Ishkur Cinderhat:
I would consider myself too a ‘hardcore collector’ rather than a ‘hardcore gamer’. 
Maul:
Stared when I was a freshman, back in 1995. I saw a game and was hooked. I did not have a job back then. I remember collecting cans and using the deposit money in order to buy my first chaos knights. Good luck building an army through that method these days. I sold that army about 5 years ago. That first chaos book was great. Everything from centaurs, chaos warriors, to nuglings was in that thing.
warh:
I would consider myself too a 'hardcore collector' rather than a 'hardcore gamer'. ;)Same for me:P
Ishkur Cinderhat
I started 2004 when I was 9 years old, my first box was a space marine commander after that I got the battle for macragge box.
A friend tricked me and said that I did not need to buy paints becouse it was paints in the macragge box but at that time GW did not put paints in there starter kits:P
I think he stole some of my space marines to:mad
Hashut’s Blessing:
A friend tricked me and said that I did not need to buy paints becouse it was paints in the macragge box but at that time GW did not put paints in there starter kits:PSome friend... Seriously, you're only 15ish?!? Damn, that's embarrassing for me, lol :P
I think he stole some of my space marines to:mad
warh
I can't say that I'm hardcore anything really, except I seem able to identify any piece (even just a hand) from any thing in any conversion since I started the hobby (1999-2000ish). Please don't test me because I know I'll fail now, lol :D Still, I've been doing this for over half of my life. My problem in terms of playing games is that it's a pain to get to hobby centres and I live far away from my friends that play the game (one's moved to Scotland, I'm now in Leeds
warh:
yes, I'm 15ish:PA friend tricked me and said that I did not need to buy paints becouse it was paints in the macragge box but at that time GW did not put paints in there starter kits:PSome friend... Seriously, you're only 15ish?!? Damn, that's embarrassing for me, lol :P
I think he stole some of my space marines to:mad
warh
Hashut's Blessing
He was not much friend to havex.x When I found out that he stole things from
me he just got angry and did not give it back, I have not seen him since I changed school four years ago.
Obsidian:
22 years or so…
This message was automatically appended because it was too short.
Khan!:
1993-94! Unless, as with many, you count Heroquest (in which case, since I was very small indeed!). I was 8 or 9, and my brother and dad bought the first Warhammer 40 000 boxed set (blood angels, goffs, and gretchin). I also played a game of Man O’ War at an independent retailer (I remember casting the ‘Sunblaze!’ spell and thinking it was the coolest thing ever). And so it goes…
Kered:
I can’t actually remember when I fist was introduced to it, my elder brother played so I have always tagged along with him. My first model I ever had though was a conversion made to look like a hormogaunt ,I made it from the head of a tyranid warrior, a body of an old lizard man from the starter set, two scything talons, two spine fists for legs and one orc pony tail. Eather way I’v been in warhammer far longer than I have a right to.
Zanko:
I bought my first minis in 1986! 
The 1st box set was this one: RRD1 - Bugman’s Dwarf Rangers
I like them till now! :cheers
I played only few games but I collected and painted minis nearly all the time!
:hashut
Blue in VT:
:hat off
Zanko and I are of a similar “vintage” though I think my first box was Prince Ulther’s Dragon Company…still have them and have just added a few new ones to the unit! I was a huge 3rd edition player…with my friends…not competitively or anything. I continued to play through college and a bit in grad school…dabbled with 4th edition but preferred the more open system of 3rd. Then I stopped playing for the last 10 years or so.
I recently (last 6 months or so) decided to sell off the ton of stuff I’ve been toting around for more than a decade…but I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of much of it…Instead I’ve been focusing on gathering all the old dwarf and empire minis I couldn’t get when I was younger…I’m almost done now! and doing some painting…which I’m really enjoying. Of course as you have all seen I’ve also become slightly distracted with this whole chaos Dwarf thing!
So though I’ve been into this stuff for 25 years…I did take a longish break!
Cheers,
Blue
Zanko:
@ Blue: The “RRD7 - Prince Ulther�?Ts Imperial Dwarfs - The Dragon Company” …
… was the 2nd box I bought! :cheers
So both we like the same cool old guys - like we are!
:hashut
clam:
@Zanko
In 1986 I was still ‘just’ playing AD&D (but had just heard of the up coming Rouge Trader game - with became the love of my (gaming) life for many, many year). I wasn’t aware of Citadel until the were licensed to do TSR miniatures. So I didn’t know much of Warhammer in it’s early years. Me and my friends did start thinking about WfB, though and in 1988 I bought the exact same box set - the awesome Bugman Rangers. Still think it’s some of the best dwarfs models ever made.
Pyro Stick:
Ive been into the hobby for about 6 years but i havent played a game in quite a while so im mainly a collector.
wallacer:
Hurrah! I’m not the only person in the 20+ bracket.
zobo1942:
I’ve still got my copy of ‘rogue trader’, and the copy of the rules to ‘Adeptus TItanicus’.
Amazing how much better the quality of GW stuff has gotten! AD&D is what make me look at GW stuff - I was reading a ‘Dragon’ magazine, and there was a full page advert for ‘Space Orks’.
Vash:
despite the fact that i was about 3 or 4 years old when the game launched, i have collected almost all rulebooks for the old Rogue Trader game, i’m only missing the second ork book “freebooterz”. the only conclusion i can make from the books is that the game was extremely detailed and therefor really hard to play…
still, i love how the book features an article about how to make a gravtank out of a shampoo bottle and some random pieces of junk.
GRNDL:
@Vash
I think it was a stick-deodorant cannister and it was published in White Dwarf a year or so before Rogue Trader came out. 
IIRC, it was originally done for their Judge Dredd RPG. Still, a good idea. I remember playing my first games of 40k with photocopied counters from the book and writing 40k stories, doing 40k drawings before the book came out; WD 90 had a huge article on what 40k would be like so I got down and dirty with it, before I got the book for Christmas.
Loki:
I started back in 1997 and my first models where a box of talaran desert raiders for 40k
Ishkur Cinderhat:
still, i love how the book features an article about how to make a gravtank out of a shampoo bottle and some random pieces of junk.
Vash
@VashSurely you mean this one? :D
I think it was a stick-deodorant cannister and it was published in White Dwarf a year or so before Rogue Trader came out. :) IIRC, it was originally done for their Judge Dredd RPG. Still, a good idea.
GRNDL
This came to fame again with the vehicle construction rules in white dwarf some 10 odd years ago... ahh the good old days!
Fequiil:
for 6 years now, although i’m only 14 O.O