Hello hobby pals! Games Workshop were good enough to send me a copy of the new big box full of tiny toy soldiers – Legions Imperialis (and some smaller boxes of equally tiny toy soldiers), and I have been having plenty of fun painting the miniest of minis. So today, I’m going to show you some of the mini-projects I’ve been working on.
I could take you through the rules and the like, but others will be doing that who are far better than me at such things. And aside from a few Nostalgia pangs, I don’t know what I’d really comment on. It looks like a really solidly worked game to me. I love that it brings Aeronautica Imperialis and Adeptus Titanicus together with the tanks and little people, and that its name gives my spellchecker as much of a headache as those previous titles. It even comes with whippy sticks, just to give your nostalgia feels an extra bit of excitement. Therefore, I shall leave the rules to the experts and focus on putting brush to plastic with a selection of fun things that I’ve been putting together. Now, where to start…
The Glorious IXth Legion
Well, I wasn’t going to not paint some Blood Angels, was I? I had lots of fun working on this small force, but I certainly have plans to expand it. And if you’re interested in how I painted them, I have an article on How To Paint Blood Angels ready for you.
The tiny Contemptors were a highlight for sure. Long time fans of the blog will know that the bigger versions of these are among my favourite miniatures ever, and the tiny ones had me grinning and sawing “Awwwwww…” quite a bit. You need four of them for a full talon and honestly, it was a treat to work on each. Alongside those, a full 20 man tactical squad and 10 terminators rounded out the Infantry element before I started work on the command squad.
So can you do freehand work on such a small set of models? Damn right you can. And did I give my captain here a leopard skin cloak? You know I did! All of the tiny men were so much fun to paint, and what I really like about this is the sort of instant gratification you get. If I were painting 10 terminators at Heroic Scale, that would take me more than a month, most likely – maybe even two. These guys took me less than an afternoon, and I’m happy with them. That is one of the true joys of Epic scale painting.
And for a bit of armour, I’ve got a couple of Kratos tanks armed with their plus-size melta guns, and a lone rhino to help the command squad get around. The tanks were so much fun to put together and as fast to paint as the infantry too. They look amazing as well. Am I tempted by a full on Battle of Tallarn build? You better believe it.
What About the Leftovers on the Sprue?
As I was building and painting my Blood Angels, I noticed that I was left with quite a few spares – a nice touch that allows you to do alternative builds. But what to do with the leftovers? I decided to have some fun and put together a little base of Shattered Legions marines. It gave me a chance to paint some different colours, and I might use them as a fun little addition to some narrative games. I painted the base for these a little different – to represent the Dropsite Massacre, but if you liked the bases I did for my Blood Angels, I’ve got a tutorial on how I based my Legions Imperialis miniatures for you to enjoy too.
A Bit of Nostalgia
For many, many years now, I’ve kept hold of my ancient Citadel Combat cards. They’re a fantastic resource of Oldhammer paint schemes and ideas, and the miniatures remind me of my childhood too. When I found out that I’d be getting the new Legions Imperialis Baneblades, I knew exactly how I wanted to paint it up…
It’s such a treat recreating the old with the advantages of the new. I had to make my own little flag (plasticard and paperclips are versatile things), but otherwise, it was pretty easy to map the whole thing over. I updated the painting style a bit, but it’s again mainly just drybrushing and contrast paints with a few minor details picked out here and there. As more bits and pieces come out for this game, I may well do a few more of these.
And speaking of old models, as I have a small but growing force of old-fashioned epic Blood Angels, I thought I could give you a good sense of the scale shift. The older stuff is a lot smaller than the new things, and yet those old bases seem to be a lot more intrusive in size, but that might just be the Goblin Green and flock. It’s interesting to see though, and you can rest assured that the quality of the new stuff is lightyears ahead of the older bits and pieces.
Well, I’ve still got a lot of Blood Angels to paint, but I’ve got a few other things I’d like to try too. I’ve been playing around with some test paint jobs for other legions already, and as mentioned, I’ve got some retro-inspired paint jobs I’d like to try out as new models get released.
Other than that, well, I have about six Warhound Titans now so I guess I should start thinking about those at some point. And I have no idea what I’ll do with my Solar Auxilia, so I’ll have to have a think there.
What I want to leave you with is that I am having so much fun with these models. The scale is challenging, yet freeing and easy to work with. The game looks like a tactical dream, and I can’t wait to see folks playing some truly massive games with all the planes and titans… This feels like the first really “Fun” with a capital “F” games that have come out for a while, and with the miniatures being so much fun to paint, I can’t wait for more of it. Onwards!
Hobbits? What do I know about hobbits? I’m a Warhammer nerd. Well, it’s time for all of that to change, because Games Workshop were good enough to send me the new Battle of Osgiliath box, and so I reckoned that it’s time I start getting into the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game. So, what do I know about hobbits?
Ok, so with this box, Middle Earth’s famous halflings don’t actually feature, so I have that on my side, but the other reason I wanted to review this box is because the MESBG crowd always seemed like the most pleasant tabletop enthusiasts to interact with, and because it never hurts to have another string to one’s dice-rolling bow. Whenever I’ve been at Warhammer World and there’s been a Middle Earth event on, I’ve always been struck with how nice everyone seems to be, and how much fun they’re all having – I want to go to there. I also wanted to offer you, my dear readers, a review from someone who hasn’t ever played this game before. Because if you’ve always looked at this game and thought it seemed confusing and strange in comparison to Warhammer, I’m like you, and hopefully my review can make a difference to you. So this is one for the potential newbs out there – is this a good box to buy?
Straight off the bat, as you open the box, you see that lovely plastic, and these sprues, for the most part gave me a real sense of nostalgia. The scale is smaller, the models not quite as detailed as those found in most Warhams-flavoured boxes that comes out these days, and there’s just a sort of pleasantness about them. They’re not intimidating, and building and painting looks friendlier than 40k or AoS models. I appreciate that, and after looking into that new Horus Heresy box and feeling a bit sick with the thought of how many bits of plastic I’d have to glue together, this is a refreshing change of pace. The troll has a few more bits to it, but most of the men and orcs look like a gentle ride. I can get on board with that. After all, there’s no sense in wasting too much effort on the nameless grunts, is there?
Then there are the new characters which buck that trend. The heroes are full of detail and show their newness, so you still get some high end, top-level detail minis in this box, but a nice small amount – five to spend some time on, while the rest of the box can be knocked out quickly and easily. And the scenery is a nice touch too – that as well can be dry-brushed easily enough, or you can spend some time on it depending on your preferences. But it’s great to get a battlefield in a box like this.
