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The thought has crossed my mind a few times this year. I'd like to either start one or join one in the central NJ area. Problem is I don't have much time : (

How do you guys feel about them?

I think that a 40k Club could be a good motivator to get out and play more and actually paint up your army, assuming that the club has a requirement like that or some kind of paint-as-you-go escalation league.

It really depends on the club and the members. If you like it enough, even with your busy schedule you'll find a way to make time.

I might actually join one if there was one in my area.

I think so. I wouldn't have continued in the hobby if it weren't for the clubs I've been involved in. It may depend on you and your area though.

I say depends on you because I think clubs caters more to the social aspect of the hobby. If you enjoy getting beers with friends after a tournment, or want a way to organize an apoc game or story driven campaign, then clubs are ideal. They can also help push you to improve if you are into doing well at tournaments. I don't think they are a good fit for the dour TFG types (and usually those types disdain clubs anyways).

The local area I think can be important too. Around this part of the country (Pac Northwest) there's a lot of clubs and club related stuff going on. There's even a damn good tournament that is club oriented, invite only (OFCC -- ordo fanaticus club challenge). So in that respect I may be biased because of how big a part clubs play here.

HTH

Personally im not a big fan of gaming clubs, probably because i prefer modelling and painting to actually playing
But if your looking for people to game with a club would be a good idea if you had more time

It all depends on how they are run.Some clubs tend to
look down at Scifi/fantasy wargaming because it's not
real!
They imply our figures are just toys,yet theirs are not.
Simply because their figures are historical.
I would seriously counsel anyone joining any general
wargames club until they see what is like.Theres nothing
worse than a club full of snobby historical prats.

depends very much on the club. I used to go to a club that was awesome, wonderfully laid back, friendly & fun. sadly it no longer exists.

On the other hand, Im thinking of quitting my current club, 'cos the atmospheres pants & we have a bad case of the TFG.

If you don't have the time, it probably isn't worth the effort.

I love my club, it grew out of a couple of friends who met playing games and has now spread to a bunch of other activities. I personally love the idea of a group of people gathering together on a regular basis to exchange knowledge and play games. My group meets every Friday night for about 6-7 hours to game, eat dinner and generally shoot the breeze. It has provided me with a wonderful group of people to spend my evenings with. It is also a great place to make long lasting friends, members of our club who live in other states are still included in trip planning activities and are encouraged to swing by any time they might be in the area. I also happened to meet both my current roommates through my club!

lol, Oh my goodness, I have hundreds of those things saved .

Orkeosaurus wrote:

I've been a member of some half-dozen clubs over the last 20 years. All have been a partly social/partly gaming club where I'll go to see mates and play against them.

My current club has more terrain and more room to play in than my local GW (and the only one for 160-odd km).
It also has beer available. Mmmm, beer.

If you hardly have the time to game as it is, it really isn't worth joining one, though.

Well I voted yes, but then, I really ought to, seeing as I'm now somehow on the committee for my gaming club, which is in Norwich. We're based at the FLGS, got more tables and a much more friendly and relaxed atmosphere than the GW down the road. Also, the shop we're based in sells 40k for cheaper than GW.

We play every Thursday and some Sundays, the store also has loads of different CCG clubs and other stuff on other nights, MtG, Yu Gi Oh, etc... very dull. If I didn't go to the club I would probably get less than one game per year. As it is now, I get 2-3 games a week on average, plus monthly Apoc games, and have made a load of cool new friends who I can chat about geeky stuff with without fear of judgement. Thanks to meeting at the club we now play at each others houses, stay over etc... Also, the committee meetings occur in the pub, and the club has a very good social aspect.

The plus points to gaming clubs as far as I can see are:

a chance to meet other 40k players in your area

a chance to get inspiration from others work and some credit from yours as far as painting and converting go, building lists and gaming tactics.

the chance to play massive Apoc games (our record is 37000 points per side!)

a chance to make new friends

often, (YMMV) the oppurtunity to buy discounted GW products. Also, a handy swapshop amongst fellow gamers for minis you no longer want or that elusive part you need for your conversion.

The negative points you may find:

Cost: most clubs charge some sort of nightly, weekly, monthly or annual fee for using the facilities and/or membership.

Distance: unless you can walk there, you're going to have to transport yourself and your minis to and from, which takes time and money.

You'll spend more: Most of us buy way too much 40k because we are in the shop next to all the lovely boxes full of new goodness for several hours a week.

TFG's: Your club may or may not be cursed with it's share of complete tossers. The Emperor knows ours is!

Yes. My local club started years ago and has grown to a large self-sustaining social group that focuses on playing, modelling, painting, GW games, non-GW games, etc etc etc. IOW, we pretty much offer something for everybody, but our primary draw is GW games.
It ain't easy. Even with a solid core of 6-10 gamers, it can take a while to get off the ground and develop into a group that will continue even if the initial dynamo that started it all moves. But it's worth it.
Suggestions on getting started.
Establish a given night at the store where people can show up and get in a game. The veterans/regulars have to be willing to step aside and let a newcomer get in a game. And you've got to have several people that are going to show up. Once you've got the noobs hooked and attending on a regular basis, then you make them wait. But set the hook first.................
Chat people up. When you're in the local store(s), and you see someone browsing the GW sections, go over and talk to them. Invite them to come out and play. Be ready and willing to run demo/teaching games for those just getting into the hobby.
Run some leagues. Make them open to anybody, not just club members. Or make club membership a requirement to play. Maybe charge a small fee with everything going back out in prizes.
Same for tourneys, say once a quarter or so.
Run hobby workshops and clinics, terrain building days, painting days, vehicle bitz-bash, megabattles, etc etc.
Advertise. We've got two GW stores in our area but frequent several of the indy retailers (more gaming space). Every once in a while I drop by the GW stores and 'pimp' our club events. The GW stores have actually been very supportive of this, to the point of giving us merchandise to use as door prizes and such.

Good clubs are good. Crappy clubs tend to collapse due to lack of interest or effort.

Most clubs are multi-system and many of them are historical. That doesn't mean they won't play fantasy and SF. On the plus side, you will get the chance to see some other periods in action.

I haven't really seen much in the way of "clubs", to be honest.

Our group plays different games. So really it's more of a group of friends than a club.

The closest thing I've seen to clubs are people who gather around a specific game
or store. No one in those groups ever calls them clubs.

I have been in several proper clubs which had a constitution, officers, a treasury and so on.

This kind of club seems to work pretty well since if it didn't people would stop paying to attend.

Kilkrazy wrote:I have been in several proper clubs which had a constitution, officers, a treasury and so on.

This kind of club seems to work pretty well since if it didn't people would stop paying to attend.

To me that just sounds like work!

Short answer: Maybe.

Long answer: It depends on the club.
I haven't attended my local club yet, but know a couple of guys who have, and enjoy it.
There's always someone to play, and they organise tournaments and exhibition games.
They often have access to resources (rooms, tables, scenery, possibly even armies for newbies to play, etc).

I used to hep run a RPG club, and yes, it is work, but can be very rewarding.
We kept a cupboard full of rule-books for people to use, and a few armies (15mm ancients, I think).

malfred wrote:

Kilkrazy wrote:I have been in several proper clubs which had a constitution, officers, a treasury and so on.

This kind of club seems to work pretty well since if it didn't people would stop paying to attend.

To me that just sounds like work!

It is work but you get out more than you put it.

Like Blackspike says, the club has more resources working together than the individual members. It can buy scenery and rules, set up a regular programme of games, organise trips to museums and events, do exhibition games. At one club I went to we even did social events like Bonfire Night, Christmas Parties and Paintball expeditions.