Ok, the title might have been a little click-baitie (am I saying that right)?
We all spend more than we intend on this hobby and we all have more minis than we need (?!). Here are a few guidelines the help avoid Kickstarter from being an unnecessary drain on your hobby dollars.
First, I’m approaching this as a converter, painter, player, but most of all an army builder. If you’re a hardcore tournament player or painting pieces for competition your list might be a little different.
Second, the lure of Kickstarter (or other crowd funding platforms) is undeniable – the anticipation of opening the campaign page and potentially seeing something completely mind-blowing, the excitement of seeing if it will fund (or how high it will go), seeing the stretch goals get knocked down one by one, the pennies per miniature, all make it easy to back one Kickstarter too many!
So, to keep your Kickstarter habit in check, here are a few things to keep top of mind when deciding whether to back or not:
1. Set an overall hobby budget
Back in 2018 my approach to Kickstarter gradually became “if I like it, I’ll back it” and by 2019 I realized I was spending way too much and I needed to be more selective
I set a budget of $200/month for all hobby related purchases (on average, some months will be higher, some lower)
This not only helps set a cap on overall spending, but also helps you priorite your wish list - backing a Kickstarter might mean postponing another purchase
Next are 5 questions I always ask myself:
2. Do I have an immediate use for this?
While ‘immediate’ is a relatively term for Kickstarter, this question has become the biggest driver of whether I will back a project or not
Is this for a game I currently play (I have a lot of Warmachine stuff, and I’ve played exactly 2 games to date)
If I play the game, do I have an army this can immediately slot into?
If not, will this be for my next army (not a ‘some day’ army)
Will I paint this in the next year (of course holding yourself to account is another mater)
It was heartbreaking, but I passed on CMONs Rising Sun Kickstarter
The miniatures are outstanding (and the game is pretty fun too) but I just couldn’t see using them anytime soon
Like most of us, my closet of shame is more of a storage locker and much of it comes from buying things I like but don’t have an immediate need for (or are part of a pie-in-sky army concept that will never see the light of day)
And what’s worse, I have boxes of things that have been since replaced by newer and cooler models, that will never get used
If its not something you will use right now, don’t back it – chances are it will only collect dust on a shelf
3. Does this bring something new to my table?
It might be cool and it might be for your army, but does it fill a need?
I definitely have a ‘type’ when it comes to Kickstarters – gothic/ecclesiastical heroes all day – but at some point, I simply will never need another Inquisitor mini
Similarly, I’ve all but sworn of terrain Kickstarters because I just have too many kits already
Compare the compounding benefit of adding a new element to your table or army vs adding something you already have (or worse, adding it but never using it in favor of existing pieces)
4. Is the Kickstarter good value?
Normally, I find Kickstarters to be very good value, especially when compared to the baseline of Games Workshop pricing, but its not a universal truth (I recently passed on a 10 figure Nurgle inspired warband that cost 60 euros + shipping which I felt was overpriced)
Look at what you will actually get (or better, what you will actually use) and what is the cost of that (including shipping)
Don’t been distracted by claims of discounts on MSRPs or a long list of stretch goals or value-add extras like art cards, booklets, packaging, that drive up price but that you’ll ultimately throw away
Buy only what you want - resist the temptation to purchase ‘one level up’ just because ‘it’s a good deal’
Remember its not about the number of figs you get, it’s the number of figs you will use
5. Can I wait and buy it later?
If its something you might see using down the road, or for budgetary reasons you want to hold off on, you may want to wait and purchase later through normal retail channels
This can be risky however, as many Kickstarters are ‘one and done’ and never see a storefront
I prefer deciding to back or not, then either putting my money down or letting it go