In fact, it’s great to get this spread of miniature types for the game itself all in one box. A monster, a mounted champion, foot champions, archers and close combat troops. From what I understand, that covers nearly all of the unit types in the game, and that’s fantastic for helping new players like me to learn. And speaking of learning, let’s take a look at the literature…
You get two things to flick through and peruse here, starting with the brief and light scenarios and profiles guide. If you’re an experienced player, and you just want to get going, this is the book for you. There are four scenarios set in Osgiliath for you to play through, and all the rules profiles for the minis in the box. Once I get to grips with the wider ruleset, this will be a lovely little treat to breeze through and relive those moments from the films. So far, so good.
Then there’s the big book. It’s a monster and contains everything you need to play this game, though if you want to get into matched play, you’ll need some other books, like The Armies Of… tomes to get points values and special army rules (again, I’m a newb, so I think it’s those books you need). But this book will help you understand the phases of the game, the weird characteristics each unit has (when you’ve been used to the classic 40k characteristics, the MESBG ones look as peculiar as a slender hobbit or a sharply dressed goblin), and all of the universal special rules. This book really does have some heft to it, and this set of rules, along with those sprues, really make this box worth the price tag. Two armies, and everything you need to get into this branch of the hobby, and start playing some games. It certainly seems like a great deal.
So how am I, the novice, feeling about this box now that I’ve had a chance to go through it? Erm… good. Ish. While those plastic warriors and the troll are a bit old-fashioned, which speaks to a hobbyist like me with plenty of years under my belt, I can see some people being a little disappointed with them. The new characters are gorgeous, but those older minis, now in plastic, are just a bit… uninspiring. Yes, they’ll be easy enough to paint, but think about what you get in a new 40k or AoS box, and even the basic troop units are new, and beautifully sculpted with the latest technology and techniques. These orcs and men look fine, but is fine good enough for a big box like this? Maybe it is, but you should be aware of this before buying. Honestly, I’m still torn – I really like the simplicity of them, and the idea of quickly batch-painting them all without much effort, but at the same time, maybe some new, multipose (which isn’t really a thing in Middle Earth from what I can tell) minis would have been nicer, though that could just be the Warhammerist in me talking. Can you see the quandary I’m in?
And while the big book is backed full with everything you will need to play this game (bar the points costs), it would be nice to have a quick start guide too. Maybe another 10-12 page book to help you get a game going straight away, that maybe references parts of that big book for those wanting to get more into the minutiae is what’s missing here. I can see players getting to their first game, and struggling to get that flow going that makes these games really wonderful. Yes, you will get that over time, but a short guide to help new players get going would go a long way, I think, to getting the curious purchasers to turn into undaunted advocates in no time at all. Lots of board games now are getting great at starting people off, and, through quick start guides, moving through the rules with a logic that helps to get that flow… er… flowing. I hope GW will think about this for the next Middle Earth box.
That being said, I am still excited to get going with this. I love how this is set during a key moment in the films, because that really helps the player to care and worry (in a good way) about the outcome of their battles. It actually makes me want Warhammer games to lean back into this sometimes as, while 40k and AoS seem determined to advance their storylines, boxes centred around big battles that we’re familiar with would be really cool. This is one of the best things about these Middle Earth boxes, and as a 40k enthusiast, I’m a little jealous of this.
What’s more, the overall production of this box is exceptional – well done to everyone involved. Everything about it looks great, and while we expect this now from every big box that GW produces, it’s nice to see Middle Earth keep up like this. So, yes, if you have the cash, and you’d like to get into the MESBG, you should pick up this box. It’s not perfect, but it is good, and that’s not bad at all.
I’m going to try and knock out some orcs soon, and start rolling dice as quickly as I’m able. Thankfully I know a few people who love this game, so hopefully their knowledge will get me going in no time. A couple of minor gripes aside, I’d have no problem recommending this box if you’re looking to get into hobbits and the other denizens of Tolkien’s universe. Onwards.
Hello fellow Heresy fans! If you’re anything like me, you’re positively giddy about the new incarnation of Space-Marine-Fight sorry, I mean Horus Heresy and Games Workshop were good enough to send me the new Liber Hereticus and Liber Astartes books to review and that’s what I’m going to do right here, right now.
First off, no, I’m not going to go through every single rule and points change – there are plenty of other people out there far better suited to that sort of thing than I. No, instead, I’m going to give you a general overview of these books, and tell you about my experiences building an army with them. I’ll start with the very first thing that I noticed…
8 pounds. No, not pounds sterling (£), but instead, lbs (mass). Both of these books together weigh more than the average baby born in the UK (which is around 7.4 to 7.8 pounds). That’s 3.6kg for those of you using the new-fangled (and far more sensible) metric system, or 2,048 drams for the obtuse amongst you. That’s massive! However you want to measure it, this pair of books will put a bow in your bookcase and will likely be the cause of several slipped discs among delivery drivers.
Technically, this isn’t anything new in the Heresy – the old Black books and Red books weighed a lot too, but as I’ve not rolled a scatter dice in anger for a couple of years now, these hefty tomes had me taken aback. However, one is unlikely to be hauling these books about to tournaments, but instead, one gets the impression that they’re going to be used more as reference material for people to build lists and cheat sheets from at home. If you’re in a gaming group that meets regularly and you want to play some Heresy, it’s probably only the book collector of the group that need pick these up, while the rest of you borrow them for brief spells to concoct your armies.
That being said, they are very nice books. They serve a similar purpose to the Indexes that arrived with 8th Edition 40k, in that they contain a vast amount that will be relevant to more than just one army. If GW had tried to put out 18 different codex-like books (something that the HH game has never had), we’d be waiting until 2032 for this game. But along with all of the “vanilla” unit types that all armies can take, and their associated rules and points costs, there is some lovely model photography, illustration, and lore available here, along side rules for all of the legion-specific units in their own legion-specific sections in the second half of the book.
These books also make it clear that rules will also be released in White Dwarf, via PDFS from the GW website, and “other sources” in the future, so hopefully this means that the Horus Heresy will not be belaboured by the constant battletome/codex-release schedule which some feel is starting to hamper AoS and 40k. If all is as it seems, you can bag these books, and any new rules will come at a minimum of expense – welcome news indeed in this more-pricy-than-most game.
Now, I have a Heresy army, my Blood Angels, and I wanted to see how easy it was to use these books to put together a list for my force. So I made myself a strong coffee, did some stretching exercises, and hauled one of these books onto the table.
