What's going on with LotR SBG

DomyHill · **Posted:** Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:00 pm

I'm just wondering if anyone actually knows anything other than just rumours about what's going on with the Lord of the Rings range and why all these lovely miniatures are going OOP.

JamesR · **Posted:** Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:33 pm

Its not rumors. They have many models going OOP because they stopped making them a while back and they have opted not to re-invest in new moulds and simply run out of stock

DomyHill · **Posted:** Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:51 pm

So they're phasing Rings out?

Wise Old Elf · **Posted:** Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:53 pm

This is a great shame. I'm certain that at one point LOTR was the highest grossing product of the three mainstream lines that GW run. If they had reinvested in LOTR when The Hobbit was released, and used The Hobbit SBG as more of an update (like WOTR) rather than an overhaul, I could see it continuing as a success for the next decade or so. I recently took an interest in starting a new Rohan and Easterling army, but with so many miniatures becoming OOP so rapidly, I just can't invest in an army that I might never get the opportunity to complete.

JamesR · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 1:23 am

DomyHill wrote:

So they're phasing Rings out?

Yes sir they are. Some that they still have moulds for and all they'll probably make for a bit longer but the inventory should last a bit longer on many items.

@Wise- They did. And you are correct that it was the top income earner for a bit, but the license ran for 10 years after the ROTK movie released, which was a mistake financially. The final several years were not significant income years and GW lost interest in pushing the game, which is to be expected as popularity dropped with the distance from the movies.

So with the Hobbit they invested again but much more cautiously, the license runs far shorter and doesn't extend to the original trilogy

DomyHill · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 1:26 am

What do you mean by the licence doesn't extend to the original trilogy?

JamesR · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 1:41 am

I don't know all the particulars of their agreement as it pertains to casting products they've already designed but their license they have now is strictly for the Hobbit movies.

So GW cannot go back and make a new Theoden or Boromir or anyone else who does not appear in the Hobbit Trilogy, their agreement is purely to create the characters and peoples depicted in The Hobbit.

Wise Old Elf · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 4:03 am

Well regardless, The Hobbit will be dead by the time TABA is released on DVD/Blu-Ray/etc. They're not driving it enough, and by way of metaphor, if a car isn't driven it's going nowhere. Which is a shame, because some of the miniatures released for The Hobbit and indeed LOTR have been superb, better than most other GW stuff. This is of course my opinion, it's just from where I'm standing now the decline seems so inevitable. I'm fortunate I'm a painter/collector not a gamer. I also cannot see how interest just simply died for LOTR SBG, because the books, as a result of the films, continue to sell better than they did prior 2001. Likewise, it is now one of Lego's strongest selling ranges and that has only been available since 2012.

Having said that, I believe GW will have to produce a replacement third 'theme' for their products just to develop future interest in the hobby. I highly doubt WHFB/40k will entice new hobbyists now that about 70% of the products are £30 for 10 basic miniatures, some more. Unless GW are actually planning to go out of business in ten or so years because their current customers have ceased custom, which seems to be the way its going, then almost every business move they've made since about 2011 seems completely bizarre, mostly unnecessary, and definitely agitating.

Erunion · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 4:16 am

A friendly reminder to keep the discussion on the topic of the status of the LotR/Hobbit range, and off our opinions of GW's business practices. We've been down that road before, and that road leads to Mordor if you catch my drift.

pokyha · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 7:56 am

Erunion wrote:

and that road leads to Mordor if you catch my drift.

Haha good one

JamesR · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 2:31 pm

@WOE- actually with the Desolation sells it will out-last that, several Hobbit models are already on back-order. I purchased Radagast on foot and I was told it was on up to 4 weeks delivery as they were running out.

Also estimates (done by researchers, i'm not just making this up) put 40k as played by 70-80% of our tabletop-gaming population, so a third game would be unnecessary

Lord Hurin · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 2:34 pm

Yes, the game is dying. I live in the most densely populated region of Canada, and one of the wealthiest, with lots of expendable income to go around. During the heyday of the game (2001-2005ish) I could go to any one of twenty places within a half hour's drive and pick up just about anything I wanted from the range. Now, I have 2 GW stores and the independents are basically only good for glue, paint and terrain supplies. They can all order me stuff in, but no where practically has anything on the shelf anymore. Most of what I see are old EfGT sets, The Trolls and the White Council that no one bought 16 months ago when they were new. Even 20% off couldn't convince me to buy the WC, it just ain't worth it.

