GW Price Increases and My Reaction
Posted by C Swizzy on Wednesday May 18, 2011 Under Chris, Warhammer 40k, Warmachine
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this post are C Swizzy’s and his alone. They do not reflect the views of TEW in it’s entirety.
That’s right, I’m not going to BUYcott GW as we have in the past with Planetstrike. As it turns out the term Buycott is the exact opposite of Boycott, as in buying goods from a company in order to show your support. So I would recommend everyone to get their terminology straight…
Now that I got that little PSA out of the way, let’s get down to business. GW, unsurprisingly, announced another price hike that goes into effect at the end of May. Yup, it’s that time of year again. You can almost set your watch to it. Here’s the best link I could find that has a list of the price increases http://www.3sdgames.com/iumaddog/?cat=5. Props to these guys for the info. On average we’re looking at a 22% increase.
There is also a list of the new Citadel Finecast prices. For those who don’t know, the Finecast stuff is the resin replacement for the old school metal models we all loved or hated. Shockingly enough, they upped the prices on these as well and rumor has it they are direct order only.
On top of all of this “good news” GW decided to screw over the whole southern hemisphere by putting an embargo on retailers selling and shipping GW product down there. I have already heard the rantings from the Aussies and a certain someone in Asia is already planning to make one last bulk purchase before this goes into effect. It appears that GW is trying their hardest to exploit the conversion rate of foreign currencies. This is such a great way to treat your customers….
So let’s get this straight. A few months ago GW stated that their sales were down. What’s the best way to increase sales? Apparently it’s by increasing prices, again….
I seriously have had enough. I’m done. My Astral Claws project is on hold, if not axed all together. I’ll probably make a squad or two from bits I have but that might be it. I hope (but doubt at the same time) that when my Templars get a new book, I’ll be able to use my old BT stuff, but then again look at the Grey Knights book. A lot of the old figs the old school GK players had can’t really be used as much as they were in the past.
I hereby vow that I will NEVER buy from a GW store again. I am officially boycotting GW but there are stipulations. I will still continue to support Black Library as much as humanly possible and I will leave open the option of dabbling in some Forgeworld from time to time.
Now I know some of you will say that Privateer Press isn’t that much cheaper and you might be right to some extent. I still believe that it’s a better bargain because of the support that PP delivers and due to a lower model count, you can get away without buying as much in order to get into Warmachine/Hordes. I still believe you can get a decent 25 point army for right around $100. Malifaux and most of the games put out by Spartan can be started up for just under $100 and this includes a decent sized tournament ready army, not just a beginner army.
I’ve just had enough of GW’s oppression and I’m going to let my wallet do the talking from here on out. I know I’m not the only one who will be doing this, and if you feel as I do, I encourage you to do the same. E Bay is always an option if you just can’t pry yourself away from 40K or Fantasy.
I made a prediciton last year that GW will go under in 5 years. We’re one year in and I think they’re making excellent progress. I even made a wager with Carl from the Independent Characters about this. So Carl, you better start getting sized up for that Sister of Battle costume! LOL
35 Responses to “GW Price Increases and My Reaction”
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May 18th, 2011 at 2:48 am
This is complete and utter bull. This sounds like the end of me getting back into the hobby. The only reason I stayed was due to the fact that I could get cheaper products from overseas.
It is ridiculous that here in Australia I have to pay $43.57 US dollars for a box of guard where the US has to pay $24.75 and in the UK $25.
That is without the price hike it is beyond fucking ridiculous that I have to pay because I live in Australia basically twice the amount the UK and US has to pay.
May 18th, 2011 at 4:00 am
20 SM commander boxes will set me back $450 + even after discounts (i just want the bloody combi weapons lol)
i think i’ll pass on this buycott. i pretty much have all i need anyways.
May 18th, 2011 at 4:24 am
I wholly support this statement except that I’m withdrawing my money entirely from the table top wargaming theatre for a while. Between my resin casting kit to make what I need and Black Library, I am self sufficient.
I also commend the zeal with which Chris has written his article. But seriously, you’re “oppressed” by this increase?
May 18th, 2011 at 4:55 am
same here. i am not spending money on new models for the rest of this year. apart from paints and sundries that i need to finish what i already have.
May 18th, 2011 at 7:07 am
As an Ozzie, I will only support my LGS and screw GW in the ear!
