Lead Adventure Forum
Other Stuff => General Wargames and Hobby Discussion => Topic started by: Inkpaduta on January 18, 2025, 05:16:20 PM
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Okay, I have been thinking about this lately.
Going on LAF or TMP or other sites one constant thing that you hear wargamers say is
"I have so many figures or paint" or "I have a lead mountain" or " I will never get all my figures
painted." Not only that but many of us have thousands of painted figures in our homes.
My question is why do we do this? What causes us to amass such large numbers of painted and unpainted
figures. More than we can possibly make use of on the gaming board.
Is it because this hobby is not just about wargaming but is also a collection hobby? We just love to collect like other hobbies do?
Or is it because we embrace "the shiny." Ooh, look new figures I must have them.
Perhaps it is our love of history, for historical gamers, that we read a book or watch a movie and we want to replicate that.
Or is it some other reason.
What are your thoughts?
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I like order. I like symmetry. I like making up stories in my head and I’m a bit of a dreamer. That means I like collecting science-fiction models and creating armies and space fleets around ideas I have from influences from places like GW, films and comics.
But I also do fall into the trap of buying toy soldiers that are too good an opportunity to miss and the pile will build from there ha! I’ve reigned myself in over the last 12 months but I have to keep a watchful eye on myself ha ha :P
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Planning a project, researching the history, finding and collecting miniatures, finding or creating scenery, planning colour schemes/ basing/ positioning - these are all things I love.
Painting is a a mind numbingly awful chore.
So .... a whole lead mountain range and still collecting.
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Definitely a collection hobby factors in for many gamers, some more than others. Some, way more than others.
As most of my gaming is at the store and conventions, I buy multiple sides for each game. Usually wind up buying 2–4x as much as I will ever use in the biggest game because I get carried away collecting options.
Been around long enough to have a touch of 'buy these before the company goes out of business' syndrome.
Don't regret having the excess purchases on hand; when I cycle back around to working on an older project, there are always figures in various stages of work to pick up and put back on the bench.
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MAGPIES
;)
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It’s always about massive amounts of inspiration, and an incongruous lack of time! Despite being retired young, I have too many hobbies, and spend far too much time getting inspired by randomness.
I rarely will enter into a project unless I can get a “complete set” of it, too. Or what I deem to be that. Ironically, this is keeping me from getting back into 40k (the only game that is guaranteed to have players near me) - GW’s supply chain woes mean it’s impossible to single-click buy what I want. Ironic…
Recently, that’s been Sigur’s Gundam, for one; a Rick and Morty binge that got me to get into Marvel as a base for the game (will it work?); I watched some Star Trek, and ended up with the Away Missions collection two days later - ALL OF IT lol
Money isn’t much of an issue for me, either, which allows impulsive buying. And clearance events when I thin my herd. I don’t KEEP my collections, often. Rotate them is a better way of thinking of making them fresh.
My other hobbies are similarly deep-dives into rabbit holes. Music is one, and I just made the switch from analog to high-end modelling for both my amp and effects, when I realized that I was $6000+ into tube amp/pedalboard, and no end in sight. I cut that value in half with my new modeller (it’s professional level). I don’t even want to know what my guitar collection is worth…
Cycling… that’s mostly under control. Mostly. lol
I can’t/won’t dive into any other hobbies, so I rotate my focus on those three. Almost equally, actually.
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MAGPIES
;)
lol
The official bird of Melbourne!
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I just like painting toys, as much as playing with them!
:o
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For me, pretty much what everyone has said previously on this thread,
but for me I also quite often purchase toys whilst available, because some thing's sadly go OOP
and then you are left wishing that you had got them when they were still available :(.
Painting them, not quite so much, the muse comes and then it goes ;)
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They are the source of my immortality.
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Firstly, Storm Wolf raises an important point i.e. FOMO. Get ‘em while they’re hot as who knows when they’ll disappear possibly forever.
