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I have only been playing Warhammer for about a year now and in that time I have only played maybe 3 games. Not many people around here that play and at my local hobby shop they only really play Warmachines or Hordes. I have spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars on models (some of which I still own) and I have been thinking that the gaming aspect of this hobby probably isn't the best bet for me. You may ask why, and I will answer that for you. Over this past year I have switched armies like 9 times, starting one, getting bored of it and then moving to the next one, doing so has put me in a slight financial hole. And since I just moved into my new apartment I think that the gaming aspect of 40k isn't a viable choice for me. I think from now on I will just buy the models that I like and modify them and paint them up for display or just turn around and sell them (probably display since my painting skill sucks)... but I was wondering if there are others like me out there with this problem and I am asking for advice for solving my problem. Thank you all in advance and I know this is a bit of a long post.

Yes, I mainly paint and do not play. I'm more interested in skirmish games that use small numbers of figures or RPGs which also use a small number of very varied figures.

I've not really had the opportunity to play because I've lived so far away in the middle of nowhere. Also I simply can't afford to buy armies the sizes they are in the modern game but have seen that people still play 2nd ed and RT and if I live nearer them I will give it a go again.

Being a painter means I only paint what I want, I rarely ever see it as a chore because I wouldn't labour myself to paint another identical unit simply to pad out a large army. I still collect armies after a fashion, my Dogs of War has been hugely enjoyable and maybe if someone will play 5th edition they'll come out for a game.

I've bought some Dystopian Wars so hope to start gaming again a bit more as a hobby. Again, fewer models in a game suits me. I've painted larger armies but I wouldn't any more.

Also this is a hobby that you can put down and pick up. I've done very little over the last few years due to my studies, just a bit now and again. I also play board games and CCGs, so I'm still a gamer.

See thats my idea as well, I want to play a game with smaller amounts of units. I started building an IG army and figured out how many models I would need to make a 2k point army and said "screw that" because I don't want to paint that many.

There's always the Kill Teams rules when playing 40k if you want to play with very few models. The point cap is 200 points, every model is it's own squad and you get to assigne three universal special rules to models of your choice. I'm not sure where the rules for Kill Teams is found, but I think it's in the Battle Missions book.

Otherwise, just paint and collect for the fun of it.

I'm a player first and static modeller second (one look at my painting proves this. They are meant to look ok from 3 feet away, not perfect at 4-6").

I also don't switch armies or try to collect all of them (certain armies do not appeal and many do not have enough models that I like the looks of enough to want to collect them.)

For playing of games with smaller units, I have some smaller skirmish forces in other games.

Yeah you actually brought up a good point. My painting really sucks. Maybe I should just consider getting out of the hobby all together and finding something that I am good at. Maybe I will just get together all that I have and sell them. I don't know I have to figure out what I want to do.

I enjoy both aspects. I will say that my strategies are not as well done as my painting, but I've learned over the years and am making less tactical blunders. It's satisfying for me when random people check out my models during a game, even if those models are removed from play

Not saying that I don't do specific static models and those DO get better paint jobs (and often lighting) - but these are few and far between.

If I cared about only doing things I was good at, I'd never have started anything.

My point of view is this... I have one army (Iron Warriors) that I work on to game with. I do my best to change the models to fit in with my chosen Legion/ Army, but it takes a ton of thought and effort to add diversity to keep each piece interesting and unique. I love...LOVE to switch things up with stand alone models, if for no other reason than to break up the monotony of all the Boltgun, Shining Gold, and Chaos Black.

I would say that it's quite worth while to paint figures that you like, even if you never intend to game with them, simply as a reprieve from the same old thing you're used to.

Synister_Intent wrote:Yeah you actually brought up a good point. My painting really sucks. Maybe I should just consider getting out of the hobby all together and finding something that I am good at. Maybe I will just get together all that I have and sell them. I don't know I have to figure out what I want to do.

Do you like the painting? There's nothing wrong with just painting if you like that part of the hobby. Alternately, instead of going for a figure intensive rules system like WHFB or 40k, go with a skirmish level game where you run 6-10 figures. That shouldn't break the bank, and one can take your time on painting each figure. (Painting 8 unique figures is also more interesting than painting 40 identical SM or 100+ IG troopers.)

And to answer your original post, there's a fellow who builds, paints and then sells his 40k armies. He is mainly into the modeling/converting aspect rather than the game play. He funds the new purchases with the sale of the old army. He'll probably buy the new Necrons because they give him more scope for conversions. (He had the original Necrons a long time ago, played them a few times, then sold them and started a new 40k army for a new modeling challenge.) So basically you just need to find what is enjoyable for you.

I'm kind of a mix, I like being able to play with them though would like to paint them for display.

If 40k isn't viable due to area limitation or financial, then just play kill team or a skirmish game like malifaux.