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So I was browsing Miniature Market today and came across DUST, and was like oh yeah, that game. Seems MM can't even give the models away. I remember there was a Kickstarter fiasco, but I didn't follow it too closely because I didn't back it. Since my last thread about what happened to Warmachine was actually pretty awesome with lots of great knowledgeable responses, lets do it again!

So, what did happen to DUST? Can Paolo really not get along with anyone?

I wouldn't say MM can't give Dust away. $23 for a Mickey Hotdog? That's not priced to move.

Basically, Fantasy Flight Games broke it off with the Dust makers. The game went into hibernation after that. There was a kickstarter, paired with Galeforce Nine(?), that was apparently a disaster of epic proportions. I think Dust Studios is now running everything themselves. They are making new product, but you could only buy it from their webstore because no one else carried it (MM recently started carrying some new product, but not all). So the product that MM can't give away is mostly the old FFG stuff, while the new products are expensive.

I kept up with Dust while FFG was behind it, and still have a few boxes of Axis and Allies stuff (never got into the SSU). But when FFG and Dust Studios split, the game basically disappeared. Once MM started carrying the new stuff, I checked it out. You can get a new rulebook and cards fairly cheap and play with all the old FFG stuff, but then I looked at the cost of the new models - holy crap. In truth though, it does seem like they got their crap together a bit, and while it is now more of a boutique game, I did find several Dust communities out there still enjoying the game.

 Sqorgar wrote:
Basically, Fantasy Flight Games broke it off with the Dust makers. The game went into hibernation after that. There was a kickstarter, paired with Galeforce Nine(?), that was apparently a disaster of epic proportions. .

It was with Battlefront, they had a big falling out and Paolo apparently tried to get backers to order directly from him and cut BF out. Lots of KS drama, some people didn't get their stuff IIRC, the usual gak.

I remember the KS kurfuffle. There were arguments on both sides with lawsuits, or the threat of them at least, flying about. Does anyone remember whether it was that BF who crapped the bed or whether it was Paulo Parente, or whether it was some combination of the two?

Judging from general perceptions m money would be on PP, but I really have no definitive knowledge, that is just a feeling.

I want to say Paolo, as wasn't it also him who wasn't happy with the FFG partnership?

I think it was a bit of both, but Paolo made the biggest stink trying to frame Battlefront as the bad guy, since it was Battlefront that was on the hook for paying for the freebies from the KS (which I believe Battlefront ended up welching on the freebies).

I picked up quite a bit when it was leaving FFG's hands and in transition with Battlefront. There's like 3 rulesets (two of which are distinctive - the battlemat squares game and a tabletop version known as Tactics) out for the game and if I recall, Dust Studio has done another revision and moved the timeframe forward a year - battles has moved from mostly in Antarctica to the middle east.


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As I recall, when the KS went sideways Paolo tried to paint Battlefront as attempting to bury the game in favor of redirecting players to their Flames of War game. Battlefront countered by framing Paolo as a snobbish artiste who had no understanding of production costs and distribution channels that if left unchecked, would destroy his game from his inept business sense.

DUST was better as a goofy comic book and boutique action figure and model kit line. I still have the original panzer walker model kit they offered in my stash. It's rough but has charm. The 12" figures were pretty inspired but just a few years off from the boom that genre saw a little later. Trying to make a minis game is just such a different thing, it never made sense to me.You need to get so many more people to buy in and try to build an actual community of players instead of just selling rust robot and girly figures to indy action figure collectors.

Hello,

I am the director of the USA distribution for Paolo Parente’s Dust 1947. I was asked by a player who is dear to us to come here to try and update you with information about Dust and where it is now.

Excellent!

Please, by all means, update away!

Strange to post saying you will update and then not update, its like the good old days of the Dust KS.

As of May 2016 Dust 1947 has rebranded and is self distributed through a sister company, Dust USA. In the past we have cooperated with other companies to help expand our reach which never really worked for the best. It was the desire of Paolo to strip away all the traces of previous mergers which were found in the older rule set and manners and truly make the game as he saw it.
Paolo asked Us to start a USA distribution to ease the importation of the product and facilitate marketing. We have been growing steadily and have doubled sales each year by being consistent and delivering what I consider to be an excellent product.
We have many new additions to our range in these past years with consistent new releases. There is an organized play program that focuses on the LGS as it is our primary focus. We do have an online store but try to guide you shops for purchases. Our FB official group is extremely active with a very positive crowd of painters, hobbyists and gamers all sealing something unique.
As a company I am trying to create a welcoming environment to introduce more variety in the community, to make Dust 1947 a game played by young and seasoned.

If you have any specific questions I will check back, as I’m not sure if there is a notification for this thread , and if I cannot answer it I’m sure Gregoire can. Specific details from previous mergers will not be discuss due to legal agreements and moving forward as our own company we wish not to dwell in the past but are extremely excited about the present and future.

