Is wargaming getting too expensive? Are rising miniature prices and constant rulebook changes making it harder to stay in the hobby? In this video, we dive into the costs of tabletop wargaming, looking at the impact of Games Workshop price hikes, the affordability of historical wargaming, and alternative ways to enjoy miniature wargaming without breaking the bank.
As a longtime wargamer, I share my personal journey of moving away from expensive mainstream games like Warhammer 40K and Age of Sigmar in favor of historical wargames, where miniatures are cheaper, and rulesets stay stable for years. If you're looking for affordable wargaming options, budget-friendly miniatures, or a way to enjoy wargaming without constant financial strain, this video is for you!
#MiniatureWargaming #WargamingOnABudget #HistoricalWargaming #TabletopWargames #Wargamer #AffordableWargaming #GamesWorkshop #WarhammerAlternatives #WargamingDiscussion
In your Biblical game, I thought Colin commanded the Egyptians not Chris. Who is Chris?
ReplyDeleteStrange, I have never considered historical wargaming as a more cost effective version of Warhammer etc....I never had any interest in Warhammer and it's ilk, and the fact their figures have always been ridiculously over priced just ensured I didn't ever stray from the one true path of historical gaming!
ReplyDeleteInteresting video, I agree that Games Workshop (one of the few hobby shops almost on the High Street left) can be expensive, having bought figures for younger family members. I get totally lost in the rules changes, redundant factions etc.
ReplyDeleteAgainst this ready built national / international GW player base, there are sources of cheaper Historical figures or sci fi / modern conversions possible using cheap pound store figures. These are fine if you use figure agnostic rule sets bought or found online, experiments with ChatGPT AI aggregated rules or even tinkered old Don Featherstone 1960s rules from books that I borrowed from the library growing up with as a 70s Airfix kid (still available in paperback reprint from the History of Wargames project). It’s still just about possible to knock up a WW2 skirmish game using old second hand or new Airfix figures. I have been in ‘trash panda’ mode converting pound store plastics on my blog into scifi or historical gaming figures at https://poundstoreplasticwarriors.wordpress.com
Other budget conscious gaming ideas can be found on the Super Cheap Wargaming group on Facebook, The Wargaming Pastor’s Death Zap blog, to name a few.
Always interesting to reflect on GW's business model, although my own journey through wargaming has not included much Warhammer. I started with board wargames from SPI and Avalon Hill, which may be another approach for you to consider: portable, relatively affordable, with entire armies on the table and no painting required. I've also spent time on WRG rules, D&D and other role-playing games as well as skirmish wargames that use nice models, but from any manufacturer or scale the players choose.Keep up the thought-provoking discussion
ReplyDeleteDuring my teaching career, I often advised pupils who expressed an interest in Warhammer that it was possible to use other manufacturers' cheaper figures and fantasy rules by other publishers, or found online if they just wanted to play with their friends and not engage in GW tournaments or play in GW shops. If they liked the GW rules, they could still use them with other manufacturers' troops.
ReplyDeleteI came to wargaming via a chapter in How to Go Collecting Model Soldiers, contributed by Donald Featherstone, then read some of his other books, and rules by Brigadier Peter Young, Charles Grant and Terry Wise. All these authors gave good, practical advice on raising armies, making scenery and devising one's own rules. There was more of a 'do it yourself' ethos that, IMHO, is sadly lacking for youngsters embarking on the hobby today, who are instead encouraged to be purchasers of quite expensive, ready-made buildings and scenery. The photographs in White Dwarf and other commercial magazines also suggest that the only 'correct' way to paint wargame figures is to apply the same techniques as used on larger scale models, involving shading and highlighting using several different paints and/or inks, and that bases must be landscaped, rather than simply painted green or brown. A simple, neat, unshaded 'toy soldier' style, as used by Featherstone and Wise, looked perfectly good en masse and required far less time, effort and skill to achieve.
Those classic era authors knew what they were talking about. Nearly everything on their tables was make-do-and-mend.
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