Super bad news just arrived for the Warhammer 40k Imperium Collection magazine subscription in the US!
After offering the magazine up for subscribers in the US just days ago, Hachette Partworks announced a change to the rollout of their product here in the States.
If you’re unfamiliar with the subscription, you get a handful of minis and other accessories along with each magazine. The models are all for Space Marines and Necrons but aren’t a bad value for the number of minis you get. On top of the minis, you can get paint, dice, a game mat, a brush, a ruler, free gifts, and of course the accompanying magazine with each issue.
There were currently four issues available, but that appears to have been delayed now-the first having issues 1 & 2 for $16.90 and then issues 3 & 4 for $23.90.
Warhammer 40k Imperium Collection
Each issue of Warhammer 40,000: Imperium comes with a selection of miniatures, paints, brushes, vehicles, or scenery PLUS an exclusive magazine to build your own Warhammer 40,000 army!
As you can see, you get some interesting stuff with every issue, but if you don’t play Space Marines or Necrons, it’s not really for you yet. Each issue of the magazine would focus on the minis inside with datasheets, lore, building guides, paint guides, and some tips on how to actually play with the minis in a battle.
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While you won’t be able to build a full army around what’s inside, it’s a very cool little service and it’s always fun to get stuff in the mail! On top of what you get in every issue, if you subscribe you will also receive one free gift with every issue.
The gifts are almost as cool as the issues. The modeling kit and paint handle are honestly pretty sweet and are worth about $30-$35 on their own. On top of that, you get three brushes and a binder/dividers to keep all your issues organized. Nothing too crazy but for the price, it’s actually a fairly decent value for everything you get.
According to Fauxhammer, this was in a trial run last month in the UK, and now after announcing availability in the US, is no longer available currently.
In the UK the full set of 80 issues costs a whopping 160£, but there is a full breakdown on what comes in the series, and some advice on how to get even better value as well:
The TLDR version is that you can save 40% – 50% on the models you get in the premium kits. there are some potential things you can do to nab this a bit cheaper than the £160 cost across 80 issues. but you do this at your own risk (I wouldn’t) details in the article.
So back in England, the first two issues cost 8.99£ each which is amazing compared with the two-issue cost here of $16.90. but it is unclear if all 80 issues will be $8.99 each as issues 3 and 4 costs about $12 respectively.
The question is, which of the 80 issues will hobbyists here in the states actually use, and how much will it cost them?
Bad News For Warhammer 40k Imperium Collection in the US
With little fanfare the following screen went up for anyone accessing the website in the US:
Perhaps Hachette Partworks may have either been unprepared for the response they received from hobbyists or perhaps we’re fishing for interest. Either way, it’s super disappointing news for something that a lot of folks had been clamoring for since it launched in the UK.
It’s also unclear if anyone that signed up for this was initially charged, and if so when refunds would be issued.
There has been a little pushback online as to the actual value of the subscription overall, and the prices of each shipment, which seem to vary with each release.
Also please note that you can still add this subscription to a cart, and pay for it at the time of this writing- it’s unclear if refunds will be issued or if the landing page message is current.
Personally, I wonder if they can even be trusted with antics like this, and will be voting no with my hobby dollars just because of these factors alone.
How about you, is this still something you will be interested in?
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group, and make sure you enter the latest monthly giveaway for FREE today!
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures. Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including the Adepticon Team Tournament and American Team Tournaments, and is on a first-name basis with almost every major company in the space.
He’s all gaming all the time. With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. He advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1908s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