I have a huge collection of Warmachine and Infinity, and small and expanding collections of spartan games fleets.
GW, screw you!
May 18th, 2011 at 7:16 am
I have kicked the dust off my feet for GW long a go. The only thing I will pick up the source books to see the changes they make to the armies I own. One purchase every 10 years isn’t going to help them too much.
May 18th, 2011 at 8:57 am
Wow… this is disturbing. I’m not so concerned about myself being priced out of the hobby (although I’m feeling the pain), but I’m worried what this may mean for people on the fence and/or for potential new players. So many of my peers have already abandoned Games Workshop. Raising prices isn’t going to help me find people to play a game with, and I’m guessing this will just be one more reason for my old friends never to return.
May 18th, 2011 at 11:42 am
Definition of OPPRESSION
1
a : unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power b : something that oppresses especially in being an unjust or excessive exercise of power
I would say this applies to how GW has been treating it’s customers, or in this case former customers.
May 18th, 2011 at 11:42 am
I was Googling for people’s reaction to the price hike and found this site. So if nothing else, GW just got you some new traffic.
The interesting thing is, why is GW so popular still? There are so many games out there that are much more fun, have much better models, AND cheaper to play. Warmachine, Infinity…
But the most expensive and abusive game is still the most popular.
It is a good thing I never got into GW. Have been planning to do that for at least a decade, but seeing these yearly hikes, I am not getting in for sure.
But I think I said that last year already.
May 18th, 2011 at 12:33 pm
I think its safe to assume this could only hurt Games Workshop as the price increases will deter even more hobbyists, on top of the UK sales cut off.
Congrats, GW – you just increased Privateer Press’ sales with your forced prostate exams!
May 18th, 2011 at 2:41 pm
http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/content/article.jsp?aId=16600002a
nice to know they’re giving us a heads up
May 18th, 2011 at 5:31 pm
It’s good to see that people are finally banding together for this, thank you for this article, Chris.
I’m a Canada fag, so the prices here are ridiculous, we suffer an enormous mark-up from the American prices. I’m baffled at how our misfortune pales in comparison to that of Australia.
With these changes I’ve vowed not to buy GW models anymore, second hand stuff, maybe, FW, and BL, that’s okay too, but no more GW for me. I still love everything about the company except the marketing department, and I’ll still play the games, especially dark heresy and other stuff that doesn’t ravage me when I open my wallet.
I’m going to make a personal appeal to you guys from Dicelikewarriors, I hope that none of you will let this go, make a big stink about it and preach to your followers to rebel against these changes.
I’m honestly hoping that this is the straw that broke the camel’s back. GW has an entire country mad at them now, and many others are pulling out their chainswords.
Let us be heard!
-Michael
May 19th, 2011 at 12:08 am
Oppression, as you define it, is the cruel exercise of authority or power. Said power can not be exercised if you, the customer, is not there to exercise it upon. And really, except for ebooks from Black Library or the odd paint you purchase, you haven’t been a customer of GW for many months. Like I said, I understand and support your position on this topic, but I think your zeal is letting you speak out of turn FOR the customer base.
May 19th, 2011 at 8:33 am
We will be discussing this on our next show. While we do not speak for the American hobby scene, I’m pretty sure there will be a small minority who disagrees with what we say.
May 19th, 2011 at 8:51 am
I think it would be interesting to get some guests from other countries to talk about how the prices and such.
May 19th, 2011 at 10:28 am
Sigh… this is quite possibly the single dumbest move GW has made to date…they’ve effectively killed their entire customer base in the southern hemisphere by doing this, or at least have killed off Warhammer Fantasy since it costs so much to get a playable army. Sigh, I really hope there’s a big enough backlash that GW is forced to try and justify this asinine descision.
May 19th, 2011 at 10:51 am
I was about to start a Dark Eldar army, bought a squad of wyches, was thinking about adding to my Necrons. Now all I have to say is thank you guys for letting me know about Privateer Press. if anyone is getting my money now it’ll be them. These prices are just ridiculous and I’m in America. I’m really sorry for you all in the southern hemisphere.
