"Is collecting different than accumulating?" Topic

Given the resounding zero that most wargamers on TMP gave as their answer to whether collecting has in drawing them to the hobby, I wonder whether there is a difference between collecting and accumulating to wargamers.

In my view, collecting and accumulating are the same thing. One of the great joy, to me, is to buy, collect and paint an entire army. It appears that that is very small in importance to TMP. I can't imagine liking miniatures if I wasn't going to collect and paint them. I wouldn't be happy looking at the great eye candy photos online. I need to build them. Thus, the answer greatly surprised me.

They only thing I could come up with is that maybe wargamers have a separate definitions for accumulating and collecting, with the word "collecting" having a negative connotation.

Collecting to me means that a given theme is purchased and hunted from end to end (e.g. all different Ogre figures or female dwarves) where as accumulating means collecting random or incomplete selections as the whim takes you.

To make it more complex – I horde, collect and accumulate.

Andrew
kings-sleep.blogspot.com

I've never collected miniatures. I've just bought them as they were needed.

I do seem to have accumulated an awful lot of them over the years though…

I'm an accumulator, not a collector! I'll buy stuff to allow me to game specific actions, or because they're cool. Never just to say "I've got 'em ALL".

I think the poll got a skewed result because many folks thought that collecting was secondary to actually gaming. A lot of people would rather play the games than collect and paint so they said the actual act of collecting was not important. It is just a means to an end.

To me, building an army is the most enjoyable part, but I buy what I like; I won't buy miniatures to complete the set/collection.
To me, a collector does just that. Maybe a definition would have helped the poll.

Collecting is the painted figures, accumlating is the unpainted stuff. As to what defines a collection, to me it is based on when a person is happy with a particular army. As well as wargaming, I collect model aircraft, there the goal is to have a representation of a type.

Yes, collectors get one of every figure. I get hundreds of the same figure because I like my guys to look smart on the tabletop;-)

I buy the stuff I need to do particular units or orbats, I don't think that counts as 'collecting', although I've got a ton of stuff.

Is a collector is a "completist" then.

Yeah,

A collector is the guy that wants one of everything. Wargamers are people whose eyes are more ambitious than their paint brush.

mjc

The poll asked whether it drew me into the hobby. It did not. I assumed that it was aimed at those who collected figures then wanted to do something with them.

I'm still not a 'collector' in any real sense: I buy figures that I think I'll be able to use in a game; I don't buy games because I have a collection of figures and nothing to use them for…

According to my wife they are the exact same thing. I have been called a pack rat because I have a comics collection (neatly bagged and boxed) and my miniatures stuff.

Of course I tend to disagree with her stance on that…

I consider myself a collector, painter and gamer. The things I collect are very rare and/or unreleased models. I paint anything that grabs my interest at a given time. And I game with whatever sounds like fun at the time. I have thousands of painted models but the same SYW troops are called to action most of the time.

So I don't think a collector has to be defined as someone who wants one of everything – just someone whose main motivation of purchasing a figure is to own it, not to paint/game with it.

Now collecting isn't what drew me to the hobby – it is a facet that has developed over the years.

I don't hold collecting to have a negative connotation, but I see it as being what I did with my stamp collections as a kid; systematically aquiring, organizing, and displaying concrete artifacts with an aim to extensively explore particular themes.

I accumulate figures and organize armies so I can play wargames. I do not care if I have an example of each and every 1:144 T-34 miniature produced. I would not even be particularly pleased if I did. I care that I have enough copies of the right models to field a reasonable armoured unit. I don't see that as collecting.

"Hi, I'm Norscaman and I horde miniatures."

I love buying miniatures. I don't think that collectors are as described here. My father, for example, collects important antiques, but would never hope to have 'one of every' anything. He collects mangificent examples of early New England furniture. Interestingly enough, his favorites are painted furniture from middle class colonials rather than, as he puts it "brown furniture from Boston"; i.e. your mahoganny, cherry, walnut etc.

