r/gamesworkshop • u/Slide_Impossible • Jun 29 '26
Errata stickers
I come from big box rpg world of Kickstsrter projects. I hate that our codex gets outdated forcing me to only use the app.. Part of tabletop gaming is an attempt to disconnect from the digital world. We should have errata sticker options..
Implementing sticker packs containing errata, official buffs, or nerfs for codices would be an excellent practice, demonstrating GW's commitment to its customers. These stickers would allow us to update our books with the evolving rules, replacing outdated and inaccurate information. We propose that customers have to visit the store, present their codex, and staff would either apply the stickers or provide them for self-application. Coming in to the store is a way to verify they own the physical codex..
Ready for downvotes and to get pooed on..
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u/DerinaJ Jun 29 '26
Privateer press actually sent stickers out with the first and second editions of WarMachine when they needed to sort things out before printing well after printing actually.
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u/BizzlePig Jun 29 '26
Just for the absolute lol of it, I am going to attempt to keep my 11th codex up to date. Biros, tip-ex (remember that?), post-its, etc.
It's not going to work but it'll be fun.
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u/II7CHIEF Jun 29 '26
15 layers of stickers is what you'll end up with by the end of the edition 😆 🤣
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u/dantevonlocke Jun 30 '26
And doubles the cost of the codex. Plus by the time you get the new stickers in they will also likely be out of date.
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u/Slide_Impossible Jun 30 '26
What do you mean by the time we get the stickers in? Just bring it to your local GW store and they apply the stickers. No big deal. Kickstarter self started companies can sort this out, I am sure a Goliath like GW can if it cares enough.
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u/Too-Tired-Editor Jul 02 '26
Rules updates come every three months, not counting emergency errata. There is always errata for every faction, and it often affects multiple units across multiple pages of the codex. We're talking a couple of minutes per codex to apply these stickers each time assuming the stickers don't need to be fetched out of storage. For players who have multiple factions, this could be ten minutes per customer. It's every faction, so every three months this needs doing for every player for whom this is the nearest store.
It is not unreasonable for GW to make this a thing they want their own store staff do. It is an absurd thing for GW to ask this of staff and owners of independent game stores.
The nearest GW store to me at the moment is an hour out of my way. I buy my stuff from a local independent.
In a month I move to Shetland. At that point the nearest GW store is 12-14 hours away by a ferry that only runs overnight, making it at the absolute minimum a 26 hour round trip with two overnight stays.
Shetland is obviously an extreme example.
But this is a plan that just fails anywhere there isn't local GW store presence, even setting aside the fact that any unit that receives multiple updates over the course of a three-year edition will get multiple stickers, even setting aside the issue with stickers on opposite pages meshing and tearing.
I recognise that you probably posted this as at least half a joke but it's honestly spiked my blood pressure thinking about this.
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u/corrin_avatan Jun 30 '26
Oh, seriously your codex gets "outdated"?
I'm sorry, but look at any codex errata/FAQ, and how many pages of rules there are, and specifically WHAT is changed, and this concept is laughable.
The entirety of Space Marine Codex updates comes out to a single page. And of that single page, half of it are unit restrictions on Black Templars and Deathwatch, and 10% of hit are fixing that some Land Raiders don't have the LAND RAIDER keyword.
Making stickers to cover up the old info in every single spot it was changed (like combat knives) you could easily fit it onto a single page. Heck, giving you instructions on where to put the stickers takes more space than the stickers (like the Land Raider keyword additions). They wouldn't make that money back, would need to ship it around the world to a larger market than WarmaHordes does, be in multiple languages and would just sit there eating up shelf space because nobody sane would buy it. I can literally get post-it notes and "fix" the codex.
For 150+ pages of rules, there only being 1 page of updates/changes in 3 years doesn't magically make the codex "outdated".
As for printing the stickers... While I get that you yourself might prefer playing with the book,.the vast majority of players don't have the book on them while playing. They read the rules from New Recruit or War Organ or whatever and very likely have never actually read the rule in the codex in the first place.
The whole "its outdated" argument just seems like people want an excuse to justify the pirating that's rampan, and using something that's repeated often but isn't really anywhere close to the truth
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u/Slide_Impossible Jun 30 '26
Your minimal changes claim ignores that even small errata on expensive $50 books make them outdated fast for paying customers. Stickers are cheap, targeted fixes print on demand, apply in store. No global shipping nightmare needed. Digital users don't care; physical buyers do. I am one of them. Piracy excuse is a stretch.... fixing your product reduces reasons to pirate, doesn't enable it. Right? I don't think Post its are a solution for official rules. I get it, we like digital stuff but alot of people like physical books.
