Anyone else see this announcement over at dustgame.com?:

"[T]oday we introduce a new and exciting feature for the Dust community: Dust Elite. This club gives access to our most special items and is at the same time a fidelity reward program. As you know now, we at Dust Studio always try to do our best to satisfy our customers. Thanks to your support, your fidelity and your commitment we can offer some of the best products in this industry. We are here for a long time and we hope that you will stay with us the whole way. Since you have given us so much, it is time for us to give back: the Dust Elite club and fidelity program is our way of thanking you.

To become a part of this very exclusive club, you have to register on our website under the “Dust Elite” entry. The registration fee is 50 US$ for one year. Here are the advantages of joining the Elite:

all orders are free shipping over 150 US$, instead of 250 US$
you can order all items on our website that are still in the “Pre-Order” section. These are available to you first and will be delivered to you before all other customers.
you have access to a special section of the website where we offer very special items for members of the Dust Elite club only. Only you will be able to order these items. This line will grow over time.
and of course you'll get welcome gifts! A special t-shirt of the Dust Elite club, personalized with your name or nickname (your choice). As well as an exclusive coffee mug, also personalized.

When you enter the Dust Elite club, you will also automatically join our fidelity reward program. This program is based on how much you spend with us over the course of one year, starting with your subscription to Dust Elite. The subscription date will become your Dust Anniversary, which will be also the time to receive a special gift from us!

There are three stages to this program, based on how much you spend: Silver, Gold and Platinum.

If you spend more than 1.000 US$ during the year of your subscription, you will automatically join Dust Elite Silver status: you won't have to pay the registration fee of 50 US$ for the next year, but most of all you'll get a 10% discount on all purchase until your first Anniversary. You'll then start the next year already in Silver status (and again without registration) and retain the discount during that time.

If you spend more than 1.500 US$ over the course of the year of your subscription, you will automatically be on Dust Elite Gold status: again you won't have to pay the registration fee of 50 US$ for the next year and you will then get a 15% discount on all purchase until your Anniversary.

And if you spend more than 2.000 US$ over the course of the year of your subscription, you will automatically join Dust Elite Platinum status: again you won't have to pay the registration fee of 50 US$ for the next year and the discount will be bumped to 20%.

If during the year after your first Anniversary you should spend less than 1.000 US$, you'll loose all special benefits. Note also that the benefits for each other status (Gold and Platinum) can be lost if you don't meet the requirements noted above: you'll then be downgraded to the former status (Silver if you were Gold and Gold if you were Platinum).

Joining Dust Elite is a great opportunity to have access to all of our products before anyone else and at a great price. To become a member of the Dust family is simple: just click the button below and register on the Dust Elite page. See you there soon!"

I guess I will register and see what it's all about. :)

Kriegschatten said:

Man, if you spend over two grand in a year they should include free entry into a support group. 

Well, maybe 2K does not go that far since we are talking pre-paints, but that is still a pretty severe Dust habit, and God forbid they release a bunch of a faction you don't play one year and you fall below the thousand dollar mark, and fall in disgrace out of "status." 

^(Likely said out of jealousy that I do not and will not have 2K a year to spend on a single game)^

I guess if your gaming group "elected" someone as the "Elite Rep" and just go through him (or her) to place your orders it could pay off, but I am sure they discourage that kind of thing.

Fenton said:

LOL, too true!

Although, looking back over what was released in the past 12 months, it would be very easy to drop $2K.  I'm sure you'd have spent at least that much picking up one of each premium unit that was released.

As I read over the announcement again, I'm particularly interested in the "you have access to a special section of the website where we offer very special items for members of the Dust Elite club only".

Color me intrigued!

I'm hoping it's stuff like units with alternate paint schemes or, better yet, things like a Loth pre-paint.  That would rule!

I would agree that if the "exclusive items" are cosmetic differences, the more power to them. 

However, if they are truly "unique" models they will not be playable in "real games" as they will not have AP costs like the rest of the Dust Studio stuff, and I wonder how much it would be worth i to me to buy models I could not use.

I am certainly curious to see what they come up with though, and wish there was a three month free trial or something to see if it was truly worth while before springing the 50 bucks, as that is 50 that could go towards buying three new squads

If the special offers are only different paint schemes then I have no issue with this and would be pissed off it I did pay $50 to join.

If they are miniatures and cards only available to the Dust Elite (like rocket troops or a 1-48 Big Joseph) then I will be pissed at Dust Models but it would make the $50 worth it.

I have yet to order more thant $100 at a time, so I would never get any benefits for joining other than a new shirt.

It is too rich for my blood! I am considering getting the premium Red Guards boxes though, still a long way off a $1,000 though!

 We'll use mine for gaming group big group orders and such.  I'm not in it as much for the exclusives.  I buy all my vehicles premium, and I usually hit just shy of $250 when I do my orders and have to pad it with something.  $50 isn't that much, it'll be we'll worth it to me. The mug and shirt are probably $25 value on their own

 That's way over my budget, and way over budget of most ppl in this world in my opinion. I don't make 2000$ in 2 months time!

I already signed up for it, looking forward to what it has to offer.  After purchasing everything Axis and Allies premium to date and now working on SSU, the discount will come in handy.  I think I will come out ahead in the long run.

I have easily sent over $2k this year on dust minis but I have saved well over 10% so I dont see any need for this ploy to get more money out of us. Plus I get free shipping on orders over $100 so i dont see any real savings to this. Just BS as far as i am concerned.

I agree. Pure BS that has my gaming group boycotting Dust Models for anything. Nope. All our money for DUST will be going ot Miniature Market, sure Dust Models and FFG will make money off our purchases, but we are not giving them an extra $50 for that priviledge.

No more decals, no more special Dust Models only with no game rules or points costs models. Shame, I really wanted a Tina and Wilhelm and Panzermeister to reinforce my Axis. And my French Foreign Legion Allies could use some extra french decals, but we will make it without them.

 Pointless for the casual buyer like me and they could even lose money if their are exclusive to member models only as I might have bought them.  It's only of any use for gamers who buy a lot of pre-paint, but why do they need to entice them anyway if they already buy everything?

Peacekeeper_b said:

Why the boycott?  You realize that you don't have to be an Elite member to buy from Dust Models, right?

Peacekeeper_b said:

I really don't understand the rationale here. Nothing changed to the way normal customers are treated, but now you want to boycott them just because you're not interested in their "elite" program? Where's the sense in that? Most people don't have a $2000 yearly Dust budget, but there's nothing wrong with that. For normal customers nothing has changed, for rich (or crazy) customers, they can get some perks.

Loophole Master said:

I wonder if this reaction is a result of the general confusion that Dust Models announced the program during the same period (same day even?) that their site did not give access to the store, and the impression given perhaps was that the store was going to be members only?