The Licensed Jewellery Collection at Warhammer Is Dangerously Expensive<br>

If you thought Warhammer was pricey, wait until you see the mouth-watering price tags attached to Starforged’s recently released line of fully sanctioned jewelry. You could easily mistake this website for a Tiffany’s instead of a Chinese nerd clothing store, with rings costing more than most Titans and pendants that could purchase an army.

Starforged’s treasure trove of treasures looks magnificent, even though the brand may not be synonymous with excellent quality—many of us had never heard of it until the Warhammer relationship was revealed. After exploring the website for a few minutes, I unintentionally ended up adding items to my basket totaling four figures. If I had been the wealthy son of an oil tycoon, I would have clicked “buy” without hesitation.




Starforged is the illegitimate offspring of Cartier and Forbidden Planet, and its glittering treasure trove is reason enough for me to be excited about merchandise. I know it’s not much, but I’m not into merchandise. I don’t have any steelbooks, t-shirts with logos on them, or statues of video game characters lining my office. To be really honest, I prefer to dress stylishly, and I don’t believe gaming merchandise looks nice. I’m not trying to belittle anyone for representing their favorite game if that’s how you want to dress, but it’s not for me.

On the other hand, jewelry is something I like. The majority of mine are really sentimental, and I’ve built my own style around them. Every time I leave the home, I wear my grandpa’s signet ring along with his everyday. When she was a few months old, my daughter “bought” me a gorgeous gold ring that spells out DAD. I also have a ton of other rings that I switch around according on my clothing or the occasion.


Having saying that, Warhammer jewelry might be exceedingly gaudy. Games Workshop occasionally offers complimentary presents for important occasions, such as coins and badges, which are of a respectable quality, but the designs are terrible. The Warhammer 40K logo slapped on a metal pin badge to declare to the world that you spend too much money on toy troops, and all the IP logos to convert your rucksack into a walking billboard.


Not made using Starforged. In addition to their seductive duplicate House Atreides signets ($693), there are gold emblems of the Cult Mechanicus ($699), rings with the hoods and wings of Dark Angels iconography ($210), and pendants made of Warpstone that would drive a Grey Seer insane (a very affordable $33). These feel like they were torn from the scene itself; they are not something to be purchased. If the Lion could afford to pay the hefty shipping fees from Asia via the Warp and if the gilded, gothic gewgaws fit over his bulky Primarch gauntlets, I could totally see him sporting them.

Products that feel like they come from the universe I love, as opposed to just depicting it, are far preferred by me. Although I’m not a cosplayer, I recall being irritated with store-purchased Halloween costumes as a kid because, for example, Harry Potter’s school shirt would not have a Gryffindor tie stitched onto it, and Frodo’s feet would not have an ugly seam where the fluffy Hobbit slipper met the child’s ankle. Additionally, neither would have the front pocket imprinted with the emblems of their respective teams.

I’ve never been happy with 99 percent of merchandise; maybe this was just me being a perfectionist or being spoilt by my mum’s endless inventiveness with a needle and thread. I want Ash’s real cap made of whatever real hats are made of, not the Pokemon emblem put on a t-shirt. But now I know why so many businesses choose to cut corners.


Premium merchandise is quite expensive. There’s a reason the amazing Weta Workshop replica props cost so much. Games Workshop doesn’t make lore-accurate cosplay accessories since most consumers couldn’t afford the retail price. I understand why premium merchandise isn’t a top priority for every major game release or every Warhammer faction, but it’s still a smart strategy to collaborate with a company that makes these distinctive pieces and rent out its intellectual property for a portion of the profits. Since most people would be content with a nylon bag with the 40K emblem, it is excessively costly.

I detest Starforged for producing such awesome Warhammer memorabilia. Collector’s editions and t-shirt collaborations are easy for me to pass up, but this is something made especially for my tastes. Even though I can’t afford any of these things, I’ll put them all on my wish list for the day I win the lotto. I can resist the Mechanicus signet ring if I can resist the ZA/UM Atelier Kim Kitsuragi bomber jacket. For the time being.