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From time to time we see threads where people try to justify recasting or pirating rule books on the grounds that GW stuff is expensive (yeah no kidding about that).

And obviously if you're a fan of GW games advice like 'don't play' or 'play a cheaper mini game' won't be too helpful.

Now we've all been there, we've all been students, or between jobs, or had a lot of expenses so let's throw out some tips for gaming on a budget.

The first and easiest one SPECIALIST GAMES.

http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/landing.jsp?catId=cat440142a&rootCatGameStyle=specialist-games

When GW abandoned these games in the early 2000s they did something really nice for the fans, they put up the rules as free (FREE!) PDFs and they've kept the models in production.

Necromunda and Mordheim in particular only require 10 or so models, use the same scale and models as 40k/fantasy and still have active followings. It should not be too hard to start a league among other players.

Other tips?

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
Necromunda and Mordheim in particular only require 10 or so models, use the same scale and models as 40k/fantasy and still have active followings. It should not be too hard to start a league among other players.

Same goes for Inquisitor. Given that all distances in Inquisitor are measured in yards it's dead easy to convert the rules for other scales if you don't want to pay for the expensive 54mm minis. The rules as written for 54mm have 1 inch as1 yard, so for 28mm minis use 1/2 inch as a yard. And the 41st Millennium is so weird it's easy to kitbash lots of characters from any WHFB/40K bits you have lying around, or that you get from friends, etc, assuming you even use 40K miniatures at all...

Yeah but IIRC the Inquisitor rules are not exactly... good.

They pretty much rely on a GM to make stuff up and balance things.

Ebay, Yard sales, and sticking to low-points games despite the temptation!

I managed to pick up a complete copy of Blood Bowl for $10 USD at a yard sale once.

Craigslist can also house a bunch of people looking to unload armies fast and cheap. Don't hesitate to haggle or even lowball people.

For the rulebook, I always ebay the mini versions parted out by bits sellers... codex/army books i'll buy at the FLGS with my frequent buyer discount.

If you're the type who has been playing for years, every now and then GW seems to release some boxes that are better deals (there used to be a 3 war walker box, now single war walkers are pretty expensive. However, Eldar jetbikes have been sold in singles and are now rumored to be repackaged/resculpted in a box of 3 in june-ish... might be a better deal then.)

Some time ago, I did research an entire Warhammer Vampire Counts army using other companies models, it came to around 1/3rd the price.

It's even cheaper to play the specialist games using the new 40k plastics, imperial guard for necromunda for example, or some dark eldar for spyrers.

BFG using tyranid bitz to make a hive fleet is an amazing way to build a fleet for cheap.

Mordheim using cheap old metal minis from ebay would also work.

As long as you're not gaming in a GW store (and they're phasing that out anyway) it's not necessary to only use GW minis, a mantic army would be a sizeable saving. Choosing a GW minimum mini MEQ army like a wolfguard or grey knight army and using the mantic enforcers would be a very cheap way to build the army.

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
From time to time we see threads where people try to justify recasting or pirating rule books on the grounds that GW stuff is expensive (yeah no kidding about that).

Nonsense. GW prices haven't gone up in almost a decade. Just ask Kingsley.

I'm not sure but I think HBMC is trying to create a meme?

On topic, the specialist games are great as K_K points out and to be fair the associated boxsets represent some of the better value you will get from GW. The Necromunda gang bids include a full basic gang (8 metal models) for about 20 quid.

If you go for gangers over rookies you're set right there. Even if you think £2.50 per model is steep (not if compared to GWs single mini blisters!) then for the cost of two bids you are set for hours of games.

If that is too rich for you Bullockist did a very useful thread last week on alternative manufacturers gang ranges. Heresy's not delaques and anything in foundry's street violence ranges being may favs.

This is a good thread, far to many people overlook this aspect of GWs ranges.

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
Necromunda and Mordheim in particular only require 10 or so models, use the same scale and models as 40k/fantasy and still have active followings. It should not be too hard to start a league among other players.

It's only the same if you want to play poorly-equipped and barely-trained hive city gangs with fluff/setting that is only somewhat related to the rest of 40k. If you instead want to play, say, space marines then you're not going to get to use any of the same models.

The best thing you could do is pace yourself. If you want to play 40k with official models, it's going to be pricey.

Pick up a battleforce, some primer and paint. That should give you enough for a small game. Limit yourself to small games, even though your inclination will be OH GOD DO YOU TAKE VISA I NEED TWO THOUSAND POINTS OF STUFFS.

Don't buy *anything* else until that box is built, primed and painted. Once you finish the box and play with it, then you can get another one. Don't buy anything until that one is built, primed, painted and playtested.

