How to get through the pile?

[Napalm Backflip]

Greetings all! I'm suffering from a problem I'm sure many of you are familiar with. Miniatures addiction. I've got a room and more filled with boxes upon boxes of metal and plastic. I'm hoping for some advice on how to start whittling away at the mountain!

I'm certain there are others here who have been in the same predicament. What did you do? What helped you to get started? Right now there's so much that I get overwhelmed. I've got everything from 15mm sci-fi to 40k. From the contents of all the Bones Kickstarters to a pretty substantial fleet of spaceship models. Mechwarrior clix to warhammer fantasy. I've truly got way too much, but I love it all. 

Compounding the problem is the fact that my local game scene is underwhelming. I have one regular opponent at best, and I don't see her often enough to really get in a lot of gaming. A solo project I could really sink my teeth into would be appealing, but again it's difficult to get past that overwhelming feeling.  Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[grant]

Pick three things you like, preferably in the same scale and that can use common terrain for simplicity.

Sell of LAF, eBay, or throw away the rest. Feel lighter, feel in control, and move on. The cost of the weight upon your shoulders is killing your enjoyment of the hobby. Let it go.

[HerbyF]

I remember when I first started a long long time ago, it was a little easier. There just wasn't as many resources or as much stuff. I still tried to buy everything I could get my hands on. I still have a few things from the 70s & 80s that are sitting in boxes unfinished. Most of the folks I game with are on very different schedules than I am so I don't get to game a much as I would like. But I do spend a lot of time painting & building things. I have a couple of rooms with shelves of boxes with projects waiting to get done. One of the things I do is keep my lead hoarders vow going here on LAF. That's the count at the bottom of my signature. To keep track of how much I paint vs how much new stuff I aquire. I also give away or sell things I'm not sure I will ever get to if I see someone else I know working on a project that the stuff fits into. Just try to paint more than you buy & don't be afraid to get rid of things you don't feel you will ever use. And there is nothing wrong with having stuff sitting around in boxes until you feel like doing something with it.

[Drachenklinge]

I would generate somesort of list, i.e. like:

- any chance of playing this near future?
- ever played before at all?
- any friends playing this?
- any chance of visiting or moving, to where people are playing it?
- finished army/faction?

I am sure, at least some will get "points" here. Also, if You have a lot, keep one army/faction for Yourself one or two for visiting friend(s), away with the rest.

When sorting out single miniatures. Compare two, and decide which one is more important to You. If some loose a few times, pile it and away with it.

When looking at the minis, why have You bought it? Reasons still vaild?

Lastbut not least, spread the fun!
Maybe there is someone, who would liketo start, but could not, due to money and/or time. Give to that person, start playing.

In the end, there should be at least some minis to get easily rid of.

best wishes
DK

[zemjw]

If there are too many options, it may be an idea to start small - paint half a dozen figures, one Bones monster etc. If you enjoy it, then do a few more from the same group - round out the adventure party etc. If you don't, then you only spent a few weeks on them, and at least you know that particular group isn't going to be as much fun as you hoped, and the miniatures can be sold, or at least removed from your painting choices for the foreseeable future.

If you can't decide which one to start with, narrow it down to your favourite four or five groups and select from them. The important thing is to pick something and start.

[Major_Gilbear]

I'd start by selecting a few projects that you are most enthusiastic about, and choosing a small force for each. Then, put the rest away and concentrate on just those.

Having a defined attainable goal (get this small set of minis painted) and having a couple of projects that you can flit between to keep things interesting, both help I find.

Also, if the mood takes you and you finish a particular group and want to do more of the same right away - go for it! It is supposed to be fun, not a regimented work schedule, so follow your muse and enjoy it.

I find that breaking big projects down into lots of small ones and then just tackling one or two of these little "bites" at a time has improved my efforts - I've painted more in the last six months than in the last few years combined (although, to be fair, that's not hard - I'm just very slow! ).

For really big projects, possibly at small-scale model size and/or where there are lots of ranked regiments, you may want to consider looking into faster and more streamlined means of painting them. Whilst these won't be as detailed as single-figure work, they will let you get the force painted and finished before you lose interest - plus, you can always go back and add more detail later if you still feel like it.

