It appears that the new Tau Empire miniatures for Games Workshop’s flagship game of Warhammer 40K will be arriving at local gaming stores, independent retailers and online “e-tailers” with a week or two of delay. Presumably, it will not affect anyone ordering directly from GW.
Shame be he who thinks evil of it!
#1 – United Kingdom – Wayland Games
Wayland Games releases this statement through their Facebook page. I would think that many other UK-based businesses will be similarly affected.
Games Workshop Plc have informed us that there will be a delay to all UK retail outlets in receiving stock of the New Tau release.
We expect to receive stock around the 15th April and will dispatch it upon its arrival.
We are pleased that Tau have been such a successful release but surprised and puzzled that UK retail outlets are receiving no stock, and disappointed on behalf of our customers.
We are trying to work closely with Games Workshop to resolve the situation as soon as possible.
#2 – United States – Showcase Comics and Games
United States and Canada are already working under the ban on online-sales of Games Workshop products. They are still affected. Showcase Comic and Games released news of their troubles with getting the new Tau plastic-kits (and Finecast?) on Dakkadakka and their own blog.
I just got off the phone with GW. At first I thought it was a bad, and late, april fools joke. But its really happening.
They didn’t make enough Tau. They shipped it to their Retail Stores. They took orders and sold it through mailorder.
When they ship orders to FLGS, they start with the furthest away, who need 3-4 days. And they ran out.
Most stores aren’t getting anything but the Codex. My stores that has carried GW for 25 years are some of those.
Might be a week, might be 2 or 3. No one has an answer.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1) Don’t harass your local store, don’t vent and scream. Not the store’s fault, and we don’t need to relive the nightmare.
(If the store owner is venting, feel free to join in !)2) Buy your codex, plan your army. Try not to sneak down to the local GW to grab some models.
3) If you really can’t wait, then please don’t be an utter fool and show up with the models to play with at your FLGS, and throw salt in the wound.
4) Give your FLGS an order for the new product you want and be patient.
5) Forgive your local store owner if he seems a touch…angry….all weekend.
#3 – Not Enough Tau?
Tau currently deploying from Games-Workshop direct only…
It seems easy to jump to the conclusion that Games Workshop is trying to play tough again on independent stores carrying their miniatures.
And to a degree, they clearly do just that even if they “only” leave independents to bear the brunt of a cock-up in their logistics and production.
That said, word that Games Workshop simply didn’t make enough Tau miniatures for the massive demand has been out there.
Moreover, Games Workshop might simply be straining the limits of their capacity to churn out new Warhammer 40K toys.
With the new Tau releases, Games Workshop will have released a total of 21 new Warhammer 40K miniatures/kits/boxes (not even counting WFB, The Hobbit, etc..) between January and April.
In comparison,
- 2012 saw a total of 9 releases in the same period (i.e. the Crimson Fist Space Marine 25y anniversary miniature and the Space Wolves/Tyranid double-release).
- 2011 saw a total of 13 releases in this period (Furioso, Stormraven, Dark Eldar beasts and Grey Knights).
Still, Games Workshop has been playing hardball on independents recently (or always).
By default or by design, this one is almost certainly going to deny independents of yet another sells-like-hot-cakes Warhammer 40K release.
It’s not pretty.
Z.