Light at the End of the Tunnel?

[warrenss2]

I have to pose some questions to all you miniature gamers that have been at it for a long while...

Am I disillusioning myself? Can I slow down a little bit?

I have a bunch of character personalities & bystander minis. I have a mutant horde almost 200 strong. My Zed horde is over 200 strong. I have some of the acid bleeding aliens and some "sort-of" grays and Predators. I have a fleet of 24 cars & trucks. I'm making terrain... forest/swamp & desert & urban... trees, shrubs, cacti, rock formations, buildings.

I don't think the light at the end of the tunnel will ever be reached with the collecting of miniature gaming items. But do you ever get to a point where it slows down and your miniatures needs for the gaming table ease up a little bit? I mean a point where what you have can pretty much take care of what ever comes up for the most part?

And, if such a point is obtainable, do you still have room to live in your hovel with all that blasted scenery taking up all the space?

[Michi]

Yes, I think so. My limits are reached in stoneage, WW2 and prohibition era. I still have some minis to paint for each, but feel no more urge to do so, nor any to buy more. It´s different with zeds and Cthulhu. I haven´t really started with the latter and zombie wise I am far from having enough. I also want to get some more crusaders done and will start with my heap of Romans sometimes. Vehicle fleet is a different thing too. I always watch out for matching vehicles. It´s hard to get proper 1/64 scale in Germany. The offers are limited to Hot Wheels and some occasional Ebay auctions of Johnny Lightning and other US makes. I don´t think I will ever have enough trucks and cars and railway stock...

[former user]

not sure if this is only a frustrated outcry or if You want an answer/advice  

so here is my experience/point of view:

when I started, it was about 1:72 WWII
400 vehicles and 100+ planes; in 4 years - I still have them
it stopped when life took another direction and other things got more important
then came fantasy elves and medieval knights
1000+ miniatures, 10+ ships, etc; in 7 years- I still have them
it stopped when life took another direction and other things got more important
then I got interested in sci-fi/40K

and I thought: wait! if I again buy everything that looks good, it will be the same, and some day I'll get tired - so I set myself a theme and a purpose: what do I want to do with them?
result:
200 miniatures, 60+ vehicles (scratchbuild/conversion) in 10 years
notice something?

here comes the advice:
it is all about collecting. You can't stop it, you can only slow it down!
set yourself a limited theme. set Yourself a purpose. make up a background. Raise your hobby standards.
spend the hobby time with the hobby, not with buying for the hobby.
you will get a smaller amount of stuff, but with a higher standard.
join a club/community - this way you won't have to buy everything in order to play with it, and certainly not that much scenery. complement your hobby activity with others.

there will never be an end, unless you find another hobby
and you can also sell stuff if you haven't touched it in years or you don't have a museum display at home

good luck

[Onebigriver]

I think the only way to stop is to put yourself in a sensory deprivation tank! If you're anything like me then films, magazines, books, forums, games shops and internet stores will inspire you to get into a particular period. I stick to skirmish wargaming to satisfy those inspirations as a way of setting a limit. My Better Half occasionally asks me when is it going to stop, and I have to answer that apart from the time when saving up for the wedding and putting a house deposit together limits my budget, she's stuck with a geek who buys and plays with toy soldiers.

[matakishi]

"Spend the hobby time with the hobby, not with buying for the hobby."

This.

[warrenss2]

set yourself a limited theme. set Yourself a purpose.

I've pretty much have done this. I used to do pulp, but have decided to go with post apocalyptic & zombies... although there are so many other genres that I see great inspirational postings, pictures, etc.

I might still throw in a pulp, or weird war type of game every now & then.

former user, with all these miniatures and vehicles you have, where do you find the place to sleep?  

"Spend the hobby time with the hobby, not with buying for the hobby." - I'm going to take this to heart.

I made the point of first looking at the approach adopted by others such as Matakishi and so progress each project and its subsequent purchases in a more purposeful manner. - I have started doing this also. Matakishi's site and video collection are very helpful and motivating.

