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go back to 5th edition 40k. get rid of flyers, GMC, super heavys, forge world.

bring back a mostly balanced game. hell ill take the old codexs with slight adjustments to!

1) Reduce prices by about 20%

2) Re-write 40k from the ground up with competitive play at its center and the knowledge that points would change semi-annually to reflect tightening the balance.

3) Put emphasis on getting all AOS factions some new material and again keep the points changing semi annually to reflect tightening the balance.

4) Keep the specialist game systems alive.

5) Remove gw stores as they are a large expense. Instead focus on web retailing and FLGS.

6) Solidify a competitive environment, grand tournament series of events.

 auticus wrote:

5) Remove gw stores as they are a large expense. Instead focus on web retailing and FLGS.

I keep seeing this and offer a rebuttal:

While we may be in the minority of GW players, for a decent chunk of 40k, and GW games players, going to the local GW is the best, or sometimes the only option for gaming for a variety of reasons. While there are a couple other gaming shops in my area, there's a huge reason why I'm at the LGW I'm at: the people..... All of us know the other shops and still choose to go there specifically because of the environment. The local independent near us is good for picking up new dice, or maybe the odd supply here and there, but overall, it's a terrible place.

Further more, with no input from our store manager, most of us continue buying new things because the local meta continues to evolve... If one guy adds fliers to his list, you can be sure that 2 or 3 other people at least are going to pick up fliers of their own, or pick up new anti-air units. This constantly shifting meta, IMO, drives sales, at least at the shop I go to.


I understand the cost of the B&M locations.... and there are three in my general area, with one of the locations being generally avoided at all costs (we often wonder how it's still open... the manager is a terrible type of person, and apparently he ONLY has regulars, as everyone else gets driven out).... So I completely understand that GW can probably afford to close a number of locations, but to close all of them screams to me of profiteering (or, generating profit at all costs, as opposed to generating profit through quality and sales and the like. To put it another way, I guess you could compare this to Walmart and Target)

Attempt to ensure the sales reps liaising with the independent stores know what they're talking about.

I facepalmed when the owners of dependable store I frequent told me the rep tried to explain the Genestealer Cult whilst pronouncing it as 'Jennystealer Cult'.

As a relatively old couple, they were too polite to laugh in the fellow's face.

 Ensis Ferrae wrote:

 auticus wrote:

5) Remove gw stores as they are a large expense. Instead focus on web retailing and FLGS.

I keep seeing this and offer a rebuttal:

While we may be in the minority of GW players, for a decent chunk of 40k, and GW games players, going to the local GW is the best, or sometimes the only option for gaming for a variety of reasons. While there are a couple other gaming shops in my area, there's a huge reason why I'm at the LGW I'm at: the people..... All of us know the other shops and still choose to go there specifically because of the environment. The local independent near us is good for picking up new dice, or maybe the odd supply here and there, but overall, it's a terrible place.

Further more, with no input from our store manager, most of us continue buying new things because the local meta continues to evolve... If one guy adds fliers to his list, you can be sure that 2 or 3 other people at least are going to pick up fliers of their own, or pick up new anti-air units. This constantly shifting meta, IMO, drives sales, at least at the shop I go to.


I understand the cost of the B&M locations.... and there are three in my general area, with one of the locations being generally avoided at all costs (we often wonder how it's still open... the manager is a terrible type of person, and apparently he ONLY has regulars, as everyone else gets driven out).... So I completely understand that GW can probably afford to close a number of locations, but to close all of them screams to me of profiteering (or, generating profit at all costs, as opposed to generating profit through quality and sales and the like. To put it another way, I guess you could compare this to Walmart and Target)

While I appreciate your personal concern, the fact remains that the B&M GW stores are, in general, a financial lodestone around the corporate neck of GW. If you look at the finances of the company, they are a money-losing enterprise which prohibits the company from spending money elsewhere, lowering prices at all, or examining any number of other growth strategies.

