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Welcome to the Features section - an area for Features on just about anything with any vauge association to the Warhammer or 40K universes. If you would like to send in your own feature for all to enjoy then please mail me at blackdwarf@lineone.net and I will be eternally grateful.
CONTENTS
| Article | Game | Page | Contributer(s) |
| How to make a great GW site - a complete guide | 1 | James | |
| Inquisitor - a sneak Preview | INQ | 2 | Anonymous |
| Games Workshop Market Strategy | 2 | James |
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The following information was submitted to me a little while ago, and contains some interesting info on the forthcoming Inquisitor game. Now, I'd advise you take some of it with a pinch of salt, for example it is stated that it will only be available to over 16s, which I seriously doubt and it is stated that there are 15 models, but 16 are listed. I believe however it may give u a bit more of an idea whether you feel itd be a game you want to buy or not, and has certainly been informative to me! Read on! Inquisitor, have you read the March White Dwarf? have you seen the new game Inquisitor being cryptically advertised in there? TURN SEQUENCE As for the weapons used: there are many, and with 8 different types of bolter shots is it any wonder that the game is strictly for 16+. After having played only 2 games, and another planned for tomorrow I can only say that GW have truly excelled themselves this time. Truly brilliant although getting used to painting those bigger models is a bit of a pain, every brush stroke shows up. And I know you're all thinking about what scenery to use. Well you will be pleased to hear that necromunda scenery is a perfect fit, even more so than for the necromunda models as it is in proportion. For the first time the barrels look like they aren't 2x as big as the figures. Of the 15 figures: There are also new charactristics such as, nerve, ability to keep calm, Will power, strength of mind Sagacity, this is intelligence and education
A typical inquisitor stats line will look like
To work out how many actions for a character you may need to work out their speed, which is: Initiative/20+1 (and that's the easist calculation in the book) |
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Now I might not be much of an expert on this topic, but I thought I'd say a few words. Please don't flame me too much for anything I say here. Now I've been playing GW games for many a year. My first foray into the wonderful world of Warhammer was around about the time that Games Workshop first brought out Dark Elves (for Warhammer 4th edition.) Having been played a few games with my brother John's models I was eager for an army of my own, and so seeing the new Dark elf model's, I couldn't resist, and ordered a few core units and an army book from the good trollz at Mail Order, spending about £40 in total. A few days later my troops arrived and hooked I was. It wasn't that long before I had a copy of Warhammer 40k also, along with a few of the extra orks to add some variety to the box orks. (these were the days when you could get one of the old metal scorcher models for £8, and it has consistently been a great unit in my horde!) Originally GW sold its models only via mail order, (like most competing miniature producers do today, although you've probably never heard of them, which is a testament to games workshop's success) This provided them with a modest but sustainable source of income. The miniatures they produced were of a good standard, so people bought more of them, and to support the hobby was Games Workshop's White Dwarf magazine, which was their best source of advertising. Games workshop also sold their models to independent retailers as many people will buy something straight off a shelf, so as to increase their customer base. That was then. Since then Games workshop have made a big push into opening their own retail outlets, in some cases in direct competition with the independent retailers who they were also selling models to. This strategy allowed them to have a much bigger high street presence, and make their product more visible. In addition it allowed them to keep more of the retail price of the products for themselves. (An independent retailer typically buys products from GW at about 40% of the retail price) I have heard reports of unfair market strategies by games workshop, such as refusing to sell to retailers who sell the products at less than the RRP, just as the car industry is accused of, but I wont go into that, as I don't have any evidence. Now with the shops on the streets GW had to get the customers. I've always been impressed with the staff in the shops, for example the GW in Swansea, where I only visited about every 2 months at most would recognise me as I walked in, ask how I was etc. Staff are always keen to point out the new releases, and chat about their armies, which makes you think "cool, I want one of those!" These people are very friendly, and a great asset to their company. With regular participation games and events held in the stores customers are attracted in from the street even if they weren't specifically after anything. But you mustn't forget that the shop is a shop, and the primary purpose of shops is to sell things to you. So far I have neglected to mention the customers. Good marketing is always targeted to the customers, and GW are kings of good marketing. In the earlier years the average customer would be a hobbyist, who buys models occasionally, paints them all up, and then buys a few more. This customer would be accustomed to making mail order purchases but unfortunately for GW, in reality doesn't spend a great deal of money This is because they have only a limited "disposable income", ie money to spend on nonessential items to use, because they have to buy cloths, presents for girlfriends, pay rent etc. GW products are bought from this "disposable income" bracket, and Games workshop soon realised that the ideal customer was the younger buyer, as all a child's income is disposable. So rather than spending your money on sweets, Lego, or mobile phone vouchers, why not buy a few miniatures? Therefore GW have been adjusting their marketing strategy to accommodate these buyers primarily, to the extent where I will walk into a Games Workshop store, and the entire floorspace will be filled with excitable waist-high people all engrossed in the big participation game that's taking place. Of course many of these people will have money in their pockets, which GW are happy to claim. Reformulating the metal used in their miniatures to allow them to remove the "unsuitable for under 14s" warning (as well as slapping on a price rise) was one of the smartest things they have ever done. How have they achieved this shift in customer base? Well for example the 3rd edition of 40k is very much geared towards the younger user, with simpler rules, which appeal to younger players as opposed to the "hobbyist" of old, who loved all the complicated details carefully modelled in the rules. Children love the space marines, as "supermen" which is probably the main reason why GW support this race above all others. Space marine tactics are also fairly easy to grasp, and the abundance of models in the starter set ensures that the younger player will pick up the marines quickly, and enjoy playing with them. Older people may prefer other races, with alternative tactical elements to master, which is in part GW's remaining appeal to the hobbyist, although whether hobbyists can afford to keep buying models, and will accept the simpler rules is another matter. Perhaps this is why I've never made the switch to 3rd edition rules, although I'm not saying that 3rd edition rules aren't fun, just that they don't appeal to me. Necromunda is probably my favourite of the GW games currently produced, with its intricate attention to detail and background, combined with the fact that you don't have to spend a massive amount of money on it to have a nice gang. Sorry if what I've said appears to be a bit cynical, its just my perception of GW's successful marketing strategies. You'll notice that I've glossed over the cost of the models in this article, and this is because I don't think it's the most important issue here. They are obviously not overpriced, as people are willing to pay for them. The "right price" is something that GW analysts must have put quite a bit of effort into concocting, and as in anything is calculated according to how much people are willing to pay before they stop buying. I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts, and if I get enough feedback I might post a followup article. Happy gaming. |
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INQUISITOR: A SNEAK PREVIEW