I work in the plastics industry. I have forgotten more about molding than GW will ever know. The reason they switched from the metal miniatures (which I still prefer) to the plastic injection molded miniatures is 100% due to greed. I will go on record and say that the game is fun to play, but as my son now shows an interest in the game, I will only seek poorly assembled/poorly painted ebay deals to strip and rebuild. He is learning to paint and doing rather well, but I will begin to get him into more cost effective gaming as GW is 100% solely designed to gouge their customers. Point 1: I have Ral Partha paints from the late 80's that I still paint with. Point 2: I have unopened inks and paints from 1st edition games workshop that are still good. Some I still paint with and the inks I still use alot. Point 3: I have unopened paints from those stupid bolter ammo pots where they reduced the amount of paint held and did not seal airtight. These dried out within 6-12 months without opening them. ***Games Workshop willingly and knowingly changed the amount of paint and charged more for less product that will last less time knowing you will need to buy it more frequently. (I know the backlash from this caused them to slightly improve the pots- but the cost went higher and the quantity went lower and they still do not last) Point 3: The plastic they use in their miniatures is very inexpensive and very easy to mold with. Their molds are low quality and very cheap. (the cavity detail is very good- I will give them that) Point 3.1: Current cost of the plastic they use in a standard sprue for say a commander or a librarian would be approximately .03 $ US. Thats three pennys folks. The current cost for a captain on their site is : $30.00 USA plus tax :) Ok, so if your going to run a business, you have to account for mold costs, packaging costs, advertising, sculptors, etc..etc...In the plastics industry in the USA, 15-20% margin is very good with higher margins on custom/specialty and lower margins on high volume commodity items like cookie trays your oreos come in or tomato baskets. I wont even calculate the margin they are making on their single sprues...Now, they will take a character who costs more points in an army and charge 3x or 4x as much to manage the fact that less sell and they want all the $$. If anyone has a precision scale, weigh a sprue of marines and I will give you a total cost of what it is exactly in resin. (this does not calculate amortized mold costs, overhead etc...but I doubt their overhead is as high as a manufacturer in the US would be. So to summarize- I had a friend who was running a business in the US, and he was charging 100% margin on a product in his retail store and would sell about 4-5 per week. He thought this was awesome due to the awesome margin he was getting. I asked him to try a 3 month experiment. I told him to not mark it "on sale" but to instead, just lower the cost so the margin was 20%. At the end of the two months he was selling almost 200 bottles per week of the product. Do the math, its a fundamental of what the internet companies do, lower overhead- lower margin and make it up in volume. He didn't lower the overhead, but his $$'s earned was substantial and sustained. Games workshop could usher in new generations of players by just being reasonable on their costs. Reaper miniatures still sells metal (as well as plastic) miniatures and the metal minis are around 8-10$ and the plastics are 2-6$ for man sized minis. Odd- should Reaper charge 30$ for their bones minis and follow suit with GW? Nah, they are going with the growth model, not the declining model GW uses.
+Ahed 'Eojusee Except to make 90% of their product direct only, which would only serve to make people use their online store only. There is absolutely no point what so ever to head into your local shopping area now to find GW products, they don't care at all about the little guys being out competed by companies like Miniwargaming, they just don't want any competition.
Ive been a 40k fan for many years and thanks to sites like Miniwargaming im constantly improving on painting techniques, terrain building ideas, understanding of game mechanics, and kept consistently interested in whats going on around the hobby world. People like MWG are without a doubt, an invaluable resource where these hobbies and their respective companies are concerned. As for the Hobbyists, well that goes without saying. MWG - Keep up the superb and much appreciated work!!
tottal contribution i had stoped playing 40k for years then came across you guys and other youtubers late one night and not only got myself and my two cusins back into it. Three return customers to GW from independant stores sounds like a win win to everyone
Here in Australia it can sometimes be cheaper to buy resin kits from Forge World than to buy similar plastic models from an Australian store, that's including shipping costs.
@darkhabsburg Actually I don't blame them for not selling at a discount to their own retail prices, as that would be even worse as they compete against their own retailers.
What you just said is very valid, I’m from Puerto Rico and we don’t have a retailer here on the island. I have to buy all from online stores. Plus it’s real hard causes sometimes I get confuse choosing and item because there is not an image.
I got into Wargaming after I stumbled upon a random video on youtube from you guys... Went to your store a couple saturdays ago but didn't see you or dave.... that was disappointing LOL. However i still kept the desire to play and just started building painting.
The number 1 reason I got into Warhammer 40k was because of Miniwar gaming. You guys are amazing and deserve a lot more viewers and attention. Keep it up guys!
