Newsmachine – August ‘25, Part 2: New pre-order process
UPDATE: We’ve recently agreed a modified stockist programme with Asmodee Canada so Canadian retailers get equivalent benefits to other regions. We’ve also now got a similar agreement in place for Australia.
Products made in the US face significant tariff barriers to get to Canada, which makes it difficult for us to ship there. So, to meet demand, we’re shipping via the EU and China as well as the USA.
Warmachine’s growth is putting some pressure on supply, but we’re actively working on solutions for this (as covered in the update below). Asmodee Canada are keen to support the stockist programme, so you should start to see an impact as our production increases and more stores become stockists.
In case you missed it, Newsmachine is a new Warmachine content series where we’ll share updates on non-gameplay stuff like events, new license partners, and what we’re doing to grow the game and community.
TL’DR:
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Due to growing demand for Warmachine, we’re introducing a new pre-order process
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In short: it’s essential you pre-order new releases early to get your items shipped by the release date
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We explain the process fully, including why we’re doing it, below
It won’t be a shock to anyone that demand for Warmachine continues to grow. This is great, but it also brings additional challenges to scale to meet demand.
We’ve already increased Warmachine production fourfold. Despite this, recent new releases sold out during the pre-order window, leading to allocations and delays.
For example, the Khador Old Umbrey Command Starter and Battlegroup Box actually sold out before the end of the pre-order. To meet demand, we had to fulfil first come, first served, then implement a second production run as fast as possible. This meant pre-orders placed in the last two weeks had to wait too long past the advertised release date to get their stuff. We want to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
We’re already scaling up production (again) — more details below — but in the meantime, we need to implement a new pre-order process to make sure you have a much clearer idea of when you’ll be getting your stuff, and we can deliver on what we promise.
How it will work
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When we launch a pre-order for a new release on our website, it’ll have a maximum number of items available per region based on our current manufacturing capacity*. This is the first production run.
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You’ll need to pre-order before the first production run sells out to get your items shipped by the release date.
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Once the first production run sells out, the items will be set as ‘sold out’ for a couple of days while we lock in the next production run.
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We’ll then launch a second pre-order for the second production run, with a new maximum quantity and updated shipping date. If this sells out, we’ll do a third run, and so on.
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For pre-orders placed for the first production run, the release date will still apply.
*Our production capacity is increasing — more on this below
Pre-ordering early is the best way to make sure your items are shipped by the release date.
We’ll be introducing this process immediately, starting with the Khador Old Umbrey Core and Auxiliary Expansions. If you’ve already pre-ordered, don’t worry; your order is part of the first production run. If you haven’t yet, and you’d like your copy close to the first release date, we’d recommend pre-ordering now.
What if I order from my local game store?
If you prefer pre-ordering through your local game store, help them by making sure they’re getting their order in early and are ordering directly from Steamforged.
We love working directly with local game stores to keep them up-to-date, confirm their orders early, and make sure they get stock shipped on time.
Warstores (i.e. official Warmachine stockists) are also guaranteed a certain amount of stock from each retail release, and being a Warstore is the best experience for retailers stocking Warmachine. If your local game store isn’t a Warstore yet, tell them to get in touch.
UK release dates
From the Khador Old Umbrey Core Expansion onwards, UK release dates will also be one week after the US and EU. This is because our manufacturing facilities are in the US and EU, which means it takes a bit longer for stock to reach our UK hub.
We’re working on getting a new UK manufacturing facility online, but in the meantime, we want to make sure our UK community has a clearer idea of when your pre-orders will arrive.
Long term production plans
We’ve already carried out a major expansion of our US manufacturing facility earlier this year, as well as introducing a brand-new site in Poland. To get — and stay — ahead, the second phase of our production expansion is already underway, which will double our current output again by the end of this year.
This includes bringing more new manufacturing sites online, starting with the UK, as well as making improvements to existing ones, including a second major expansion of our US facility. This not only helps us keep already-released items in stock, but also shortens delivery times in certain regions.
For those keeping score, that’s an 8x increase in production capacity in just 18 months.
In the meantime, the new pre-order process will make sure we can fulfil pre-orders for new releases in a reasonable timeframe, inline with the advertised release and shipping dates.
We know this kind of approach to pre-orders isn’t anything new, but we wanted to make sure the what, why, and how was clear. It’s a change, but one we’re confident will be for the good of the growth of the game (tongue twister). If you’re not already, follow / join Warmachine spaces online to hang out with us and other players.