May 19th, 2011 at 11:09 am
I agree completely. I still have 40k armies but I stopped playing about 3 months ago and picked up Warmachine and frankly I’ve had more fun than I ever did with 40k. So these announcements aren’t so much a reason to boycott as they are the nail in the coffin. Thank you GW, for verifying that Privateer Press is the superior company once again.
May 19th, 2011 at 8:05 pm
Like many of others in my area we all have the armies we want and if we move to another one we understand the investment is going up. The fact is will i still buy GW … sure but only wha ti need i dont play to win at all costs but to have fun.
To be honest Privateer press has a decent game and a great mini’s they have there own issues. Do i play Warmachine sure i do still prefer WH40k
Hell i’ve found that my love for battletech has been reparked and i have been playing that for awhile now. Either way i support anyone who stands upto what they feel is wrong. But chris Tricky Dick is correct GW never forced you to buy there product.
I do think they will feel the sales hit cause this has made more waves than other increases so we can hope for the best and expect the worse. Either way support whatever game system you choose.
Not to mention i dont need to worry about combi wpns etc now that i have my resin kit.
The way i told my new players when they asked about this was the cost of entry went up in WH40k and for many it might be too high now unless they buy armies online to start out with. Either way this will have a minimal impact on longtime collectors/players it will effect new players more than anyone.
May 19th, 2011 at 9:24 pm
“Lexal Graves Says: I think it would be interesting to get some guests from other countries to talk about how the prices and such.”
Jesus Christ don’t get me started….
May 19th, 2011 at 9:25 pm
Wow.
I have a vast Death Guard army (10k, 13k with allies) all painted and I love the depth and complexity of Warhammer 40k. However following continuous price rises that pushed me further and further away from those “big” purchases and special projects. Then GW making it harder and harder to actually play the game with a poor CSM codex, a complete failier of my second arnt, Tyranids. And finally more price hikes I am finding it all but untenable.
Over the past year I’ve started playing Uncharted Seas, Firestorm Armada, Malifaux and Dark Age. I also have some Warmachine I’m assembling. These games have given me an outlet for my “I want toys” desires and frankly recently I have been having a 40k “crisis”.
It doesn’t help that I’ve all but withdrawn from many of my outlets as I work through some unrelated personal family issues. I will be back!
Amidst all of this another large price hike. I do not think GW is going out of business, nor do I think I am out of the hobby. However they are making it real hard to buy anything right now.
May 19th, 2011 at 11:35 pm
Listen to episode 21 when it comes out for the full details of my (and others) boycott
May 20th, 2011 at 7:31 am
Swizzy it’s not like you bought much of anything at the bunker anyway it won’t make a difference. What you should be bitching about. It costs me $60 to fill my tank. $60 that goes for a week. Where I can spend that on a trygon that will last me decades of gaming. Every time this happens everyone moans about it but at the end of the day your boycotts don’t work and life goes on. He smart and savvy people will continue to get things for cheap by doing the leg work and searching.
I’ve listened to you guys since early 09 and Swizzy you have gone from loving 40k to becoming bitter after starting warmahordes. Just relax the world will still go round and GW isn’t goin anywhere anytime soon. Don’t like the prices dont buy stuff but don’t poison the well at the same time
May 20th, 2011 at 8:08 am
Honestly the embargo thing I think is the most ridiculous part of all this.
As far as the prices are concerned, I think everyone agrees that GW has handled their sales problems in the wrong way. That said I cannot deny that GW has been getting better and better with their model quality. Without a doubt the DE are the best looking army now while a year ago they were one of if not the worst and if these increases help invest into that for other armies, I’m ok with it.
This hurts new players the most, which is very stupid on GW’s part. Veterans have their armies already, and I’m willing to wager most will still buy their respective codex still and the oddball new model as they come out.
Also it’s worth mentioning that some of the big UK distributors (Maelstrom, Wayland games) are already looking into legal consulting regarding sales to the southern hemisphere. Given GW’s recent legal track record, hopefully they’ll get what they deserve.
May 20th, 2011 at 3:41 pm
In New Zealand a Battlewagon cost $120 NZD ($95 USD) the starter box is $176 ($95USD) Im lucky that I have two mostly complete armies at 3500 points, I was thinking about Necrons one day, chances are it will be mostly from second hand sellers now. I dont think price rises are the way to incourage players to part with their money, but since its realy plastic crack people will get over it, for those of us working on a buget it means I will be buying at a slower rate.