Online videos also inspire players who are already in to the hobby to start out new armies. Your videos haven't gotten me into the hobby, but surely given me ideas for armies I'd never started without the inspiration from the vids you, and other warhammer communities have made. My point being that this also increases the sales of miniatures. =)
i think that its a good thing for you to start others into wargaming. you motivated me after i stopped playing again and i went and bought some eldar from my local store.
Just wanted to say, I live in Ontario, and they have now closed a store located in Oshawa. Which means anyone who is East of Ajax has to drive to Ajax...now,between Ajax to Quebec, there is no stores. That's quite a drive to get product. So long live online retailers.
Great vid with good points. True, the hobby would be a far more boring place without the internet. The work that online sites put into entertaining their customers is incredible and shows dedication to their business model. I am a believer that Miniwargaming even though it is an online retailer does provide the industry as a whole a much needed service that is not provided by any of our favorite companies like GW at this time. Thanks for all your doing and keep up the good work.
those were the days, moria goblin boxes cost 15 bucks for 24 models, not ~$25 for 12 minis. blisters were 8 dollars, and weren't crap finecast. ahh were did we go wrong?
i was doing 40k along time ago but i forgot all about it. but then i started watching you guys and it got me back into it after bout a week of watching ur vids so im counting that lol
I have gone away from tabletop games and come back about 3 times all up. Each time I come back it's because I have been on youtube and came across a 40k video (usually Beast of war) it has gotten me interested again. When I come back I usually start off by watching a heap of videos to see what has been happening. Then after i see whats been going on, I will go out and get more models. Last time I came back I stumbled across Gray Knight Week from BOW. I then went out and got a Grey Knight army.
i can say that my self and my gaming friends could not play warhammer 40k without online shopping because we live 2 hours away from any store that sells the models and driving that far to find out the models you want are not in store can really kill your enthusiasm and im sure that there are a lot of people in the same situation thanks Matt good work great vid
Hey Matt, I do not know if its not out in Canada, but you did not have a space for Kings Of War / Mantic Games. I would have liked to have put on the survey that Beasts Of War got me into that.
I started playing Warhammer 40k about 6 years ago when i was about 10 years old. But for the last 3 or so years i stopped and lost interest in the hobby (probably just as i grew up). But i found your videos on TH-cam about close to a year ago and they got me interested in the hobby again.
Also, I had friends who played it when I was 11. Pretty much forgot about it entirely until I found dawn of war, the computer game. I'd be interested to find out how many people DoW got into the hobby.
being honest (already answered in the survey), MWG didn't get me into Blood Angels but they DEFINITELY further enhanced my enjoyment. thanks for helping me enjoy the hobby more and keep up the great work!
@abovethehorde he has to wear the shirt, just because he does an in-store video, he still has to work after. He isn't advertising, jsut wearing an uniform
My local store tries to take good care of us, 15% off of all GW products, even orders. I really appreciate it when I think about how much it costs them as well.
Joshua Jost Switch to historical gaming!! At a fraction of the cost you'll have just as much fun and learn some real history as you build up your forces.
MiniWarGaming didn't get me into wargaming, but I've started on a bit of an archive binge of their WarmaHordes battle reports. There is one thing I want to mention about the notes on online retailers vs brick-and-mortar retailers. Even if someone buys all of their stuff online (which I have to - only store in Toowoomba that stocks Warmachine only has the 2 player starter box), they're still gonna want somewhere to play their game and to meet other people who play it as well.
I can say Internet changes my purchasing habits, and I do review most of the Tabletop Games and miniature products through Online Blogs and Retailer Sites (MWG, Beast of War, etc) , Community Forums, and most importantly online reviews. Like usual I like and supports MWG open video letter, and I do hope this set a benchmark for other online retailers and wargaming community to VOICE out our opinion about the hobby that we love!
@miniwargaming Why doesn't the survey results show any numbers related to the negative result? I understand you're looking for a hard number but shouldn't there be something there for comparison?
Wish you guys didn't live in Canada I would so drive up and meet you all. I would love to play some 40K against you. Anyhow I have to say that you guys are a great group of people and I will continue to be a fan. Thanks and keep up the good work.
