Not really a problem in our country. I know very few collectors who build troops of scarce figures. I myself only troop build figures that are on clearance, e.g. ROTF Legends Stealth Bumblebee.

 

Oh I really don't care. When Acid Storm hit shelves, I heard rumours that people were troop building him to the extreme (Acid Storm? Each to their own...). As long as I find what I'm looking for, I really don't care what people buy...  

 

I just hate the fact that I haven't been able to troop build myself. Lol. But its not a problem for me...

 

no biggie to me. if you have the money and find the figure more power to you. troop building has been going on for a long time all of the sudden its a problem or is it more the fact people are mad that the stores arent putting shit out, and blaming the reason they dont have one on troop builders. scourge has been in stock at bbts for weeks now thats how i got my scourges.

 

I voted 'I don't care'. People can buy whatever they want, in whatever quantities they want. This is not food rationing during a time of war, it's just toys.

 

saw this on another site.

 

you mean that guy who just posted on the army building thread? dude that's a sick army.

 

prime's underwear thats a lot of plastic goodness!

 

Toys are too expensive to be buying duplicates, not that I would ever want to, I have a distaste for straight repaints much less completely identical figures.  

Do people really buy ten or even twenty of the same toy? That seems a bit loopy to me but whatever.

 

I'm a little crazy when it comes to duplicate molds. I won't even get multiple seekers. Starscream only! Maybe if they had different heads or something. So no, definitely no troop building.

 

Normally they don't, but figures like Wreck-Gar and Scourge, or even the Seekers, where canon has a lot of identical or similar-looking characters, some people do.

It bugs me a bit when I can't get hold of a figure I want, and sometimes it pains me to see people buying several copies of a figure I can't find myself, but as much as I'd like to, poor distibution and limited financial resources mean there are a lot of figures I'll probably never get hold of, troop-builders or not, so I have to be realistic about my collecting expectations. If it's a fig I really want to get hold of (like Scourge was; happily I now have one), I'll make the extra effort to get it.

 

If the person has the cash to spend on multiples cause they want to troop build I say more power to them.

Just because Johnny TF Fan decides he wants 100+ Wreck-Gars or whatever thats not going to effect me in anyway, It wont make my local store get them instock, and it wont make any difference online if I really want one bad, there are many, many sites that can make that happen.

In the end people buying TFs is always a good thing in my books, it means we get more.

 

^^^This.

Where I'm located, our distribution SUCKS, as we routinely get figures 6-8 weeks after the rest of the US, if at all in some cases. Granted, it's nicer in the fact I've been able to get some ROTF figures I decided I wanted, but if there's something I really want to get, I just pre-order online in multiples. I did it with Scourge, and yeah, I overpaid what retail would cost, but everyone else had the same opportunity on BBTS or TFSource, they chose not to.

Same thing with Windcharger, and likely Warpath. Am I happy I had to pay 2x retail to get each figure? Nope, but I did it because I wanted them that badly. It's all in perspective, would it be nice that EVERYONE got a chance at figures, yeah, but sometimes it doesn't happen, and that's why these boards are a great resource, most times you can find someone willing to help you out on these, or at least it gives us the opportunity to get them. Sometimes it's all about the timing with figures, and it sucks when the timing doesn't work in your favor.

 

Personally I don't really see the point. I rarely buy repaints anyway so to buy a load of the exact same figure makes even less sense to me. Although I have been tempted to buy a load of RtS Windchargers everytime I see one in stores just because he's a cool little guy.
I think in the case of Scourge and the Sweeps and Wreck-Gar needing a compatible rider at least there's some kind of story sense to it, but even then I'm happy enough with just one each of those figures myself.

 

I plan on having a United Scourge to use as Scourge, and as many Generations Scourges as I can afford to use as Sweeps (I've got 10 so far). Not a single one was found on a peg. NOW I WANT A FANSPROJECT FRACAS!!  

I have no desire to troop build Wreck-Gar. Just him and his remold will be enough.

 

I can certainly understand the frustration of not being able to find a specific toy.

But...it's all part and parcel of our hobby. I'm sure most of us don't really think much about other collectors buying at least two: one for play + one for display. Or buying whole cases to kitbash or scalp later.

At least, we don't really think too much about it until we can't get that figure. But really, our hobby is inherently for the sake of self-interest. If you want a specific Transformer that badly, you should be ready, willing and able to make a move for it.

If you set certain limits for yourself on how far you'd go to buy a figure, and as a result you don't get the figure, then that's that.

I don't disagree with you, but that can lead to overstocking and shelfwarming, and all the "they won't stock new waves 'coz the old ones are still there!" griping.

 

Yea, it sucks that the hobby takes some work, but everyone should know that you have to put in some effort for some of the product. I do feel sorry for people who don't live in areas that have a few options as far as stores go, and for kids who have to rely on their parents to take them to the store, but if you are an adult and there are enough stores in your area, there should be atleast one you can hit. Walmart stocks around 11pm, and Target opens at 8am. Someone isn't going to grab them right at opening, so unless you work 12 hour days, you should be able to hit some store when the stock is fresh. If you can't do that, then your best option is to start a POL and spend a few extra bucks, cause this hobby takes some work. I don't go golfing once a year and expect to be a good golfer.

 

The sad part is that some people reading this thread won't find Scourge and Wreck-Gar or whoever, EVEN THOUGH you can still buy them online right now. For the price of FOUR RTS figures, they'll pay JUST for WG next year...

 

Guys!!! The latest troop building craze is "Tuner Mudflap", "Tuner Skid" and "Sea Attack Ravage". You guys better buy as much as you can. Go now to your local Wal-mart or Tartet! This is your only chance to get these rare babies.