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Hey there Dakka, so i'm in search of a few answers for a couple of questions.

I'm fairly new (or rather returning) to the hobby and already a lot of good times have been had with me and my fairly small Grey Knights force, however as a 23 year old just outta uni (college) i'm starting to consider the long term effects this hobby can have on ones life l.

So i just thought i'd as you veterans of 40k some questions!

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Whats the longest break you've taken?

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

How much space does your hobby taken up?

I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

Thanks in advance for all responses!

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Hey there Dakka, so i'm in search of a few answers for a couple of questions.

I'm fairly new (or rather returning) to the hobby and already a lot of good times have been had with me and my fairly small Grey Knights force, however as a 23 year old just outta uni (college) i'm starting to consider the long term effects this hobby can have on ones life l.

So i just thought i'd as you veterans of 40k some questions!

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Not necessarily playing, but I've been into wargames for 28 years or so.

Whats the longest break you've taken?

From around 21 to a few years ago, so around 13 years from playing, but still maintained an interest in CCGs and Black Library books for large parts of that.

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Not really. I've made and retained some good friends who I'd have never met if it weren't for the hobby. As with all things, balance is key. Any hobby can be damaging to your social life if you allow it to take over. At my age, there's little to worry about if I'm building a model on a .saturday evening in front of Britain's Got Talent instead of slamming shots at the local dive, at your age you should absolutely be doing other things alongside wargaming.

How much space does your hobby taken up?

Quite a bit, but I have shelves, cabinets and desks to accommodate it, so it does at least look presentable (or can if I bother to tidy up.)

I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

Thanks in advance for all responses!

Honestly, it'll never leave you, the degree you engage may wax and wane, but there's always going to be a bit of you that stays interested.

 xbenblasterx wrote:

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Since '97 or '98. I got into 40k a little while before 4th ed came out (so sometime around '03).

Whats the longest break you've taken?

I stopped playing 40k back in '05 or so, and didn't take it back up until 2009.

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Nope. I regret a few projects that I realized later were doomed to fail, and a few dead end routes on my road to wargaming on a budget, but I don't regret my hobbying time.

How much space does your hobby taken up?

An egregious amount! Bags and shelves and boxes and totes...it's ridiculous.

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

I've been playing since I was 7... So 4 years total hobby time and 2 years in 40k

Whats the longest break you've taken?

I've never had a break... Lol

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Not at all. Its the only thing that I do in my free time other Tha the occasional family trip

How much space does your hobby taken up?

Most of my free time

Since 2007, so about 9 years this summer.
Not had a break, although I have played less frequently than usual at times.
Not at all, and I expect it to take up a lot more in the future!
Not too much of my spare time, and not too much room either!

 xbenblasterx wrote:
How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

40k, since 2004. Space Hulk back in George H.W. Bush's day.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Whats the longest break you've taken?

Have not taken one.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Nope.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
How much space does your hobby taken up?

A quarter section of my garage's cabinet space, and the center space table, which frequently goes to temporary storage. That is, I'll put away terrain, and set boxes and junk on it.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

You haven't asked about the $ commitment. Being a young earner, that requires some consideration.

Started in '77, and never really took a break from it. From kind-hearted suggestions from my wife, my hobby is somewhat contained in the basement level of the house. My favourites (Avalon Hill, SPI, and Yaquinto, mostly) are up on the tops of bookshelves all over the house, though, where my littler kids can't get at them when I'm not around. The vast majority of my minis are in travelling boxes, since my cats and 4 year-old are a little too curious about them.

Regrets? Not once. I have like-minded friends and friends (very few) who couldn't care less about wargaming. Plus, my wife puts up with it.

What's not to like?

How Long: Wargames since late 80s. Miniatures & RPGs since early 80s.
Longest Break: There have been lulls because of work, but never really a "break"
Regret amount of time on hobby: No! Wish I had more.
Amount of space: 1,700 sq ft, about one third of the finished space of my home

I am a pretty dedicated hobbyist... I bought a bigger house to have more hobby/game space! My FLGS holds aside one of every new release by PP and GW for me, and I have one room dedicated as a "library" -- BNIB boxes for of kits and models sorted on the shelf and divided by faction that I keep replenished so that if I want to build something, or if I need parts for a kitbash, it's there

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Since around November 2011. So not too long, honestly.

Whats the longest break you've taken?

Some time from around Christmas (maybe just before) of 2011 until a bit after 6th came out (June/July 2012)
Or
December/January (2014/2015) until I decide to get back to it.
I haven't really had the time to play.

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Yes/no sometimes.
It's more that I regret some of my purchases.
I have some models I don't even use now.

As for the time itself... only when I spend hours painting to realise that I don't like the colour. Thankfully I've decided on a nice colour now.
I also regret some of the time I've put into games because of certain players in my area, but I suppose now I know not to play them.

How much space does your hobby taken up?

My large GW case (the 240-space ones- I think they discontinued them) that's sat in the near-corner of my room, and the entirety of my computer desk when I'm actually modelling.

