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Message: <blockquote data-quote="WizarDru" data-source="post: 1629220" data-attributes="member: 151">I now restrict myself to impulse buys at any gaming shop in the area. Of the three local game shops that remain to me, all of them have messed up an order one way or the other.   Compleat Strategist: Good Selection, poor service. Depending on the day, I may get a knowledgable person...or not. I attempted to special order in some d20 products (such as several BadAxe books). Twice. They screwed up both times, selling my order once, and then failing to order it the second time, and then failing to note when it came in, and selling it again.  Impulse buys only, mostly board games or reaper miniatures.   Allied Hobbies: Special ordered twice from them. Messed up both orders, although they eventually got them right. One knowledgable person, three not-so-knowledgeable people who don't even know their own policies. Impulse buy only, and rarely. Service varies wildly. No gaming space - but since I don't game in the store anyways, it's a moot point.   Out of Time: Friendly service, high prices and long delays when ordering items in. Impulse buy; convienent to work, but higher prices and taxes. More of a comic shop that sells games to supplement their stock.   Showcase Comics: Excellent selection, huge gaming space with free demos for games and painting, lost of comics and graphic novels. Terrible service. Too far to drive in my limited free time.   Between the Books: Awesome, personal service. Owner is extremely cool guy, and prices are good. Selection is fairly good if unpredictable, but service, while friendly is scatterbrained, at times. Orders get mixed up, lost or forgotten. However, the owner and staff were always friendly, and often would make good guesses about purchasing habits. Distance is too far for regular patronage any longer, though.  I went around to all of these stores to try and buy Mutants&Masterminds, a few months ago.  None of them had it, and none of them knew if they could get it.       Compare with my experiences with:   Gameoutfitter.com: Every D&D mini order I've placed has been processed correctly. Warnings were sent when they were shorted by WotC. Prices are excellent. E-mail attention is prompt, and shipping was cheap and swift, with automated e-mails detailing tracking numbers arriving as soon as the item shipped.   Amazon.com: Very large discounts, quick search and ordering. Stock somewhat inconsistent, but service excellent. Free shipping with large enough orders, and never had a problem with any materials shipped, which usually tend to arrive earlier than promised.   bn.com: discount for members of B&N's 'club', good selection, deep discounts and excellent service. Sometimes better than amazon, sometimes worse.   taloncomics.com: ENworld member, always very helpful. Prices are competitve, and his selection is reasonable. Had some problems with order, but he handled it professionally and quickly.     walmart.com: Deep discounts, moderately poor service.  Poor selection.   In short, if a LGS wants my service, they need to be reasonably close to me, offer me good service and be reasonably price competitive. Taloncomics was probably one of the best compromises, but I'm not going to willingly throw money to local retailer just to prop them up. I can and have driven an hour to 'Between the Books', driving past other retailers, to do business there: the service can make it worth it, to me.   Going into a store like the Strategist, where the staff may be working, or may be too busy gaming to answer a question or ring up my order, is no longer on my short list of things to do.</blockquote>

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