So yeah, I see a slippery slope ahead. Probably less severe in the UK, but certainly still unavoidable.

Wise Old Elf · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 6:49 pm

JamesR wrote:

@WOE- actually with the Desolation sells it will out-last that, several Hobbit models are already on back-order. I purchased Radagast on foot and I was told it was on up to 4 weeks delivery as they were running out.

Also estimates (done by researchers, i'm not just making this up) put 40k as played by 70-80% of our tabletop-gaming population, so a third game would be unnecessary

That might be the case, but that is possibly because people want the newer Radagast miniature in replacement of the old non-film version of the wizard that was released aeons ago for LOTR. You could say the same for the new Elrond, and possibly the new Wargs - they're likely replacements for out-of-date miniatures, or those now discontinued in the LOTR range. As for 40k, yes the gaming population might be true but I was referring to current sales not the extent of gamers - who statistically might have not bought anything since the last edition and are gaming with already fully established armies. Anyway, I won't respond further as I am now way off topic so apologies.

Going back to LOTR, is it still breaching licensing regulations if they produce new miniatures using the old moulds, or if the moulds have perished, using repaired or remoulded moulds? Surely that's allowed seeing as the product is already there, just not yet made, if you catch my drift?

Johnnie · **Joined:** Sun Dec 23, 2012 9:14 pm **Posts:** 87

With all these figures going oop should one stack up the plastic sets too? Sad too see all these minis go. Love the lotr theme and the nice scale on the minis. They will be hard to replace. The warriors of Minas Tirith was my first lotr set and my first online order

How did it come to this? Could they have saved the lotr if they done more releases/more first and second age miniatures?

JamesR · **Posted:** Thu Mar 06, 2014 8:28 pm

WOE- That's not really how 40k works. They cycle out enough to require you to purchase new models with each codex update. GW's doing fine off that game alone.
Plus they're behind on most everything else thanks to companies like Mantic, Warlord etc.

But anyways idk how their agreement works with existing models, my assumption is they're limited. Otherwise Tolkien and New Line would be losing out

LordoftheBrownRing · **Posted:** Sat Mar 08, 2014 7:12 pm

Wise Old Elf wrote:

This is a great shame. I'm certain that at one point LOTR was the highest grossing product of the three mainstream lines that GW run. If they had reinvested in LOTR when The Hobbit was released, and used The Hobbit SBG as more of an update (like WOTR) rather than an overhaul, I could see it continuing as a success for the next decade or so. I recently took an interest in starting a new Rohan and Easterling army, but with so many miniatures becoming OOP so rapidly, I just can't invest in an army that I might never get the opportunity to complete.

Well it would be nice if the price wasn't ridiculous....that'd help. And I do feel your pain. I spent the time since september getting back into the hobby and bought like 85% lord of the rings stuff since then not hobbit.

And im running out of money to waste on this stuff. Im going to fall way short of getting everything I want till I have a more stable income.

Lord Hurin wrote:

Yes, the game is dying. I live in the most densely populated region of Canada, and one of the wealthiest, with lots of expendable income to go around. During the heyday of the game (2001-2005ish) I could go to any one of twenty places within a half hour's drive and pick up just about anything I wanted from the range. Now, I have 2 GW stores and the independents are basically only good for glue, paint and terrain supplies. They can all order me stuff in, but no where practically has anything on the shelf anymore. Most of what I see are old EfGT sets, The Trolls and the White Council that no one bought 16 months ago when they were new. Even 20% off couldn't convince me to buy the WC, it just ain't worth it.

So yeah, I see a slippery slope ahead. Probably less severe in the UK, but certainly still unavoidable.

Oh yeah I know what you mean. Im in the Chicago area.....obviously like 6 million people and plenty of money. Three GWs closed and when they were open, none had hobbit events, and only 1 had the Desolation of Smaug stuff. The opening day for the release, they had 2-3 books, about 15 blisters and 6 box sets. This the head manager told me was the largest location in the USA. There was like 20 tables or more and they could barely put one product on each to fill it.

What's going on with LotR SBG

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