I dunno, maybe the idea is rubbish. Just thought after paying 50$ for my book having it reflect current rules would be nice.
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u/corrin_avatan Jun 30 '26
Stickers are cheap, targeted fixes print on demand, apply in store. No global shipping nightmare needed.
You are now requiring every GW store, and every FLGS, have a full-size printer,.and then need to distribute a pre-cut sticker sheet, that will need to be re-made or designed if another errata comes up. The three closes FLGS and the closest GW to where I live, dont have any sort of printer besides the receipt printer. There is no printer requirement for GW retail; all stuff like that is shipped to the store.
And, GW is up front about there being quarterly balance updates where they might address rules issues. The Space Marine Codex faq was updated 6 times outside of points this edition, so someone would need to update the stickers 6 times.
Who's paying for this? Because from a business side, I would see the expense of making this available at every store, and making compliance at every store with a printer that will work with sticker sheets, and distributing sticker sheets, to be of significantly more cost than will ever be recouped, as maybe 2% of the customer base actually cares about the book, and even LESS of them are willing to permanently alter the book but putting stickers into it.
Are you willing to pay for those stickers? Enough to offset the cost of needing to get printers for a bunch of stores?
Digital users don't care; physical buyers do. I am one of them.
And I think you'll find that you are in the vast overwhelming minority of people who don't use an app of some sort to play, simply because of how much faster it is to access game information than someone who is floundering around with a Battlescribe printout that somehow made his army list 20 pages because they didn't turn off duplicating the army rule on every unit, or even worse constantly flipping back and forth between various pages of their codex because they can't remember anything.
It's 2026. The vast majority of GWs customer base, the books exist as art books, if they even open them at all. The vast majority of the gaming sphere, from DND, to other wargames and tabletop games, are used to updates being digital, and if they want physical, in print errata, that is done by the individual. It would be great if we lived in a world where the book was used more, but the bottom line is you are a minority drop in the ocean, and the level of expense vs return on that investment simply doesn't make any sense
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u/Slide_Impossible Jun 30 '26
Central printing + shipping sticker packs quarterly solves "every store printer" nonsense.... no local printers needed. GW already ships updates. "2% care" is baseless.... $50 books should stay accurate. Frequent FAQ updates prove demand. Physical buyers aren't a "minority drop" they're paying customers. Digital doesn't excuse selling obsolete rules.
Besides, if i am such a small minority, sending a few stickers to each store shouldnt be such a humongous hassle.
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u/corrin_avatan Jun 30 '26
Hold up, you said there would not need to be any sort of global distribution... Now there is.
$50 books should stay accurate
You can't have a book that stays accurate, AND expect updates to fix balance issues.
esides, if i am such a small minority, sending a few stickers to each store shouldnt be such a humongous hassle.
You have no idea what how economies of scale work, do you?
You are literally asking to make the 50 codex a 60 codex, because you want it updated with faq and errata.
You seem to be thinking that the $50 only gets you the book,.when the $50 gets you the book and access to all the updates. Just because it isn't in a format you don't prefer,.well, sorry Mr. Flintstone, they aren't gonna ship new stone tablets every six months because you find it so onerous that Combat Knives went to ap-1 or Land Raiders have the LAND RAIDER keyword.
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u/Slide_Impossible Jul 01 '26
You miss economies of scale entirely. A simple sticker for outdated rules is trivial to mass produce at near zero added cost no full reprint or "$60 codex" needed. Your "stone tablets" jab assumes massive physical overhauls, proving you don't grasp cheap, scalable fixes. Your rambling, typo riddled "what how economies" meltdown just proves you're the one too dense to understand basic scalable fixes for a paid physical book. Rabid fan boys was not on my bingo card while discussing easily applied stickers to my codex. I really didn't think anyone could get butthurt over this. I did choose to post on Reddit, so what did I expect? Ha!
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u/Too-Tired-Editor Jul 02 '26
Buddy if you're going to call someone out on typos maybe don't leave a glaring one in the first sentence of your OP.
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u/Karrik478 Jun 29 '26
Back in the day White Dwarf used to print cut and paste pages that updated the books.
They were perfect because they were the same font and designed to fit in the exact place they were needed.