UK Scapers (The life and times of RichardD)

[RichardD]

I've only played the first two scenarios; both are really easy wins for the heroes (unless played very incompetantly). Perhaps the third scenario is just there to even things up a bit.

How can you say "smaller than expected"? Q10's big, Kra-Ne-Um's big, and the hive is HUGE (it even says so on its card).

The main difference between my two SOTM Drakes was their direction and degree of lean. All of my ROTV Drakes lean too - do you think he has a drink problem?

[DingoDarkly]

Both my Drakes lean aswell - too much if you ask me. Also I think the reason I think some of the figures look smaller than expected was because Q9 has the shoulder pads which make him looker bigger than he actually is. Seeing pictures on the net and seeing the figures in real-life, as it were, are two different things.

And RD I only just noticed your 'new arrival' post because I had posted a post at the same time. Congratulations!

[skullsgood]

Jandar I, too, have fallen foul of HM Custom's vigilance, and I must agree that the 13 quid administration charge is pretty steep.

Nice to see that UK Scapers can access the new Hasbro site - does this herald the much-awaited expansion of the range in the UK, or just a tie-in with the new Marvel incarnation?

[RichardD]

I'd like to think that it was something to do with my complaining that the HasbroUk Heroscape site "hijacked" any attempt to view the main US site, which was pointless once HasbroUK decided to stop selling Heroscape.

But I suspect it's more to do with the simple decision to stop selling Heroscape.

My understanding o the boardgames business is that HasbroUK are wholly owned by Hasbro, but they are run as an independant company (most multinationals run their local offshoots in a similar way). Decisions about which product lines to stock, who to sell to, and how to market are left almost entirely to the local company. HasbroUK has the "first pick" of anything produced by Hasbro, and if they want to carry the product, no other distributor will be able to carry it; selling the product then becomes the responsibility of HasbroUK.

Now when HS first came out, HasbroUK passed; they weren't interested. After initial reports were good, they said "OK, we'll try it" - but chose not to distibute the boosters (perhaps in consultation with their usual customers, TRU, Argos, Woolies et cetera; Hasbro UK tends not to be interested in the small volumes of sales provided by selling direct to independant toyshops, save with core products like Monopoly).

After some pressure, they decided to try the boosters, but by sticking them on a website nobody ever uses, this route was doomed to failure; they still weren't interested in selling even the boosters direct to independant hobby shops.

With Argos finding it impossible to shift the game (the box screams "8 year old!"; the HasbroUK marketting department's big push being a website nobody uses - as an aside, they tend to only get active with advertisements and press releases for core product like Monopoly), I think that there might have been some unhappiness between the two (often a big retailer will expect the manufacturer to take the product back if it's not selling, or to discount the wholesale price, or at least mount an advertising and promotion push). Decision probably made by Argos to go nowhere near Marvel or SOTM (assuming that they were offered either).

HasbroUK seeing the boosters piled up in their warehouse going nowhere decide that they've had enough of Heroscape too - however successful it is in the USA, the UK market isn't interested (actually, I think that we would have been; it just needed to be marketted *properly*). Seeing an opportunity, they sold all remaining stock to a company called Esdevium, and told Hasbro that HasbroUK weren't going to stock the Heroscape line in future.

Esdevium are wholesalers - they buy games direct from the manufacturers, and supply independant stores and businesses with games from the USA, Germany et cetera. They buy in bulk, to get discounts from the manufacturer (though it's not Argos-level bulk), allowing the games shops to buy product cheaper than if the games shop tried to deal direct with the manufacturer (who really cannot be bothered to supply someone who wants just 6 copies of a title).

Esdevium were aware of a certain level of demand for Heroscape boosters - certainly by the summer of 2007 - as Heroscape had sold in the UK to a lot of people, often internet-savvy gamers - who were becomong aware that there was more to the game than simply the ROTV set. But prior to the summer, any approach to Hasbro itself would have been rebuffed - the rights to distribute the Heroscape line lay with HasbroUK. However, once HasbroUK decided that Heroscape wasn't working for them, the door is potential open to Esdevium.