Bugbait out
May 20th, 2011 at 3:45 pm
EDIT $176 = $140 USD, curse my fat fingers
May 20th, 2011 at 3:49 pm
I’m with Danatoth689 on this one. CSwizzy, you have done nothing but bad mouth GW since jumping to Warmachine. To be honest, I’m surprised you hadn’t started your boycott sooner. Hearing this outrage from someone filled with so much negativity towards GW to begin with, is simply par for the course.
May 20th, 2011 at 4:07 pm
It’s funny watching the fall out from the Maelstrom email.
They found themselves in a similar situation a couple of months ago with Battlefront, who dropped them as a supplier – according to Maelstrom because of breaches in the discount agreement, though rumours are circulating that Maelstrom were believed to be supplying retailers.
At which point the nerd rage starts again as people start demanding to know how a just in time shipper in the UK can supply a retailer at less than the wholesale cost in that country. The answer is pretty simple – no staff costs, no warehousing, no transport costs, no local taxes, no custom duties etc.
I’m not saying this was definitely what was going on but…. yah know….
As for GW going bust, in the thirty years I have been playing people have bitched about GW and said they were about to collapse.
May 21st, 2011 at 2:09 am
“At which point the nerd rage starts again as people start demanding to know how a just in time shipper in the UK can supply a retailer at less than the wholesale cost in that country. The answer is pretty simple – no staff costs, no warehousing, no transport costs, no local taxes, no custom duties etc.”
Malestrom Games is an actual business. Their “shop” is actually a converted warehouse that has a bunch of playing tables and they have staff that sorts out the ridiculous amount of stock in their inventory.
MG is by no means a small company. The only possibility that MG is able to “supply” retailers is when MG is able to supply retailers at a LOWER discount / wholesale price than GW themselves AT LESS PROFIT FOR THEMSELVES.
Also, MG already has difficulty meeting the demands (in terms of stock) of their customers (many of them overseas)… it is mindblowing that they would even try to use their limited stock to also supply local retailers!
May 21st, 2011 at 4:03 pm
I can’t believe it another price rise!!!! what I don’t get is that I’ve been hearing that using Resin was cheaper and is a cheaper material than plastic…..but some how GW can charge extortionate prices. It looks like I’ll have to hurry and complete my Dark Eldar army quickly and shop around online for cheaper prices…..or find a new game to try out.,…Malifaux has been playing on my mind for a while???? Whats Warmachine like? I’ve watched a few tutorial vids on the game but it seems very complex :S
May 21st, 2011 at 10:39 pm
While I wish I could support this buycott I still need a few things to complete my Blood Angels army. While in the short term GW will be doing well, just look at their financials from last year where they made more money on fewer sales dollars than the year before there is a bottom to their proverbial barrel. While the hardcore will continue to drop what seems to be a minimum of 600 dollars on a 2000 point army the newer players will start to drop and eventually the hardcore will buy less and less and their retail pyramid will crumble on itself. Good luck GW and as soon as people begin playing Malifaux, Battletech, Dystopian Wars, or Warmahordes I’ll be all over it.
May 22nd, 2011 at 12:21 am
Thanks for mentioning the southern hemisphere bit- the other price rises I could grudgingly put up with but this is basically a 100% price rise for me. Recently had the cadian battleforce that was going to be the start of my new IG army arrive from Maelstrom for approx $NZ100, looks like a second battleforce is going to cost me well over $200 after the increase (hell it’s $182 now)- currently it looks like that guard army isn’t happening afterall. Might still pick up the Forgeworld tanks I was considering anyway seeing it’s pretty much the same price for a cool resin version than the standard GW version is here (even that gorgeous armageddon pattern artillery is only about $NZ5-10 more than a crappy gw basilisk). But yeah if I do go ahead with the army no way in hell am I paying anything near GW retail (which also excludes the local independents).
May 23rd, 2011 at 8:04 am
Open Letter to Mark Wells
Dear Mark Wells
Thanks for the copy and paste reply to the concerns of Gamers worldwide. The five minutes you took to dodge the issue was very telling. Now let me address your points in your open letter.
