So I got into the hobby because I had collected enough Space Marines to cobble together an army... and not a little one...
So I went in on my first starter, the 3rd ed box with the Dark Eldar and Space Marines. Does anyone remember those terrible 'trees' that came with the starter? There were a few battleforces that came with them, as well. The others came with the gothic ruins sprue... much more useful. Now that I think about it, I do believe those ruins came with the starter, too. There was also included the battlefield accessories sprue, which included barrels, ammo crates, and tank traps. I remember having so many barrels at one point...
I got a SM battle force, and then a mega force just to round out my section. Keep in mind, this is when a battle force was $75, the mega force was $150, and totally worth it. I got my army together and played with lots of troops at first, then a mix of vehicles and troops... basically I had everything I needed for all the options the codex threw out at the time. I got comfortable with the Marines.
So for about a year I played at the LGS, learning the rules and having a hell of a time creating all sorts of things with the VDR in Chapter Approved. After that I dabbled in the soon to be defunct RTT scene here in Utah. We had some absolutely fantastic Outriders before that program went away. The first one I ever met gave me lots of advice on what units complimented what best, as well as tons of painting and modelling tips. He pointed out White Dwarf to me, as well.
After a year of Space Marines, I was ready to branch out a bit, and I did... Into everything. I started Necromunda, and Battlefleet Gothic. I picked up minis for Epic. There wasn't anything I wasn't interested in learning. The great thing about the LGS back then was that all the older gamers were willing to teach the games to us. Hell, we even played in campaigns that had events over multiple Specialist Games. After the SG range lost its *new and shiny* luster, I started a Chaos Space Marines force, and then an Imperial Guard force using Steel Legion figures.
After all that, there was only one GW hobby front left...
