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Im intrigued being in my late twenties married and employed full time (and having zero interest in my "forced" career choice) are you ridiculed by your Family,Friends,Spouses,and Workmates for playing Warhammer,Warhammer 40k and various other (viewed as geek) hobbies such as liking Sci-Fi,Anime,Computers,MMORPG'S and such.

I only ask because I and my Wife had my mother over for dinner tonight and I asked my Wife seeing as I have 8 days sickness weither or not she would indulge me in a game of Warhammer 40k if she agreed I would indulge her in one of her hobbies as exchange (such as scrapbooking or something else).I was intrigued as weither or not she would find it interesting and (even enjoy it) hey presto new player/painter/collector to the hobby.

I kindly offered to wash the dishes (seeing as I have been at home all day like a lazy bum) my mother followed me into the kitchen and said "What the hell is a 27 year old man like you doing asking your wife YOUR! wife! to play Warhammer god lad GROW UP!" I looked faberghasted of all the people I least expected her to be like she was someone who has supported %70ish or so of my decisions in life.

I have had this from the school bully the donkey-cave who doesnt know me but my own Mother it kind of saddens me.I remember reading a while back in White Dwarf of a miniature painter who quit University and took up painting he honed his skills and was ridiculed by his father funny Daddy was wrong and he is now a prolific painter for Eavy Metal.How about that for one in the eye of standard eh? He learned most of his skills from his brother.

so the floor is now yours fellow Dakkites....Discuss.

According to my parents, other family and old educational persons my painting/collecting/playing of warhammer is just an brain abberation for procrastinating and an excuse as to why I do not work hard enough or 'put things off' (not that I'm hugely guilty of either). Its depressing because warhammer is a hobby I really enjoy and have stuck with for 11 years now, and yet the older people within my life tell me I am wasting my time/life trying to better my painting skills. Not that this will put me off playing warhammer in the future.

On the flip side, my brother ridicules me for playing, yet secretly collects space marines. My girlfriend is also supportive of my hobby, calling it 'nerdy, but cute' and really enjoying the background elements, not that I'll ever get her to play a game. My closer friends from work and Uni at first insulted me for collecting warhammer, but after seeing the results of my work, and realising its not just a phase they are happy to just let it continue, so long as I dont try and get them involved, which is fine I guess. So warhammer to some earns me ridicule, and others accept it as a hobby I really enjoy.

yeah i get from my girlfriend for playing.
i think its a natural down side of playing, everyone who dosn't play or have some vague interest in it finds it easier to complain than bother to have a look at the hobby
ooh well, as long as there are more "nerds" for me to play with im happy

I agree I have a knack of really p***ing people off though cause for every one of their "Warhammer is crap" quotes they have I come back with "And drinking and p***ing your money away on endless boozy nights out and watching football plus a string of sexual health threatening one night stands isnt??" Makes me kind of sick that the accepted norm is puking your guts up in a gutter and making a t**t out of yourself.

I drink i like a party I dont make a serial habit of it not like %100 of the brainless bozo's that ridicule our hobby.

The hobby doesnt generate enough income yet its not seen as a "serious" avenue of income for families and the staffers at GW have horrendous wages but what fuels some of them is their love of the hobby (If im wrong im wrong).

I also hate people who sell out the hobby i.e hardcore one moment the next not weither it be for a Girlfriend or to impress a Boss or something equally worthless.

But do continue discussing.

BOSS_PIMPALOTZ wrote: "And drinking and p***ing your money away on endless boozy nights out and watching football plus a string of sexual health threatening one night stands isnt??"

Gorechild likes this

very true, its kind of reasonable people saying its "a waste of money" purely because GW charge such insane prices. but when you compair it to alot of other hobbies its not all that different...someone playing guitar for example...youve got to spend atleast £150 to get a half reasonable electric then there's an amp and stuff, plus lessons on top if you bother...when you look at it like that its no more expensive than most hobbies

BOSS_PIMPALOTZ wrote:
I kindly offered to wash the dishes (seeing as I have been at home all day like a lazy bum) my mother followed me into the kitchen and said "What the hell is a 27 year old man like you doing asking your wife YOUR! wife! to play Warhammer god lad GROW UP!" I looked faberghasted of all the people I least expected her to be like she was someone who has supported %70ish or so of my decisions in life.

I recommend severing contact with her. You don't need that kind of negativity in your personal space, man.

My wife knew I was a geek when we met (hell, we met at an SF convention - can't get much geekier than that).
She not only doesn't give me grief about my hobby, but actually supports me and even pays for my stuff (I'm the home-hubby. It's easier to keep a job you already have up here than find a new one. Local unemployment rates are hideous).