Firstly, it is so much nicer having the points costs written on the page with the unit entry. You forget how much you miss things like this. I know the data cards in 40k look nice, and they have the “power level” value on them, but us old fogeys of the game like points and gosh-darnit, it’s just nice to not have to flick backwards and forwards between the unit-build rules and an index of point costs. If I could bring one thing back from old 40k to new 40k, it might well be this.
I was tripped up on my first try though. I have a Praetor in Cataphractii armour who is armed with a combi-melta and when I looked down the list, I saw that we now have “magna-combi” and “minor-combi” weapons. Hmmm. One could guess by the name that the old combi-melta would fit in the “magna” section, but it did take me a little while to find the answer to this. Now, some will have no issue at all, but with so much packed into these books, and with the big rulebook as well, it did take some searching to find the weapon profiles. Once found, I think this makes sense and helps to declutter the page a bit – the stronger combi-weapons now cost a few more points than the softer ones, and that’s all fair and dandy.
It was a breeze going through the rest really. When I got to my Company Champion, I was able to flick over to the Blood Angels section of the book and equip him with a Blade of Perdition with very little fuss. I did get slightly confused when I reached the Javelin Speeder as it makes no mention of its Cyclone Missile Launcher in the wargear section, but it does say you can replace said weapon with others further down the page. In books this size, if that’s the only editorial snafu that I could find, I think GW have done very well there indeed.
I was able to easily find the Rite of War I wanted to take, and a warlord trait too. Maybe it’s because this is so close to the Warhammer that I’ve played for most of my life, but it really was a lot easier to put an army together here than it has been using the most recent Codexes for 40k. In no time at all, I had put a 1997 point army together, and I had a keenness to get it ready for the battlefield too. There was a great sense of fun about putting the list together, and it just made me want to get gaming again.
After working on my Blood Angel list, I then tried to create a Thousand Sons army with units I’m far less familiar with and it was still a breeze. I really want to emphasise how well put together these books are – as long as you know of the old ways, they’re novice friendly, and a treat for veterans too. It’s nice having all these rules and units in the same place.
So, Ich liber the libers and I must confess that days after receiving them, I’m still enjoying flicking through them and putting lists together. I hope the Ad Mech, Auxillia and Daemon fans get their rules soon so we can all play together on these new battlefields. These are great books, but as mentioned, they feel like they’re more designed for list building at home than hauling them to games. Just make sure you get all the special rules you need written down on your cheat sheets! More Heresy content will be coming soon to Heresy & Heroes so stay tuned for that. Onwards!
Hello friends! It’s the exciting day when the brand new boxed set of the Horus Heresy game goes up for pre-order, and Games Workshop were good enough to send me a copy of this incredible box for review. As many seasoned readers will know, I have been a fan of this game since its inception, and I have over 2000 points of IXth legion to show it. That being said, because of that pesky pandemic and all of my other commitments, I haven’t been able to play a game of it in quite some time. Therefore, if you want an in-depth review of this game from a seasoned and hardcore HH player, there will be better places for you to go. With that being said though, I am going to do an unboxing here, and I’ll take you through some highlights from the book, followed by 10 observations that I have made based on my first impressions of this release. So join me in this personal look through this summer’s must-have hobby box.
Unboxing
And what a box it is. It’s a chonky one which I dare say will come with a hefty price-tag (if you weren’t expecting to have to fork out for this one, you’re living in dreamland), but it certainly has plenty of allure to it. The artwork is thrilling, the cardboard glossy, and while this offers a shiny new toy to those venturing into “30k” for the first time, seasoned gamers will very much enjoy the “Army in a box” plus rules combo that this set provides. Now let’s get stuck in.
Whippy sticks!!!
…huh-hmm. Straight to the plastic! I’ll stop making that comment in these reviews one day, but it’s worth reiterating here that I love this approach. No extra boxes or sheets of card to remove – you open the box, and get straight to the good stuff. There is a huge amount of plastic here, and all of it looks fantastic, including the whippy sticks, which are a real blast from the past that’s very much welcome here. But here’s how much plastic is in the box:
Now that’s a pretty good haul, and there’s a lot of cool things in there that I’ll cover in my observations later on, but that really is an army in a box – very easily over 1000 points. Very nice.
Below that we have a nice bit of card (that has an advert for some other plastic heresy kits on the other side of it. And beyond that…
We have the big book. This is really the biggest win for this release. Just having the core rules for this game has been a pain for a while now, and the fact that I can finally put my 7th Edition 40k rulebook away, is a great relief. It’s a mighty tome at around 330 pages, and it’s all sorts of pretty too. Again, we’ll look at this a little more later on.
Tucked away beneath the cardboard inserts that hold the book in place, we have a bunch of bases, some transfers, dice and construction guides – all the useful stuff that rarely gets any press.
Lastly, bound up with the book, are some very useful cheat sheets, and another advert to convince you to read the Horus Heresy books.
And I’m spent. It’s a glorious box full of gorgeous things that really get the hobby centre of the brain whirring away. 10/10 – well done, GW. Unboxing this one is glorious, and those whippy sticks really are the cherry on top. Now, let’s take a look through that massive book…
The Book
As much as you may be looking to pick this up for the toy soldiers, the book really makes it for me. As mentioned, my 7th Ed rulebook can now spend time gathering dust, as finally the Horus Heresy has its own rulebook. That really is a big deal. For all of those beautiful black books, and those useful red books of yesteryear, as lovely as they were, not having an actual basic rulebook really was a barrier for entry into the game. This solves that problem, and it solves it in style. As we might expect in this golden age of GW publications, this is one heck of a book.
Here’s the contents page and it’s a familiar running order of what we’ve got to look forward to. There’s a bucket load of lore, as one might expect for a setting that easily rivals the other big games in GW’s stable in terms of how much has been written about it. Then there’s a decently sized core rules section, some example armies, some campaigns, and the ever-handy appendixes. I always thought 6th edition 40k was one of the best rulebooks ever put together, but this book may take that crown because it’s concise (yes, it can be concise at 330 pages) and yet lavish (it is 330 pages after all). Here are some of my personal highlights…
Thanks to the ever-popular and extensive Horus Heresy books series from Black Library, there’s already plenty of artwork to draw on for this publication, and it has been used well, but there’s plenty of new art, cartography and model shots too. The look of this book is stunning and there are so many pretty pictures to enjoy within these pages. Every Primarch gets a portrait, the galaxy is comprehensively mapped, models are made to look marvellous, and even the incidental illustrations are illuminating. This book is very much a looker.
