Pay now or get left behind seems to be the latest release trend from Games Workshop, as they seem to be putting a premium on new models.
From the time of 8th edition and AoS 2.0, we’ve seen Box Set after Box Set hit the shelves and disappear. Usually, these Box Sets have one or two characters inside that are brand new. However, generally, these characters are only found in these limited run of these bundles for the longest time.
Part of it is a two-fold problem, GW is experiencing a huge growth spurt (which they are adjusting for going into 2020) and they seem to be also putting an emphasis on the “early access release model” that bundles new releases with other older product at a higher pricepoint upfront.
Unfortunately, for right now at least, that has been leading to “feel badsies” with sellouts, and the inability for some players to affordably obtain key models for new release armies.
Take a look at just a few of these examples. Note: these examples aren’t exhaustive.
Sylvaneth Arch-Revenant & Gloomspite Loonboss on Giant Cave Squig
The Sylvaneth Arch Revenant was a character first seen in the Looncurse Box Set that released around May, 2019. six months later and we still have yet to see this model anywhere. If you weren’t lucky enough to get your hands on a Looncurse Box Set, you have to take to the secondary market. eBay has these guys listed for $45-$80 which is already nearly double the price that even GW would probably charge retail wise.
The Loonboss on Giant Cave Squig was the Gloomspite faction’s new model out of the set. Six months later, Gloomspite Gitz are getting their own Battleforce for the holidays. However, this guy is nowhere to be seen either. It looks like GW passed over this guy as well. As for the secondary market on eBay, you can find these fluctuating between $25 (which isn’t too bad) all the way up to $75.
Feast of Bones Ogor Tyrant & Bonereapers Vokmortian
It’s too early to tell how long it’ll be before we see the Tyrant and Vokmortian come in individual kits or how far the prices will spike on the secondary market. However, the Tyrant right now is sitting around $45 which isn’t unreasonably high. But that’s also because the Box Set just dropped. Given time, this guy might shoot up in price along with the other two characters covered above.
The same can be said for Vokmortian, as he’s hovering around the $35-$45 price range as well. Given time, he may also be sought after and spike in price.
Sisters of Battle Army Set
For the Sisters of Battle, an entire collection of all-new models are coming inside of one release, which is pretty exciting. We know that the box is $210 retail which doesn’t seem horrible considering that the total MSRP is something around $400 if you were to buy everything individually. Note: we did have to guess on some of the prices.
Looking forward, we’re hoping that this is a faction that isn’t stuck with an Army Set for months and months before we see other kits turn up in stores. It would be a real bummer to drop $200+ on something and not even be able to play an entire 2,000 pt– game with it.
The current rumor is Sisters will be getting a February 2020 release which fits in with similar launches from other Starter sets like Dark Imperium, etc.
Necromunda Dark Uprising
Dark Uprising is the latest Necromunda Box Set to hit the scene with pretty exciting stuff all around. It’s got one all-new faction (Corpse Grinders) while the other faction has new bonus models. Plus, plastic Zone Mortalis sprues were packed inside as well. These were originally resin and came from Forge World back in the day. However, the same theme continues. The Box Set is sitting at $290 and while it’ll be an exciting initial release, who knows how long it will be before we see the Corpse Grinder Cultists or the Enforcers new Subjugator unit hit?
The general theme looks to be anywhere from months to years depending on the path to market.
Looking Ahead to the Slaves to Darkness Start Collecting
Coming inside the new Slaves to Darkness Start Collecting is this Mounted Chaos Lord. As far as it goes, the only way we’ve seen him available is only through that box. It’s still early, but given the theme with all the previous Boxed releases this year, he may be sticking to the box for a while. Luckily, the Start Collecting box is coming with all-new sculpts of Slaves to Darkness units, so it’ll be a solid buy all around. However, if these boxes sell out quickly, which has been known to happen more often than not with new GW releases, only a lucky few may be able to get their hands on this new Hero.
Beyond this, it may be six+ months before we see this character hit the shelves with his own kit. Just like the Loonboss and Arch-Revenant from above.
Here’s to hoping we don’t have to wait as long to see these characters like the ones inside the 40k Dark Imperium Box Set. It’s been almost three years and some of the characters inside (like the Ancient and Mk 10 Captain) still haven’t come out for individual sale.
Like we said GW is aware of the problem and putting their resources on upgrading their production and distribution going into 2020. Business model wise, it seems unlikely that they will stop bundling new releases in larger sets anytime soon, as this seems to be a huge success sales-wise for them.
The key to customer satisfaction in the future may be either a better availability of those bundles or a shorter time to market for the individual kits for purchase. As we have seen it can take 3D designers and third part companies less time to close the gap and produce a suitable counts-as model for consumers, which could mean fewer sales (and lower growth) for GW going into the next decade.
Do you think GW is putting a premium on early access to new models? Have you had a box sell out too quickly before you could get your hands on one? Which model are you still waiting for?
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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.