Secondly, official birds are a thing? News to me. My local town is famous for jackdaws & they’re right little bar stewards.
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Firstly, Storm Wolf raises an important point i.e. FOMO. Get ‘em while they’re hot as who knows when they’ll disappear possibly forever.
Secondly, official birds are a thing? News to me. My local town is famous for jackdaws & they’re right little bar stewards.
I kid you not! Was in Melbourne a year and a bit ago, and the local Rapha has magpies as their club theme (I have a jersey to prove it!). Also, saw a sketch comedy show while there, about the magpies being nuisances, but they’re protected as official birds! It was hilarious.
FOMO is hard. Yeah, they’re are lots of times I feel it, but I really avoid the hype. GW loses money from me because of it, I think.
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I kid you not! Was in Melbourne a year and a bit ago, and the local Rapha has magpies as their club theme (I have a jersey to prove it!). Also, saw a sketch comedy show while there, about the magpies being nuisances, but they’re protected as official birds! It was hilarious.
FOMO is hard. Yeah, they’re are lots of times I feel it, but I really avoid the hype. GW loses money from me because of it, I think.
Good point about the FOMO thing, but I wasn't talking about current marketing practices by GW and others, just over the years of thinking I will get some of them one day and then "bugger they've closed or discontinued them or whatever :(". I don't agree with all this limited release bollocks lol
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Whatever next? The jackdaws hereabouts are not protected so people are free to set their cats, dogs & children on them. It makes little difference as they still circle making a dreadful racket at dusk and dawn, rob the bird feeders, intimidate the locals & crap on people’s cars.
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@Storm Wolf. Yes, that’s what I meant. I jumped off the GW bandwagon years ago but have missed out on other things. Stuff that I’ve thought I’ll pick up later but missed out when they go OOP. Never again.
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Ambition + time = lead mountain!
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One’s enthusiasm out paces one’s painting speed.
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@Storm Wolf. Yes, that’s what I meant. I jumped off the GW bandwagon years ago but have missed out on other things. Stuff that I’ve thought I’ll pick up later but missed out when they go OOP. Never again.
That, too. There are certainly lines that I have missed; there’s often a reasonable person out there to offer up the stuff later.
Some things are just impossible to find though - the three sets of Paranoia! miniatures by Mongoose for example, are something I wish I hadn’t sold. Just impossible to get now.
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Bummer. The troubleshooters & bots sets are worth having. Lots of their Dredd range too. Maybe they’ll resurface again in future though licensing may be an issue.
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Bummer. The troubleshooters & bots sets are worth having. Lots of their Dredd range too. Maybe they’ll resurface again in future though licensing may be an issue.
The troubleshooter with the vacuum, and the one with the big hole in his chest - classic sculpts lol
I would love to see them back, anywhere. One of the very few genuine regrets in selling stuff!
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An excellent question, Inkpaduta.
The why's? Well, one is acquisitiveness that was going full bore in the 1990s for those of us who lived through that time with a disposal income - and I know for certain it wasn't just me, know many folk who went for the same ride. Two, there is an addictive element to the hobby.
But primarily in my case it was that mentioned enthusiasm outstripping reality of time, table space, and storage space. Had fun collecting, now it is time to have fun "un"collecting.
I've said this here on LAF in other places recently but I think it belongs in this thread more. After a couple of decades of collecting large quantities of figures for many periods of history - and one foray in to Star Wars ongoing (I count pre-history as an adjunct of history), I realized I needed to just stop or at the very least slow down dramatically. My first step in that direction was abandoning years ago the print magazines and the temptation that came with them. Then it took a long time - far too long, and too many figures and a few extra periods - to finally cross the bridge and start taking action. Renting a storage facility was a big moment of realization I had too much stuff. And the turning point was recently running my first Old West Fistful of Lead game - I just didn't have more than I needed, I had ten times more than I needed. And once I started making hard decisions there, the decisions started to multiply and I am now looking at all of my varied sub-collections with the goal of drastically dropping the total number of figures owned. It went from a hard decision to a grand internal sigh of relief. I know - zero doubt - I will enjoy the hobby more with less. And that is because a larger percentage will be painted faster (larger percentage because the collection will be smaller) and thus more time to put the figures on the table for a game. And that, in my case at least, is the ultimate goal.