[former user]

I am the king of storage

no, seriously, from my childhood days I am used to keep order, and when the WWII mania started to go overboard, I adopted this practice:  when you buy something, first make sure you can store it away in a proper manner
otherwise you have only piles of lead/plastic
when you want to paint something and then you sart to search/dig for it for an hour, you will loose impetus

I'll give you another example:
when I started 40 K, I started IA/theme catachan figures and similar from other companies or others that would fit the uniform - no other 40K armies, no pretorians/mordians/valhalla/tallarn/vostroya or else
if I would see something nice like elysian drop troops, I would examine what exactly I like about them and convert - it is more then I could use most of the time anyway as it is
as for your example: post apocalyptic AND zombies... and what fraction?
or pulp
pulp what? certain period? certain style? pulp can go from 1870 to 1960

theme is the key and to elaborate on that

[Weird WWII]

I had a similar tale with too many gaming projects and just decided to simplify it all by sticking within a single scale and time period.  I play heroic 28mm all within the 1940s decade.  This allows me to get my WWII, gangster, superhero, pulp, horror and sci-fi with all the same scenery, vehicles, minis and even the rules. Cuts down on all the time in collecting and more with gaming with it.  Also allot lighter on the pocketbook as well.

When if feels like a chore , it's no longer a hobby,
Brian

[Onebigriver]

When if feels like a choir, it's no longer a hobby,
Brian

Well, no, it's then a a load of people in silly robes singing. It might be a chore though. 

[Remgain]

I split my interest in wargame between the fun of building and painting models, and the enjoyment of playing.
More the first, less the latter.

I have to admit that, starting about 2 years ago, when I organized all my hobby stuff in the cellar, I was surprised of the incredible amount of stuff I would have to build and paint.
So, let's say that the brutal face of reality struck me, and since that moment I try to avoid any further purchase. Of course there is, and will be, always that special model, or kit, that I cannot miss.

So, my final answer is yes; the need for new miniatures can be slowed.
Not stopped, but slowed.

Marco

[warrenss2]

Here is my plan.

I try to be able to use a miniature or a piece of terrain in more that one genre.

Urban terrain - roads usable in deserts, swamps, forests, cities/towns.
Buildings can be used in zombies and in PA and in pulp gaming.
Desert terrain - add cactus and it's the Southwestern US, replace the cactus with palm trees and you have Africa or the Middle East.
Forest terrain - replace some trees with swampy plants and pools of stagnant water and you have a swamp.

Some of the pulp miniatures (and some mutants) can be used in the zombie games.
Modern day minis can be used in pulp, zombie, & PA.

etc....

I want stuff to serve a duo purpose.

[former user]

yep

at least dual

now get a club and let the others use your terrain, complete it and fill it with miniatures you don't have

[Darkoath]

Well I do the same thing...  I standardized my size to 28mm.  Except for Fantasy tabletop,  I went from WFB to Warmaster and plan to sell off most of my large collection of older GW Warhammer armies on ebay.  I also prefer terrain that can be used in different periods.  So the terrain I am building now from O guage buildings and other sources can be used for Pulp, Superhero, Modern Zombie, and Post Apoc gaming.

However I find with this hobby that my eyes are often bigger than my mouth so to speak and the lead mountain continues to grow with a hungary appetite!   And I find myself often inspired by other forum members work and photographs of beautiful terrain and miniatures to inspire me to dream of new periods!

Also one that that drives me to new purchases sometimes is the fact that sometimes new product comes and is gone from production quickly and then becomes very hard to acquire in the future.  I find that in the past my wargaming budget was fairly open but as the times get tougher and my future responsibilities may be increasing (I may be getting married in less than a year) I must tighten the belt and stick more to a budget.  One thing I plan to do is sell off stuff that I will no longer use to fund future projects and purchases.  Like my 28mm WFB armies for example.

Darkoath