MGibster
Legend
At the beginning of 2023 I made two decisions. The first was that I was going to put a dent in the number of unpainted miniatuers I had and the second was that I was going to keep track of my gaming expenditures for 2023. While there's still a month left, I thought it was late enough in the year to go over how much I've spent. I'm posting this because I think it might be mildly interesting to other people, and I hope it isn't construed as any kind of stealth brag. At this point in my life I have plenty of disposable income.
One of the things I wanted to do was figure out where my money was actually going towards. I know I spent a lot on miniatures from 2020-2021 because of COVID, but I wasn't sure exactly how much. How much do I actually spend on hobby supplies or RPGs? I should probably have some idea, right? Just to be a responsible adult.
I've divided my spending into three categories.
Paints/Hobby Supply Expenditures in 2023 - $315.01
The largest single purchase I made in this category was on August 17 when I spent approximately $44 on a bunch of Army Painter Speed Paints. But it includes things like airbrush thinner, some dental cleaning supplies I use to clean my airbrush, and some miscellaneous tools that I simply can't remember what they were specifically. I consider these to be the boring part of the hobby, but necessary if I want to continue painting. I didn't purchase a whole lot because I have plenty of paints and supplies from previous years. I probably could have gotten buy without spending anything on paints had I really wanted to. As it is, I have multiple bottles of some colors because I'd forgotten I already had one at home.
Role Playing Games in 2023 - $304.37
My roleplaying purchases really slowed down since COVID. Part of my regular group moved to Europe this year, and the rest of us just aren't playing as often. I think my days of having a regular group might be coming to an end. My single largest purchast was a Fallout RPG bundle directly from Modiphius for $109. We played an enjoyable campaign and we'll likely play another one. I'm hoping to run some more campaigns this upcoming 2024.
Miniatures in 2023 - $1,300
By a country mile, I spent most of my gaming money on miniatures with a little half of that being Games Workshop products. My single largest purchase was the Levithan boxed set for Warhammer 40k. My second largest purchase was the gargantuan red dragon from WizKids (which I still haven't painted.) $220 of that was just spent shortly before posting this with Modiphius. Their Liberty Prime model is back in stock and I couldn't refuse purchasing it. The funny thing is that I don't think I bought a whole lot of miniatures in the grand scheme of things. I just held off on buying so much because my New Year's resolution last year was to paint what I had. Mostly I bought things that were on sale for prices that were too good. The aformentioned red dragon was less than $200 and usually retailed for more than $400.
So at the end of this little experiment, I don't really regret the money I spent. I spend far more time in my hobbies in solitude painting than I actually do playing and this is reflected in my spending habits. I'm probably going to continue my resultion in 2024 to paint what I have rather than buying a lot of new miniatures. I'm probably going to pivot away from Games Workshop for a bit because I have two complete armies and am in no hurry finishing what I have remaining.
One of the things I wanted to do was figure out where my money was actually going towards. I know I spent a lot on miniatures from 2020-2021 because of COVID, but I wasn't sure exactly how much. How much do I actually spend on hobby supplies or RPGs? I should probably have some idea, right? Just to be a responsible adult.
I've divided my spending into three categories.
- Books - This will include all roleplaying games and includes PDFS.
- Miniatures - Anything from Games Workshop, Reaper Miniatures, and I would have inlcuded miniatures heavy board games like Zombicide had I bought any.
- Paints/Hobby Supplies - This was paint (duh) as well as glue, basing materials, or anything related to supporting my hobby.
Paints/Hobby Supply Expenditures in 2023 - $315.01
The largest single purchase I made in this category was on August 17 when I spent approximately $44 on a bunch of Army Painter Speed Paints. But it includes things like airbrush thinner, some dental cleaning supplies I use to clean my airbrush, and some miscellaneous tools that I simply can't remember what they were specifically. I consider these to be the boring part of the hobby, but necessary if I want to continue painting. I didn't purchase a whole lot because I have plenty of paints and supplies from previous years. I probably could have gotten buy without spending anything on paints had I really wanted to. As it is, I have multiple bottles of some colors because I'd forgotten I already had one at home.
Role Playing Games in 2023 - $304.37
My roleplaying purchases really slowed down since COVID. Part of my regular group moved to Europe this year, and the rest of us just aren't playing as often. I think my days of having a regular group might be coming to an end. My single largest purchast was a Fallout RPG bundle directly from Modiphius for $109. We played an enjoyable campaign and we'll likely play another one. I'm hoping to run some more campaigns this upcoming 2024.
Miniatures in 2023 - $1,300
By a country mile, I spent most of my gaming money on miniatures with a little half of that being Games Workshop products. My single largest purchase was the Levithan boxed set for Warhammer 40k. My second largest purchase was the gargantuan red dragon from WizKids (which I still haven't painted.) $220 of that was just spent shortly before posting this with Modiphius. Their Liberty Prime model is back in stock and I couldn't refuse purchasing it. The funny thing is that I don't think I bought a whole lot of miniatures in the grand scheme of things. I just held off on buying so much because my New Year's resolution last year was to paint what I had. Mostly I bought things that were on sale for prices that were too good. The aformentioned red dragon was less than $200 and usually retailed for more than $400.
So at the end of this little experiment, I don't really regret the money I spent. I spend far more time in my hobbies in solitude painting than I actually do playing and this is reflected in my spending habits. I'm probably going to continue my resultion in 2024 to paint what I have rather than buying a lot of new miniatures. I'm probably going to pivot away from Games Workshop for a bit because I have two complete armies and am in no hurry finishing what I have remaining.