One particularly enjoyable illustration is the “Vitruvian Space Marine” which highlights all the augmentations of the Astartes, and yet is censored enough to leave us continuing to wonder if the average Space Marine hangs dong or not. Seriously though, this is a fun one, and I appreciate the nod to Leonardo’s many legged man. But this is of course indicative of something else that this book does wonderfully – tell you about Space Marines. This is a game of Space Marines of course (I know there are others, but come on, it’s about Space Marines) and if this is your favoured faction, then you will want to own this book. You’ve got well over a hundred pages telling you all you need to know of their origins and changes through the years.
Every legion gets a look in too, with several pages devoted to where they come from, their Primarch, how they wage war and what they look like. I of course have been very much enjoying the Blood Angels section, but whatever flavour of legion you favour, you’ll have something to enjoy.
The rules section is well rounded and sensible, and I’ve not the brain to over-analyse all of that, but I’ll touch on it later. The example armies (about 50% of which seem to have been painted by the machine that is Mark Bedford) are great fun to look at, and the campaign section is full of fun scenarios to play around with. Honestly, this is a cracker of a book, and even if you’ve not the budget or inclination to pick up the big box, the rulebook alone is well worth your time and money.
John’s Observations
1 – Split Shoulder pads – why?
Given that this review has been overtly positive so far, let’s kick my observations off with a bit of an annoyance (and also because it’s one of the first things I noticed). The studded shoulder pads, so much a part of the mark of armour represented in this box, each one come in two pieces with a split running right down the middle. Why? I appreciate that this likely had something to do with how the sprue frame worked in the mould, but if this was the best fix the designer of this sprue could figure out, it’s lazy. We’ve had all manner of things on shoulder pads, so if it was the studs that caused this design quirk, I call laziness. Each one will require a touch up for the perfectionists out there.
2 – The Plastic Spartan
I own a Spartan (well, now I suppose I own 2), but that was one of the old resin ones, which effectively came in three hefty (and pricy) chunks. The new plastic one is almost unnerving in that it fits on a few sprues. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan, but it’s just kind of odd seeing like this. Great work to the team who split that into its plastic components – this’ll save a lot of fans from a lot of resin mould lines and gap filling!
3 – The Contemptor – what a stunner
I’ve built more than a few Contemptors in my time, and it’s a model I’ve always adored, but the old plastic version was, well, static and dull. This new one though looks like it will be a delight to work with. The flexibility and possibility has been made part of the kit and lots of different weapon options being included is a real treat. I may well be picking up a few more of these in the future!
4 – Details mean fiddly bits?
The two new character minis are both delightful. They look splended, but the kits look overly fiddly to me. Both of them have tiny folds of cloth – part of their cloaks – that come separate from the rest of the cloaks. Again, this is almost certainly down to fitting the cloak on the sprue, but again, especially because they’re such small slithers of cloak, it just seems lazy. But like I said, both characters look amazing – excellent praetors the pair of them, but boy am I not looking forward to all those mould lines. Not to mention my fat fingers snapping or bending some of those tiny pieces. Surely there must be a way to get the details in there without the needlessly flimsy and fiddly bits?
5 – Incidental art, or actual clues?
As I was leafing through this lavish tome, one piece of incidental art caught my eye and I wonder if it hints at something coming in the future – a new Terminator kit? The classic 40k Terminators are really starting to show their age, especially next to the newer plastic Horus Heresy alternatives, and this little illustration made me think of much older Terminators and how this game may well be the best way to introduce a classical design in modern plastic. Only Tyberos sports a similarly studded aesthetic these days, and were I a betting man, I think this might be something we get soon. It would certainly be more welcome than bloody Saturnine armour.
6 – Example images
As I was reading through the rules section, it just struck me that something GW has always done really well, and that they never seem to get credit for, are the example images when illustrating how movement, line of sight, squad coherency and other things like this work. As I stared at the images of these new marines from a top down angle with various arrows and measurements illustrated beside them, it took me back to 2nd Ed 40k, all those years ago. These shots are as useful now as they were then, and I just think they’re neat. Well done to the team who included these.
7 – The sneaky Spartan
I just think this pair of images look really funny. It’s like the Spartan has coyly sidestepped over to hide a little more. Perhaps it’s feeling a little bashful.
8 – Universal Special Rules
Oh how I have missed these. I know they’ve always been part of HH, but I miss them in 40k, and to a lesser extent in AoS. I’d rather a model just had “5+ Invulnerable Save” than “Special Helmet of Shininess” that, when you read the description, tells you it confers a 5+ Invulnerable Save. It’s just also nice that my years learning about Blind, Move Through Cover, Slow And Purposeful, It Will Not Die and others, have not been wasted. It’s nice to see them printed again here and I understand and remember them all with fondness in an age of “Spiky cloak of redness”, “FT1084 Drone” and “Laser field” which all mean the same thing but they have different names (and invariably they’ll all confer a 5+ Invulnerable Save.
9 – Reactionary Opinion!
Reactions look really fun, and I’m looking forward to trying them out. Some of them seem familiar, but others look new to me, and I’m interested in seeing how the mechanic works out. It’s nice to see a game so grounded in tradition still find the scope to evolve and improve. Nice one, rules team.
10 – Whippy sticks still hurt
Yep, I had to test them out, and they do indeed still sting like they did when I was a lad. Many a friend or sibling will get the occasional thrashing with these and that’s exactly how it should be. Having these lethal weapons back in play makes the world seem right again.
Conclusions
So there you have it. A bit of a monster post from me, and I hope it has in some way helped to keep you informed, though I imagine there will likely be a thousand other reports and insightful write ups or videos that are probably better than mine. But if you still come here to Heresy and Heroes, you come, in part, for the expulsions from my brain, and this has certainly been one of those.
It’s a cracking box, full of wonderful things, and I think it’s a great entry point to Heresy for newbies, and for us fogeys, it’s a great excuse to start a new army or add to our existing forces. Top tier release with very little to gripe about, and it’s damn good to put the Heresy back into Heresy and Heroes again. Onwards!
Well, this is like Christmas as far as I’m concerned. Games Workshop are very well aware that I am a huge fan of Necormunda, and I am thrilled to be able to share my review of the Necromunda: Ash Wastes with you, after they graciously sent a copy out to me. This is one hell of a box.