The internet is changing all the time and BOW and yourselves (and others) are adding to the hobby - but a lot of this is almost a brand new thing to get your head around - even the guys doing it! I think GW are probably already moving on some of this. There has been a lot of activity on the careers section of their site and a web developer job was there. They need to engage their customers on the internet, your comment about tech savvy demographic is spot on - and thats where GW need to be.
you may like to ask if sites like yours with videos and forums keep people interested in the wargaming hobby i had 6 forum sites and have about 20 hobby related channels im always looking for scenery tutorials
I have to say that even though your site did not get me into wargaming I only paint the minis I just love your site and visit almost daily. You guys seem to have a lot of fun and do what I would call seriously positve stuff for the hobby. i miss the GW images as after watching a paint video or battle report it would be nice to see the mini in detail Will you tell us if GW reply to your video
You're absolutly right, I'm from Belgium and will probably not buy anything soon from MWG but you guys sure got me intrested in the hobby, so it's a profit for GW. If MWG were to be closer I'd probably do buy all my stuff there.
What's the point of taking a survey when you've already stated what you want the final result to be? Internet stores and sites are great, but let's not ignore how important is the LGS (i.e. some place to play) and friends and/or other people to play against. Those would influence me far greater than something found of the web on its own.
i totally agree. i'm from Australia and i could easily just buy stuff from the internet for half the price but i dont because i support my local retailer. on another note is your shirt for sale.
I am one of the people who watched the mwg videos and then went to my local store to buy. MWG don't sell to my area, so I had to shop somewhere else, which for me was a local games workshop store.
For me it was playing the warhammer 40k: Dawn of war game (+expansions) on PC then after a while playing orks a lot in skirmish and that, i don't remember where but heard it was off a board game and started checking on youtube with it and 90% off them then ended being miniwargaming videos and noticed the models and terrain you could do and that, so i bought a box to paint and knew my friends had lot of models since they used to play it and few months later i had a ork army and started playing
Another factor that needs to brought up is all the website stores and blogs ect..... have gave me and many other people more enthusiasm for the games we are playing. Honestly if all I had to go on was the local gaming store I would of lost interest a long time ago. The more outlets and more ways of finding other people that have the same passion as you, the more you will give to the hobby and buy. There is alot of areas that do not have access to a Games Workshop store or even a LGS.
When they shutdown online sales in US, it drove me to eBay and into Two Hour Wargames rules. Like most older players. (way older in my case), I use a mix of miniatures and use different rules than GW. Great video.
I must say that miniwargaming got me into 40k and then I spent all my money at Games Workshop. This is because I live in the UK near a Games Workshop but they owe you some thanks I have spent over £300 in a few weeks.
Websites are not what gets me into games like 40k, I got into Warhammer 40k and Fantasy at a local game store where I could ask the questions about the game and see the local group of players. However, to aquire the models I buy them as cheap as I can get them through either e-bay, local stores, or GW's site. Although most of my models were obtained through players.
Does your survey include options for if a friend (not a brick and mortar store) got you into the game? My buddy got me into the game, however it's definitely been the online community that has taken it from more than a passing interest into a full on hobby for me.
I'm confused. Is MWG not an independent retailer just because they have an online store. I mean in every video i see a shelf of boxes i assume they sell, so why are not just the same as everyone else. I mean everyone is allowed inside their office thingy to play and buy stuff right? sounds like my local hobby shop to me.
You ranted a bit in the first video, but I enjoyed both. I participated in both surveys, even though I didn't get drawn into the games by your site, you certainly got me more interested in the game, and your videos often help me in my lead up to games (painting, tactics, army selections, rules etc.). The only thing that would probably get me buying more GW would be a much lower price in Australia, the ability to buy with foreign currencies, through GW, or lowering your free postage rate. Cheers!
one of the main reasons I started buying warhammer products was because of the video's from mwg. I was not sure if it was for me but the video's sold it and definatly created a customer for gw and their products.
After reading the agreement, a lot of the stuff in my local FLGS make sense. We decided to step off the GW treadmill. I found one page rules, which the local retailers don’t seem to like. They may talk mechanics, but it’s more like what they are required to do as an independent stockist. At this point we play at home. We are not going to directly buy from GW. If we get any more GW product, it will be eBay rescues, or local FLGS rescues, he sells second hand. Unless the bubble burst, GW will not change. I play One Page Rules at this point. And that is that.
Of all things said i cant believe people moaned that the 1st video was shaky. If anything the visual is irrelevant, its the audio and subject that is the main point. I myself didnt notice till you said it. Either way i agree with all your points. Iv played Warhammer on and off for years and always come back shocked at the prices. Iv not heard of the other game still recently but will certainly check them out
8:20 No, they went to other retailers that are either cheaper than MiniWarGaming or more relevant to their geographical area: Do not forget that you're broadcasting to an international audience here.
@Danthemagicman22 I started 40k and wargaming almost a year ago. I bought a razorback and a land raider from Maelstorm, thats all which i got new. All of the other stuff expect the AoBR is used, or scrachbuild.
