It is indeed that season once again, so if you are looking for gift inspiration, hearty recommendations, or just don’t know what to buy the miniature or gaming hobbyist in your life (including yourself; buy yourself something nice), Merry Matron Marcy is here to help with a selection of curated guides for all of your gift giving needs. I’ve assembled a team of elves (the Santa kind, not the Blood Bowl kind) to help me fill out these gift guides for your use!
Here at Goonhammer, we do occasionally receive products early to review on our site. For these gift guides, any authors speaking about items they have received promotionally will say so in their recommendation, but please keep in mind that these are not reviews: if we recommend something on this list, it is because we think you (or the special person in your life you are gifting this to!) will really appreciate it.
The Beginner
Hobby Beginners have a somewhat enviable and also unenviable spot in a gift guide like this; since they are new, you could probably hand them just about anything, but one of the most common stories you will often hear from veterans is “I wish I knew that when I was starting,” or, “I absolutely didn’t need that 500 dollar painting set up”. So, for our list, we’ve broken things down into three categories to help you out even more: Budget, Investment, and Extravagant. Budget gifts are great for little holiday get-togethers, people you don’t know that well, monetary restrictions, or any reason under the sun. Investment can be viewed as either a larger monetary investment or that you are investing in that person’s hobby time and space, and Extravagant gifts are when you really wanna splurge on something big to help that hobbyist in your life get off to a Nintendo 64 Kid level of excitement. Also, beginners are often Kids, so if you have a young hobbyist in your life and aren’t sure what to gift them, or if you want to find out if this is a hobby they want to pursue or a passing hyper fixation, we’ve got great suggestions!
Kid Gifts
Jake: My daughter is five years old, and she thinks painting miniatures is the coolest. I’m sure I have, at best, a few more years of her thinking this but in the meantime we’ve recently begun painting together and are enjoying it. A lot of models feature fragile or pointy bits, but we lucked into trying some of the unpainted D&D models from WizKids that my LGS had in stock. These are great because each one is reasonably cheap (both of the ones we’ve done so far were under $10) and the plastic they’re made out of is kind of springy – this griffon and crocodile have been repeatedly dropped on the ground and have joined her other toys in adventures, and so far they’re still in one piece. I would recommend giving them a quick spray primer before applying paint, though.
TheChirurgeon: This is an interesting one because for kids they’re often beginners and also they’re not going to ask for hobby stuff. That said, when helping my eight year-old son start his hobby journey I found the Citadel Paints + Tools Set to be a great jumping off point. It comes with a decent starter brush, clippers that work well, and an OK mouldline remover which can act as a safer alternative to a full hobby knife, and the starter kit is much more reasonably priced than the wildly overpriced tools that GW otherwise offers. The Age of Sigmar set is a fine alternative as well if the colors it comes with are more appealing.
And on the more experiential side: Take your kid to an event. This will more often than not require you and your partner doing some teamwork to make it enjoyable for everyone but it’s worth giving up some focus in order to share your hobby with them. They’re not going to be into every aspect of it and you have to be OK with them just running around at times but the hobbies we love can only survive if we’re willing to share them with that next generation.
And on that note, if you’re local to a Games Workshop/Warhammer store, their Collect, Build + Paint program is great for helping bring your kid into the hobby. They can track progress, build lists, and earn cool rewards like bits boxes, brush holders, and mini cases. But more importantly, it’s a great excuse to work with them and spend time together helping them accomplish those hobby goals.
Budget Gifts
Cronch: Dice! Almost every wargamer needs and will gladly accept more dice, and the advantage of beginner hobbyists is that they probably don’t have enough, and are busy spending their hobby budget on growing their army rather than buying accoutrements. If you know what game and faction they play you could grab them a set of faction-themed dice, like the ones that Games Workshop make, or failing that you could buy them a collection in a colour or set of colours that they like. The majority of wargames use six-sided dice (D6s) but some do use others and RPGs often use a set of dice with different numbers of sides, colloquially referred to as “poly dice”. Most local and online game stores should have some dice in stock, or you could always check out a Baron of Dice for some really nice cubes. Failing that, you should find something at a big store like Amazon.
Jake: One thing almost every gamer could benefit from is a way to organize your little bits and bobs. Dice, tokens, and cards all wind up in a chaotic pile but the Token Silo Convertible from Gamegenic (MSRP $14.99 USD) has been helping me keep various game systems bundled up in a convenient take-and-go format for a while. The lid secures well enough that I routinely transport it vertically without any of my tokens shifting from one compartment to the next, and you can use either the base or the larger playing-card-sized insert as a dice tray.
Lenoon: get ahead of the game even as a beginner by getting a useful bits box early! Piling everything on the sprue but not on the model into one undifferentiated mass does have a certain appeal, but set good habits early! Cheap jewellery making boxes from your billionaire online vendor of choice will set you back a couple of pounds, and help you organise a growing collection for kitbashes, conversions and more.
Mike BS: Army Painter Laser Line (£10) – Laser pointers aren’t just for driving your cat insane, and this particular variety projects a straight line across the battlefield. While not every game may need one, it’s the sort of thing that once you’ve seen how useful it can be, it’ll live in your bag with dice and measuring tools of choice.
TheChirurgeon: The Army Painter make a whole host of great hobby materials which act as great stocking stuffer gifts for beginners and fall into that “it’s impossible to have too many of these or get the wrong thing” category. In particular I’d recommend Woodland Tufts for adding extra details to bases ($6.99), along with Battlefield Rocks ($5.99). The Army Painter’s Wet Palette ($45) is also great for new and experienced hobbyists, and you can never have enough Green Stuff ($14) or Mixing Balls ($10).
