STAR FLEET BATTLES
RETAILER FAQs

FAQ FOR RETAILERS ABOUT FEDERATION COMMANDER

  1. Do you think that the price point of $60 is too high?

    A: We included the components players want (color laminated charts, mounted playing board) and charged a fair price for them. This worked out to a price that is fairly well in the middle of the pack for current releases such as Ticket to Ride, Memoir 44, and similar games.

    And if you still meet sales resistance with the $60 KLINGON BORDER, you can steer your customers to the $25 ACADEMY product, which has the same rulebook, but fewer ships and a lower-cost map. Once they buy that, you can sell them GRADUATION (now available in full retail packaging) and they will have the same parts as someone who bought KLINGON BORDER. And if that is still too high, send them to our website to download the FREE demo copy, FIRST MISSIONS.
     
  2. Who among my current customers will buy Federation Commander?

    A. Many many people.
  3. Are you pulling a White Wolf on us, tossing your SFB line and starting a new one?

    A. Absolutely not. SFB players remain a fiercely loyal market. All SFB products are in print and will remain in print, and at least two new SFB modules are scheduled for each of the next five years.

  4. Will Federation Commander cannibalize my SFB sales? Will it fragment the player base?

    A. No, it won't. From our discussions with hundreds of SFB players, virtually all of them have said they plan to add Federation Commander to their collections and their current gaming repetoir, not replace SFB with it. Some will use Federation Commander to resolve larger battles in their SFB campaigns, others will use Federation Commander to recruit new SFB players. All current SFB players know gamers who found SFB too daunting and will use Federation Commander to bring these people back to active gameplay in the Star Fleet Universe. Everyone who already plays Star Fleet Battles will continue to do so, even while most of them also start playing Federation Commander. Thousands of new players will embrace Federation Commander and some of them will join and strengthen existing Star Fleet Battles groups.
     
  5. What are you doing to make players aware of Federation Commander?

    A. We are advertising in places where boardgames are sold, played, and talked about. We have asked our loyal Star Fleet Battles players to host Federation Commander demonstrations in their local stores. We have promoted and talked about Federation Commander through our own web site and networks.
     
  6. Is Federation Commander going to do what Star Fleet Battles did, start as a simple fun game and evolve into a monster game that is basically a lifestyle choice?

    A: We already have Star Fleet Battles, and anyone who finds Federation Commander to be less than challenging can move into the existing Star Fleet Battles product line quite easily. So, we don't need to turn Federation Commander into another Star Fleet Battles. We have designed Federation Commander to stay at the complexity level it starts at.
     
  7. Is Federation Commander going to turn into a backlist product line?

    A. We have designed Federation Commander to be an evergreen, a game whose core products will continue to sell to an ever-expanding audience for years to come.
     
  8. How is the Federation Commander product line designed to make my store more money?

    Answer: We have a built-in up-sell. Each product ($60 or $30) comes with three $10 booster packs which are designed to integrate into it.
     
  9. What else have you got to make more profit for my store?

    Answer: Pewter starship miniatures. Each product ($60 or $30) is matched by three $35 Squadron Boxes and by one $99 Border Box, and the product is designed to require all four of these items (total $200 in sales!) to fully cover all of the ships in the battles in the rulebook.
     
  10. What wholesalers will have it?

    Answer: Alliance, ACD, Esdevium, Lion Rampant, Premier Hobby, Warpath, Aladdin, Brown Box, Brave New World, and Mindsports. If your wholesaler isn't on that list, give them our phone number (806-351-1950) and have them contact our Marketing Director marketing@starfleetgames.com.

 

Copyright © 1991-2007 Amarillo Design Bureau, All Rights Reserved Updated 6 September 2007