And a caution for the manufactures who think this mind set is wrong - what would you rather have: ten customers who collect huge numbers of figures or 100 customers who collect less each but the same total in aggregate? If you chose the former, you really need to study marketing more. One hundred customers will breed a lot more potential new customers than ten ever will. Also, while it is impressive to see massive collections of figures - it can also warn people away from the hobby who don't want to get in that shaky boat.
Can't speak to those who came out of the mega-company machine, never bought into that crazy way of being. Bad enough that there are so many of what I call 'wind sock gamers' out there who twist and turn with every new fad that comes along but to have companies purposefully exploiting that leads to some strange places from my 'outside of that world' viewpoint. And I'm not saying the companies shouldn't do what they do, new product is the life blood of most business models. Just - how many times do they expect one person to abandon System A for System B for System C for System D ad nauseum (and, of course, I know it might not always be abandoning but setting aside for something new)?
So, Inkpaduta, I think you are on the verge of a turning point. Go ahead and turn the wheel, you aren't on a cliff, just a new road with new vistas to open up in front of you.
Figures owned: 40,000+
Figures painted: 10,000+
Figures to paint: 30,000+
Next birthday age: 68
See the challenge? No? See your optometrist! lol
And truth in advertising - I am still acquiring but just buildings and scatter terrain for what I already have, all courtesy of the 3D pre-printed product world. Though with recent few orders, I really don't have much else to even imagine I need - the 'right' Old West courthouse will tempt me. After that, nope, no after that.
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I hear you. I have already decided not to buy anything new this year.
I have so much not that never seem to make it to the table. But,
I will admit, it is hard to stay true to my plan.
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When I started wargaming a wise old gamer at my club told me that if a wargamer painted all his figures, he would die. I took that to heart and view my unpainted stuff as a form of medical insurance. ;)
At lease that's what I tell my wife. lol
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When I started wargaming a wise old gamer at my club told me that if a wargamer painted all his figures, he would die. I took that to heart and view my unpainted stuff as a form of medical insurance. ;)
At lease that's what I tell my wife. lol
Spoken for truth! lol
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I just like them. :?
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My first step in that direction was abandoning years ago the print magazines and the temptation that came with them.
I've found this really helps. Not just print magazines in my case but also instagram accounts. I'd see people making great kitbashes of sci-fi stuff and think "What a cool idea, I could do that". Not replicate it exactly, just the same idea. E.g. John Blanche's hive world workers - I see them, I think great idea, I want to make my own bunch. Next thing I know, a project I thought I'd finished just got bigger :?
The inspiration from those sources is great, but now I only go looking at that stuff when I need inspiration, not on a weekly/fortnightly basis.
One other thing to contribute is that, for some of us, me included, collecting a full set of some oop range is part of the fun in itself. I don't mean just acquiring stuff, but waiting (very) patiently for some rare old mini to appear on ebay or a forum at a decent price. It is kind of a hobby in its own right.
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Re: Sunjester's post - and, of course, I know there is some jocularity there. It has become a well-known and grey bearded, and a very, very long beard at that, cliche I've read scores and scores of time over the years.
However, death will come to us all no matter how many unpainted figures we have.
And I saw what I hope is the worst example there will ever be locally last year. A gentleman not previously known to any of the Northern California gaming community (from Fresno north to the Oregon border - I know a great majority of the community if sometimes only in passing), passed away.
His out of state nephew connected with someone I've known for decades and he and I undertook to assist in the disposition of the collection, me more in an assistant capacity. And no joke at all, just the miniatures would have filled from side to side, top to bottom - no space to squeeze in an additional single piece of paper - a 10' x 10' x 10' cubed space and probably double that.