SRM: I’ll go one further to Rob’s basing material suggestion and recommend the Army Painter basing kit ($22), which has everything a new painter would need to get their bases more than battle-ready.
Cronch: Tie-in fiction. The most obvious example of this is the Black Library offering from Games Workshop. They pump out an alarming number of books that, whilst definitely unlikely to win a Pulitzer Prize, default to at least moderately entertaining. Check out the Goonhammer articles for some recommendations from the past, but for current fare I’m going to recommend Darkoath by Chris Thursten for an insight into the lives of Chaos tribes in the Age of Sigmar, First and Only by Dan Abnett for the start of a long-running series on a Guard regiment in the 40k universe, and Horus Rising also by Dan Abnett for the Heresy-lover to learn where it all started. If your recipient isn’t into Warhammer, then several other universes such as Battletech and Warmachine also have tie-in fiction produced and available to buy.
SRM: A lot of beginner hobbyists don’t have decent tools, and you can help them out! Army Painter makes a solid set of tools great for a beginner who maybe won’t appreciate a set of God Hand clippers yet. Their hobby knife ($12) and clippers ($15) along with your plastic glue and super glue of choice will get them started with something a smidge better than the box cutters and nail clippers my friends and I used growing up.
Investment Gifts
TheChirurgeon: One of the best gifts you can give a starting painter is the gift of prolonged eyesight via a high-quality lamp. Too many painters rely on bad lighting for their work, either with the wrong tint or with not enough brightness. Neatfi makes pretty much the best options on the market for this category, and the XL Task lamps are frequently cited as the best options. They come in a ton of different cost varieties but ultimately a good lamp is worth every penny and will double as great lighting for when you want to start taking good photos of your minis.
Cronch: Vouchers. Really this could go in any section, dependent on budget, but I’m putting it here. Getting into wargaming can be an expensive endeavour, with a potentially large outlay for rules and enough models for an army, alongside needing to build up a supply of hobby supplies like paint and brushes. New wargamers also tend to be less predictable than a caffeinated butterfly, flitting back and forth between ideas, purchasing priorities, and sometimes even armies. Buying your loved one a voucher can offload the risk of you choosing something that doesn’t thrill them, leaving the final decision up to them whilst still showing that you’re invested in their newfound hobby, and if you choose a hobby retailer like Element Games then they’ll have plenty of choice. £50, or your local currency equivalent, should be enough for your recipient to grab themselves a relevant book or unit for their project, plus a couple of paints, brushes or other useful things.
TheChirurgeon: Miniature cases are another good shout here. While some solutions require really detailed things like laser-cut outlines, there are a ton of more modular solutions, from Games Workshop’s functional (but overpriced) cases to Tablewar’s Rack and tower cases to Army-Case’s modular options. A decent size case will cost you between one and three hundred dollars depending on size and complexity, but no one has ever complained about having more transport options for their models. For the best results, get something sized to fit in an overhead storage compartment on a plane. If you know more about your recipient’s army you can go with something more custom – like the KR solutions – but you may want to just settle for a gift voucher there.
Cronch: A trip to Warhammer World. If your recipient is a fan of Games Workshop games, a first-time trip to the home of Warhammer is a great way to get their creative juices flowing and show them the peak of the hobby. The venue has space to book tables if you want to play there (including on some cool 3d-sculpted boards if you so desire), eat and drink in the themed Bugman’s Bar, and shop for the entire Warhammer range including some WHW exclusives. For fans though, the real attraction will be the exhibition (£8.50/ticket) – four halls full of dioramas, as well as most of the box-art miniatures painted by the extremely talented ‘Eavy Metal team. I’ve never failed to come out with a new army idea or two. There isn’t really a US equivalent to this, but the closest you’re likely to get is buying someone a ticket to the Grand Narrative event in Atlanta (Usually around $300 USD).
Cronch: Kill Team Starter Set. The new Kill Team starter is a great product. Affordably-priced, it’s got two ready-to-go teams, quick start rules and a fantastic set of printed, punch-out MDF scenery. This is a starter you could really easily have built in an hour, ready to play between courses of Christmas dinner.
Extravagant Gifts
TheChirurgeon: Terrain is one of those things that can get really expensive really quick and that people often neglect. If the person you’re buying for has the room to have their own table or set-up, then some good terrain kits will always be appreciated. What constitutes good will vary by game system – for the more competitive Warhammer 40k I’d recommend the Bandua Competitive 40k terrain set (around $135). It’s reasonably priced and looks good and while I’d like to recommend official Games Workshop terrain here they aren’t actually selling that at the moment but if you want to go that route, try and get multiple copies of the Sanctum Administratus set, a modular kit which can be used to build a variety of buildings. If your beginner is looking for small games, the Boarding Actions boxed set is a solid investment as well.
Cronch: Warhammer Age of Sigmar Ultimate Starter Set – has your loved one expressed an interest in the fantasy world of Age of Sigmar? Drop them in at the deep end with the top tier of the current AoS starter offering. It comes with decent-sized forces of both Skaven and Stormcast Eternals, along with a board, some scenery, and the Fire and Jade book. Unlike previous editions’ offerings, this also lets the recipient jump right in with the Spearhead game mode, containing everything you need to enjoy this smaller scale clash.
Cronch: Warhammer 40,000 Ultimate Starter Set – pretty much the exact same concept as above, except for the grimdark futurescape of Warhammer 40k rather than the fantasy Age of Sigmar setting. Two forces for the Combat Patrol game mode, that can be expanded into larger armies assuming your loved one yearns for Tyranids or Space Marines.
This article is part of a larger series of our 2024 Gift Guides! For more guides, click this link. Have any questions or feedback? Drop us a note in the comments below or email us at contact@goonhammer.com.