And by “hell”, I mean, of course the Ash Wastes – a blasted, desolate region of Necromunda’s plateaus, deserts and dangerous places. Vast expanses filled with nothing, except for dangers of course. If you thought the Hive cities were lawless places, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Ok, so let’s start at the top. This box is huge, and just like the last big Necromunda box (Dark Uprising), it’s not going to be cheap – you’ll be able to find out how wallet-unfriendly this is by heading over to the GW site. If you wanted a cheap way into this game, this is not going to be for you. It’s a box for the established faithful who have money to burn and the desire to burn rubber. Is this fair on everyone who wants to get involved? Well, probably not, but you get so much in this box, it would have been mad for them to set the price any lower.
The good news for folks who want the models is that these should be released on their own soon enough, and of course you can pick up the Orlock gang set already. If you’re looking to get your nose into Necromunda, buy a gang box, their rules, and the rulebook, and do it that way. If you’re like me, and you already love this game, this box is just fantastic.
The first thing we see are the sprues – I’ve mentioned before how I’m a big fan of getting straight to the plastic, so plus points there. And on a quick side note, the box smells amazing. I know that’s weird, but new boxes from GW always have a “new box smell” and the odour here is delicious. There are 10 big sprues in this box and a big chunk of it is scenery but there are of course the Nomads and the Orlocks too. This is one of the reasons that this is such a heavy box, but it’s not the only reason.
Behind the mountain of plastic, we have the Ash Wastes book, and it’s a cracker. It looks gorgeous for a start, it weighs a tonne, and I like the subtle brownish hue that has crept into the design to set it apart from the scuffles that are settled in hive city. It starts off with a lavish map and a great chunk of lore, but it’s not too long before we get into the meat of the matter – the rules.
I was really interested to see what would inspire the vehicle rules, and while I had my fingers crossed that it would be akin to Gorkamorka (or a straight up copy of that rule set), it is in fact, far more sensibly, akin to older editions of 40k and the Horus Heresy, but with some important quirks to set them apart and make them feel like Necromunda. For a start, Hull Points are back, as are front/side/rear armour values. The Handling stat (HND) is a nice addition though, and that does have a whisper of Gorkamorka flavour to it from what I can tell at first glance. The vehicle actions that you can pick from also lean on Gorkamorka a little for inspiration, and while it’s its own thing, I think these rules look fun, flavourful and tactic-friendly too (always a hard balance to strike). I for one can’t wait to see what vehicles and mounts the other gangs get – hopefully we’ll see some of that on the digital Warhammer Fest that’s soon to happen.
There have been a few changes to how cover works in the Ash Wastes too that make sense. Obscured bases are less of a thing here, and this removes the claustrophobia that the Underhive engenders, replacing it with a sense that cover is scarce, vital, and occasionally booby-trapped. I also really like this picture below – I think it’s both funny, but also a good visual reminder of sensible gameplay.
Other highlights include the “Seasons” mechanic which brings a weather system closely related to Blood Bowl to Necromunda, and official rules for a “Rolling Road” style-game are great to see included here – those games are always a bit silly, very fun and nicely brutal. Also, the scenarios included in this book all look like winners to me. Plenty of familiarity about them, but there’s a newness to them too. All in all, top work from the rules team here.
While reading the book, it did also strike me that Necromunda really isn’t designed as a gateway game like the other skirmish offerings from GW. It’s complex and involved. I’m not saying one doesn’t spend plenty of time planning out a Kill Team or picking out a deck for Underworlds – many people do, but those games both have “out of the box” options to help newer players into the game with minimal fuss. Necromunda remains a game that is absolute fuss. You have to love the fuss to get the most out of this. There is a lot of admin that can’t really be avoided, and the older style of Warhammer rules that the game is based on really gives it a tougher-to-try-out sort of feel. Would I introduce someone to tabletop gaming with this game, or this box? Absolutely not. But would I encourage every experienced veteran to give it a go and have a lot of fun times? You bet I would.
Returning to the box, what’s left is a great assortment to help people get playing straight away (despite my last paragraph, this is in fact a whole game in a box). Dice, measuring rulers (I do miss “whippy-sticks” sometimes), a playing surface, bases, tokens and assembly guides. What a great selection. Seriously, if you want to treat yourself, and you love some Necromunda, I would recommend this. I’d recommend it a lot.
As for me, I will be getting to work on the “mega fleas” and I think the Nomad gang is a must for me. I like the aesthetic and while the Orlock Buggies are tempting, those damn giant fleas – can’t get them out of my head. They’re gorgeous, and they look straight forward enough for me to put together. Also, I’ll just reiterate that the vehicle rules in here really do look like a lot of fun. Tank slapper. Lol.
Can I fault this box? Only if I’m being picky. Maybe having another new tribe would have been nice, but I guess the Orlocks offer familiarity. And the price is going to cause many an internet grumble, but for what you get in this, it’s not actually as astronomical as you might think for what you get and the price of plastic these days. No, I’m calling this box a win for GW. I’m in love with it a little bit, so if you’ll excuse me, I am going to spend the next few hours dreaming of life in the wastes (it’s quite easy when you live in the midlands). Onwards!
Hello sports fans!The gridiron has grown cold and the Wolf God is prowling the stands as the brand new Blood Bowl Norse team has arrived and GW were sporting enough to send me the new team and some assorted goodies to take a look at and tell you all about. So strap on your big foam finger, get your peanuts ready, and let’s take a proper gander at what might be my new favourite Blood Bowl team.
I will confess that I am a huge fan of this team, and I’ve been waiting for them to get the plastic treatment for a very long time now. I had been planning on converting a Norse team several years back, but I never got round to it, so it’s a real thrill to have these volatile vikings to work on. Why do I like this team so much? Well, as someone who isn’t the best at tackling, having Block on all my linemen is a huge bonus, but I also get some hefty chaps to put some pain down, and a couple of swift Valkyries in case I decide to actually try and score. That fits my play style perfectly so the Norse were always on my radar (and also, I kind of look like one of them).
First and foremost, let’s talk about the minis. They look stunning. They capture that crazy, cold-ignoring, beer-chugging party monsters that definitely worship some gnarly gods vibe that you want from this team. There’s some fierce animal-pelts, beautifully braided beards and bone-breaking muscles, all of which you’d expect, and I think the sculptor(s) behind this kit have done a stellar job. And if any team was going to strap a keg of ale to a pig, it would be these guys. Personal opinion, but I think this is the best looking Blood Bowl team yet.
