Hey guys. I'm an American based in Singapore looking to start a group in the area, and I'm having some trouble finding other "Hobbits". What have people done to help recruit new blood where they are? Are people even recruiting new blood? I was having a conversation with a game store owner, and he opined that even though he stocked the game, he would feel unfomfortable pushing a game GW only ambivelantly supports. How can one explain the state of the game to new players honestly without scaring them away? And where do people go to recruit?

Sorry for the rambly post-any and all advice is very much appreciated!

Hi,
For starters tell the store owner he should not feel uncomfortable pushing SBG! There is nothing ambivalent about GWs support for the game in fact quite the opposite. SBG now has a full time dedicated Middle Earth team who are passionate about what they do.

As for recruiting players I'll leave that for the gamers here to help you with.

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I do not recruit. GW almost stopped all support for the lotr/hobbit line as they discontinued many products such as miniatures and source books, all without warning or to give games a chance to purchase them before they went out of stock. They did it once, they can do it again.

I disagree with chiefhugh's assessment of things. Sure GW did also cut the IP once but they extended the license for another 4 years and have given it a dedicated team to support it till 2020 or so. And even if they do stop supporting it what will it matter? The models can be found on ebay, the rules can be barrowed or lent around and proxies for a lot of armies can be contrived very easily.

Now, for recruiting I think the number one thing is to make sure that people know there is a player base around that wants to play. The manager doesn't need to push the game so much a mention that there are people who play it if anyone asks about it. Demos are a great way to show off the system if you have the models and terrain for it. In store displays are what got me into the game back in the day so they might be something to try too. Most people I know play this game because they like the Lord of the Rings and Middle Earth in general quite a bit. That's the thing to bank on in the long run because it is what will keep people playing even in small numbers.

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