Greed Makes Me Sad...

[legalsmash]

No, it means STFU, as I'm sick of hearing it. I'm poor (3 kids, and wife at home, I make less than the poverty level in the US for a family of 5 after 10 years of dot com bubble crash and not able to get a job making more than McDonald's mgmnt salary). I love my hobby, and when I scrimp and save and am able to buy a model I cherish it because I know it's an extravagance. Treat it for what it is...

Go get marketable position homeboy. Or sell crack.
If you are in US adjusted poverty level is about 30-40 for a family of five (I'm counting you, wife, and three spawn). You should probably find better (read less expensive) hobby.

[Wildeybeast]

I didn't read section 7 of the commenting rules
[url]http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/faq.php?faq=termsmaster#faq_termsuse[/url]

I'm sorry, I wasn't aware you made an argument. I understood your point to be 'GW is really expensive (especially new Eldar releases) and I don't like it'. I'm not sure what else there is to discuss. Everyone agrees it is expensive and no one is especially happy about this, but there is jack all any of us can do about it beyond not buying the stuff. It basically comes down to whether you (and and everyone else), as an individual are willing/able to pay. Nothing anyone else says will have any bearing on this, it is a personal decision. If you are looking for like minded individuals to join your complaint, provide a cathartic release and agree that GW are the embodiment of corporate evil, I politely suggest that you may be more at home on another forum. As you've seen, there are plenty of people on BoLS who give the 'it's too expensive' complaint fairly short shrift. Otherwise, I'm really not sure what you were hoping to accomplish with this thread.

[lobster-overlord]

I know I am responsible for my own choices when it comes to what I spend my money on. My family wants for nothing (well the wife does now and again) and we are NOT on food stamps or any other benefits, so if I choose to save up my money and buy something from GW then it is my own choice. While I don't like the prices, i don't complain about it. I know what I'm getting into with it. It's up to each of us to make a personal decision on how we spend our money. If you think that because it's something you want that the price should be based on some arbitrary scale that fits your wallet, then that's not GW's fault. You make a choice to buy from them, and you make a choice to complain about it. GW doesn't make you make these choices. They just provide you with a daRn good product (codex editing withstanding).

[Mr Mystery]

Really not at all sure you can ascribe greed to the pricing of any given non-essential product.

I mean, petrol, bread, rice, milk etc? Sure. If someone has the only local source, and decides to double their prices just because, with you all the way. Run that greedy sod out of town.

But a hobby? Absolutely any hobby? Nah. I don't think so. Doesn't make the prices suddenly cheap. But there is no rational way to ascribe greed.

[Wildeybeast]

Couldn't agree more Mystery. It's a hobby. That means firstly, it's entirely optional and not in any way essential. Secondly, it is an expensive hobby. Some hobbies are cheap but most tend to be expensive, especially when you really get into them. If you want to do mountain biking or golf properly, it costs you thousands of pounds for a good bike or set of clubs, not to mention membership fees for a golf club.

[Denzark]

I know I am responsible for my own choices when it comes to what I spend my money on. My family wants for nothing (well the wife does now and again) and we are NOT on food stamps or any other benefits, so if I choose to save up my money and buy something from GW then it is my own choice. While I don't like the prices, i don't complain about it. I know what I'm getting into with it. It's up to each of us to make a personal decision on how we spend our money. If you think that because it's something you want that the price should be based on some arbitrary scale that fits your wallet, then that's not GW's fault. You make a choice to buy from them, and you make a choice to complain about it. GW doesn't make you make these choices. They just provide you with a daRn good product (codex editing withstanding).

Really not at all sure you can ascribe greed to the pricing of any given non-essential product.

I mean, petrol, bread, rice, milk etc? Sure. If someone has the only local source, and decides to double their prices just because, with you all the way. Run that greedy sod out of town.

But a hobby? Absolutely any hobby? Nah. I don't think so. Doesn't make the prices suddenly cheap. But there is no rational way to ascribe greed.

Couldn't agree more Mystery. It's a hobby. That means firstly, it's entirely optional and not in any way essential. Secondly, it is an expensive hobby. Some hobbies are cheap but most tend to be expensive, especially when you really get into them. If you want to do mountain biking or golf properly, it costs you thousands of pounds for a good bike or set of clubs, not to mention membership fees for a golf club.

Agreed with all of you gentlemen especially the mature approach of LO.

[Mr Mystery]

Indeed. Precious few hobbies stay cheap for long. Even stamp collecting soon escalates once you get the bug.

Take LARP. My kit? Looking around £500 all in, and I'm looking at a second set before long. Tent I want? Near enough £500 in itself. Plus a stove, flue and water boiler? That's another £500 right there. Weapons need periodic replacement, because you can only smack so many people upside the noggin before your carbon fibre core can take no more. Archer or Crossbowman? Don't get attached to your projectiles. Lost easily, and again, the shaft can deteriorate quickly. That's £10 a pop to replace with suitable quality. Events! £70 for the weekend. Not including booze (lots of) or scran (hunger comes fierce after a 6 hour pagga).

But guess what! No need for me to spend any of that! I does it because it makes me happy, and its awesome exercise (hundred metre ascent up one bloody hill 6 times in one battle!).

Can't afford your hobby? Accept it, or get yourself a better job. Churlish? Perhaps. But doable. I did it. And I've never looked back.

[Phototoxin]

Upping prices can only work for so long. Eventually something will give. At the moment, unemployed and ill as I am, if I save for a year I can get a new army. Not that I get a new army every year but hey.
So long as GW is surviving it will be fine.

Why does this conversation take place every time a new army comes out? I mean people are complaining about the silly prices of cinema tickets or xbox games or the like?

[Wolfshade]

Stickmonkey makes a very good point and that is only for the costing of a new successful model. For each model that is made, how many other concepts are thought and made, how many even get to the point of being produced before they are pulled so the cost must also cover those ones.
As for the price, well we all know with so many luxury items that the cost does not reflect the amount it makes to directly produce. As someone else earlier commented that perhaps they make it expensive to make it exclusive. There was a court case a few years ago against Tesco for wanting to sell perfume and jeans (from a specific Jewish-sounding manufacturer) at a significant price beneath the RRP, they were banned from doing so as the cost was considered to be a fundamental aspect of the product, i.e. the exclusivity of owning it. A few months ago one needs to observe the statement made by Ferrari who were increasing their prices and down-turning production, not to cover prices or increased costs but to increase its allure and exclusivity.

There are the continual arguments against the price and saying that their pricing policy is bound to fail. But one needs to consider that GW does not work at the sell lots cheap policy, similarly put the wargaming community is small. Let us be perfectly honest GW are not some johnny come lately, they know their customers very well, they understand their market very well, one just needs to consider their longevity to point to that. Indeed the last independent market evaluation had 95p in every £1 spent on wargaming through GW.

Though none of this really stops us from bemoaning the price hikes since after all I don't think anyone likes paying more.

The solution is obvious, play more games to get the cost / gaming hour down