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2017/10/24 13:57:11
Subject: TTCombat Aquires Hawk Wargames - Makers of Dropzone/Dropfleet Commander
"Firstly, we have retained the creator and lead designer David Lewis who is now no longer tied down with trying to run the company, and free to design new rules and models. We have planned the next few years of product and along with DZ 2.0 there are lots of very exciting monthly releases! These waves will begin in January with Dropfleet Commander. In the mean time, we will put the battle fleets into production and this long awaited release will be ready in time for Christmas at the end of November!
We have been working on a range of scenery to launch with the release of 2.0 in both MDF and resin! (People wanted ruined buildings and soon they will have them). This will be in April, so there is still plenty of time for people to play the previous version of the game."
Happy days as another IP comes under the solid guidance of TTCombat!
Can't say I've heard much about TTCombat, is this a good thing?
"Through the darkness of future past, the magician longs to see.
One chants out between two worlds: Fire, walk with me." - Twin Peaks
"You listen to me. While I will admit to a certain cynicism, the fact is that I am a naysayer and hatchetman in the fight against violence. I pride myself in taking a punch and I'll gladly take another because I choose to live my life in the company of Gandhi and King. My concerns are global. I reject absolutely revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method... is love. I love you Sheriff Truman." - Twin Peaks
They own Rumbleslam, took Carneval, and have Relics also among lots of MDF terrain.
I personally don't like MDF so cant say ive bought any of their products. Just seems odd to delay 2.0 Dropzone til April 2018 when it was slated for NOV I believe
I own some TTCombat stuff and it's very good, for MDF.
Their newer pieces are even better. I think the Gothic Ruined Oficium is particularly good, and like that you can lift each floor off to help move through it.
TO of Death Before Dishonour - A Warhammer 40k Tournament with a focus on great battles between well painted, thematic armies on tables with full terrain.
This is fantastic news - Dave hasn't even been able to play a recreational game of DZC of DFC for over a year do to the pressures of running Hawk. Having an experienced company take over will free him up to actually develop for Hawk.
This continues an interesting trend of online stores buying IPs, with Miniature Market buying AQOTMF and more, Wayland/Warcradle with WWX and Spartan Games IPs, and now TT Combat with Hawk.
"...and special thanks to Judgedoug!" - Alessio Cavatore "Now you've gone too far Doug! ... Too far... " - Rick Priestley "I've decided that I'd rather not have you as a member of TMP." - Editor, The Miniatures Page "I'd rather put my testicles through a mangle than spend any time gaming with you." - Richard, TooFatLardies "We need a Doug Craig in every store." - Warlord Games "Thank you for being here, Judge Doug!" - Adam Troke
"Unimaginably ancient xenos artefact somewhere on the planet, hive fleet poised above our heads, hidden 'stealer broods making an early start....and now a bloody Chaos cult crawling out of the woodwork just in case we were bored. Welcome to my world, Ciaphas."
Inquisitor Amberley Vail, Ordo Xenos
"I will admit that some Primachs like Russ or Horus could have a chance against an unarmed 12 year old novice but, a full Battle Sister??!! One to one? In close combat? Perhaps three Primarchs fighting together... but just one Primarch?" da001
Last I saw 2.0 was being talked about as though it was set for a January release by the Talons who were talking about it.
I think my main concern here is that they're going to keep the worldwide distribution in-house rather than working with distributors in the US (and other countries). It's already hard enough to grow it here with the random and periodic restocks in US distributors. Having the only distributor be an online store in the UK isn't going to help.
nobody wrote: Last I saw 2.0 was being talked about as though it was set for a January release by the Talons who were talking about it.
I think my main concern here is that they're going to keep the worldwide distribution in-house rather than working with distributors in the US (and other countries). It's already hard enough to grow it here with the random and periodic restocks in US distributors. Having the only distributor be an online store in the UK isn't going to help.
why would they be the only distributor?
