stuff other than second hand. I assume they don't have a licence.

Instead they sell everything else in competition with GW. Which is fine by me.

 

[Muspelheim]

No matter. The emperor protects. Doubt is for the weak. We all know that the hidden chest in the armory of the Grey Knights holds the key to revitalizing the entire franchise...

Wrong. You think that this news coming out at the exact same time as the new Tyranid codex is coincidence? The Great Devourer has arrived, and this is the first death knell for the Imperium of Man and the Warhammer 40K galaxy.

Om nom nom nom!! Scrreeeeeech! Nom nom nom!

I've always felt the Tyranids were the least evil faction in that universe. They just want to eat new and exotic things, and become all that they can be with the new genes they nibble along the way.

Not to mention, Battlefleet Gothic may be gone (why...), but I could probably still play it rather convincingly with a handful of pine cones and artichokes.