Now from this point on, there are two possible ways forward. Esdevium do a quick turnover of the HasbroUK wvae 1 boosters to the hobby games shops, and runs for the hills. possible. Or they organize a proper deal with HasbroUS (they already handle several other Hasbro/WOTC products, and have done for many years - the Avalon Hill line of Hasbro games from the late-nineties were never handled by HasbroUK as they were perceived as minority-interest games, so Esdevium was allowed to buy them in and distribute them to UK games shops). The hints we have from emails by Esdevium suggests that they've done a proper deal; that unlike HasbroUK, they are aware that Heroscape is sold in waves, they think that their client shops are used to selling such an item to knowledgable customers who want such an item (as they have experience with the Clix games, WOTCH collectable games, et cetera) and we might see proper amounts of Heroscape.

The biggest worry (expressed to me by a friend who owns an independant games shop, and who has seen this sort of thing happen before) is that Argos have already poisoned the chalice; that by selling Master Sets off for less than a tenner a piece, it will prove hard (if not impossible) to sell boosters at a tenner each. My additional worry is that the only boosters we have available on the shelves are wave 1 - which have been available from the US, and sporadically in the UK, for so long that everyone who wants it might have already got it, and sales will be poor - leading to no more boosters either. They might be better jumping right in with wave 7, then counting backwards. The best thing that we can do to prevent this from happening is to plug the local games shops as often as possible if we know that people are looking for boosters and will be happy with wave 1.

[skullsgood]

I agree - bring more folks into the game, then they will buy Wave 1.

Come to think of it, I may well purchase a booster of Romans for a friend of mine; he has no real interest in the game, but likes men in skirts.

As I said in an earlier post, Wargames Workshop in Cranfield recently brought in Wave 1 and the first giant heroes set, but if no one buys them, Carl is unlikely to bring in more.

[RichardD]

I like the Foresaken Waters battlefield (from the ROTV rulebook) as a two-player map; it has water, height and variety. With two ROTV sets, Wellsrpings of Obsession is prety reasonable for up to four players at once. And of course, The World allows you to host three games simultaneously, but you need lots of space (and sets)!

[Ricky007]

http://www.essentialboardgames.co.uk...ape&mod=search

They've got the Fields of Valor, so as RD says, they probably will be working backwards. Interesting. Might get the Heroes.

[dragonfall5]

According to the forums on an excellent website I frequent - Boardgamegeek.com - the discount chain TK Maxx has Wave 1 boosters for £4 a pop.

From what I gather only a few of their stores have these - so happy hunting!

[skullsgood]

That's a big leap, Ricky: one to seven, but quite promising nevertheless.

If you're going to take the heroes, you may as well pick up the vampire pack, too - gotta love the Rechets' Lethal Sting.

[RichardD]

Dragonfall5, Deathjester and Maccamac have all previously requested one. Skullsgood has got one, but I'll give him another to use as a prize for the next tourney. Jandar's Hope has also got one as far as I know.

I have just managed to get six, so with the four already promised, and one for me, that means I have exactly one spare.

Who wants it? If you have to ask what it is, you don't want it badly enough to get it! ANd it's STRICTLY first come, first served on this last one; anyone who misses out will just have to make Skulls' next tourney and make sure that they win the darned thing.

I'll need postal addresses for the four chaps named in the first paragraph; any contributions towards postage costs gratefully received. Finally, I'll be most dischuffed if anyone tries to make a killing on Ebay with it (if I wanted them to go to the highest bidder, I'd be auctioning them myself; but I was able to get them at least partly because we're a Heroscape community, not a bunch of wide-boy spivs trying to get the most for ourselves).

[DingoDarkly]

Good to see Wave 7 hitting Uk shores in some form, and they have Marvelscape for £26.99 - tempting.

[skullsgood]

Well done Richard, and thanks.

I should know, within the next 24 hours, if the December tourney will take place. If not, I'll squirrel-away the little gem for one in the new year.

Got my SotM today - pretty! Hopefully, I'll get to give it a test drive before the week is out.