"...and special thanks to Judgedoug!" - Alessio Cavatore "Now you've gone too far Doug! ... Too far... " - Rick Priestley "I've decided that I'd rather not have you as a member of TMP." - Editor, The Miniatures Page "I'd rather put my testicles through a mangle than spend any time gaming with you." - Richard, TooFatLardies "We need a Doug Craig in every store." - Warlord Games "Thank you for being here, Judge Doug!" - Adam Troke
Dave has always come across as someone particularly attached to everything he has created, and reluctant to pass control of even small parts to anyone else, so the idea of handing over control of the business itself seems out of character really.
I hope it goes well for them, both hawk wargames really are very good indeed, dropfleet in particular for me is one of the finest rulesets of the last 5 years.
Interesting. I do wonder if we're see some sort consolidation of the industry whereby smaller players are getting bought out by bigger companies and publishers. Seems to be happening a lot lately
This sounds like a good move, tt can deal with selling the product while Dave gets on with designing it. Running a small business takes a ridiculous amount of work, and I'm sure this will take a lot of weight of off dave's shoulders.
It's felt like not a lot of new stuff has been coming out for dropzone and interest has died off a lot. A new edition and some new units would do wonders.
it's the quiet ones you have to look out for. Their the ones that change the world, the loud ones just take the credit for it.
nobody wrote: Last I saw 2.0 was being talked about as though it was set for a January release by the Talons who were talking about it.
I think my main concern here is that they're going to keep the worldwide distribution in-house rather than working with distributors in the US (and other countries). It's already hard enough to grow it here with the random and periodic restocks in US distributors. Having the only distributor be an online store in the UK isn't going to help.
why would they be the only distributor?
I can't find any indication of any kind of partnership with US distributors.
I could be wrong! But I'm currently not seeing anything to suggest that they're looking for such a partnership with any of their other games.
Tannhauser42 wrote: Can't say I've heard much about TTCombat, is this a good thing?
They're a division of Troll Trader, who, unlike many, have become a big online presence (via their eBay store) and still maintained largely excellent levels of service. Troll Trader is probably a more widely known name, at least here in the U.K., but anything manufacturing or gaming related comes under the TTCombat umbrella.
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
Today we have an extremely exciting announcement here at TTCombat. We have completed a deal with Hawk Wargames to purchase both the incredible Dropzone Commander and Dropfleet Commander.
For the past few months we have been talking to Hawk about handling their logistics. The difficulty of off-site production combined with fulfilling one of the most successful UK wargaming Kickstarters of all time was putting strain on their business.
David Lewis is one of the most talented designers in the industry; he’s made two amazing games and a beautiful range of miniatures to support them. However, as time went on, David found himself spending most of his time running a company and dealing with the fall-out from the Dropfleet Commander Kickstarter.
After discussions on how to best move the business forward into 2018 and beyond, we both came to the conclusion that it would be better for Hawk Wargames to become a part of the TTCombat family.
David is of course staying on as lead designer and will now have his time freed up to do what he does best: design breath-taking miniatures. The TTCombat team have been working on a range of buildings and accessories which will launch alongside Dropzone Commander 2.0 at Salute in April, and there will be plenty more before then!
We have a lot of moulds that require remaking, so some supplies may be a bit short while we facilitate the transition, so we please ask all the DZC and DFC fans to be patient with us during this time. If you’ve followed TTCombat in the past, you’ll know that it won’t be long before everything is up and running.
The Dropfleet Commander Battle Fleet box deals will finally see release at the end of November and we are already building a good quantity of stock to ensure we can meet demand. David has already begun work on the destroyers for Dropfleet and they are looking fantastic!
The Dropfleet Commander Kickstarter still has some items outstanding, and we at TTCombat will be ensuring that all backers will receive all of their rewards promptly. If we have to make your toys from scratch then we will get pouring resin! There are also some outstanding vouchers, which of course we will be honouring via the TTCombat webstore. Once we have organised the stock we have collected from Hawk and got it all listed, you’ll be able to choose from any Dropzone Commander or Dropfleet Commander products, or the full range of TTCombat games, scenery, and accessories!