I was into 40k long before I discovered MWG - however MWG absolutely got me into warmachine and flames of war, and I would argue re-sparked my playing of 40k after a 6-7 year sabbatical.
Matt i am totally inspired by what you are doing. I think that warhammer 40,000 is a great game, and i wish that they had better judgment. I've slowly seen 40k players dying out at my local store, and I wish that that wasn't so. I love the game, but I dont want to see it die out. Thank you so much for what you are doing for the war gaming community as a whole. I'm sure GW will be doing much better if they listen to even a little of what you are saying :)
i learn about 40k from a PC game called final liberation years ago but hasnt gone into war gaming because it is simply too expansive for me. what most people do is get 1 or 2 models they like, paint them and put them on a shelf or a display case with their gundam models and just admire them.
from my own experience i can say, that even though no website brought me back/introduced me to a game initially, the internet played a main part in keeping me interested. my first game of WHFB after ten years of absence was with a friend who lives like 500km away. before i had my next game i spend a year watching hobbyrelated vids on youtube, which in the end made me buy GW-Products from various sources. not to mention, that your channel was first in the list when i looked for whfb 2 years ago..
I would like to add that gamework shop has no shops in oregon that i can find.Their products are just sold by other gaming stores the closest one to me is about 35 minutes away and as a female 40k player with kids it is hard to load the car up and go to the store when i need to get something for my 40k models or to buy new ones. I think that by fucking over the online stores gamework shop is making it harder for people like me to stay in the hobby that along with the cost make it hard to buy.
They're even cheaper in UK. I would happily buy them and send them over at a cheaper price. They're $96 AUS at the moment for the Trygon, I could get it for £36 (that's about $55 AUS). Even if I included EVERYTHING, international postage, packaging, even my bloody train fair to the GW store to pick it up I could probably get a Trygon to Australia for around $75 AUS. People are tempting me now... unless someone gives me a damn good reason not to I'm gonna start selling unopened models at discount
Hey, I just wanted to congratulate you for making such a good video. It is very professional, you come across as constructive rather than blindly critical, and your love of the hobby comes through. I hope this has reached someone at GW, as I love their products but feel some things need to change. Is there any way one can send a letter to someone who makes decisions at GW? I'm finding it hard to know who to contact to give my opinion.
Im loving your site, your videos and everything about you guys, but I´m buying directly from GW because i live in Germany. So im a good example for you helping not just your self but also GW!
My Gray knight army was about $675 Australian dollars worth of models at the time. I later found out that if I had of got that same models from the UK it would have cost me about $350 Australian dollars. That is £435 Beast of War made you by getting me back into the game, for models you charge £225 in your own country.
i agree with you to an extent some of the models that haven't changed, like the space marine bikes or eldar jet bikes, the price increase is ridiculous. but the new sets do include a lot more options and many more parts than most of the 2003 range, just looking at the new leman russ set gives you the option for different variants with multiple gun options.
I work in the plastics industry. I have forgotten more about molding than GW will ever know. The reason they switched from the metal miniatures (which I still prefer) to the plastic injection molded miniatures is 100% due to greed. I will go on record and say that the game is fun to play, but as my son now shows an interest in the game, I will only seek poorly assembled/poorly painted ebay deals to strip and rebuild. He is learning to paint and doing rather well, but I will begin to get him into more cost effective gaming as GW is 100% solely designed to gouge their customers.
Point 1: I have Ral Partha paints from the late 80's that I still paint with.
Point 2: I have unopened inks and paints from 1st edition games workshop that are still good. Some I still paint with and the inks I still use alot.
Point 3: I have unopened paints from those stupid bolter ammo pots where they reduced the amount of paint held and did not seal airtight. These dried out within 6-12 months without opening them.
***Games Workshop willingly and knowingly changed the amount of paint and charged more for less product that will last less time knowing you will need to buy it more frequently. (I know the backlash from this caused them to slightly improve the pots- but the cost went higher and the quantity went lower and they still do not last)
Point 3: The plastic they use in their miniatures is very inexpensive and very easy to mold with. Their molds are low quality and very cheap. (the cavity detail is very good- I will give them that)
Point 3.1: Current cost of the plastic they use in a standard sprue for say a commander or a librarian would be approximately .03 $ US. Thats three pennys folks. The current cost for a captain on their site is : $30.00 USA plus tax :)
Ok, so if your going to run a business, you have to account for mold costs, packaging costs, advertising, sculptors, etc..etc...In the plastics industry in the USA, 15-20% margin is very good with higher margins on custom/specialty and lower margins on high volume commodity items like cookie trays your oreos come in or tomato baskets.