There are some non-geeks that I do hang with, but I don't talk about the hobby around them unless I know they at least understand what it is.

Well, I just don't bother making fun of other people's hobbies. It's strange though. Their response seems to be to not make fun of mine. It's not perfect, but it works most of the time.

I moved from a small rural town to a medium-sized rural city... took a break from the hobby for a couple of years. I started getting involved in my new local store and club after starting my most recent job, as it turned out the other technician I worked with was a 40K player. Now a significant number of my friends up here are regulars at that store. My girlfriend only complains when I leave knives, sprues and glue around the place, and my parents are far too far away to have any comment.

I've never been ridiculed by anyone for playing 40k,honestly,I'm more freak than geek(started wearing a liberty spike mohawk at 15,covered in tattoos,bass player for a dozen or so punk bands,wild slam dancing,beer swilling,girl chasing nights...you get the picture)
40k is a part of an already bizzare life (even though I don't sport a mohawk anymore,and I've settled down a bit),so for the most part every one who knows me sees me painting little soilders and go "well that figures".
My girlfriend (hell,no girl I've ever been serious with) has no problem with it,she thinks the minis are cool,and my family,well there just happy I've settled down.

I've never gotten more than a good natured ribbing from my boss - who is mildly interested in the hobby himself. My co-workers find painting/modelling to be another interesting, quirky habit and many of them check up on my progress while I'm painting or converting.

The parents never supported my painting, but never poo-poo'ed it either. I don't have many friends, but their opinions are along the lines of my co-worker's. The wife is mildly supportive and resigned to the fact I've staked out the kitchen table as my work space.

I got a lot of grief from my brother when he was in the army. He would endlessly make snide little comments about how unrealistic it is. I've tried to explain to people what Warhammer 40,000 is, and most of them seem unable to get past that it's not a video game. I got all the drinking and partying out of my system before I got into gaming, so I guess it's just another phase. I say that twenty-plus years later. I have noticed that if I'm out at a restaurant with a few of my gamer friends and we start exchanging stories about our most recent games we get a little loud, and we get some nervous looks from the people at other tables. I don't worry too much about it.

From Gf's. They call it Dungeons and Dragons. Not all but some.

One friend said, if girls find out about this hobby its over. Frankly I dont want to be with someone that will use a wargaming hobby as criteria as to wether or not they wish to be with someone.

My wife doesn't really 'get' it, and is periodically irritated by the piles of grey plastic bits on the coffee table (at which point I whisk them away). But she tolerates it because it means I'm at home and not up to no good. Unfortunately, few of the people I meet in connection with my job have any interest in it.

I find that the best way to win over people who don't understand this hobby is to show them something really well painted. Most people will appreciate that, even if the rest of it doesn't mean anything.

They don't dare ridicule that which they fear...

My co-workers find it odd, but thought it was cool once I showed them the difference between a model in the blister and what I could do with it with posing and painting.

Not me. I could come to work in a pink spandex tutu and wouldn't get much crap for it though. I'm nowhere near that bad (believe me), but a large frame in a shop full of short people combined with a semi-constant glower and strings of profanity that would make Ralphie's dad from "A Christmas Story" blush seem to convince people that I am not the one with whom to feth.

But actually I'm a shy person.

Most of my family is impressed with my work (the whole OMG HOW DID YOU PAINT SOMETHING THAT SMALL!? thing). My girlfriend is the only one that actually makes fun of me for playing Warhammer.

then you need to wronghole her. lol

Most people I know don't really care. We all have fun cracking a few nerdhammer jokes, but most people at least appreciate the work that goes into actually painting them(although if I have to tell someone to pick that god-damn Eldar Ranger up by the base one more time...).

My girlfriend supports the hobby, my dad supports the hobby, and my mom's used to it since my dad's been wargaming for years. Most of my friends think it's cool or at least the painting/modeling side is cool. It's not the first thing I bring up when I meet new people, but I seldom get a negative reaction from it. Then again, people are a little more understanding in college than in highschool.

smart_alex wrote:From Gf's. They call it Dungeons and Dragons. Not all but some.

One friend said, if girls find out about this hobby its over. Frankly I dont want to be with someone that will use a wargaming hobby as criteria as to wether or not they wish to be with someone.