As with all of these new teams, there’s a Spike! journal to accompany them and it is as full of flavour, rules and ideas as ever in this issue. I love the rules and ideas in the “Icebowl” section in particular, but they’re all good. Ruleswise,they are gloriously thematic, and you’ll be recounting many sagas of your games for sure. But there are some tricky nuances in there too. The beer-pigs are super-fun minis, and they can perform some useful tricks on the pitch, but they are super-squishy, so how many do you want on your roster? I like these fun sort of headaches as they provide some tactical nuances that even ham-fisted players like me can cope with.
And as an extra special treat, GW sent me the new big guy – the Yhetee. He’s got great rules, and honestly, he looks sensational. Easy to put together, buckets of details, and really, really fun. This Blood Bowl “bug guys” really remind me of old Warhammer in a way, when being slightly more than twice the size of normal dudes meant you were massive. I like that, and I thoroughly like this model. I’ve already got a team name, colours, player numbers and names all planned out – I’m going to take some time and enjoy this new team.
So that was kind of a brief review, but what else is there to say? I think this is a stunning set of products with fun, thematic rules, beautiful miniatures, fun art, and well-written words. When it comes to the Norse, pour me a stein, and count me in. This team is great.
First off, I want to say thank you to Games Workshop for sending me the Eldritch Omens box to review. When a company like this sees fit to send something your way, you want to do it justice, and write a review that is honest, helpful and insightful. While heaping praise on successes, it is the responsibility of any reviewer to also call out the failures of a product. When one has a professional relationship with any company, it’s always a little hard to be too critical, but you never want to look like you’re towing the party line either. And it’s that dichotomy that makes this particular review so difficult for me.
I love this box.
I don’t throw those words around lightly, and while I strive for some balance in my reviews – even when GW are knocking it out of the park, I try to find a little cloud in their blinding-light-emitting and enormous silver linings. But with Eldritch Omens, I’ve got nothing. Now, I could spend some time waffling about the beautiful box art (and it is pretty), or the wonderfully compact slenderness of the box, but we both know that with this box, none of us really care about that. I’m not selling the designers and artists short – they did an A* job too – but this is all about the miniatures, so let’s just get straight to it.
Heretics’ Delight
I am a natural heretic when it comes to 40k. I have worked on three different Emperor’s Children armies over the years and a Death Guard army too back in the day, so while I rarely consider myself an expert in most things, I definitely think of myself as a wise old soul when it comes to Chaos Space Marines. And this is a box that makes my heretical heart sing.
If we’re being honest, the least exciting thing in this box is the Forgefiend/Maulerfiend, but that’s just because it’s the only thing we’ve seen before. While its presence here isn’t getting the gasps that the rest of the box delivers, it’s still a wonderful kit. A massive monster that can either be built to destroy enemies at long range, or bound into the fight and smash up most things that get in its way. I’m a huge Maulerfiend fan myself, so you can probably guess which way I’m leaning, but this is a useful tool for any CSM army to have in its ranks however it’s built. Even with this now relatively old kit, you get options, and the reason this review has the title it has is because everything has options and lots of them, and I love that.
Then there’s the chosen. I remember picking up the last batch of Chosen that came in a big box and I was a little annoyed by their monopose builds and unhelpful loadouts, but in Eldritch Omens, these chaps are almost perfect. There are more options here, allowing you to build a cheaper bolters and chain-blades unit, but if you want to sink a lot of points into your Chosen, you can equip them with power weapons, lightning claws, a combi-weapon and some plasma pistols too. What’s more, it would be very easy to give them more specialised shooting weapons too if you had a CSM sprue to mix in.
Then there’s the Warpsmith, a character who, in the past, never did anything for me. I’ve never built or painted this type of bad-guy-techmarine before, mainly because I wasn’t a massive fan of the old mini. But this one has changed my mind. He looks as dynamic, as his tendrils look demonic, and if you are taking big armoured things (like the aforementioned fiends) he’s helpful too. I’m sold – this box has already sold me on a character I never liked! But even this character is going to be overshadowed by the other half of the box…
Welcome Back Craftworlders!
I won’t go into a long spiel about how it’s been too long since we had a big swathe of new Aeldari models – we’ve all heard quite enough of that. But when you see these sprues, if you’re anything like me, you’ll have a “Where have you been all my life?” moment too. All of it is of course brand new, and I almost don’t know where to start.
Back when I built my Eldar army (around 6th Edition I think) I avoided Guardians (because I’m not their biggest fan and Aspect Warriors are my faves) so alongside some Dire Avengers, Rangers were totally my troop-choice jam. And I didn’t really think the old finecast ones needed a redo as a priority, but when you see these, you realise just how good they are. For a start, those long, thin sniper rifles are no longer made of a material that went bendy and curly as soon as you breathed on it. These weapons are now sleek and sharp, and again, you get so many options here! Honestly, I’ve never gotten so much enjoyment from an assembly manual! That’s why I’ve included a couple of snaps here of said manual – it’s brilliant! If you don’t want the little hover drone thing, you don’t have to take it, or you can build an alternative variant of it. Don’t like the bare heads? Put a helmet on instead. From what I can tell, all five have small options for customisation but each change really alters the character of the mini to give you the rangers you want.
Then there’s the jetbikes which are just lovely. I mean… just lovely. Again you have options, and there’s a small piece right at the back of the assembly guide showing how you can tilt them on their bases, and that just gave me so many ideas for what I’m going to do with mine. I know that’s not a big thing, but combined with how cool these guys look, it just made me think of dioramas and how to use these guys to show pace and movement… just lovely.
Finally, I think we’ve saved the best for last. The Autarch is amazing. You can make it male or female, and there are two close combat weapons, three guns, and a choice of either a Warp Spider jump pack, or a banner. I’m totally going with the banner of course because I can’t help myself, but this is just such a beautifully sculpted miniature, I cannot do it justice with my words. But can I do it justice with my brush? Well, that little display base I made for an article here last week – this is the mini that I’m going to put on there, and I am going to take my time with this one. This one’s special.
So that’s all the miniatures and hopefully I’ve highlighted all of the options too, though there are a lot of them so maybe I missed some. But you get the idea right? The flexibility in this box to build the miniatures you want to build is really great.
For me, and this is only my opinion as someone who loves to paint toy soldiers, this box is fantastic. I have seen some people moaning a little about the price of the box, but for painters, think of this not as your standard “bar of Dairy Milk” toy soldiers. No, these are more like a collection of the finest Belgian chocolate truffles that you might pick up from Fortnums. They are few in number, they might cost a bit more, but each time you sit down to enjoy one, it’s an almost transcendent experience. Bravo, GW. Bravo indeed.
