40K Nostalgia Thread

[Bigred]

It's time to go way, way back.

This thread is for your old gaming archeological finds. We want ancient pics of boxes, covers, minis, and ads from the ancient days. Go digging through your collections for those gems from the ancient world and share. The older the better. Include the date if you can find it.

I'll get this party started:

Here is the 2-page ad spread that started it all!


circa 1989

[Eberk]

If you look at where we all came from it is sad that there is so much whining and moaning about where 40K is at the moment.

1989... I was 15 back then and bought my very first GW Book... This thread will be a trip down memory lane.

Sadly I can't post something... due to various reasons I had to let go of some of my ancient gems, lost in the mists of time :-)

[Sainhann]

If you look at where we all came from it is sad that there is so much whining and moaning about where 40K is at the moment.

Actually it is because of where we are now that there is all the whining and moaning.

40K was great twenty years ago.

No Flyers
No Large Overprice Models

Very few vehicles

You got to see Infantry actually using tactics to get at the enemy.

Oh and the armies were far more balanced back then (if you exclude Harlequins).

Today we have very little balance with the armies, and GW is pushing the Flyers and Large models.

No today the game sucks.

[Kaptain Badrukk]

Actually it is because of where we are now that there is all the whining and moaning.

40K was great twenty years ago.

No Flyers
No Large Overprice Models

Very few vehicles

You got to see Infantry actually using tactics to get at the enemy.

Oh and the armies were far more balanced back then (if you exclude Harlequins).

Today we have very little balance with the armies, and GW is pushing the Flyers and Large models.

No today the game sucks.

Instead we had moderate points games that took twice as long as apocalypse games, wargear and tactics cards which could be abused to the extreme (as anyone who ever faced the unkillable superdodging Ragnar will attest).
And my Ogryn Hero with full wargear access laughs in the face of your supposed balance.
Nothing's really changed, except that the models are (arguably) better and (arguably) more expensive (I use arguably because with 20 years of inflation worked in it's not as big as everyone thinks, for the most part anyway, we just feel that way because we're old).
If the game sucks so much now, go do something else.
Personally I'd say it's not really changed, it's just us who get older and more self-entitled, I feel it happening to me too.
Every now and then I have to dig out an old rule book, or put a 90s marine next to a 2013 one to remind myself that actually there's been as much improvement as there has loss.

[Rissan4ever]

I don't feel like much of anything has been lost. The background is more rich, the rules are better written, the models look better than ever, and the books have much higher production values. 40K is the best it's ever been.

[Sainhann]

I don't feel like much of anything has been lost. The background is more rich, the rules are better written, the models look better than ever, and the books have much higher production values. 40K is the best it's ever been.

Have you been to Colorado in the last few days.

There is really no fluff anymore.

Is the Ork broken out into the Clans?

Nope there is no more Clans.

Do you ever see anyone play with Gretchins squads in their 40k Ork armies.

Nope because today it is all about Min/Max and when only given 6 choices for troops Gretchins aren't even consider.

Back 20 years ago you were not limited to just SIX TROOP CHOICES but you are today.

20 years ago you saw armies of mostly troops today a lot of armies only have the bare minimum TWO TROOP CHOICES, but maxing out most of the other categories.

Sure 20 years ago nearly everyone had a 4th Level Psyker but I found that when you have one as well it balanced it self out. Plus that is what the Vortex Grenade was for, lost my Eldar Avatar to that little Wargear more time than I could count. Because he was a beast and you had to Vortex him or lose things in your army that you didn't want to lose.

Today due to the HQ limit and the fact that most Eldar players can't play without Eldrad you don't even see the Avatar.

Oh and the rules are horrible.

How many pages of FAQ's are there for this Edition?

As to better models all I have to say to that is...

FINECAST RESIN

Which was so bad that even GW has dropped it.

Oh sure the books are higher production value but then again they cost $55-$60+ and you have to buy quite a few of them if you owe as many armies as I do.

But I decided that at those prices I am not going to buy any of them.

40K was far better 20 years ago but then GW got taken over and it has been going downhill since then.

[Sainhann]

Instead we had moderate points games that took twice as long as apocalypse games, wargear and tactics cards which could be abused to the extreme (as anyone who ever faced the unkillable superdodging Ragnar will attest).
And my Ogryn Hero with full wargear access laughs in the face of your supposed balance.
Nothing's really changed, except that the models are (arguably) better and (arguably) more expensive (I use arguably because with 20 years of inflation worked in it's not as big as everyone thinks, for the most part anyway, we just feel that way because we're old).
If the game sucks so much now, go do something else.
Personally I'd say it's not really changed, it's just us who get older and more self-entitled, I feel it happening to me too.
Every now and then I have to dig out an old rule book, or put a 90s marine next to a 2013 one to remind myself that actually there's been as much improvement as there has loss.

Moderate points games?

Gee I was playing 2000-3000 point games all the time. Today you have individuals who are only playing 500-1000 point games.

As for Ragnar will he might dodge some but not all when I blew him away with ease with my Swooping Hawks. Today you hardly ever see Swooping Hawks.

Actually I would match your Ogryn Hero to any of my Harlequin characters but as I stated before the Harlequins were Overpowered (there is a reason why did were taken out of the game for so long). Oh and he would not had lasted long at all.

I would not say they are better I still prefer my metal Eldar over the current multi-part plastic ones of today. Drop my metal models and usually nothing happens drop one of those Plastic models well good luck with that.

But yes, those Tactics Cards can suck like the good old Virus Grenade. Had a game with my Eldar against a Space Wolf army and he had that card. He used it and I lost nearly half of my Army.

Thing is beginning out numbered 2-1 right from the start of the battle - I still nearly won it and would have if I had one more turn.

As I stated far more balance back then.

Also far less saves since there was only one Conversion Field Wargear card only one of your characters could get it. Though you did see quite a few Chaplains since they came with one.

Today every single model can nearly get a 4+ save and many have multi-saves.

So yes today the game sucks it will cost me nearly $1,300 just to replace my Imperial Guard army, more if I want to replace my WFB Ork and Goblin army. Dire Avengers are $7 for just one and $70 for just a single squad.

20 years ago I could have gotten several squads of metal Dire Avengers for that price.

The game is not better today only more dumbed down and it really is more a game of rolling lots of dice.

[euansmith]

"Space Dwarfs"? What kind of mythical beings were those?

I've got my slightly dogeared copy of the Rogue Trader book; the one that pages started falling out of as soon as I opened it.

[crandall87]

These are the oldest books I own. I was only 1 or 2 (1988/1989) when these came out so of course these are second hand copies that I own but I love the artwork within both books.

[tankbusta]

in 1989, I was on leave, and in a bar in Brooklyn, I met a girl from Scotland. Learning that I was heading back to my duty station in Germany, she tore the label off a beer bottle and wrote here address in Edinburgh down and told me to visit. A few months later I did so, and she and her roommates introduced me to Scottish Ale and Space Hulk. I was hooked, and bought that game, the RT rulebook, the red 40K compendium, and and far too many minis, White Dwarfs and Fanatics, and GW games over the decades. I'll scan some things soon and post them.