“As you know, we introduce people to the Games Workshop hobby of collecting, painting and gaming with Citadel miniatures through our Hobby Centers and local independent trade accounts. Games Workshop Hobby Centers run introductory games and painting sessions, beginner lessons, hobby activities and events. We provide all these services free of charge. We only recover this investment if customers then buy products from us.”
This maybe the case in America and the UK, this is not the case here in Australia. Here club’s play in local scout halls and community centers, without any support from Games Workshop or their stores. We run tournaments, club days, and painting sessions, all off our own back, and at cost to ourselves.
“Where we don’t have a Games Workshop Hobby Centre, we support local independent trade accounts. These businesses provide a convenient place for customers to buy our products close to where they live. We support these businesses with local customer service teams and warehouses to ensure customers have immediate access to our best selling products and new releases. Many customers discover the hobby this way.”
Again this might be the case in the UK, but here in Australia, most of the hobbyists come across our gaming clubs, and either buy or are given a small army to start with, and then buy their own army up.
“In addition we invest millions of pounds every year in our design studio and factory to ensure that each month we release more new products. This makes the Games Workshop Hobby more exciting for existing customers, helping them stay in the hobby longer. We can only afford to do this because of the volume of customers we have recruited and developed through our local Hobby Centers and trade accounts.”
Yet you have rule books and models that have not been update for over 10 years. On top of that you have a number of incomplete model lines and have decided to completely ignore a very strong and loyal community, the blood bowl community.
“It is for this reason that we have changed our European Trade terms. Over recent years, a number of currencies have moved a long way from their historical relative values, and this has opened the door for some traders to try to take advantage of these currency movements and offer deep discounts to overseas hobbyists. This has been the case with European internet traders selling to some of our customers overseas.”
The reason many of the Australian Hobbyists go to the European internet traders is simple. You mark up the cost on Australian prices – 70% to 120%, regardless of the exchange rate, but more on that later.
“While this may seem great in the short term, the simple fact is that European internet traders will not invest any money in growing the hobby in your country. Their model is to minimize their costs and free-ride on the investment of Games Workshop and local independent shops in creating a customer base.”
This is great in the long run for Australian hobbyists, because again Games Workshop don’t invest any money in the local scene either.
“The inevitable consequence if this was allowed to continue is that Games Workshop would not be able to operate Hobby Centers, nor to support local trade accounts. And if this happened in more territories outside Europe, the loss of volume would leave Games Workshop no choice but to scale back our investment in new product development, further eroding our customer base. Not something that we or our customers would want us to do.”
Again, if there was realistic results from your product development it wouldn’t be such a big issue. But for a company that strongly refuses to get involved in the tournament scene. Nor give anything back to the Australian community; this at least to me translates to “Increase our sales margin as the number of units we are selling are decreasing”. Podcasts like The Eternal Warriors, Imperial Vox Cast, Independent Characters, The 11th Company, The Gamers Lounge, World’s End Radio, have done more for encouraging and keeping gamers playing 40k then Games workshop has done in the last 12 years I have been playing this game.
“That is why we took the decision to take legitimate action to restrict European trade accounts from selling the goods they purchase from Games Workshop outside Europe.”
While the actions were legitimate, they come across as money grabbing and immoral; attempting to milk the average gamer of everything they have, up to the point where they will not put up with anymore. On top of that Games Workshop as decreased cost creating their miniatures, they increase the price.
While I understand Games Workshop is a company that is at the end of the day trying to make a profit, please understand why Games Workshop will never get another dollar from my hobby fund. But I must thank you, because of your choices; I have found games like War Machine, Malifuax, Firestorm Armada, and Dystopian Wars. As well hobby supplies from Miniatures supplies from Reaper and Gale Force 9.
Thank you for understanding, and I hope that your choices do not lead to the closure of Games Workshop
Adam McGillivray
23/05/11
May 23rd, 2011 at 5:33 pm
Still won’t happen Chris. I am not worried about a fitting for a SoB costume, because I’m still not going to need to wear one.
May 24th, 2011 at 6:04 am
Right on Chris! I’m with you buddy. These bastards can stick it. I’m just going to use the models I’ve got and make up my own rules and stop waiting around for GW to do it for me. I’ve done it before with RPG’s so there’s really not a difference. The way GW goes about its business is an outrage and takes all the fun out of the game. There’s no reason they can’t make a profit and not screw over the customers at every turn. Awesome article man.