6. Is this just a ‘must have’?
Ok, the one thing that can override all of the above is the ‘wow factor’
There are just some pieces that are so unique, so outstanding, so cool, that you would kick yourself if you didn’t get it
DeepWars: Hunters of the Abyss was a great example. The sub desgin was outstanding and the fact that there are so few underwater vehciles made it something of a rairity. I don’t have a plan for it - maybe I’ll rework it into an ork freebooter vehicle (but who knows)
Machination Studio’s Codename Colossus was another. The walking mech was such as statement piece I grabbed it - maybe it will be a Grot Titan, maybe a Knight for my Death Krieg (still undecided)
Other considerations:
7. Look at the pledge structure
Do the pledge levels match the pieces you want
e.g. They have a 5 mini pledge and a 10 mini pledge, but you only want 7
The tendancy is to pledge at the higher level, but usally what happens, is I picked my 5 minis, added 2 others I probably could have passed on, then struggled to find 3 others I would want
Consider pledging $1 dollar to get access to the pledge manager and then buy individual pieces
Make sure they are available seperately and that this doesn’t exclude you from stretch goals if you want them (confirm with project owners if unclear)
8. Take your time and really look the minis
Don’t be impulsive - usually Kickstarters run for a month – take that time
Ok, you may miss out on the early bird deals, but frankly I’ve doing this for years and usually by the time I find the Kickstarter those are already gone anyway
Revisit and really examine the miniatures
This extra time gives you the space to think about the 5 questions mentioned above
It also gives you time to examine the entire miniature not just first impressions
There have been a number of Kickstarters I thought were slam dunks, but the more I looked at the minis the more I found things I didn’t like
For example, the Heresy Lab’s Citizens of the Old World - at first glance I loved these two figs, but it was only later when I noticed the children poking out from Spooky’s robes and the fact that Melchior had two peg legs, that I ultimately passed
(and to be clear, I like Heresy Lab and have backed a number of their Kickstarters)
9. Be wary of the big box game
I’ve been guilty of being seduced by an attractive board game that offers hundreds of minis at an unbelievable price (and if you are a board gamer and you are buying it for the game, that’s obviously different)
While many board games do have excellent miniatures, ask your self how many of them you will really use - many games have a few large pieces that grab you, but the rank and file end up being more generic sculpts
What are the stand-out miniatures that draw you to the Kickstater and compare that against all the rest of the minis (and keep in mind there are often a lot of duplicate miniatures)
Would you pay the same amount for just those minis?
The minis are also likely made of the soft ‘Bones’ style plastic and will have bendy bits and be lower detail that their hard plastic equivalents
I backed The Edge Dawnfall and Hate and I have mixed feelings about both
The Edge had several outstanding minis I really wanted, but most ended up being not that useful
Hate had solid minis across the board, but give their similarities I’ll probably only use a fraction of them
But, I then went on to back Horizon Zero Dawn and Solomon Kane afterwards - we’ll see if I’m pleasantly surprised or if I’ve finally learned my lesson
10. Will they successfully complete the Kickstarter?
Nothing is guarantied and when working with new companies there is always a risk. Kickstarter is not a store where you’re guaranteed to walk out with your item
Do your research – do they have previous campaigns, do they have a cast or just 3d models (or just concept art), how ambitious are they being
That said (and this is just my personal experience) companies will vary rarely forfeit - I’ve seen stories of companies getting into trouble (usually due to inexperience or unexpected disaster) and taking a financial loss to complete their Kickstarters vs forfeiting. Even with the more public blow ups (like with Dust or Maxmini’s Green Tide) they eventually delivered
But expect delays – usually ~ 1 year
There have been some smaller Kickstarters I’ve back that have delivered on time, but most delivered a year later than their target (some 2 years)
Factor that in to your “immediate need”
I hope this list has been helpful in providing a useful framework for evaluating whether or not to back a Kickstarter project.
To keep on top of the latest Kickstarters visit:
Tabletop Fix - Probably the best source for new releases and a wide range of Kickstarters
Bell of Lost Souls - their Outside the Box feature, every Friday, covers new releases and the weeks latest miniature related Kickstarters
Tabletop Gaming News - also includes some Kickstarter news from the mini and board gaming world
Have I missed any? Leave your best sources in the comments.