If your Wizkids doesn't have enough op kits to go around for every store that wants them, then you have room to complain. But I don't see a problem... yet.

What he said.

That is how retail works, typically.

I don't think anyone claimed these kits were gotten by accident. They were essentially offered as incentives for large purchases from the distributor. People aren't getting rid of them because they have no use for them. Getting rid of them is the use. It's quite profitable.

Reselling items that they get favorable pricing on because of the size of their purchases is what these guys do.

All the sudden they're not supposed to because it offends you?

Oh, also the sticker. Because, you know, sticker.

Your belief in the authority of stickers is absurd.

As someone that had to buy a secondary market HOT prize kit so that my venue, which has been running events for years, could get one, I would dispute that they made it easier for tournament organizers to get the prize kits.

Before, I never had to pay anything, much less a wildly inflated price, to get a prize kit. What they did was make it easier to get the prize kit into the hands of just about anyone. Sometimes, this was at the expense of those running tournaments.

If Wizkids doesn't want retailers selling prize kits, maybe they should stop selling them to retailers.

How was the old system any harder? You registered as a venue, posted games, and got prize support. Not fool proof by any means, but at least it was verifiable that people were running events if you cared to look into it.

More than anything, it took some modicum of effort to get the prize kits. I know of a comic book store that sells clix but doesn't run games that never would have thought of becoming a venue to sell prizes. However, they get prize kits now, because it's just another thing they put in with their Diamond order.

As long as they print enough prize kits that they get to the actual venues, I don't really care how they do it. But let's not act like it's anybody but WK's responsibility to control the distribution of the kits.

*shakes booty*

if Wizkids doesn't care why should anyone here?

Thanks for the tip, I just got two and I know I won't be able to find one around here.

Are you crazy, Wizkids will NEVER go back to the old system. With the old system they had to mail out monthly prize kits at their expense, this way they make one shipment with the product and they have the stores pay for it. This way is actually making them money, why would they go back to the old system? That being said, if a store is paying for something what right do you, or anyone else have to tell them what to do with it. I can kind of see your point when HOT came out and people got shorted prize kits but thats not the case with BaTB. If your store ordered the required amount of product in the allotted time frame then they got the prize kits. If your store didn't get one then blame them. If your store is selling the prize kits then don't buy product from them, or convince them that they can make more money by holding tournaments.

I think that is the crux of the problem. By making it easy to access prize kits, legit venues are able to get a hold of them easier. But by the same token, the dodgy ones can as well.

Even back in the day when it was harder to get prize kits, I still knew a dodgy venue that ran events and would try and sell the prizes. I think he was a bit horrified when myself and a couple of mates showed up for the Starro event, and he actually had to give me the Starro instead of selling it.

The plus side of it though, is people who live in remote areas without a venue have a chance of getting the figures. Realisitically it will cost more to buy it from a dodgy venue and be less fun than competing for it, so it's really not the end of the world. Though I do agree that it's annoying.

Well you can not always rely on the location info on eBay. It can say anything you want it to say. Plus, since the set is out, you can not 100% tell if it is being resold. Maybe a venue gave out ALL prize suport at a midnight opening. I know its doubtful. But this is always going to happen, just accept it and get on with your life.

You can now complain. My Venue ordered too late & was told that kits are sold out. That's what I was told today when I called my Venue to make sure that we got B&B.

I disagree with this. If these items were 1 of each item, and came with every case, then sure, I could believe this. But the prize kits are clearly only supposed to be used with tournaments. Why else would they include a recommended tournament prize schedule with it? Why include more than one of each item? Like a person needs more than one of each ATA?

Really, your logic is silly at best. You're trying to make the misuse of tournament prizes not sound like a bad thing.

It's not surprising that the first prize kit released by a brand new owner of a game isn't as smooth as the prize kits given out by a company running the game for multiple years. What a shocker!

People have no problem getting prize kits for tB&tB, which used the same system as HoT. Maybe it wasn't totally NECA's fault your location didn't get a HoT prize kit? Have you considered the idea that if those people didn't order a HoT Prize Kit (in order to sell it online) that your store may have gotten one instead?

You know what is a wildly inflated price? The price those people are selling the kits for online! Good luck paying $150 for a complete kit. But darn WizNECA for charging $30 for theirs! That's "wildly inflated"!

How was the older system harder? You explained it yourself. You had to register as a venue and post games. Is that not harder?

You seem to like it by the sounding of your words. But I'm not here to debate which system was better. I'm here to try to strike back at those misusing prize support.

I didn't say the distribution was bad, I said that people misusing the prize support was bad.

had they ordered in time they would have gotten one. The fact that people are selling them on ebay does nothing to change that. If no one was selling your store still would not have prize support, at least this way if they want some, they can get it off ebay

I'm sorry, but I really don't see a problem with stores selling off some of the kits as long as the store has also purchased enough to support the tournaments. There are a lot of people out there (especially on these forums) who spend a lot of money supporting heroclix, and buy the bricks not to make a profit, but to complete a collection. If these people wish to then buy the prize kits, so they can be less competitive during tournaments, and give the younger/less skilled crowd the capability to win one, why not encourage that?

The issue is this: Supply and Demand.

Supply of Prize kits is low/limited, and demand is high. Everyone wants the prize lanterns, LE's, etc, but there are only 2-4 per venue to go around, so shiftier venues/online retailers that have 4-6 are selling them online for crazy prices, while some stores who hold events but are slower or didn't have the cash to shell out for a large order are shorted/shafted.

So, here's the solution, print more prize kits.

If you just make it so that any venue can order any number of prize kits, yes, it becomes very easy for the whole community to get them, but then they become pretty much worthless on the secondary market, so venues won't be encouraged to sell them, just give them away.

But that also kinda takes away any glory or excitement in winning them, if anyone can get them for free because each venue has piles of them to go around.

So, I guess its up to you which evil you choose: either have the prizes be worth something on the secondary market, and stores WILL find a way to sell them on ebay, OR everyone just gets a bunch of freebees with each set as promos, but there are really no 'prizes' to speak of, as everything is easily obtained.

I'm afraid there really is no in-between here. If you really don't like what those venues selling prizes are doing, just don't give them any of your money, maybe eventually the problem will go away.

You realize anyone pre-ordering cases can purchase the prize kits whether they run tourneys at their shop or not, right? So any smart person can see there's money to be made on a $25 prize kit when the individual pieces sell for $20+ each.

There is no "evil" here. You want evil? Go to a 3rd world country. Talk to some regimes in power (if you get that far).


As long as a store has the wherewithal to support players with awesome prizes for tournaments FIRST, then what they do with their extras is up to them to do as they see fit seeing that they have PAID for it.

Tournament scene comes first, no doubt. And I'm sorry to hear about yours Lantern73. I hope you're more the exception than the rule.

You people are assuming it is stores that have ordered extra prize kits selling these online? I was assuming these were not store owners or even tournament organizers selling the kits, but people that ordered the kits purposely to sell online for profit, taking away possible kits from stores and tournament organizers.

I work at a store and we got these on yesterday and they cost like $50 with shipping. So im not really surprised. On a side note they are as cool looking as the spoiled picture of it.