I wont even calculate the margin they are making on their single sprues...Now, they will take a character who costs more points in an army and charge 3x or 4x as much to manage the fact that less sell and they want all the $$. If anyone has a precision scale, weigh a sprue of marines and I will give you a total cost of what it is exactly in resin. (this does not calculate amortized mold costs, overhead etc...but I doubt their overhead is as high as a manufacturer in the US would be.
So to summarize- I had a friend who was running a business in the US, and he was charging 100% margin on a product in his retail store and would sell about 4-5 per week. He thought this was awesome due to the awesome margin he was getting. I asked him to try a 3 month experiment. I told him to not mark it "on sale" but to instead, just lower the cost so the margin was 20%. At the end of the two months he was selling almost 200 bottles per week of the product. Do the math, its a fundamental of what the internet companies do, lower overhead- lower margin and make it up in volume. He didn't lower the overhead, but his $$'s earned was substantial and sustained. Games workshop could usher in new generations of players by just being reasonable on their costs.
Reaper miniatures still sells metal (as well as plastic) miniatures and the metal minis are around 8-10$ and the plastics are 2-6$ for man sized minis. Odd- should Reaper charge 30$ for their bones minis and follow suit with GW? Nah, they are going with the growth model, not the declining model GW uses.
Well said, from a good a source. I learned a lot from that, thank you
TH-cam, is a major reason why i got back into it
The site staff at Warseer have now put it back up again, if you're interested...
mini war gaming got me back into 40k in 2014 after i stopped back in 2007 i had no idea all this was going on in the time i had stopped
@DraskyVanderhoff Just choose the one that had the most impact. Either way it will show that a website got you into it, which is the main point.
@Ghaz3k Definitely.
Its been 4 years, they have done nothing
+Ahed 'Eojusee Except to make 90% of their product direct only, which would only serve to make people use their online store only. There is absolutely no point what so ever to head into your local shopping area now to find GW products, they don't care at all about the little guys being out competed by companies like Miniwargaming, they just don't want any competition.
@DarwinsDisciple56 Yup, but they don't like our online store.
Ive been a 40k fan for many years and thanks to sites like Miniwargaming im constantly improving on painting techniques, terrain building ideas, understanding of game mechanics, and kept consistently interested in whats going on around the hobby world. People like MWG are without a doubt, an invaluable resource where these hobbies and their respective companies are concerned. As for the Hobbyists, well that goes without saying.
MWG - Keep up the superb and much appreciated work!!
tottal contribution i had stoped playing 40k for years then came across you guys and other youtubers late one night and not only got myself and my two cusins back into it. Three return customers to GW from independant stores sounds like a win win to everyone
@darkdrgon2136 Yeah, I forgot that one. I should add it, shouldn't I...
Here in Australia it can sometimes be cheaper to buy resin kits from Forge World than to buy similar plastic models from an Australian store, that's including shipping costs.
@darkhabsburg Actually I don't blame them for not selling at a discount to their own retail prices, as that would be even worse as they compete against their own retailers.
From heresyonline, we got your back too MWG . Your video is up in the news and rumors threads.
@DDVargas1983 It's listed alphabetically, sort of.
Warhammer looks really really fun...but the price is preventing me from jumping in.....dam the luck
What you just said is very valid, I’m from Puerto Rico and we don’t have a retailer here on the island. I have to buy all from online stores. Plus it’s real hard causes sometimes I get confuse choosing and item because there is not an image.
You guys are awesome. If I ever venture into Canada I certainly will have to buy at least a box of Counts.
@Henners1991 That's exactly our point.
I got into Wargaming after I stumbled upon a random video on youtube from you guys... Went to your store a couple saturdays ago but didn't see you or dave.... that was disappointing LOL. However i still kept the desire to play and just started building painting.
The number 1 reason I got into Warhammer 40k was because of Miniwar gaming. You guys are amazing and deserve a lot more viewers and attention. Keep it up guys!
Online videos also inspire players who are already in to the hobby to start out new armies. Your videos haven't gotten me into the hobby, but surely given me ideas for armies I'd never started without the inspiration from the vids you, and other warhammer communities have made. My point being that this also increases the sales of miniatures. =)
i think that its a good thing for you to start others into wargaming. you motivated me after i stopped playing again and i went and bought some eldar from my local store.
Just wanted to say, I live in Ontario, and they have now closed a store located in Oshawa. Which means anyone who is East of Ajax has to drive to Ajax...now,between Ajax to Quebec, there is no stores. That's quite a drive to get product. So long live online retailers.
Great vid with good points. True, the hobby would be a far more boring place without the internet. The work that online sites put into entertaining their customers is incredible and shows dedication to their business model. I am a believer that Miniwargaming even though it is an online retailer does provide the industry as a whole a much needed service that is not provided by any of our favorite companies like GW at this time.