Thank you for your time,

Alicia Boisbelaud
Director
Dust USA

Are you planning to go nationwide for LGS support? meaning stores west of the mississippi can get products? genuinely interested in seeing this game around town and not just giving smacktalk because you are based with those evil buckeyes.

Yes the plan is nationwide but as you know convincing stores to stock a niche game in a niche industry isn’t easy in the current conditions but our stores are growing each quarter. We obviously have more on the East coast as we are closer to make store visits and hold events but we are moving west.

We don’t want to just stock the product we want to create communities.

-Alicia Boisbelaud
Director
Dust USA

And thank you for the support

How would I go about finding rules that encompass the huge numbers of Dust figures I already own?

 Azazelx wrote:
How would I go about finding rules that encompass the huge numbers of Dust figures I already own?

Down load the App?

 darefsky (Flight Medic Paints) wrote:

 Azazelx wrote:
How would I go about finding rules that encompass the huge numbers of Dust figures I already own?

Down load the App?

There’s an app for Dust? I’d love that, but I sure can’t find one - at least for iPad.

It looks like Dust Studio’s website is selling the rules and updated packs of cards. I also noticed they have a picture of the card under each model they sell on their site.

And when did Cthulhu arrive in Dust? I was noticing it’s a faction for the game now. I thought Dust tech was alien, not Old One.

Is Nu-Dust grid based or ruler/measurement based?

And if it is currently grid based, will the measurement version (Tactics) also be eventually returning/supported?

 Mysterio wrote:
Is Nu-Dust grid based or ruler/measurement based?

And if it is currently grid based, will the measurement version (Tactics) also be eventually returning/supported?

From the Rulebook entry on their website:

There's now only one system for both types of play: on grid and off grid. The two games are completely identical and you can go from one to another without any adaptation. One system needs a ruler, the other not, that's all! All the rules have been revised, while the same game remains: fast, fun and furious. If you're a veteran player who's been with us from the beginning, you will rediscover what you enjoyed. If you're getting started, everything you need is in the book. With a ton of scenarios, Platoons for every Bloc, Faction Armies, etc. and every skill in the game: Dust 1947 is a complete rule that will keep you gaming for years!

So both are supported


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Oh, and in the download section on their website, they have the full rulebook for free! Was going to ask if they had free basic rules - this is above and beyond!

Workblocked so definitely appreciate that update, and will definitely be downloading the rules later today - thanks!

Interesting a PR rep from the company came here to do damage control. OK, I’ll bite:

How do you plan to regain the communities trust at this point? Like I’ve said, I don’t really have a dog in this fight. I’ve got only a small handful of DUST minis and I didn’t back the kickstarter, so I didn’t get burned there but I was aware of the fallout. DUST has a bad reputation because of what the game has gone though; how do you (or do you) intend to address that? I see you guys have yet another rule set, this is what, the 3rd or 4th one? I’ve lost track. Also I just checked the prices on the DUST USA store. GW prices for a game with less support than Runewars and a sordid past... Yeah not sure what to say about that.

Here is my personal story, and kind of what spurred me to look at the DUST minis on MM:
Recently my son wanted to get into Weird War 2 gaming. I immediately though of DUST because I have some of the minis, and I really like their style. However, in the end I went with Konflikt 47 (even though I like most of the DUST miniatures more) because:
1. Warlord has an excellent reputation and doesn’t jerk around their customers. If I buy something from them, I get it or they make it right. No finger pointing or blame shifting.
2. The game and miniatures are going to be there in a year, I don’t have to worry about the latest pursefight between the owner and distribution channel.
3. The rules are going to be consistent. I know there was an issue with K47 coming out just before BA2 dropped so it isn’t uniform across both games (although it is my understanding that the latest 2 books fix that). DUST was just too confusing to figure out what the current rule set even is, much less how it is supposed to play.
4. This ties into the above, but because it is a close relative of Bolt Action, finding support should be much easier.
5. Price paid for what I got was very reasonable.

I don’t mean to crap in your cornflakes, but it is what it is.

One thing I will note - most of Dust’s figures are already put together and primed. You can pop them from box into a game in minutes, and if you want actually paint them, it’s just doing the details and maybe some weathering. For me, that value is huge.

(I’ll also note I’m no shill for Dust - my big buy-in was when FFG & MM were doing clear-out sales of the models. Like Phobos, didn’t get into the KS, but heard awful things about it, bad enough that until this thread, I thought they were out of business).

Good evening,

Yes we have an army building app for IOS and Android that can also act as an online catalog and yes it is free also.

As always all the miniatures are still playable in the current rule set with updated cards and rules that are available for free download.

In October we will continue our online campaign. Our next convention will be Pax Unplugged in Philadelphia at the end of November where we will be having some events in the evening.

If you have further questions you can contact me here on this thread or at my office email alicia@dustusa.com.

Bought the original DUST Tactics boxed game. Loved it. Then bought each of the Expansions in turn with all the models that were released. Best Game i have ever played. Still play now v1 DUST Tactics rules. Never played Warfare, never played v2 rules. I should DL the new rules, but I like the original ones so much.