There were literally a couple of dozen boxes of figures, mostly unpainted that had not even been opened since the early 1990s. And scores more boxes, maybe a 100 more and probably more in the equivalent. Apparently the man had descended to a state of 'hoarder' before he passed, the entire house so jam packed with stuff that there were only narrow aisles to move - according to his nephew. And he lived alone, only one estranged daughter from a woman he never married. Took from March to end of August to dispose of everything hobby related including at the end sending a half dozen stacked pallet loads - yes, pallet loads - to a company that buys full collections for disposal.
Yes, some of his collection was painted - likely from many varied hands. But I'd say 80% was not. And it did seem he was in as some sort of business as much as a hobbyist. He certainly was running a book business, that is known for sure. No exact count is known, far too much, but a conservative estimate is 75,000 figures, maybe 15,000 painted. Apparently he was active decades earlier in the hobby in Southern California. And he had served in the US military at least as high as a major and perhaps a lieutenant colonel. So his 'fall' was pretty dramatic in the end.
The moral of the story? Don't end up being 'that guy' - even if writ smaller - and leave such a massive mess for your family to clean up after you pass. That is yet another - and very powerful - reason I am on the reverse journey of 'un'collecting having so much stuff.
If I achieve my goal, when I kick off this mortal coil of life, whatever I have left I hope is all fully painted and carefully boxed according to period so that it will be much easier to dispose of. And take a third of the storage space it does now. And I won't care if it is given away or sold - won't matter to me in my end state, now will it? But I'm sure my heirs and assigns will appreciate it all being in such a state rather than some mass of disarray (actually, in pretty good order now, just vastly TOO much).
Humor is always appreciated, but I think it wise to take Inkpaduta's question seriously. Unless you are one of us who can fit your whole collection in a few shoe boxes. To those, I applaud your restraint - or think you slightly nuts to have so many 2 mm figures! lol
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Figures remain a lot cheaper and more entertaining than collecting silver cow creamers.
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Dopamine.
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For me, it is mainly about choice. Which army would I like to put on the table? Or, which game would I like to play?
Now, playing solo for many years means both sides to collect.
I have:- ancients, renaissance, Napoleonic, F&IW, VBCW, WW2 Bolt Action, Vietnam. Plus Fantasy and Sci-fi.
Some in 6mm, 25mm, 28mm.
I have a few part sprues and the odd 6mm figure to paint should I wish.
It is part collecting, but mainly choosing a different setting and different problems
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I mean, I'd argue...all of the above.
I've finally become the rare breed: I actually have a small "lead pile" (all resin and plastic these days), and I only open a box when I'm going to build and paint it - so even my "lead pile" can be cut to nothing if I abandon a few smaller projects I've amassed but haven't started. For example, knowing Star Wars Legion could disappear, I snagged 10-12 boxes of their minis because I think I'd like to do a Star Wars skirmish project. All sealed in box. If I change my mind it's nothing to flog them on eBay or locally and make back 90% of what I paid. It wasn't a huge investment, nor have I unboxed and half-assembled/half-painted everything, etc. It's just there if I decide to proceed.
However, despite my rather large collection of painted miniatures (some thousands at this point), I don't have more than I can put on a table, nor do I collect for collecting's sake...and I don't have any collections that I don't game with at least 2-3 times a year (some far more often than that!).
If I don't use something or paint replacements...I sell or give away that replaced stuff. I don't keep it for nostalgia sake. Heck, I sold a combined 13,000+ thousand points worth of nicely painted 40K stuff when I realized I was done with that game.
My shelf space dictates how many projects I can maintain mats/terrain/minis for...and I simply don't start a new project unless I have space to store it.
