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EDITORIAL: My Hobby, Your Hobby, The Hobby
Posted by BrassScorpion | Tuesday, October 28, 2008 | BrassScorpion, editorial 36 Comments
Last week I had a discussion with a manager at GW HQ that focused on ways to build the hobby community in our area. My friend summarized the situation in a way I thought was brilliant, referring to it as "my hobby, your hobby, the hobby". I believe what he meant by that is that the challenge that faces anyone trying to grow the hobby through community building is to find ways to provide people with help and fun that fulfills their own hobby needs even when those might be quite different from your own.

For example, I recently ran a Drop Pod building clinic at a local GW store a few days after the model was released. This was very helpful to anyone interested in building that specific model, but activities like that don't reach a wider range of the community. After all, not everyone, not even every Space Marine player, wants to build a Drop Pod or wants help with it. It's the same with painting clinics. There are many people who love to paint their models and who are greatly interested in tips on doing it, but again, not everyone paints their models. Now this is not to say that activities like assembly clinics for certain models or painting clinics in general should disappear. Quite the contrary, these are highly useful to a lot of people. But the question remains, how can we serve the needs of the hobby rather than just my hobby or your hobby?

One thing we can do is passive rather than active, but important nonetheless. Few people are more passionate about building and painting models than I am, but I never denigrate others who have no interest in it. Remember when GW used to kick customers out of the store who had unpainted models? Guess what, it did not grow the hobby or their business. A customer is a customer. There are people out there who collect the models and leave them in the boxes as they literally just stuff the unopened boxes of models in a closet collection and leave them that way. Is that for me? No it isn't, but they paid for the models and they can do with them what they please. The fact that they spend money on the models helps keep GW afloat and keep the hobby alive for those of us who do paint and convert lovingly. Customers who hang around the store playing games with unpainted models buy a lot of product and stores need customers who buy merchandise. It's that simple. Low sales mean store closings and that's bad for all of us in the hobby. The first obligation of any business to its customers is to stay in business (thanks to Mr. Lightner for that one, what a great quote). Would I like to see everyone paint their models? Sure I would, but it's not for everyone and it never will be. I love Thai food, but that's not for everyone either. That's life and everyone who paints needs to learn to accept the fact that not everyone who collects models likes to paint them.

Of course, it's also important to be active in promoting the hobby. This means sharing what you know when people ask questions or show an interest in your hobby. From what I've seen through hundreds of hours spent at my local hobby stores, all hobbyists both new and veteran alike benefit from sharing ideas. It's fun, gets people excited about their projects and often provides inspiration that gets projects completed either more quickly, with a more satisfying outcome, or both. Providing help to people with their hobby is rewarding for purely altruistic reasons, but there is also the satisfaction in knowing you helped keep the hobby alive and well. An ulterior motive for being helpful in this case is not a bad thing, because if you want to keep your hobby alive it's important to support others in their hobby for the sake of the hobby. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved.

It's also essential not to discourage people in their hobby no matter what level of participation they currently enjoy. The way to get more people interested in painting and converting is to keep them in the store near people who do those things and to encourage them when they show some interest in the hobby. Don't insult them, avoid them or wish they'd leave the store, let them enjoy their hobby their way. Eventually some of them will be converts (pun intended) to the painting and converting fun of the hobby. I know, because I have had at least one person who only used to play with unpainted models come up to me and say they started painting because I made it look like so much fun.

I found this on BOLS a few minutes ago and thought it was worth sharing.

This is the thing that I wish people would get through thier heads. There is no 'one right way' to enjoy the game. Instead, people seem to feel the need to bully the people who play differently until they leave or play the 'right' way.

It's one of the biggest reasons I don't play 40k any more.

Nice, thanks for sharing. Altough I'm not that much into playing against unpainted armies, the author has a good point.