For different reasons, I rank the original DUST Tactics Game right up there with Kingdom Death.

It's a real shame there's been little support as it was a fine game spoiled by whatever the fallout was between Parlo and FFG / Battlefront (or whoever it was). The only way I think this game could recover is for DUST to release a complete new faction (Like Japan) but complete, not peicemeal, and for the models to blow people away. That creates attention, people start to look and maybe buy in.

I found out about it during the Kickstarter and got pretty much everything that I had pledged for including a painted Russian and German force which do look awesome.

Not managed a game of it yet but have proxed them for Konflict 47 - I think that worlds background but much prefer the DUST models

Dust Warframe was my first miniatures wargame. I can give you my experience and understanding of the history of Dust. At least to the point I stopped playing.

After Dust left FFG, the game Dust Warfare (and the original Dust Tactics grid based game) was in a bit of limbo in that FFG said they didn't have the rights for it anymore but the new publisher, Battlefront, also said they didn't have the rights to it. The eventually was resolved to some extent and Battlefront did publish unit cards for Dust Warfare but nothing further. Instead, they created their own system Dust Tactics which featured both on the grid and more traditional measuring tape and template play. For the most part, each of these rules were the same, but they also had a few differences partly due to the differences between playing on the grid and playing on a open table. However, if I remember correctly, there were also a few rules that did work differently between the two not not tied to the grid or no grid.

Grid-less Dust Tactics or Dust Tactics: Battlefield is largely what I played at my FLGS since I was late to the Dust Warfare era. I still played Dust Warfare with my friend, as we both preferred that to Battlefield. However, Battlefield was a solid enough game. With Battlefront, Dust Tactics seemed to be doing okay. The rules were solid enough and my area had a decently growing group of players. It seemed that the transition from FFG to Battlefront worked out well enough for all concerned.

Then the Kickstarter happened. I didn't back the kickstarter as I don't like the business model, but I will admit I was tempted this time. The actual campaign did well and given that it was from to thought to be reputable companies, it was thought that the kickstarter might issue in a golden age for Dust and really peel off disenfranchised Warhammer 40K players if it could pick up just a little more player mass. Locally, Dust blew 40K away in terms of numbers largely due to GW's handling of 6th-7th edition. The problems started to show when delivery came nearer. There were delays which was (probably still is) standard for kickstarters.

But the kickstarter updates started to become fewer and farther between with less meaningful content. The kickstarter page when weeks without updates and even on Battlefront's Dust forums little to no news was given. I believe it was during this time backers started to get restless and speculation on whether it was Battlefront or Dust Studios the issue. Battlefront seemed very closed-lipped about what was going on and Dust Studios didn't really have direct line to the player base giving that role to Battlefront. It was around this point that Paolo made some public comments placing the blame on Battlefront. True or not, those comments weren't considered very professional. However, even on Battlefront's end they really had let the game go unsupported pretty much since the end of the kickstarter.

Well, online players began to take sides between the squabble between the two companies. Not long after, there seemed to be some agreement and kickstarter orders would be shipped. But then there was an issue of which company was going to pay for the freebies offer in the kickstarter. Battlefront seemed to believe that Dust Studios or their parent company was going to take care of it. However, word was Dust Studios parent company absolutely was not going to pay for the freebies which seem to freeze product from being shipped. I believe this to was resolved, but at the cost of the partnership between Battlefront and Dust Studios.

It seemed that Battlefront wanted nothing more to do with Dust and quickly shut down the forums. Although, there were rumors that Paolo had done that requiring Battlefront to stop anything that had to do with Dust. I believe at this time most of the product had shipped (at least in my area) but many parts of the world hadn't got anything. The LGS here kinda were in the same place as the local backers with product for a game quickly dying out due to the drama and loss of current and potential players.

Dust Studios produced their own set of rules (which depending on how you count, was like the 6-7 set in less than 5 years) which basically aped the Battlefront rules but made changes, good and bad, so grid or tabletop they were the same. They also altered some constantly weak units but also seemed to power creep some of the new stuff. My general impression of the rules was they were changed just enough to not be Battlefront's but really didn't understand how some of the subtleties of that game. I wasn't much of a fan of the Battlefront rules anyway, much of my infantry (surprising important in a game that allows you to take whatever you want) had be made mostly obsolete by the new stuff and a rapidly dying (with little chance of getting new players) gaming scene, I stopped playing and even paying attention to Dust.

I moved on to Bolt Action, but my Dust gaming group moved to Warmachine. Since they didn't have any interest in Bolt Action and I didn't have any in Warmachine, I left and hadn't talked any of them since. That was like three years ago. I still have all my Dust stuff which is a good collection of all three factions mostly of the FFG era, but don't have any real desire to break it out for teaching someone a miniatures game when I could just go with Bolt Action or Chain of Command instead.

I haven't really thought about Dust in a long, long while, and I might be mis-remembering stuff. However, the above is what I believed happened.