It was driven home to me how weird this hobby is as I attended another convention this weekend...and watching the flea market tables sell almost nothing (people pricing their old miniatures as made-from-gold), and damaged old Avalon Boxed games that would have covered the weekend (the ticket, the gas and several nights at the not-inexpensive hotel)...I am half convinced these people don't even want to sell their old huge piles of stuff.
Some guys I've seen running vendor stalls with the exact same product (old used magazines, white dwarfs, board games) for the last..8-10 years? I don't think I've ever seen him shift a thing, but I did laugh hearing one of the prices he gave to a shocked person perusing his pile of water-damaged file boxes.
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Do I have more figures than I will ever paint? Absolutely.
However, I am fairly settled in my areas of interest, and mostly now it's just adding things that take my fancy, so the pile is increasing more slowly.
Retirement is in the not too distant future, so I may as well buy while I can afford to, even if it will be a while before I get to them.
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Historically I loved planning new projects and collecting everything I needed (or wanted) to finish the project.
Being retired now, I definitely paint more than I game these days so I am not sure I have more figures than I will ever paint anymore. Once I am done with a game, I tend to sell it off to fund future projects. That said I have quite a few painted figures on my shelves.
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My thing that makes me buy more miniatures when I have hundreds of unpainted ones is the periods. For example, I've always been interested in one day doing Vietnam wargaming. I decided this year to pull the trigger, so had to buy figs for it. Yes, I still have plenty of Ancient, Medieval, F&I War, Pulp, Modern, Post-apocalyptic, and Sci-Fi figures. I will still run games with those figures, and only buy a pack or two if there is something specific I need for a scenario.
Also, as I take a break from periods, I may still have dozens of figures left unpainted for it. Should I have to paint all my unpainted 20mm Modern figures (which I am kind of taking a break from) before painting any of these new 28mm Vietnam ones that I want to run games for this year? No, that would be silly to paint just "to finish." In general, I paint what I am currently playing. If a period goes on hold, the painting of figs for it goes on hold (and add to the "Lead Mountain."
That said, I *do* pay more attention to it. Last year, I painted about 30 more figs than I acquired (which includes ones people simply gave to me because they thought I might want them). This year, I will also track my acquired vs. painted for terrain and scatter. I think the overall goal of being more mindful of acquisitions is good. You just can't simply say, "No, you can't buy any more figs till you paint all these." That goes against the spirit of the wargaming hobby, I feel.
Good discussion!
Mike Demana
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And because some days, we can declare a strategic victory, like today!
Did a bunch of painting this week for The Silver Bayonet, and flocked them today. The giant bats and spiders have been in the stash for 30 years since Warhammer Quest came out in '95.
~ , ~
Other bits from that game have been painted over the years for various projects.
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I currently have no unpainted figures. That’s been the normal state for a few years now. I buy figures for a new project (most recently 02 Hundred Hours) and paint them. Then I start a new project; next will be Medieval stuff for Saga Age of Chivalry.
My problem is that I have so many painted figures that many of them don’t get used for long periods. It’s not that I have too many to put on the table, it is that I have figures from so many periods of history that it may be years between say, ACW games, or bronze age ones, or WW1 air combat or whatever. I do find that sometimes I will play one period a lot (often prompted by new rules) but then it may get neglected.
I don’t know what the solution is; I like playing lots of periods as that way I never get bored. At some point I will have to start downsizing and find homes for some of this stuff, but at the moment I have space and motivation,so I keep them
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For me it was what I call GADD - gamer's attention deficit disorder.
I just couldn't pick a period and stick with it. I jumped all over the place.
For example, I began the year on an ancients kick. But I watched Red Dawn over the weekend and now I want to do Cold War battles.
I solved my dilemma by quitting miniatures wargaming. Instead, I created a batch of generic counters that I use for my games. My red heavy infantry counters can be Roman legionaries one day and Redcoat regulars the next.
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My passion for history leads me to the hobby. That's why, at the beginning, I've bought a lot (mainly late Romans and RCW, some still waiting to be painted) with enthousiam.