I´m more into gaming than painting. I like having fun on the table so there is no cheese for me as long as it´s in the codex, not in the long lost WD secret files that only the chosen can reach, I´ll moan, scream and swear vengance against the 3 trilas predator LR/IC Termie list that wipes me out in turn 1, but never against the player that made a codex legal list. As my army is a continous WIP I´ll admire a good painted army as well as welcome an unpainted one. And last, as the majority of my army is not GW I don´t care proxies and counts as, even I´ll suggest proxing to have a game rather than playing lower points or not playing at all (as long as my opponent is using anything else than bases of course).

So the player that refuses to play non painted armies, moans about cheese and TFG that plays tri-falcon list, hates non-GW because are not GW and such can go and suck ·$%& aht GW HQ for all I care but sadly the problem is that, if you read the coments to this editorial at the BoLS page, you´ll find quite a few that consider "my hobby true GW´s style" the only way to enjoy.

M.

But what is "the hobby". One thing I find objectionable is that this often means "the GW hobby". Obviously it's in the interests of GW to have only their own models used in their stores and tournaments, but I find the attitude filtes down to some players even though it doesn't have to. Firstly, a lot of GW gamers seem sheltered from the fact that GW is just one of many companies producing games and figures, GW seem to foster this a little, they certainly don't point out that other manufacturers exist but that's normal. But then they foster this elitism either by accident or design; that their figures are the best and that because only their figures can be used in store, some people think this should apply this rule everywhere! What you do privately is your own business, if you have figures from other manufacturers that look just fine then why should there be a problem using them? Yet there's some kind of snobbishness/resistance to using other figures. And worse still, it's the idea that GW paints/glue are best and work best on GW figures (false), and that GW makes all the best modelling tools (false) and that basically, you should only do things or use products that have been given the GW stamp of approval.

"The hobby", when talking of modelling and fantasy gaming/wargaming, is a big thing, the "GW hobby" is a tiny part of it but some people never look out of it. But I've seen all of the above displayed, and I think GW are happy to let it remain that way.

I agree with Mr Treesong.

GW would love to have you all out there promoting the GW Hobby -- it's free marketing for them. I entirely understand their desire to keep their customers within their own profit zone.

In my view, GW is hopefully a gateway to the wider world of tabletop wargaming.

If you believe GW's own spin, they're 95% of the whole gaming market. 95% of the gaming market in Nottingham perhaps, but I think that's as far as that inflated figure does.

BYE

I'm a painter/ sculptor and rarely play... Although I like to built functional army lists and armies to accommodate my minis.
Thats my hobby and in my Portuguese reality I'm almost alone here

GW is only a part of the hobby but I cant see nothing wrong of them by imposing limits to the concurrence miniatures on their tables... Its just like the x restaurant accepts on their tables a familly that brings packed food and drinks from another restaurant.

NAVARRO wrote:on their tables...

That´s the point Navarro. I wouldn´t take my army to a GW sponsored event but some people have got into their minds that you can only play GW rules with GW minis (and the problem is that they don´t want to change rules either)

M.

Edited to clarify that I would not doh!

By some people you mean fans, players? or GW staff?

If I had a game store I woulnd mind but I understant that theres a problem on oficial GW stores running GW events... Its like you go play a soccer game with the adversary team shirt

NAVARRO wrote:By some people you mean fans, players? or GW staff?

Yes, people outside official settings. Look, in the store or at their events it's their turf right? They want to promote and sponsor their own stuff which is understandable. Many manufacturers of all products would take a similar approach.

But this purity to their product isn't "the hobby" in general, it's the "GW hobby". When GW talk about "the hobby" in WD they really mean the "GW hobby". And some people irrationally extend this elsewhere, fans and players who continue to insist the 'GW way is the only way' even in a private setting or event. This sort of elitism just doesn't make any sense, but it exists and I think GW are happy to let it stay this way because it encourages people stick to their figures, games and supplies.

Ahhh your mentioning the brainwashed fanbois...

Its kind off a dead end discussion because every hobby its a personal thing so it's diferent from person to person.
Some like to embrace GW, others hate GW, some just want to have fun in modelism etc the range of personall hobbies inside each diferent hobby its just so diverse that only a donkey would impose his hobby to others.

If its all on private settings then the host defines the limits... you just need to pick up hosts that are similar to your way of enjoying your hobby.