Been playing since the mid nineties (96-97 I think), when I was about 12 years old.

Longest break was while I was in the army, training and then deployed to Afghanistan, I moved around too much and most of the time I was staying in tiny barracks rooms. Obviously wasn't going to cart my stuff overseas, I don't think my section would have appreciated losing so much space in our vehicle to non-mission-essential kit... My models stayed packed away in my parents' basement. I didn't really get back into it when I got home, I started grad school shortly afterwards and moved to a new town so I didn't know anyone to play games with. Eventually I happened to mention 40k and a couple of other dudes were like "oh, you play? We should have a game some time." And then I was back. Total break was about 5 years. And my codex hadn't been updated in all that time (Orks)!

I find the time I spend on the hobby much more valuable than the time I've spent watching TV or playing vidja games. The ~500 hours over 4 years that I sunk into Civ V would have painted me up a whole army, easy, and I'd be much happier with the army than I am now with 500 "lost" hours.

Amount of space: Not much, two full-size book cases and a little plastic shelf unit from Wal-Mart. Plus some room in the garage for the gaming table and for spray-painting but the table leans against the wall and the spray-paint station is just a cardboard box.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Hey there Dakka, so i'm in search of a few answers for a couple of questions.

I'm fairly new (or rather returning) to the hobby and already a lot of good times have been had with me and my fairly small Grey Knights force, however as a 23 year old just outta uni (college) i'm starting to consider the long term effects this hobby can have on ones life l.

So i just thought i'd as you veterans of 40k some questions!

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)
Around 20 years

Whats the longest break you've taken?
1-2 years

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?
Not at all

How much space does your hobby taken up?
1 neatly packed 4'x3'x6' shelving unit, and my desk.

I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

Thanks in advance for all responses!

 xbenblasterx wrote:
How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

I started with tabletop games about -94. got into the hobby part of it, building and painting, at -98 with 40k 3rd Ed.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Whats the longest break you've taken?

I take smaller breaks all the time of weeks or months, I am a bit of a on/off hobbyist. I always think about projects but don't always have time to work on them.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Never, I get enjoyment from it and you should never regret what you enjoy. When/if I stop doing it permanently I will find something else I enjoy to replace it.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
How much space does your hobby taken up?

I have set up a small workshop for painting and modelling about 22sqf where I keep pretty much everything. I sometimes let it spill over to my desk in the office when I "multitask"

 xbenblasterx wrote:
I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

If you like it, do it. If you think it is becoming a burden, take a break. If after a long while you have no urge to get back into it, find something else that you like. For me it is an outlet and a way to enjoy my spare time. I don't search for anything deeper than simple enjoyment and relaxation.

 xbenblasterx wrote:

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Started with RPGs in 1981.

Found GW while working at the Laurel Mall, in Maryland around 1988, where GW had a store. I had never heard of them before. I went to that store often because there was this beautiful girl who worked there and she was a big Rush fan, just as I was. I found White Dwarf mag (which at the time wasn't all-GW if I recall correctly), and the rest is history.

 xbenblasterx wrote:

Whats the longest break you've taken?

The one I have recently returned from - about 3 years.

 xbenblasterx wrote:

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

Nope. For me, it's not an addiction, so if I feel the need to do other things, I do other things- including taking a break. The figs are still there when I come back.

In fact, I wish I had MORE time for my hobbies.

 xbenblasterx wrote:

How much space does your hobby taken up?

I have a bedroom all to myself for all my gaming needs. Big enough for a bunch of book shelves, closet storage, and a 6x4 gaming table to fit quite comfortably.
But at one point I lived in a dinky-little apartment and basically stored stuff in a close, dragged it out to the kitchen table to work on it for awhile, then had to put it away (gamed elsewhere). Space helps, though you can still work on models and such in a small space just fine. It's gaming-table space that can get cramped.

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Since 40k first edition, aka Rogue Trader, which was 87/88ish, so 28 years give or take, was playing D&D and assorted other GW games before that

Whats the longest break you've taken?

From about the tail end of 2nd Edition to start of 6th Edition, but that was only from 40k was playing other games and CCG's between

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

As opposed to what ? Like others have said balance is a thing, but you are free to waste your free time in whatever fashion you see fit, don't worry what other people think

How much space does your hobby taken up?

Physically or mentally, physically most of my stuff fits into 4 or 5 storage boxes (or would if I was tidy minded), mentally its taken up the space of at least a 2~1 degree and maybe a PhD but ho-hum, if I was clever I'd be dangerous

I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

It might fade but it'll never leave you, and unlike many things you can always go back

Since about 1994.
Main break was after 2nd going into 3rd - around 4 years.
Dont regret a thing, still play regularly

It's surprising how many older guys do stick with the hobby in some way, although none of them are quite as old as Turnip Jedi, who used to get his newspapers delivered by God when he was a nipper.

 Azreal13 wrote:
It's surprising how many older guys do stick with the hobby in some way, although none of them are quite as old as Turnip Jedi, who used to get his newspapers delivered by God when he was a nipper.