Then, the lack of storage space makes me much more wiser! I only buy the few I can paint now. :)
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https://youtu.be/SSUXXzN26zg (https://youtu.be/SSUXXzN26zg)
Because for me, I see things online that make me go 'That's amazing! The conversion uses this bit and this bit and that bit ... I should get those bits. eBay is expensive for bits, so it winds up being cheaper to buy the box they came from...' Boom. I have a box I don't need.
These days, I try to go for 'cool model I want to paint one day' and 'Only if this item can be used for The Project (tm)' That still leaves me a lot.
Finally, I try to visit game stores when I go on vacation. When I'm there, I feel like I need to buy something just to support local stores, even if they aren't my local store. And quite often, their selection varies from what I can get at home. My wife thinks I have an addiction to collecting crap. Deep down, we're all a little bit of a hoarder, right?
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I solved my dilemma by quitting miniatures wargaming. Instead, I created a batch of generic counters that I use for my games. My red heavy infantry counters can be Roman legionaries one day and Redcoat regulars the next.
Hold on there! Let’s not do anything quite so hasty as that. ya might as well play a block game. Heresy.
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I think the answer is because there is a lot of history!
After 30 years since I restarted wargaming in 1995 I have collections covering:
Classical Ancients
Dark Ages
Medievals
Renaissance (just starting)
18th century (x2)
19th Century (x7)
20th Century
Fantasy (x 2 )
SF (x2).
Plus a handful of historical skirmish periods (x4)
Most of the periods are complete and I sold off all the unpainted extras for them a year or so ago. About 3 are just getting started.
I have around 7k painted figures and probably around 3.5k unpainted (which is mostly 40mm AWI and Epic TYW). But I think I have reached the peak in collecting and from now on I'll just finish everything needed to play the 3 periods not yet done (in depth) and maybe add an odd unit to the others.
I am really enjoying building scenery at the moment and have spent more time doing that recently than painting figures.
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This thread inspired me to return two of my recently acquired collections lol
Only to start another one - but one that I have someone to actually game with!
So go thread.
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And because some days, we can declare a strategic victory, like today!
Congratulations, Cat! It's always nice when you finish a project and are in the "Now, let's play with them!" stage!
I started and finished my zombie project in 2024, so it does happen for me, too. I have all of my Star Wars factions painted up for the upcoming Sci-Fi skirmish games. Of course, "finishing" doesn't mean I won't paint the random batch of miniatures to complement the project now and then... :D
Mike Demana
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The squirrel comment definitely speaks to me. I can have no playing to do a given period or conflict and
then wham! Squirrel! I see something I just have to play it. Start buying figures, research ect when just two days
ago I had no plan to do this period. Sigh.
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Like so many here, the planning is a hobby unto itself. I generally have 1 project "hot" on the painting table, a second project that has work being done periodically (perhaps swapping with project #1 as the hot project), and 2-3 that I'm thinking about.
I prefer to buy second hand lots. At its best, I can collect figures at 25-50% of retail. However, this does lead to a few issues with collecting models/units that will never be part of a project, as they were part a larger bundle. It also leads to buying for the "thinking about" projects when a good deal comes up without having a solid plan for what's needed or when it will be worked on.
Exacerbating these issues is that I focus on Ancient/Medieval games with a lot of figures. This often leads to situations of, if 200 figures is good, then 300 will be better! It also leads to issues where I have part of an era, but not all of an era i.e. I have Saxons and Normans, maybe I should add Vikings.
Recently I've run into 2 new contributing factors in figure collection. Kickstarter - not that I must have the new shinny, but that fewer companies are producing new figures in metal. I'm in a financial position to help, and if I want to see the hobby continue (without 3D printing), I'd better spend some money on the companies still working in metal. The other issue is the opposite - Aventine is closing (or moving to new ownership). I've seen too many opportunities go away, and I'm not going to let them fade away without filling up my backlog.
