I remember seeing Dwarven Forge terrain when I first started net-surfing, and fell in love with it. In those days, it was made out of resin – both beautiful and expensive. I never got any then, though I was tempted at Gencon when I saw the caverns up close in 2006-8. But the cost made it prohibitive to build any more than a few rooms, so I passed.
Then in 2012, they did their first Kickstarter campaign, featuring new terrain tiles made out of a hard plastic (Dwarvenite). For the first time, Dwarven Forge terrain was affordable to the less affluent, and I bought a few hundred dollars worth. I ended up with far more than I’d ever use at a single time. I was slightly bugged by the half-squares along the walls, but since I use 25mm figures rather than the later 28mm and 32mm, those squares were still playable for me.
2013 saw their caverns Kickstarter, with more varied and beautiful sculpts, and I doubled the amount I spent – about $600. I had no regrets once the terrain arrived, though it took a lot longer to get it all painted. That was the height of my Dwarven Forge addiction.
The terrain from the Greywater Chronicles comes mostly from these two campaigns.
I skipped the next two Kickstarters, which were city and castle tiles respectively. The cost was growing, and though I had some interest in them, they did not strike me as very attractive. Way too squarish for city buildings and streets.
Their fifth Kickstarter saw a return to dungeon terrain, and by now the cost of Dwarvenite was approaching resin. People on their forums would talk about how they were no longer the target base for the company – though they would still drop thousands of dollars for a pledge. Being satisfied with the dungeons I had from the first Kickstarter, I only got a few sets to compliment that. I still spent close to $200, and got about a tenth of the number of pieces I did with the first Kickstarter.
Last year saw a return to caverns, with an even greater increase in the price. I was wanting to add to my cavern water tiles, but they decided to go in a different direction with water (using negative space). I still managed to get some nice pieces that will break up the squarish build of my caverns, though it was few pieces for another $200. On their forums were again comments from customers who felt they were being priced out of the market, even as some admitting to spending close to $10,000 on that Kickstarter alone. I cannot envision having a table big enough for all those pieces.
I just finalized my pledge for their last Kickstarter, spending about $160. It has a Hellscape theme, with translucent lava/magma pieces. I’ll use it for Fire Giant lairs as well as the insides of volcanoes and levels of Hell.
Their next Kickstarter will be Wildlands, essentially an outdoors terrain system. The price will surely be over the top for a small area of coverage, but I have no interest in modular outdoor terrain anyway. I have all the terrain I will ever need now, including some tiles from other companies.
I truly appreciate the early Kickstarters from Dwarven Forge, when they were focused on bringing you all the bang for the buck they could. The company has gone through some changes since then, and their focus has shifted a bit, though they still obviously appreciate the support of their customers. They left me behind a few years ago.