Now, that all felt a bit gushy, but honestly, I do love this box. If you agree or disagree, let me know in the comments below. I’m 100% in love with this box, but if you have a valid point you don’t think I’ve made, I want to hear about it. Until we speak again, Onwards!
Hellooooo sports fans! This broadcast is brought to you by our fine friends at Games Workshop who were kind enough to send me a brand spanking new copy of the Spike! Almanac for 2021 (even though we’re now in 2022 but that still checks out). Alongside our sponsors, Orcidas and Cabal Vision, we’re going to bring you the top 5 plays from this hard-hitting, hardback tome for true sports fans just like you. So get your foam fingers and foam-domes out, put those team colours on and settle in as we hit the gridiron for the Spike! Alamanac Top 5 plays!!!
Ok, enough of the sports enthusiast spiel – don’t expect much more of that in this post (sometimes I get too into doing things like that, so no promises). Let’s look at the five best bits, in my opinion, from this brutal book.
1 – The Comic Strips
Blood Bowl hits my funny bone so wonderfully with things like this. This is a very entertaining book, with lots to make you smile and giggle, and the handful of comic strips that run through these pages are delightful. They centre around (our heroes) Jim and Bob, and have a Bob Crumb sort of look to them (like a U-rated Fritz The Cat but set in the Blood Bowl universe). These are great at reinforcing the fact/idea that this game and its setting are ridiculous, hilarious and all about having fun. You may have brought this book for the rules (and there are a lot of those to go through), but I’m sure you’ll love the laughs that land on every page.
2 – The Illustrations
We’ll get onto rules in a moment, folks (I promise), but I just want to say that I am now 100% behind the illustrative style of this game’s official products and books. I’ve said it before here, but when I first saw the new look of this game, I hated it, but this book has wiped out the very last shreds of that opinion that has been worn down over time. You will find your eyes hovering over some of the incidental illustrations just because they’re so much fun. The player and star player art is great too, and props have to go to the people who created these images and put the book together. Well done to all involved – it looks smashing.
3 – Four Player Dungeon Bowl
I’ve been quietly enjoying Dungeon Bowl since its release, and boy is that enjoyment about to get loud. The idea of four players sending their teams to charge around a dungeon brings a sort of panicked delight to my heart. It will be pure madness, but is bound to be full of laughs too. There’s a nice section on the rules for this sort of game in the book, and a couple of example dungeons that just look like pain, laughs and smiles to me. My College of Beasts Team will certainly enjoy the madness of this sort of game, though I dare say the laughs will be balanced with a fair amount of tactical stress. This is a great thing to include in this book.
4 – All-Star Games
This is a biggy. If you have been enjoying collecting Star Players for a while now, you may feel slightly aggrieved that you haven’t been able to use them too often in your leagues. I think Varag Ghoulchewer has appeared about three times for my Orcs in the last five years (but then my Orcs suck so I don’t hold it against him). Well, worry no more – you can now take on a friend in a non-league all star game where only Star Players take to the field. You might have Griff Oberwald, Morg n Thorg, Akhorne and The Swift Twins all in the same team, and that might just be your bench! The examples given in the book are frankly mouthwatering in their potential for delivering fun for all involved. Bring it on!
5 – Star Player Profiles
Sticking with the pricy-n-spicy superstar sports-folk that you can hire into your game (or take to one of the aforementioned All-Star games), there are some wonderful Star Player profiles in here, some of which, if you buy Spike! regularly, you’ll already know about, but I think there are a couple of new ones here too (I think – I don’t get Spike! every time it comes out). I really like how they do this, in that there’s a nice big illustration, the rules, and some back ground spread across two sides of A4. It’s concise, yet flavourful and lavish at the same time. And seeing the rules for Grashnak Blackhoof really took me back to my early days in Blood Bowl – that minotaur used to do a lot of heavy lifting in my teams.
Those are my favourite five things, but this is a thick book full of rules, lore, laughs and information about your favourite game of fantasy football. It’s jam-packed and a real treat to dive into. If Blood Bowl is your game, you need this book, and you’ll love flicking through those glossy pages. Onwards!
P.S. – if you want a full, in-depth review of this book, done by true experts, check out the Both Down podcast – those guys are great and they know this game better than me too.
In today’s article, we’re going to be looking at the brand new Kill Team Starter Set box – the slimmed down version of Kill Team: Octarius – that Games Workshop were kind enough to send over to me for review, and it reminded me of something rather special. And if I’m right, it could be the best advert for the hobby since the 1990s. Let’s discuss.
Now, that might be a bit of a bold call, but I genuinely think there’s something about this box that could encourage a lot of people to join the hobby. For a start, just look at that box art. That is human soldiers fighting monsters in a very cinematic way. The font is all militaristic, the colours are bright and bold, and it has that ever wonderful name “Warhammer” in the title there. Were I a 9 year old boy again, I’d see that and just think “Wow. I want that” and a lot of credit has to go to the people who laid out that box cover.
Back when I was a 9 year old boy (and this is going to show my age a bit), Christmas wish-listing involved looking through big catalogues that were delivered to our house. I’d flick through the back section where all the kids toys were, and between the Sega Game Gears, Thundercat Playsets, and Lego Pirate stuff, I would see this:
Now, you might be about to criticise me for the resolution of image I’ve used there, but I’ve done that for a very good reason – that was often what you saw in the catalogue. I didn’t know what it was, but it had loads of toy soldiers, terrain, amazing pictures and bright colours – and loads of cardboard explosions too! For me, it would be a boxed set that would kick off a lifetime obsession, but that was back in the very early 1990s. I genuinely think that this Kill Team box could well perform a similar function in the early 2020s. And boy am I feeling old right now.
The Octarius box that came out recently is big and overwhelming – it’s a hefty hit of the hobby drug that we who are already all in on the plastic crack wagon, love to devour. But it’s hefty and pricy and it requires a fair bit of pre-existing knowledge to be truly exciting. This box is slimmer, and lighter. You don’t feel too precious about the cover of the box because it’s not quite as shiny. This isn’t something to be savoured by well-worn hobbyists, but instead it’s a shiny lure to fresher eyes. This is the box you should put into catalogues today, not that those are really a thing anymore (thanks, internet).
I spoke about this recently too – have the plastic as the first thing people see when they open the box. It’s the most exciting bit of the product, and I’m glad GW are continuing to do this after those years of extra boxes and cardboard inserts. Get to the good stuff early.