<<<<<<<<<<< you people talk some crap sometimes!
Not all girl are so bloody stupid. Your own damn fault if you end up with a girl who would ridicule you for doing something you enjoy, Same as it's my fault for being with a guy who thinks 40k is "for guys who can't get laid" and looks at me like im speaking a diff language when i talk about upgradeing my PC.
either way...Stop making us sound liek where all bloody simple when In fact some of us are quite happy to just let you men do What ever the hell it is you like so long as we can do the same!!

oddly, i've never gotten crap from anyone about it, though plenty of "how the hell do you paint those tiny things"
i wonder at times if its cause i looked kinda like a metalhead for a few years

BOSS_PIMPALOTZ wrote:

I kindly offered to wash the dishes (seeing as I have been at home all day like a lazy bum) my mother followed me into the kitchen and said "What the hell is a 27 year old man like you doing asking your wife YOUR! wife! to play Warhammer god lad GROW UP!" I looked faberghasted of all the people I least expected her to be like she was someone who has supported %70ish or so of my decisions in life.

hmmmm. I'm going out on a limb her but maybe Mom knows her boy. Maybe she sees her son unhappy in a job and so widdles away time in some gaming or other fantasy hobbies. Maybe mom sees the gaming isn't in balance with other things in your life. Really...I don't know what I'd have to do the get my OWN MOTHER to attack and ridicule me and at the same time defend her daughter in law and her "wants".

I'm not trying to start a pissing match. I'm just seeing your posts and thinking that a Mom coming outta the blue at you about something this trivial must have a bigger back story.

Regarding my own interests... I paint when I can. I don't bring it up at work. I try and get a game with my friends (usually a Friday night 2 times a month). It is my outlet vs. Golf or as stated drinking watching the REAL AMERICAN FOOTBALL all day on Sunday. Do folks find it odd? Those that know sure (including the spouse). Do I defend it? Nope. Is it in healthy balance with the other items in my life... (wife, kids, work)... yep.

The wife tolerates the hobby and I've jokingly asked if she wanted to play now and then. One time she came into the basement and pretended she was interested in playing... Turns out she only wanted me for sex.... I caved.

Lets do a run down of family members and reactions

Mother - bought my 1st models as christmas present, so resigned to the fact its her fault
Father - did join and did some stuff with me when i was younger but he grew out of it!
Brother - brought him to the dark side
Missus - Knew about it, excepted it, even tried to get involved but not really interested! only light hearted joking
Friends - males - either tried when they were younger or knew someone who did most not bothered couple try but just laugh at them when they spend 3k a year following sports team for a year!
- Females - generally just amazed something that small can be painted!

Work lot - hell i use the hobby in my CV!! as rugby player who is 6ft and 17 stone it lends a certain contrast to what people expect

I have never been ridiculed for my hobby be either my partner or family. My partner just accepted the fact that I am a geek, and would rather I be home playing/painting than bar hopping. When I was in my teens (I'm 30 now), my father was really supportive of my hobby, because I was doing something creative with my mind/hands. My father was a carpenter, and thought the whole painting aspect was pretty cool

I have not escaped ridicule. While my brother has in fact joined me in my hobby, (crazy about eldar) my father regularily remarks on how I should stop playing these silly games and get off 'Dakdak' as he calls it, and should start saving up for a car.

I don't take kindly to this sort of talk and while I'm not dumb enough to say anything in the presence of my father (or indeed any of my spouse) I can't help feeling a little resentful that he thinks so little of my hobby. After all it was HE would buy Spitfires and Mishismitts when we were kids and we would both put them together and paint them.

My parents actively encouraged it whilst I was younger, I think they took the view its better then booze/drugs and knew I really enjoyed it with my mates.
Now that Im quite a bit older, I dont think they think twice about it, although my old one recently commented on how can I have the patience to paint so many models.

My closest mates, I play with regularly (with heavy amounts of drink involved mind you), those that are outside the core group know, but seem to have little interest in ribbing me over it.

Ex girlfirends (haha, yes I see the irony there), were mildly amused by it, called it either "Army" or "nerdhammer" but didnt seem to care either way.

As for co-workers (and 85% of mine are women) I've actually showed them pics of it on the net, specifically forgeworld and they simply "just dont get it". I did however assign them all races based on their personalities, suffice to say assigning Orks/Chaos was a tricky one

For me nowadays (and yes I was one of those young guys that didnt talk about it/kept it on the QT), I simply dont care what people think and if I get to talking about it, I think my passion for it and the way I describe it gets people mildly interested/amused.
So happy days.

Friendly jibes, and Mum will occasionally go go "that was HOW much !?", but then I bring up the fact that she will go away to Stamp Camp and come back three or four hundred dollars poorer, and when she goes shopping, she can buy hundred dollar jeans.

That's about it really. Most of my friends are nerds anyway. Either Sci fi/Yugioh/MTG/Joss Whedon/Warhammer or combinations thereof.

Once your old it doesnt really matter.


Oh and I got my boss addicted to the game, and he now owns more armies than me..

I even got a shadowsword as a bonus one year =)

I ridicule people for playing with toy soldiers. It comes with the territory