"Which comes first? Figures or rules?" Topic

So. Which comes first?
Figures?
Rules?
An interest in the period?

As I've said here, far too often lately, I was gifted a ton of 28mm SYW Austrian Hungarian Grenz and Hussars.
We already play Age of Reason in 15mm. But the hot "new" set is Honours of War.

I was a total fan of the Lord of the Rings books, long before the movies came out. But I didn't go in for any gaming until Games Workshop started coming out with large releases of BOTH figures and rules.
Likewise, someone here is interested in Robin Hood. He didn't say if he has rules yet, but is asking about figures.

No wrong answers, of course. Only a cur or scalawag or cad would argue with why someone went that way.

I've been building AWI armies for almost 40 years, and I've yet to find rules I like. PLEASE DO NOT SUGGEST your favorite set. I've probably already tried it, and don't like it. 😄
That's not what this poll is about.
By the way, the Hessians and Brunswick troops are a ready made army to oppose the above.

For my money (literally), it's always figures first.

It's been all three for me. Usually the history draws me in and then I find figures and then I buy rules and then I make up my own rules. Occasionally some eye candy figure does the trick and then I have armies and rules soon after. Not sure if rules have started a project….no, wait, Tactica got me into 28mm ancients 30 years ago, so it's all three. Usually history first though.

I had an interest in a period, which led me to look for figures I liked, and then I looked for rules to base the figs and play the period.

Figures first – love to paint – I still have some figs that I have no rules for (so I use them as stand-ins for other rule sets) – although to like the figs you need at least a little appreciation of the history – for example, Perry makes a whole line of very nice figs for the Carlist War, which I know nothing about except (I think) it happened in Spain – hence I have done no Carlist figs

Figs! If they're nice enough and a period I'm into, I can find some rules.

Good question. I would think the answer varies but for me, the figs.

Interest in period

Resources

Then Figures

Finally rules

Interest in period / figures kind of vie for the number one spot.

Rules – not so much, I sometimes get new rules and think "do I already have the figures for this?" I already had some figures when I bought Leviathan, and that did need to be backed up with figure purchases that tied in with the rules.

I will add one more choice, what your friends are playing. If one or more of my weekly group puts on a game of something that I enjoy, I am in. Case in point. A few years ago, there was a game of ACW in 28mm. I have ACW in 15mm. I jumped in.

Last year I bought a Hail Caesar starter set. So now I have EIR and Celts….

I have bought figures because I like them. I pick up rules all the time to check them out.

So for me the answer is all of them can start on the road to ruin.

Interest in the period/genre, first. Sometimes a game sparked that interest, usually it was reading about it. From there I look around and it's usually rules first, so I know how many figures, vehicles, etc, I'll need. (And I end up buying more than I planned, anyway.)

Interest in the period or genre/setting first. Figures second. Rules last.

As a collector without access to a "local club", it is the interest in the period/genre first. Then collecting the figures. Rules are definitely last for me as well.

For me, it has been then figures. Then been burned more than once as I can't find any rules I like.

* All of the above.

With different periods, each one has had a turn leading the way.

Then there were the magnificent GW box sets from the late 80s that did all at once! Blood Bowl, Space Hulk, Dark Future, Space Marine, Man O' War. (OK, I had already done Car Wars since 1981 with paper models…)