I am the same way. I see miniatures and have to have them. For example, when Ilyad went out of business, I bought up Vorag's barbarians like, well, they were going out of business. I had two Viragos and was only willing to sell one when I wanted money to buy some new fabulous miniatures from Hell Dorado. I bought the entire Sarasin faction for the ebay price of one Virago. So, to me, the collector also knows when to sell and for what price; which is also fun.

But, considering that if I painted in earnest for the forseeable future, it would be difficult to see how I would paint everything I own let alone play with it, my wife would counter that I horde miniatures. I neither collect nor accumulate for play; I horde, pure and simple. That I have devised a role playing and wargaming universe that incorporates all of the miniatures that I love is completely inconsequential and really just a front for an addicition.

But, I nevertheless do play with my miniatures twice a month on game nights. They are my favorite 8-12 hours of the month other Dad-Saturdays with my daughters.

Collecting isn't negative-but "collectable" IS--it means selling figures in random packs with the "collector" desperately hoping to finally get that artificially created rarity.As soon as anything is described as "collectable"-trouble! Collecting however makes it sound as if you are into serious grown-up things like paintings or antiques,rather than just "buying lots of stuff".

Collecting is what I think I do. Example: I accumulate nice miniatures from around the world.

Accumulating is what my lovely bride thinks I do. Example: You're accumulating a lot of stuff in your room.

Collecting involves getting every variation of a particular piece. I have read about 54mm guys who want a particular figure because it has a mold stamp on the bottom of the base since the same figure was orginally cast in several different molds. Or buying a different version of the same vehicle because the tracks now come in black, rather than brown plastic. Or even kit collectors who buy a kit because of variations in box art.

Collecting also seems to have an undercurrent of investing. I got this $1 USD figure and he is now worth $5 USD aspect to it.

I buy my wargame army to admire and sometimes even game with. Non-prototype variations don't matter and I don't care if the value of the figures and tanks goes up or down. My heirs will, but I don't.

Mike "Bunkermeister" Creek
bunkermeister.blogspot.com

No, I think folks are too narrow in their view of 'collecting'. I collect stamps. I don't want one of every stamp produced from every nation that ever printed any. Even of the themes that interest me, I don't want one of everything.

Same for figures. Yeah, I collect (and accumulate) them. But I don't want every female rogue ever made, just the ones that are attractive to me. I don't want every Tom Meier sculpt; some are of absolutely no interest to me. But if I could find another swan ship at a reasonable price, I might grab a second.

Collecting to me implied "this one is rare, this one is common, this is a limited edition piece, this one is a one of a kind sculpt I commissioned. . . " So, I am not into collecting – but I do like having figures to paint – and I have loads of them right now to paint and more on the way. Unfortunately, I will probably never paint all of them in my lifetime (what with new Perry Nappies being released, more FoW to build, the list goes on and on!). So, I am not into collecting, accumulating perhaps, but collecting to me is a different thing – like baseball cards or pottery or statues or artist prints.

If you have more miniatures than you can paint in your lifetime you are a collector.

Collecting describes anyone who buys more miniatures than they will ever use.

If what Leadlair says is true, then I'm a collector.
And I keep collecting more and more.
Mostly old fantasy miniatures, and hardly paint one now and then.

When I game, I mostly use my historical miniatures, of which I also have enough to be called a collector.

Does that make me two collectors?

I love collecting an army and watching it grow as I paint it unit by unit. The only thing I am accumulating is body fat…..

nycjadie 23 Feb 2009 11:30 a.m. PST
Given the resounding zero that most wargamers on TMP gave as their answer to whether collecting has in drawing them to the hobby, I wonder whether there is a difference between collecting and accumulating to wargamers.

Ipropose a new Board for discussions regarding Collections/Accumulations. We'll call it the CA Board!
Clang! Clang!