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I tend to start a rules-writing project and that also requires the forces to go with it. I then paint them up, play a bunch, put them in the rulebook, and then...... move onto the next project.
I don't really have a pile of shame, because once a project gets to the Miniature stage, then it is mostly done. I paint models as the last post-production step and promotional steps.
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Not sure if this should be in this thread or if a new one should be started - and I fully realize there is no specific 'right' answer, but a carefully considered and thoughtful answer might be of great value to some.
And the question is what is the ideal number of figures to have in a collection? And it does matter.
Case in point, yesterday I ran an AWI game using Rank and File for five players and we had just shy of 500 15mm figures on a 5' x 6' table. That didn't quite crowd the table but it did provide some traffic jam issues but as intended, I wanted to force the players to have to do some maneuvering before engaging in combat and it seemed to work.
I would say the number of figures in that game was an upper limit of what can be put on that much table space for that size figure, for smaller figures, perhaps higher numbers, for larger figures, smaller numbers. And, of course, the number may vary for this with regular access to larger tables - or smaller tables are all that is available. So I guess the number is relative to table size. So maybe keep the 5' x 6' table for the purposes of discussion.
And the way it relates here is this: if people have a good idea of the upper reaches of a particular sub-collection for a specific historical period (may still apply to fantasy and sci-fi but I am focusing on historical) maybe that will provide a broad guide of how many figures is too many figures to collect for a given period - keeping in mind available table size for regular play. Obviously, for conventions and other special events, there may be much larger tables available. But how many of us would have adjusted what we own if there was such a 'magic number'? And, again, it matters and can be discussed despite the slippery element of pinning down such a number. Think more of it as more of a broad guide versus a hard and fast rule.
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Part of why I have so many figures is in times past I could count on 8-16 players in a game on 16' tables. No where near as many players available on a regular basis anymore and table size is more in the range mentioned above but can sometimes double the table size. I suspect if I had a more well-defined 'ideal number of figures' to shoot for when I got started I'd probably have somewhat less than half of what I do now, maybe only a third; still be a lot of figures but somewhat more reasonable. And, of course, my enthusiasm far outstripped the realities of getting that many figures painted - and this from someone who has painted 1,000+ figures for four years running.
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As someone who collected a Late Achaemenid army in the early '80s I would say no number is too many! On a 6x4 table it was from one side to the other with a mass behind the main force. Thankfully, that was before DBA when armies were army size.
Then it was wall-to-wall Classical Indians etc, etc.
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Not sure if this should be in this thread or if a new one should be started - and I fully realize there is no specific 'right' answer, but a carefully considered and thoughtful answer might be of great value to some.
And the question is what is the ideal number of figures to have in a collection? And it does matter.
Short answer. Another thread as there's a number of factors to consider and it will be interesting to hear others thoughts. It's a great question.
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I always buy two opposing armies so that I can host a game.
Over the years, I have done everything from Spartans to ultra modern, plus Aliens, Space Crusade, and fantasy LOTR, D&D and Heroquest.
I think I have at least 5,000 painted 28mm figures. I also have WW1 & WW2 & 1970s in 10mm Pendraken & 3d prints.
I enjoy building and painting and making scenery.
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Would it be out of line to say that many of the people on this forum are retired or nearing retirement? I'd also speculate that most of us have mortgages that are paid off and enough savings so that we can safely buy minis without our bank accounts taking a hit? I'm at the point in my life that if I want something I buy it. We're not going to be here forever so enjoy it while you can. :D
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Would it be out of line to say that many of the people on this forum are retired or nearing retirement? I'd also speculate that most of us have mortgages that are paid off and enough savings so that we can safely buy minis without our bank accounts taking a hit? I'm at the point in my life that if I want something I buy it. We're not going to be here forever so enjoy it while you can. :D
This!!