Thanks for all your doing and keep up the good work.
those were the days, moria goblin boxes cost 15 bucks for 24 models, not ~$25 for 12 minis. blisters were 8 dollars, and weren't crap finecast. ahh were did we go wrong?
i was doing 40k along time ago but i forgot all about it. but then i started watching you guys and it got me back into it after bout a week of watching ur vids so im counting that lol
I have gone away from tabletop games and come back about 3 times all up. Each time I come back it's because I have been on youtube and came across a 40k video (usually Beast of war) it has gotten me interested again. When I come back I usually start off by watching a heap of videos to see what has been happening. Then after i see whats been going on, I will go out and get more models. Last time I came back I stumbled across Gray Knight Week from BOW. I then went out and got a Grey Knight army.
i can say that my self and my gaming friends could not play warhammer 40k without online shopping because we live 2 hours away from any store that sells the models and driving that far to find out the models you want are not in store can really kill your enthusiasm
and im sure that there are a lot of people in the same situation
thanks Matt good work great vid
Hey Matt, I do not know if its not out in Canada, but you did not have a space for Kings Of War / Mantic Games. I would have liked to have put on the survey that Beasts Of War got me into that.
I started playing Warhammer 40k about 6 years ago when i was about 10 years old. But for the last 3 or so years i stopped and lost interest in the hobby (probably just as i grew up). But i found your videos on TH-cam about close to a year ago and they got me interested in the hobby again.
Notice how this video, the camera is on a tripod or something. These guys, they learn quick.
Also, I had friends who played it when I was 11. Pretty much forgot about it entirely until I found dawn of war, the computer game. I'd be interested to find out how many people DoW got into the hobby.
being honest (already answered in the survey), MWG didn't get me into Blood Angels but they DEFINITELY further enhanced my enjoyment.
thanks for helping me enjoy the hobby more and keep up the great work!
I love how /tg/ is a listed site you can choose from.
@abovethehorde he has to wear the shirt, just because he does an in-store video, he still has to work after. He isn't advertising, jsut wearing an uniform
My local store tries to take good care of us, 15% off of all GW products, even orders. I really appreciate it when I think about how much it costs them as well.
miniwargaming didnt get me into the hobby as ive been collecting for yearsbut theyve got me into watching batreps, i cant get enough!
i did bot warhammer 40k and fantasy... but with daves step by step building i got in to more of the building terrain!! cheers to u guys!!
I would love to continue play GW's games, but they have priced me out of the hobby.
Joshua Jost Switch to historical gaming!! At a fraction of the cost you'll have just as much fun and learn some real history as you build up your forces.
i would love to but i have yet to be able to locate a local play group. Napoleonic armies are some thing i would love to get into.
Warriorking1963 where can i buy ww2 miniatures
+Hive Tyrant kraken warlord games, its called bolt action. great game
The Laughing God thanks for the info saved thier website to my folder cant wait to buy
MiniWarGaming is the group that got me into Warhammer 40K and enspired me to try something new in 40K
Finally, a voice worthy of representing the hobby as a whole.
MiniWarGaming didn't get me into wargaming, but I've started on a bit of an archive binge of their WarmaHordes battle reports. There is one thing I want to mention about the notes on online retailers vs brick-and-mortar retailers. Even if someone buys all of their stuff online (which I have to - only store in Toowoomba that stocks Warmachine only has the 2 player starter box), they're still gonna want somewhere to play their game and to meet other people who play it as well.
I can say Internet changes my purchasing habits, and I do review most of the Tabletop Games and miniature products through Online Blogs and Retailer Sites (MWG, Beast of War, etc) , Community Forums, and most importantly online reviews. Like usual I like and supports MWG open video letter, and I do hope this set a benchmark for other online retailers and wargaming community to VOICE out our opinion about the hobby that we love!
Mini War Gaming, I really like your site and your vids. You guys helped me get into Mini War Gaming. So thanks very much!
AmDrag
@miniwargaming Why doesn't the survey results show any numbers related to the negative result? I understand you're looking for a hard number but shouldn't there be something there for comparison?
@ThePaintingClinic When you control the entire supply chain it can work. ;)
Wish you guys didn't live in Canada I would so drive up and meet you all. I would love to play some 40K against you. Anyhow I have to say that you guys are a great group of people and I will continue to be a fan. Thanks and keep up the good work.
