My Experience Playing in a Shop for the First time

Guardians sheltering from a Tau gun line.

This weekend I played my first game (40k, AOS, or otherwise) in a hobby shop. I have always had an aversion to spending time in a shop unless I was there to make a purchase or to browse, and I think these feelings come from bad encounters I have had in GW stores. This store, however, was an independent game store in my city. My usual gripe is that GW staff can be fairly aggressive at times, and I know that this is a stereotype and lot's of people have good experiences at their local GW, but I haven't had those experiences.

Jet bikes rushing up the center.

Because of this, I have been put off of meeting new players in my area and have reduced my opportunities to game. Generally, when I become interested in a game, I need to convince a critical mass of my friends to get invested, and then we all play together. The problem here is that we all approach the hobby with different intensities, and someone like me (serial batch painter and terrain builder) wants to spend more time playing than others do. I also have a habit of dipping into a number of systems, and I don't expect all of my friends to invest their time and money into every game that I want to learn. A friend of mine wanted to play on a 6x4 table, which neither of us have, so we booked a time slot at our LGS.

Tau advancing methodically.

Because of Covid, there were a few precautions around the game, but they were fine. We showed up wearing masks, and were directed to our table. They have already put down a mat for us, and there was a crate of terrain on the tabletop. We set up, played our game, put the terrain back and rolled up the mat (so they could be quarantined before re-use), and left. During our 3 hours in the store, nobody hassled us. 2 or 3 shoppers came by the table and asked how the game was going, which was great. A few people picked sides (Go Eldar! or Go Tau!) or they watched from afar. The atmosphere was quite pleasant. The store manager also came by for a minute and watched us roll a few dice.

Eldrad Blasting the Tau HQ with psychic abilities.

What blew me away the most was that we didn't have to pay anything. We weren't renting the table, we were just using it. There were no expectations about making purchases, and they didn't ask if our GW product was purchased at their store. I know that in the UK and Australia, gaming clubs are a common thing, where there are tables and terrain available for community members to use, but we were inside of a business! I felt pretty guilty, and so I did a bit of shopping after the game was done (twist my rubber arm...), but I can't say how much I appreciated the attitude of this store. My friend who brought me was a regular there, and he told me about tournaments, escalation leagues, narrative campaigns, and Facebook groups for people who spent time in the store.

Stealthsuits and a fractured Fire warrior team menacing a distand Guardian troop.

This is an aspect of the hobby that has completely passed me by for almost 20 years. Now that I know it exists, I feel like I need to get involved. I wonder how many people in the hobby are like me, and weren't aware of the social aspect of the game, or have no access to it. I know some people like to hobby alone or in small groups, or maybe their local store isn't as cool as mine. I can't get enough hobby in my life, and this is one way for me to access more like-minded and motivated people who want to play regularly.

Jet bikes and a Dire Avenger Exarch about to meet their maker.