As for having opponents... Well, I'd do one small force, and then another for a particular game. If you have at least something for two opposing sides, you improve your chances of finding somebody who may be interested enough to learn to play with you. Beyond that, you may need to look into gaming groups, facebook groups (if you do FB), and perhaps even a bit of advertising on various forums for players in your local area. If you remove all the barriers to a game where the only thing you need is an opponent, you greatly improve your chances of finding or introducing somebody!

[Cherno]

via Imgflip Meme Maker

[has.been]

Basically all the above is good advice, but as a pupil in a history exam wrote, 'Socrates went around giving people good advice, they poisoned him' 
In the end it is down to you. I have:-
Given a lot away (to school clubs & younger/poorer war-gamers);
Sold stuff (priced 'to go' NOT what it would cost to replace. I've had the joy or never going to finish);
Set myself 'small goals' (As said, paint a few & play with them. Do not start a army of hundreds figs.
and do what you fancy next, not what you bought first (unless they are the same thing)

It has taken me almost half a century to get to this point, in other words do as I say, not as I do.

[Silent Invader]

I've truly got way too much, but I love it all.

You cannot love it all equally. Harsh but true.

Ask yourself why you bought something. Then ask yourself why you might want to keep it.

Cull* everything but that which most satisfies whatever it is you want from the hobby.

It is better to be content with a little than to be discontent with a lot.




*I do this periodically: selling, giving away, donating and dumping as the mood takes me. Rarely have I rebought that which I've culled.

[Bugsda]

First you need to disabuse yourself of the belief that you're going to live forever, I've got enough figures to keep me occupied 'till I'm 180 

[Major_Gilbear]

I agree that reducing the pile a bit by shedding/selling some is also helpful in making it less daunting, but I have found that I feel less attachment to miniatures that I've bought for a game that I then played and didn't subsequently like all that much.

If you start small projects and try getting a few games in (even solo), you might find what you like and don't like before you commit to painting the lot!

A good example is Cheetor's blog here. He just paints little groups of models for various gangs/warbands/games/themes, and then plays a few games with them. I'm not sure how much this has helped him reduce the lead mountain by (as I suspect it gets well replenished on a regular basis!), but you can see how he's built up momentum in ploughing through projects. It's also helped him to find games he likes, improve his painting techniques, and improve how much he gets painted. Not everyone is that successful, but hopefully you will find it as motivating as I have!  

[Silent Invader]

I agree with the major's comment about testing through play. I've culled minis and terrain where I didn't get (or can no longer see getting) the gaming kick that I wanted. Only you know how you really want to approach the hobby: collector, painter, gamer, etc., or a bit of everything. As the major says, solo gaming with minis is a good starting point - test with unpainted and unbased minis if you want to determine their worth to you.  If you have a fun time solo, with unpainted, unbased minis and basic terrain, then it's surely worth investing time in completing that part of the collection to improve those games and maybe, in time, find another like-minded player.

[Michi]

When I started buying miniatures in the 1980s it soon came to WestEndGames StarWars due to my love for the SW movies.
I bought many and did not paint them.
I started buying this and that too and did not paint it.
I played mainly pen&paper RPGs and only occasionally a tabletop.
I kept on buying.
I started painting a few miniatures.
I bought more.
I didn´t play with many.
I bought more.
Ten years later I actually started serious painting and due to that I bought A LOT more.
I kept on painting, gaming and buying more than I painted or played with for another ten years.
I started selling stuff I hoarded for 20 years, but kept my SW miniatures which were mostly painted meanwhile.
I kept on painting and gaming and mostly stopped buying.
I played more than ever and painted less.
Almost 30 years later I started buying prepainted X-wing and play it a lot.
Now I am sucked into Imperial assault and started buying StarWars miniatures again...
*SIGH*

However I don´t care much for all the other things I bought previously and am willing to part with most of it.
What I want to say: FIRST LOVE SEEMS TO BE THE TRUEST AFTER ALL!

[harleyface]

Best way for me was to stop bzying everything...
Right now there are 4 Games i like.
(in fact no time to play )
For those games i still buy new stuff...but no new size time or whatever.
This way the Mountain stoped growing to much and i realized what i really like.
First stop buying new games....

[Napalm Backflip]

Wow a lot of fantastic advice here folks, I truly appreciate it. Definitely some common threads! I think I first need to take an inventory of all that I have and separate them into 'Keep' and 'Ditch' piles. That should allow me to clear out a fair bit right off the bat.

I should probably stop looking at Kickstarter too