Post by gcflash on Jun 3, 2011 10:06:19 GMT
Hello folks,
A couple of people were asking me where to buy Dystopian Wars last night. Obviously a quick google search will find you plenty of store (online or otherwise) that you can purchase it from. But I thought it might be good if we shared our experiences of where we all get our pewter fixes from, so we can all be more informed users... I mean shoppers.
Spartan Games (www.spartangames.co.uk/shop/)
Spartan have there own online store much like any other manufacturer, and like others wants to support local stores rather than selling direct to the customer. Because of this there is no discount and only free shipping on orders over £100, add to that a long wait of up to 10 days before dispatch and you will probably choose to shop else where. Saying that I chose to buy a job lot straight from Spartan in case there were any issues, sadly there were a couple of miss casts which they gave me replacements extremely quickly!
Arcane Miniatures (www.arcaneminiatures.co.uk/)
I use this shop a lot for various games, for three reasons they do at least 10% off everything, they are very prompt at dealing with orders and lastly I have not had any problems with anything I have ordered (touch wood). My only issue with them is their packaging, they only use bubble envelopes, so if you order anything in a cardboard box or a book don't expect it to arrive in pristine condition. A bashed box I can live with, so long as the minis are fine but when it comes to books it definitely a case of OCD, so I will often pick up books from else where.
Wayland Games (www.waylandgames.co.uk/)
I have only used their store once, as they come highly recommended by many people, they again offer discounts and stock a lot of products. Sadly my experience was not a good one, I ordered two items they said were in stock, waited about ten days before it was dispatched and when it turned up (two weeks after ordering) one item was incorrect. So I went on to their website to find out what to do next and was totally put off by the long winded way you had to report a problem, so decided to just keep the model and order the correct one from someone else. Obviously I am in the minority with my experience, but it has totally put me off using them in the future.
Other shops (Don't know if they stock Dystopian Wars)
Static Games - Glasgow
Any time I am through in Glasgow I stop in to see what they have, mostly I come away empty handed
As great as the shop and friendly as the staff are they rarely have what I want in and while I could order things I am not in Glasgow often enough for it to be worth while over just ordering online.
Intrepidations - Perth (www.intrepidations.co.uk/)
Much the same experience as Static, a good range of games but rarely the models I want and not there often enough to make ordering worth while. I have still to make up for a game there, maybe this summer.
Hobbycraft - Glasgow Fort
Its just a chain store, so they are really not interested in gamers, but the do stock a line of Woodland Scenics products as well as other useful bit and bobs. So if you happen to be out there its somewhere else to amuse yourself while the wife is shopping
So there you have my experiences, I will be interested to hear how others have got on with the shops I have mentioned or others that I might consider using in the future.
Cheers
Edit:
To make sure this stays away from any controversy, I would recommend keeping the conversation on non-GW products. This is for the simple reason that both Stirling and Falkirk have their own stores, while there is basically no where local to get any other games. So it becomes quite important to make sure your getting a quality service when your spending your hard earned cash.
A couple of people were asking me where to buy Dystopian Wars last night. Obviously a quick google search will find you plenty of store (online or otherwise) that you can purchase it from. But I thought it might be good if we shared our experiences of where we all get our pewter fixes from, so we can all be more informed users... I mean shoppers.
Spartan Games (www.spartangames.co.uk/shop/)
Spartan have there own online store much like any other manufacturer, and like others wants to support local stores rather than selling direct to the customer. Because of this there is no discount and only free shipping on orders over £100, add to that a long wait of up to 10 days before dispatch and you will probably choose to shop else where. Saying that I chose to buy a job lot straight from Spartan in case there were any issues, sadly there were a couple of miss casts which they gave me replacements extremely quickly!
Arcane Miniatures (www.arcaneminiatures.co.uk/)
I use this shop a lot for various games, for three reasons they do at least 10% off everything, they are very prompt at dealing with orders and lastly I have not had any problems with anything I have ordered (touch wood). My only issue with them is their packaging, they only use bubble envelopes, so if you order anything in a cardboard box or a book don't expect it to arrive in pristine condition. A bashed box I can live with, so long as the minis are fine but when it comes to books it definitely a case of OCD, so I will often pick up books from else where.
Wayland Games (www.waylandgames.co.uk/)
I have only used their store once, as they come highly recommended by many people, they again offer discounts and stock a lot of products. Sadly my experience was not a good one, I ordered two items they said were in stock, waited about ten days before it was dispatched and when it turned up (two weeks after ordering) one item was incorrect. So I went on to their website to find out what to do next and was totally put off by the long winded way you had to report a problem, so decided to just keep the model and order the correct one from someone else. Obviously I am in the minority with my experience, but it has totally put me off using them in the future.
Other shops (Don't know if they stock Dystopian Wars)
Static Games - Glasgow
Any time I am through in Glasgow I stop in to see what they have, mostly I come away empty handed
As great as the shop and friendly as the staff are they rarely have what I want in and while I could order things I am not in Glasgow often enough for it to be worth while over just ordering online.Intrepidations - Perth (www.intrepidations.co.uk/)
Much the same experience as Static, a good range of games but rarely the models I want and not there often enough to make ordering worth while. I have still to make up for a game there, maybe this summer.
Hobbycraft - Glasgow Fort
Its just a chain store, so they are really not interested in gamers, but the do stock a line of Woodland Scenics products as well as other useful bit and bobs. So if you happen to be out there its somewhere else to amuse yourself while the wife is shopping
So there you have my experiences, I will be interested to hear how others have got on with the shops I have mentioned or others that I might consider using in the future.
Cheers
Edit:
To make sure this stays away from any controversy, I would recommend keeping the conversation on non-GW products. This is for the simple reason that both Stirling and Falkirk have their own stores, while there is basically no where local to get any other games. So it becomes quite important to make sure your getting a quality service when your spending your hard earned cash.
Current Journeyman League Points: Game = 5, Hobby = 10, Total = 15