In answer to the OP's question, I'd take the following actions:
1. Examine the current B&M structure and likely consolidate them, at least in North America, into regional service/sales centers which would operate much like the old battle bunkers. The absence of stores would be countered by instituting a policy of rapprochement with FLGSs with traveling staff who would perform on-site visits, run events and demo games and discuss products. The regional hubs would host/sponsor larger events, campaigns, championships, etc.
2. Likely fire all current writers. Seriously, if you can't write a game rule clearly, you have no business in the industry, GTFO. Replace them with people who can write their way out of a paper bag.
3. Free basic rules. This is one thing AoS did right. Make the basic rules of the game free with the fluff and unit rules offered on a pay basis. Unit cards that include pt cost which could be purchased and collected by customers and updated periodically. Offer physical and digital, app-based versions with the app versions costing a bit more but including a set number of updates; also offer a subscription service though the app which would include some/all of the unit cards and an army builder.
4. Continue making models but with rules that make sense and make sure every unit is desirable and has a valid place in the game (see points 2 and 3).
5. Examine all pricing structures. The current CEO promised to do this but the end result was the creation of the start collecting boxes. While these are great, it's a lazy way of doing things which doesn't address the fact that the company is pricing themselves out of business and preventing them from being competitive.

Just a few things.

Looks like one of my decisions is already being enforced. Apparently there are start collecting premium boxes coming this christmas

Put the skitarri codex in with the electriloo priest weirdos codex, and then give them a fething transport.

Plasma Pistols are 5 points.

Power Fists are 15 points on a guardsman. Really. Are you scared of S6, bro?

Super Heavies are apocalypse only. Even the Knight.

Fliers are back to skimmers when not playing apoc games. They can be fliers in Apoc games.

GMC's are Apoc only.

Dreadnoughts are MC's.

I'd go straight to Warlord and try to buy them back into the fold and let them run things, then go spend my fortune.

First thing would be to hire a statisticians team in charge of attributing point values. The hobby (and sales) will only benefit from a balanced game. I'd also limit formation and FOC to 1 (+1 ally) for every slice of 2000 points (of course this would mean adjusting the current formations), with no decurions or other formations in formation garbage. Would help reduce the bloat that makes current 40k barely playable.

Second thing would be to lower the price of the newest release. For the clampack, this could mean they'd be offered in pack of 3 or 4 (a bit like they are doing with the silver tower heroes expansion). At the current price, I suspect it's very hard to recruit new players, especially since most starts in their teen.

Third, as someone else mentioned, I'd try to find a partner to produce a movie or a tv series set in the 40k universe. If it fails, I'd invest to produce an in-house web series and spam it on FB and other social medias. I'd also expand warhammer TV to show some battle reports, some cool conversion, tactical guide,... Some would be free some would be for subscribers only. But I'd devise a system that gives free access to customers that purchase more than x amount of $$$ per year.

Fourth, after a year or two, I'd release the second edition of AoS and would divide gameplay in 2. One for ''skirmish'' level battle and another for bigger wars, wich would be more in line with what WFB used to be. Would do the same with the next edition of 40k with one gameplay for regular battles and another for Apocalypse.

Fifth, free rules. With the staggering number of codex and supplement there is right now, there is simply no way you should be expected to buy every book on the market to know what your opponent can bring. At the very least, they should offer a per year subscription which gives you access to all of their pdf.

Mr. CyberPunk wrote:
I'd also expand warhammer TV to show some battle reports, some cool conversion, tactical guide,...

I think that I would like that... however, I think the battle reports would only be good if they weren't utter cheese/junk like the WD ones (where the winner is picked in advance to sell models, the armies aren't exactly FOC legal, etc) Like, they could basically condense shots down to a phase recap, so you are basically watching an entire game without watching Duncan move 150 cadians individually.

There's a business theory called eating your own dog food. I'd give every hq staffer 2 hours a week to spend on hobby and run a constant hq league wigh mandatory manager involvement. The idea being to generate a culture of gaming.

I'd keep it vague and optional for all non management though, so hobby can be painting or reading or gaming, but have it apply to everyone, cleaners and all.