The internet is changing all the time and BOW and yourselves (and others) are adding to the hobby - but a lot of this is almost a brand new thing to get your head around - even the guys doing it! I think GW are probably already moving on some of this. There has been a lot of activity on the careers section of their site and a web developer job was there. They need to engage their customers on the internet, your comment about tech savvy demographic is spot on - and thats where GW need to be.
you may like to ask if sites like yours with videos and forums keep people interested in the wargaming hobby i had 6 forum sites and have about 20 hobby related channels im always looking for scenery tutorials
I have to say that even though your site did not get me into wargaming I only paint the minis I just love your site and visit almost daily. You guys seem to have a lot of fun and do what I would call seriously positve stuff for the hobby. i miss the GW images as after watching a paint video or battle report it would be nice to see the mini in detail Will you tell us if GW reply to your video
You're absolutly right, I'm from Belgium and will probably not buy anything soon from MWG but you guys sure got me intrested in the hobby, so it's a profit for GW. If MWG were to be closer I'd probably do buy all my stuff there.
What's the point of taking a survey when you've already stated what you want the final result to be? Internet stores and sites are great, but let's not ignore how important is the LGS (i.e. some place to play) and friends and/or other people to play against. Those would influence me far greater than something found of the web on its own.
i totally agree. i'm from Australia and i could easily just buy stuff from the internet for half the price but i dont because i support my local retailer. on another note is your shirt for sale.
I am one of the people who watched the mwg videos and then went to my local store to buy. MWG don't sell to my area, so I had to shop somewhere else, which for me was a local games workshop store.
For me it was playing the warhammer 40k: Dawn of war game (+expansions) on PC then after a while playing orks a lot in skirmish and that, i don't remember where but heard it was off a board game and started checking on youtube with it and 90% off them then ended being miniwargaming videos and noticed the models and terrain you could do and that, so i bought a box to paint and knew my friends had lot of models since they used to play it and few months later i had a ork army and started playing
I came to warhammer from dawn of war ua and you brought me to the hobby and i'm now on my second army thank you love the hobby
does getting into a game system from a website, even if the website is NOT a store, would i say yes anyway?
Another factor that needs to brought up is all the website stores and blogs ect..... have gave me and many other people more enthusiasm for the games we are playing. Honestly if all I had to go on was the local gaming store I would of lost interest a long time ago. The more outlets and more ways of finding other people that have the same passion as you, the more you will give to the hobby and buy. There is alot of areas that do not have access to a Games Workshop store or even a LGS.
I actively support my local store... I like having a place to play.
only on the really big things do i really look for on the net.
When they shutdown online sales in US, it drove me to eBay and into Two Hour Wargames rules. Like most older players. (way older in my case), I use a mix of miniatures and use different rules than GW.
Great video.
Not sure where this survey was but I can tell you that watching banter batreps got me in to 40k
I must say that miniwargaming got me into 40k and then I spent all my money at Games Workshop. This is because I live in the UK near a Games Workshop but they owe you some thanks I have spent over £300 in a few weeks.
Websites are not what gets me into games like 40k, I got into Warhammer 40k and Fantasy at a local game store where I could ask the questions about the game and see the local group of players. However, to aquire the models I buy them as cheap as I can get them through either e-bay, local stores, or GW's site. Although most of my models were obtained through players.
i started because of Beasts of War, but miniwargaming was also a big help and the company i bought my starter models from
@dullspork Tell that to Apple.
Does your survey include options for if a friend (not a brick and mortar store) got you into the game?
My buddy got me into the game, however it's definitely been the online community that has taken it from more than a passing interest into a full on hobby for me.
I was unsure if I should but when i saw your videos i dived in
I'm confused. Is MWG not an independent retailer just because they have an online store. I mean in every video i see a shelf of boxes i assume they sell, so why are not just the same as everyone else. I mean everyone is allowed inside their office thingy to play and buy stuff right? sounds like my local hobby shop to me.
You ranted a bit in the first video, but I enjoyed both. I participated in both surveys, even though I didn't get drawn into the games by your site, you certainly got me more interested in the game, and your videos often help me in my lead up to games (painting, tactics, army selections, rules etc.).
The only thing that would probably get me buying more GW would be a much lower price in Australia, the ability to buy with foreign currencies, through GW, or lowering your free postage rate. Cheers!
one of the main reasons I started buying warhammer products was because of the video's from mwg.
I was not sure if it was for me but the video's sold it and definatly created a customer for gw and their products.
@TheFoilGuy what deals on miniatures games workshop don't have a sale ever, so what deals are you talking about?
I am 2 hours drive away from the nearest store...
40k chaos bat rap was one of my first gw videos I saw
you got me in the game i am making my first army ORKS!! now all i have to do is stop being confused and reread the rulebook
I want to play fantasy but nobody else will, how can more people get into that?