Limit yourself to smaller purchases every month, couple of months or whatever. I've found affording GW to be more a question of willpower. Yeah, I couldn't do $300 right up front, but give me 8 or 9 months and that $300 becomes way more palatable.

The downside to Necromunda is while they kept some of the range in production, they left out some pretty key models. For example, I was looking at grabbing the Cawdor gang because I used them in my younger days but could never afford the whole lot back then (funny that).

So when I went looking at what I could order, I was surprised to see missing models from the range. The heavy with heavy bolter and heavy with grenade launcher, and leader with power sword and bolter were all missing. Added to that, the 'booster pack was a random selection of 3 models from 5 available.

That pretty much killed going back for me. I always loved the Cawdor look, and I'm not big on converting - especially metal models. Those missing models drove me to Infinity.

Ebay is always my first port of call. It's not always super cheap but you can get some reasonable discounts. The 20 Gors I'm working on at the moment cost me £25 (including P&P) as opposed to £31 from GW direct.

If you're happy to work with other people's half painted, partly constructed models, then you can start getting 50% off or more.

I like a friend of mines method, but unit, paint unit, sell unit for more - rinse repeat - use profit to buy army

Since many GW fans have more than one army, ask to play with one of their extras. You can't get any cheaper than free.

 notprop wrote:
I'm not sure but I think HBMC is trying to create a meme?

No just spamming the Dakka Discussions forum with innocuous and irrelevent one-liners without being stamped on by the mods.

On Topic, the big one is ebay - ebay, ebay, ebay. Can I say that again? Ebay. You can get the best bargains on ebay. In fact without ebay I probably wouldn't be playing 40k at all given the expense.

When it comes to other company's minatures, I find that generally you get what you pay for. There are some that are a lot cheaper than GW...and a lot worse. Most of the company's that are on a par or better tend to be the same price or more expensive, in my experience. I know that there are some people in dakka who take pride in their 3rd party armies that frankly if I saw them assembled in front of me, I'd laugh.

I go to used game auctions and pick up messed up orks for $20 and a codex pack for $15. I've also pieced out a starter or two and made money back while keeping the rulebook. I also play gorkamorka. And buying third party/ scratchbuilding some other models.

Ebay stores. Some actually provide some amazing deals.

 Radical_Edward wrote:
sticking to low-points games despite the temptation!

QFT

Low points games are also in my experience some of the most entertaining as you've really got to play well to get the most out of a very small army. If you're also willing to use non GW miniatures it can get very cheap to build a small army. For example I've managed to write a 500pt Empire list that would cost a mere £28 (less if you buy from Wayland etc). All you need is one box of the Fireforge Games Foot Sergeants (48 models), ok you'd need to convert a model to make a hero but that's part of the fun of wargaming IMO. Another more expensive (by £8) option would be buying a couple of the upcoming Fireforge Templar or Teutonic infantry (24 models per box) as there's a few options in those for foot knights one of which would make a perfect hero. You would also need to buy some bases as these being historical models they come with mostly larger square bases for multiple models but that's not a significant expense. Anyway here's the list:

Heroes:

Captain of the Empire: 97pts
Heavy Armour, Biting Blade, Enchanted Shield, Potion of Speed, Talisman of Protection

Core:

Crossbowmen: 90pts
10x Crossbowmen

Crossbowmen: 90pts
10x Crossbowmen

Swordsmen: 219pts
Champion, Musician, Standard Bearer, 27x Swordsmen

Now I'm sure someone could come up with a much more competitive/powerful/cheesy (delete as applicable) army list than that one but for the price it's pretty good, sticks to the basics and provides a fairly equal mix of shooting and melee potential. Now it does lack any magical abilities but replacing the captain with a lvl 1 wizard is simple enough.

Aside from price small games can also have excellent narrative opportunities, take the army above it could be something simple like the scouts of a larger force, it could be the garrison of a small town, the private guards of a noble or one of many other themes. Plus of course the army it's up against will have similar thematic potential which could give your game a little bit more context and meaning beyond simply slapping a couple of armies of the table and battling (not that there's anything wrong with that). Add more players with equal sized forces and you could probably play a small league or campaign over a weekend.

I built my vampire counts army from Mantic. Better looking miniatures for core troops and so cheap.

For 40k, you can make a roughly 1000 point list using the starter set and Codex CSM for about 150USD (120USD online I suppose.) Go at some of the imperial iconography on the Dark Angels and you have yourself a fairly reasonable set of Fallen.