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Would it be out of line to say that many of the people on this forum are retired or nearing retirement? I'd also speculate that most of us have mortgages that are paid off and enough savings so that we can safely buy minis without our bank accounts taking a hit? I'm at the point in my life that if I want something I buy it. We're not going to be here forever so enjoy it while you can. :D
Very much so! I don’t worry much about money these days.
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"if I want something I buy it" <= exactly the mindset that led to my excessive number of figures. Well considered restraint is a good thing in all areas of life. But, given responses in my 'companion thread' to this one and personal observation over the decades in this hobby, "well considered", "thoughtful", and "reasonable", are rarely included in our purchasing decisions in this hobby. Sure, some are quite well controlled. Some, clearly, are way outside of that box. So, keep having fun - until one day you wake up, look around, and ask yourself, "What was I thinking!?". As alluded to in a response in that companion thread, the most valuable commodity any of us will ever possess is our time. I am choosing to be much more mindful of that with my miniatures going forward. Mind you, I greatly enjoy the painting process but I also understand it is only useful time if it meets the end goal of figures on the table and in a game. Otherwise the time would be better spent on my other hobbies or interests. Enthusiasm is grand until it outstrips reason.
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Would it be out of line to say that many of the people on this forum are retired or nearing retirement? I'd also speculate that most of us have mortgages that are paid off and enough savings so that we can safely buy minis without our bank accounts taking a hit? I'm at the point in my life that if I want something I buy it. We're not going to be here forever so enjoy it while you can. :D
not me... career took a terminal dive, 8 redundancies under my belt, at 51, I still rent, have a meagre hobby budget, no savings and not much of a pension to look forward to, so will be earning what I can to hobby as much as I can.
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Would it be out of line to say that many of the people on this forum are retired or nearing retirement? I'd also speculate that most of us have mortgages that are paid off and enough savings so that we can safely buy minis without our bank accounts taking a hit? I'm at the point in my life that if I want something I buy it. We're not going to be here forever so enjoy it while you can. :D
Late 30's, 1 kid, 6 cats, about 20 chickens and 2 reenactment periods.... On a good month I can splash a couple $100s on hobby stuff, but those are somewhat rare. Being in Canada the 2nd hand figure market is poor and shipping is a major factor on purchases. That said, I have a big backlog of models from pre kids/cats/chooks when funds were more available and shipping was cheaper. lol
I culled a pile of projects before moving to Canada, but am still gently whittling away on some and growing others. Mostly trying to thin out projects with no/little painted stuff and/or those with different scenery requirements - the overall goal is to have a few projects that are well developed enough to be able to put on good size games with no 'it's not painted yet' restrictions and plenty of scenery options.
My Dad is a scale modeler with a substantial hoard, and I don't look forward to having to deal with inheriting all that! I think that also partly shapes my thoughts. Much easier to manage a couple of coherent collections than many wildly scattered projects
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Not retired, but solidly middle-aged. Single income household with two students in college. More animals than is healthy on the Easy E Homestead.
Therefore, my budget is based on what I can sell. If I make enough selling wargame/RPG content, I can then re-invest it into the next projects. Sometimes, the projects that get finished are the ones I can complete with existing minis so no "new" funding is needed. Most hobby things I buy are intended to make some sort of return at some point and many are often multi-use.
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I have a friend who does the same thing. When he buys an army for whatever game he's playing, he typically buys two. He paints one up to sell and the other to keep. Now that his kids are in high school, and actually interesting in going to wargaming conventions with him, he buys stuff in the flea market to sell to fund the convention trips. Several nights in a hotel can be expensive -- not to mention food for two high school age devouring machines! lol Last flea market at Historicon, he and I sat down together at his table. He had 5 28mm Saga armies to sell and about as many 15mm fantasy armies.
Good strategy -- make the hobby pay for its purchases.
Mike Demana
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I used to say that I bought an army every year at Claymore (the Edinburgh convention), painted it, played with it for a year and sold it at a profit in order to buy an army at Claymore.
Fortunately these days I can afford to keep the old armies.