It's actually really easy to stick with a hobby; it's much harder to stick with a game.

I'm in my early 40s, and to me, hobbies like computers, modelling, gaming, literature (reading), and even to a certain extent, television/movies -- define who I am, just as cooking, landscaping, woodworking, hiking, or camping define other people. As you get older, you kind of figure out what you really love, and while work and personal relationships adjust the amount of free time you have, at least for me, what I love doing in my spare time hasn't really ever changed.

Specific games, on the other hand, like Magic the Gathering, Diablo are much easier for me to get tired of. Even 40k: I used to play quite a bit (multiple nights a week), but now, I don't play the actual game *that* much any more, though I work on my models almost every night of the year, even when I go away on vacation. A couple of extended evenings a month is about it (mind you, we're talking from 5:30pm to anywhere from 1-3 am, so they are LONG evenings). I don't really want to game more than that. In a sense, it's more a chance for me to play with the models that I spent a kazillion hours mucking about on, and getting together with other people that have done the same, more than anything. And of course, taling sh*t and such about nerdy topics

I guess, what I'm saying is, for me, games can get stale, but the hobby lives on forever

I started over 20 years ago as a kid, mostly played fantasy with my Dad. Then I got a bunch of friends into it in middle school, and kinda hit my peak in high school (which is where I picked up 40k).

I took my first break in the dorms of college, but then found out a couple good friends played, so the last year or two of school we all brought our stuff and had a blast.

Longest break was for ~5 years after graduation, other than an occasional game when I visited the old man.

Now I play once a month or so with a couple of other guys who are in the same boat. I still kind of feel like I've been on break since college, but that hasn't stopped me from pouring $$$$ into new books and models... which now take up a LARGE percentage of my apartment. Many shelves full, and a permanent hobby table in the living room. Girls love it! (That's a lie. They do not.)

The only thing I regret is my continued habit of buying new models faster than I care to paint them...

I've been collecting from around the age of 4.... I think, was deffo before primary school, I forced my dad to buy me some bretonnian archers from the local hobby shop.... with no idea what warhammer was etc.

Around 5, my dad brought me some American Civil War figures (union) so I could join in his friends. I also used to play english civil war with my dad using half his massive english civil war army. Him and his mates were proper old school having created the rules themselves when they where in their early 20's.

By the age of 6-7 I started collecting Blood Angels and Imperial Guard, eventually starting LOTR and Warhammer fantasy by secondary school.

My longest gap was when I moved secondary school at 14 and didn't restart the hobby until I was 20, so 6 years. The Main reason was lacking my own transport and not knowing many people in the area who collected miniature figures.

Since then I usually play and paint while at home from uni, I've just finished and a bunch of my mates have just started collecting 40k, but I'm thinking of while carrying on with stupidly expensive GW games, of starting to collect a ww2 game.

I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t gaming. I know I was playing D&D with my brother and a few other kids down the street when I was 8-ish, give or take a few years. I’m 40 now. Wargaming started in the mid 80s. Battletech, Car Wars, Rouge Trader, SFB. Plus other RPGs, beer&pretzel, card and board games, etc. Games have come and go, but the hobby endures. How much time and money I spend fluctuates wildly, but has never stopped.

There are a lot of trade-offs in life; only so much time to spread around. If I have any regrets about spending time on gaming, it would be the time spent in my junior year in college. And that wasn’t gaming’s fault per-se, but I had just broken up with my girlfriend at the time, and rather then spend more time with my other college friends, I escaped to my townie gaming group. Drifted apart from some nice people who I should have been closer with. But if it wasn’t gaming, it probably would have been something else. Life is full of regrets and paths not taken.

Space. I have a reasonably sized workbench, and a huge painting desk dedicated to the hobby. Add to that a 4x8 table, and about 3 and a half bookshelves full of rulebooks and minis. Assorted clutter and odds&ends not included.

 xbenblasterx wrote:
How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)

Whats the longest break you've taken?

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby?

How much space does your hobby taken up?

I only ask because well i'm enjoying the hobby now but at the moment i really don't know how long term i can see me doing it for.

Thanks in advance for all responses!

1. Since 2nd edition 40k, 18 years ago.

2. I've taken lots of breaks. The most recent for 5+ years because I lived in South Korea.

3. Never.

I regret playing computer games, TV, Internet etc because you have nothing to show at the end of it.

Every time I paint a miniature I have something tangible for my effort and I love that.

4. A few shevles and drawers. I want to sort it better and get a proper display cabinet as soon as I can.

How long have you been playing? (all wargames included)
I was playing pen and paper role playing games before I started playing 40k in 1999.

Whats the longest break you've taken?
2004-2009. Lots of time traveling the world. I did keep reading the books, codex, and rule-books released during that time however.

Do you ever regret the amount of time you've spent on your hobby? No. It's how I have met my friends.

How much space does your hobby taken up? I have 2x 10,000 point armies. I bought storage towers and turned them into magnetized storage containers. Lets me store both on top of each other, and wheel them around for apocalypse games.