Necromunda is absolutely fantastic, and if you can get a campaign going with your friends (something the game is more or less built around) you can have an insane amount of fun. Buying any one of the gangs on GW's website is actually pretty reasonable - $40 for 8 models isn't unheard of, even from non-GW miniatures companies. On top of that, the minis have extra weapons and are pretty modifiable. Alternately, it's not hard to kitbash most of the gangs from a box or two of Fantasy and/or 40k infantry, and the results can look great. Terrain is a bit of an issue, but you'd just have to scratchbuild it like back in the days when Necromunda was a supported game system.

On top of all that, the rules are free from GW's website and you can download and start playing pretty much immediately. Knowing 40k's rules helps you get a grip on Necromunda's rules, and with the newer ruleset you only need a couple six sided dice and maybe a scatter die.

Kill Team is another cheap option for people starting up.

It's basically 40K with 10-30 miniatures who move and fight individually. The rules for selecting a Kill Team are in this event pack...

http://www.games-workshop.com/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m2860630a_40K_Kill_Team_Pack_2013_%286%29.pdf

Not many scenarios unfortunately, but you can make up your own easy enough.

EDIT - It's also the only way you can play Sisters of Battle without selling your house

I really, really like the Mantic Undead range. And they're a lot cheaper than GW.

Okay, first things first - the Specialist Games....

Mordheim is, in my jaundiced and not at all humble opinion the best ruleset that GW has ever produced.

I love that game to pieces, in a most literal sense - I went through three copies of the printed rules before they went to free online PDFs.

My Mordheim warbands are a vast mix of different companies - including GW, but not at all constrained to their products.

For folks entering into the hobby on a budget?... Excellent choice!

Ditto for Necromunda - I do not play it much, but I do like it.

***

And, onwards and upwards -

One thing that can help the amount of good that you get out of your GW dollar is not just using other companies miniatures in your army/warband/gang/team - use the GW miniatures for other games as well!

I run a Pathfinder game set in the 17th Century Germanies. I get a heck of a lot of use out of my Empire figures by doing so - and, since I have a ton of the old, poseable, GW figures that are still on their sprues I can hand over a big box o' bits and let the players create their own miniatures for their characters.

Kings of War is excellent for using GW units in as well - if you like the look of your WHFB army then by all means find other uses for the miniatures!

And, just in case people think that I never have anything nice to say about GW - I tout the fact that Mordheim is free on any number of websites, and recommend many of the plastic unit sets for use in RPGs.

Not so much the newer figures, I'm afraid - while the craftsmanship on newer sets is higher, I like the versatility of the older sets, including the first run Empire swordsmen/halberdiers.

The Auld Grump

Empire in Flames, Heroquest, and Mordhiem for Fantasy.

Necromunda with 2d edition rules/ Codex Imperialis for SciFi.

The fantasy, you can start out with reaper models, add in a 20 or even 10 man unit and the hero/ bad guy characters and play away.

The thing about buying figs from ebay is to be patient.
Sure, there are many many auctions that close at about 80% or retail price.
But if you keep on putting in lowball bids, eventually you will get something at say 25% of retail.
So if money is a key factor, you need to take some time and you can get very far.

Also, the tip about making sure your figures are 100% painted before you buy more.
That will mean that A) you have a 100% painted army and B) it all takes longer. Happy days.

Also, assuming your fellow gamers are amenable, use proxies in games when working out which figs you want to buy.
That way you can have some confidence your cash is going in the right place.
Don't just buy stuff that A) looks cool or B) everyone else says is the bomb - because they may not work for your play style or regular opponents.

Mordheim is an excellent budget game, especially with how much card terrain is out there.

All you need for a starter warband is a single box of Empire Militia and you'll have enough options to kit out however you want.

So $35 buy in, and then do a group buy for some terrain or go down to Michaels/Hobby Lobby and buy some foamcore and cheap paint to make ruined buildings. You could have an entire setup built and painted in a weekend.

One of the things I'm wanting to work on once the Secret Weapon KS ends is making a Mordheim board and terrain set.

Take care of what you have, and build from there.

I don't buy much each year, but because I take care of my minis, my army is large enough to play apocalypse games. RT marines fight shoulder to shoulder with modern sculpts. While I've had a looser budget in the past, it is quite tight these days. But I add 2-3 units a year to the core of my army.

The long term approach works. While different units rise and fall in power, very rarely are things made totally obsolete.

 Nevelon wrote:
While different units rise and fall in power, very rarely are things made totally obsolete.

Unless you invested in Squats or Dogs of War.

 Aerethan wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:
While different units rise and fall in power, very rarely are things made totally obsolete.

Unless you invested in Squats or Dogs of War.

Lost and the Damned.

Buy big lots cheap and sell them for a profit. Use the profit to pay for your armies.