Over the past few years, I have watched the trends in our hobby with keen interest. The past 18 months, however, have produced indicators that concern me. The basic health of the hobby is under assault from a number of directions. While some will say that change is inevitable, I believe that these changes are not in the best interest of our hobby.

The retailers who support us are definitely under siege. The Tin Soldier is gone, a store in Cincinnati has closed, Sydney Hobbies is going out, along with a number of stores in other parts of the country. There are several causes for this. While some of the reasons can be attributed to poor decisions by ownership, a more pervasive cause is the decision of gamers to not travel to the local hobby shop, choosing instead to point & click, or pick up the phone to get their supplies, While this is more convenient, it is a direct contributor to the ill-health of the retail community.

You ask, why is the health of the retailer important to me? The answer is this: our hobby is impulse driven, we see it, we buy it. The retailer gives prospective NEW members a place to see, touch and buy the products needed to enjoy the hobby. The retailer has a staff you can see and talk to in order to get information needed to enjoy the hobby. More often than not, the retailer provides us with a place to play the game. This can be the single most effective means we have to recruit new members. If you doubt the value of in-store gaming, just ask ANY member of the GDWC about gaming in Dayton between the Tin Soldier closing and the opening of The Soldiery, Dayton. To say the least, it was bleak!

What can you, a historical gamer, do to help? When you need / want to buy something, get off your duff and go on down to the store! If there is no retailer within a reasonable driving distance, and you must use other methods, use a retail outlet that has a real world storefront. Most retailers are more than happy to take your mail order, and if they are within the Great Lakes operating area, will honor the HMGS discount -- you need to ask.

The health of our retail community is important to us if we don't want to see historical gaming go the way of Fantasy gaming. This venue has been pretty much taken over by Games Workshop and the pricing for figures, rule sets, etc., has gone out of sight. There are even now, historical manufacturers whining about how we pay too little for our figures. A complaint I have NO sympathy for as I own RSM and know how much it really costs. But the signs are all there, the people who supply us with our toys are consolidating, becoming fewer. The retailers are not doing as well as they ought to be. Unless we, as gamers, support the retailers and the hobby, we should not expect to be as well off in the future as we are now!