The next couple of months will be a little hectic as we get everything back on track, but once we do, hold on tight! We have some exciting years ahead... a third Commander game in 2018 anyone?
TTCombat
nobody wrote: Last I saw 2.0 was being talked about as though it was set for a January release by the Talons who were talking about it.
I think my main concern here is that they're going to keep the worldwide distribution in-house rather than working with distributors in the US (and other countries). It's already hard enough to grow it here with the random and periodic restocks in US distributors. Having the only distributor be an online store in the UK isn't going to help.
why would they be the only distributor?
I can't find any indication of any kind of partnership with US distributors.
I could be wrong! But I'm currently not seeing anything to suggest that they're looking for such a partnership with any of their other games.
Because they are a business and like making money?
Wayland/Warcradle has US distributors for WWX, for example.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
The next couple of months will be a little hectic as we get everything back on track, but once we do, hold on tight! We have some exciting years ahead... a third Commander game in 2018 anyone?
Droptroop Commander, 28mm. Calling it
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2017/10/24 15:47:32
"...and special thanks to Judgedoug!" - Alessio Cavatore "Now you've gone too far Doug! ... Too far... " - Rick Priestley "I've decided that I'd rather not have you as a member of TMP." - Editor, The Miniatures Page "I'd rather put my testicles through a mangle than spend any time gaming with you." - Richard, TooFatLardies "We need a Doug Craig in every store." - Warlord Games "Thank you for being here, Judge Doug!" - Adam Troke
As long as they keep the plastic starters and don't raise the resin prices any higher, I'll be okay. Really want to see where the story goes, so I hope they keep developing it with each iteration.
This is really interesting, congrats to both parties! Yes, I bet that a 28/30mm Skirmish game is on the horizon. Would love to see this! I have a massive respect for Dave and Hawk Wargames, and love their sci-if universe. I hope that this is a beginning of many greater things to come!
DZC and DFC are both not on solid ground, and will continue to face stiff competition in the market. Moving production capacity away from either game to make some 28mm game that will face even bigger competition is an incredibly bad idea business-wise.
This was a good move though, I think he could have gotten away with hiring someone else to grow the company than selling, but this is kind of the nuclear option for when you really want to get back to what you want to do within a company.
I have a good feeling about TTcombat. No sarcasm. I messaged them about a few pieces in their MDF kits not fitting right and they got on top of it immediately - and that during this whole Hawk takeover thing, apparently!
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zedmeister wrote: Interesting. I do wonder if we're see some sort consolidation of the industry whereby smaller players are getting bought out by bigger companies and publishers. Seems to be happening a lot lately
Honestly I think what we are seeing is a lot of small fish getting into a big pond through increased internet sales and things like kickstarter letting them get at much bigger markets. I think then some small fish find it hard to swim in the big sea and are getting bought up by bigger fish already there.
A consolidation - not a bad thing for as as many times smaller companies can have huge problems in trying scale up to larger markets. This is a surprise, but not a bad one as at least its happened without Hawk heading toward administration or other problems before a merger/sale.
Also its a good thing to have a manger manage and let a creative create - whilst creative people can manage its oft the case that trying to be a creator AND a manager can be a deadly combo (just look at Spartan Games - interestingly Hawk was founded by an ex-spartan person - going back a few years though from what I recall
Hawks always looked neat; but I've always been worried by how much detail they put onto small models and how much appear to be on the mould line.
" - Rick Priestley "I've decided that I'd rather not have you as a member of TMP." - Editor, The Miniatures Page "I'd rather put my testicles through a mangle than spend any time gaming with you." - Richard, TooFatLardies "We need a Doug Craig in every store." - Warlord Games "Thank you for being here, Judge Doug!" - Adam Troke 
