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Ok, so I've not really had a game of 40k in over 5 years, but decided to 'get back into it' by getting the latest AdMech codex the other week. I picked up a copy of the Indomitus Hardback rules off eBay to go with it.

I'd built a few Skitarri Rangers before to use in skirmish games so I had a few models already. I added a couple of boxes of Start Collecting to get more rangers/vanguard and build a tank and a transport.

I tend to get models I like the look of to paint rather than gamey-meta stuff, so wanted to get some Sicarian models and Kastelan Robots.
The Sicarian models are out of stock on GW's website. I can live with that - I understand supply/demand issues and covid etc, so I can click the 'email me' button and wait till they're back in stock. However, the Kastelan Robots are gone for good. According to GW's website, they will no longer be returning to the webstore. How do they get away with putting them in a brand codex then discontinuing them a couple of weeks later?

Someone on facebook said they'd come back, but going by the info on the GW website, they state themselves that they're gone for good in the FAQ (See the section entitled "What does the Sold Out Online mean?" in the image I pasted.

Probably being Re-packaged.

Yeah, this has happened with every new codex - new store entry for the new box.

jaredb wrote:
Probably being Re-packaged.

Agreed.
That particular BOX is going away, not the models. They'll be back repackaged for 9th.

They'll be back under a new SKU. The current one was tied to the "2017" label.

 Kanluwen wrote:
They'll be back under a new SKU. The current one was tied to the "2017" label.

Thanks for the reply Kanluwen (and the others above that).

I guess I'll just have to keep checking the site every day as there's no way to do an 'email me' when it returns in stock if this is the case.
And keeping my fingers crossed the new logo on the cardboard box doesn't push the price up.

This must be a more annoying issue for people not using forums to ask questions, as GW's own FAQ states they won't be coming back.
I also wonder if all the supply/demand issues GW are having are cardboard box related rather than issues with their own plastic sprue manufacturing.

Honestly, it's not that big of a deal...because they're sending stuff out to physical storefronts first.

That's how we keep getting "leaks" before codices of weapon stats and the like. The new boxes are out in the wild, but they're not putting them on the webstore.

It's one of those on-going puzzles of the universe why GW is so incompetent at managing its own website that it constantly displays things as no longer available when they're really only out of stock. This has been going on for six months or longer now, it's just a joke that they can't manage to fix whatever is causing the issue.

yukishiro1 wrote:
It's one of those on-going puzzles of the universe why GW is so incompetent at managing its own website that it constantly displays things as no longer available when they're really only out of stock. This has been going on for six months or longer now, it's just a joke that they can't manage to fix whatever is causing the issue.

It's been longer than six months but I think it's only become more noticeable due to the combination of Covid reducing production capacity and 9th edition forcing a rebranding of their 40k boxes. The problem is almost certainly with the way their stock control system links into the online store. It's likely been done incorrectly by not having the facility to replace entries in the database with their updated SKUs. Instead we get a situation where an item being reboxed looks like its gone forever because the SKU has changed even though from the customer's POV it hasn't, it's just being rebranded. I suspect the best way around that using their current set-up would be to remove the old product as soon as the last one has sold and replace it with the "new" one, even if that one is currently out of stock. At least then you wouldn't be telling customers something is gone forever when it isn't. That likely requires a manual intervention, but their system should alert them when something goes out of stock so it shouldn't be too difficult to keep on top of.

The rumour a few years ago was the ex-CEO's wife's company was somehow involved in building the new website for GW. If that's true, this kind if amateur error wouldn't surprise me.

Why can't they just say "Back Soon" for these? It's silly, like so much of what GW does.

Slipspace wrote:
I suspect the best way around that using their current set-up would be to remove the old product as soon as the last one has sold and replace it with the "new" one, even if that one is currently out of stock,

They can't do this as long as their stores still have the old boxes on the shelves, and they seem unwilling to have duplicate store entries and / or unable to hide the older one from their web store.

beast_gts wrote:

Slipspace wrote:
I suspect the best way around that using their current set-up would be to remove the old product as soon as the last one has sold and replace it with the "new" one, even if that one is currently out of stock,

They can't do this as long as their stores still have the old boxes on the shelves, and they seem unwilling to have duplicate store entries and / or unable to hide the older one from their web store.

I find it hard to believe there isn't a way of doing this. After all, they have double entries for single boxes when they can make different models. If they can overcome the problems this causes, they can surely add a new entry for a new item (and keep it on temporarily out of stock while the old one is repackaging to it).
After all, the current method is putting off players like myself into thinking stock is discontinued, which is a real worry knowing how GW sell with the limited edition and fomo methods.

Both the GW and FW web stores are a bit of a shambles at the moment. This “out of stock” glitch seems to be happening all the time.

Whether it’s repacking, genuine stock issues, broken moulds, or whatever, it would be so much better if they were just a bit more clear about things.

million of pounds for a web site, and they can't handle a box repacking.

Typical fething GW.

Is it more, or less, annoying than all the online retailers who either list things as "in stock" when they mean "once enough suckers order it, we'll get some from the supplier" or showing items as "restock available" for something that's been discontinued for years?