You didnt get me into it but you keep me in it thank you MWG
Can't make a better case then you already have in your vid. Present it in a polite manner, with facts and make all very good points.
After reading the agreement, a lot of the stuff in my local FLGS make sense. We decided to step off the GW treadmill. I found one page rules, which the local retailers don’t seem to like. They may talk mechanics, but it’s more like what they are required to do as an independent stockist. At this point we play at home. We are not going to directly buy from GW. If we get any more GW product, it will be eBay rescues, or local FLGS rescues, he sells second hand.
Unless the bubble burst, GW will not change.
I play One Page Rules at this point. And that is that.
Of all things said i cant believe people moaned that the 1st video was shaky. If anything the visual is irrelevant, its the audio and subject that is the main point. I myself didnt notice till you said it. Either way i agree with all your points.
Iv played Warhammer on and off for years and always come back shocked at the prices. Iv not heard of the other game still recently but will certainly check them out
4chan's /tg/ is one of the first sites on that list? color me surprised
8:20
No, they went to other retailers that are either cheaper than MiniWarGaming or more relevant to their geographical area: Do not forget that you're broadcasting to an international audience here.
@Danthemagicman22
I started 40k and wargaming almost a year ago. I bought a razorback and a land raider from Maelstorm, thats all which i got new. All of the other stuff expect the AoBR is used, or scrachbuild.
I was into 40k long before I discovered MWG - however MWG absolutely got me into warmachine and flames of war, and I would argue re-sparked my playing of 40k after a 6-7 year sabbatical.
Matt i am totally inspired by what you are doing. I think that warhammer 40,000 is a great game, and i wish that they had better judgment. I've slowly seen 40k players dying out at my local store, and I wish that that wasn't so. I love the game, but I dont want to see it die out. Thank you so much for what you are doing for the war gaming community as a whole. I'm sure GW will be doing much better if they listen to even a little of what you are saying :)
I wish that MWG never had to close, and that GW really managed themselves and respected their customers and retailers better.
@TheVenomPhoenix
agreed. Trygon is $113 in nz.
hear hear....You hit the nail right on the head
i learn about 40k from a PC game called final liberation years ago but hasnt gone into war gaming because it is simply too expansive for me. what most people do is get 1 or 2 models they like, paint them and put them on a shelf or a display case with their gundam models and just admire them.
from my own experience i can say, that even though no website brought me back/introduced me to a game initially, the internet played a main part in keeping me interested. my first game of WHFB after ten years of absence was with a friend who lives like 500km away. before i had my next game i spend a year watching hobbyrelated vids on youtube, which in the end made me buy GW-Products from various sources. not to mention, that your channel was first in the list when i looked for whfb 2 years ago..
I would like to add that gamework shop has no shops in oregon that i can find.Their products are just sold by other gaming stores the closest one to me is about 35 minutes away and as a female 40k player with kids it is hard to load the car up and go to the store when i need to get something for my 40k models or to buy new ones. I think that by fucking over the online stores gamework shop is making it harder for people like me to stay in the hobby that along with the cost make it hard to buy.
@Sesshyru in what way? please elaborate.
They're even cheaper in UK. I would happily buy them and send them over at a cheaper price. They're $96 AUS at the moment for the Trygon, I could get it for £36 (that's about $55 AUS). Even if I included EVERYTHING, international postage, packaging, even my bloody train fair to the GW store to pick it up I could probably get a Trygon to Australia for around $75 AUS. People are tempting me now... unless someone gives me a damn good reason not to I'm gonna start selling unopened models at discount
But it costs a lot to ship something half way round the world but i can see your point.
no Kings of War in the survey :(
why couldnt you be my local store, then i just wouldnt leave.
Hey, I just wanted to congratulate you for making such a good video. It is very professional, you come across as constructive rather than blindly critical, and your love of the hobby comes through. I hope this has reached someone at GW, as I love their products but feel some things need to change. Is there any way one can send a letter to someone who makes decisions at GW? I'm finding it hard to know who to contact to give my opinion.
Im loving your site, your videos and everything about you guys, but I´m buying directly from GW because i live in Germany. So im a good example for you helping not just your self but also GW!
My Gray knight army was about $675 Australian dollars worth of models at the time. I later found out that if I had of got that same models from the UK it would have cost me about $350 Australian dollars. That is £435 Beast of War made you by getting me back into the game, for models you charge £225 in your own country.
i agree with you to an extent some of the models that haven't changed, like the space marine bikes or eldar jet bikes, the price increase is ridiculous. but the new sets do include a lot more options and many more parts than most of the 2003 range, just looking at the new leman russ set gives you the option for different variants with multiple gun options.