You get a little less terrain in this box, but in terms of actual minis, you still have the Orks and the Guardsmen and they continue to look amazing. These miniatures are some of the best examples of the sculpting craft and they’ll appeal to those new hobbyists who like to play as humans (because they can imagine themselves fighting monsters in the future) and those who like to be aliens (because they like new and interesting things). And the humour of the Orks in particular is a real win in this box – definitely better than 40 monopose boys and gretchin and a cardboard dreadnought for sure! Furthermore, the small numbers of miniatures involved in Kill Team are a lot less intimidating than the vast armies needed to play big 40k.
This makes me very happy too. Once you get past the sprues and a single cardboard insert, this is all that’s left, and while we seasoned gamers demand vast quantities of bits, bells and whistles, if you’re coming into this as a newbie, it’s nicer to have a small set of rules and the basics to get you going. This looks genuinely friendly and hopefully the rules are easy enough for new players to digest. I remain unconvinced about the whole “move two triangles and a hexagon” when you could just say however many inches it is, but that’s a minor gripe really.
But I’m serious about how appealing I think this box will be to new players. It’s a great gateway option, and while of course there are starter sets available for 40k and AoS, I think this Kill Team box presents a better option. The rules are simpler, the models represent complete units, and those colours and that artwork – I really think GW are onto a winner here. Especially if they can get into toy stores and, well, whatever pass for catalogues now in the 2020s. This box gets two thumbs up from me, and I hope it brings lots of new blood into the hobby. Onwards!
What a weekend. Games Workshop not only sends Dungeon Bowl my way (and you can check out an unboxing post for Dungeon Bowl here) but they also sent me the new Necromunda releases to enjoy and review as well! And I have been waiting with baited breath for this release – it’s perfect for me, and so I’m here to tell you if it lives up to the hype. Let’s take a closer look at the Book of the Outcast, and the kits that accompany it.
Why Outcasts? Why Now?
Necromunda is, hands done, the best world-building game that Games Workshop produce. It is a game that lives most comfortably in campaigns and creativity, and though it’s a fun one-shot sort of game too, it really shines when you can build a world to live in and occupy for several games (or even several years) in a row. And we have been provided with all manor of legendary fighters and gangs already, from the houses of Goliath, Escher, Van Saar, et al, all the way through to having the ability to create swashbuckling bounty hunters that help to forge the legends of the Underhive.
But we’ve never just had basic dudes. Just folk. People who live here and have to put up with gangs of religious zealots, spooky spies, poison-perfecting femme fatales and all the other lunatics, punks and psychos that Hive Primus can produce. The average Joes and Jolenes who might eventually get completely sick of having to deal with all of this and one day pick up an old lasgun, a blunt knife or an autopistol and form their own gang. That’s what this release gives us – the basic blokes, hard-grafting girls, and other simple, decent folk of Hive City. And I love that.
The books itself is amazing. Absolutely jam-packed with lore that helps to flesh out the setting beyond the famed houses. I could point out hundreds of examples of this being done here in this book, but I really like these pages that define the differences between outcasts, outlanders and the rest:
That right there. That’s the good shit. That’s the sort of thing that makes this book magic. For gaming purposes, your gang might not change too much, but when it comes to defining how they are, how they act, the society the dwell within and even how they look, this is gold dust. When I first read that piece, I spent a good couple of hours debating what I’d go for if I was going into a campaign with a posse of loners, desperados and last chancers. And in this book, you have so many ideas to work with and get inspired by.
And when you start to create your gang, further choices have been incorporated into the rules for building a band of underworld outcasts. You get to choose their affiliation, and the choice you make will affect how your gang interacts with other gangs, resources and rules in a campaign and you have five options to choose from ranging from the unaffiliated ‘clanless’ who represent the untrustworthy elements of Hive City, to a criminal organisation who are, well, even more untrustworthy to be fair. But the heart of this mechanic, is for me, in the ability to be aligned with Clan Houses, Noble Houses or a mercantile guild. Why not have your house affiliated with House Delaque and make them shifty, ranged weapon specialists? Or make them brightly coloured Escher enthusiasts? Whoever you pick, you get access to their house weapon lists, and potentially alliances with them, so pick wisely.
That’s such a great way to further theme your gang, and as a hoarder of bits myself, it’s a great way to use up some weapons, heads, and other paraphernalia from the Bits Crate (upgraded from a box – I got a lot of bits, man). And what’s more, the get access to hangers on that you can add to your gang, adding yet more flavour. So if you want a criminal gang affiliated with House Orlock that hangs around with an underhive trader and a slopper, you got it! Or would you prefer some deviant outlanders that keep an eye on things in the Underhive for House Ty? You’ve got some great options in these pages.
There’s a lot more to this book too, with the Outlander campaign looking particularly juicy, and the Wyrd Powers very entertaining (if terrifying in some instances). There’s a whole mess of cool looking character profiles and personalities available too. There is so much in this book that I love, that it’s almost impossible to find any negatives!
…And yet, I do try and bring a little bit of balance to my reviews, so I do go looking for them. In truth, within these pages, there are no negatives that I’ve spotted, but what’s starting to concern me about Necromunda, is the amount of pages. I like that every gang gets its own book – that works great for me. But Necormunda is not 40k or AoS, and in this game, details and planning, especially on the part of the arbiter matter a lot more, and so said arbiter needs access to all of these books. If someone wanted me to play in a Necromunda campaign tomorrow, I would 100% say yes. If someone asked me to plan a Necromunda campaign, I would politely decline at the moment. There are so many books that you need now to run a campaign and for many that is a great deal of fun, but for me, it feels like too much. What I’d really like is an Arbiter’s Helper sort of book – a tome with all of the scenarios, trading posts, skills and a glossary of all the rules from all the books so far. If that sort of book comes out, I’d be prepping a big campaign tomorrow. As it is, I don’t have the patience to pour through that many pages.
So with that out of the way, I just want to reiterate that I love this book, it’s probably my favourite lore-building resource for the game so far, and I cannot wait to start thinking of more gang ideas based on these pages. Well done to the entire team who put it together.
The Kits
Then there are the kits and there is an awful lot to be happy about here. As mentioned, I am a huge fan of having these simpler fighters in the Underhive setting, so let’s start off with the Outcasts gang kit.
I really like the ingenuity here. What you get in the box is three small, identical frames with lots of mix and match parts. There are plenty of heads and weapons to help you create 12 fighters just from what’s in the box. They fit the setting masterfully, and yes, if you want to make some more Chaos Cultists, they’ll probably do a very good job there. If I’m being honest, I probably expected just a little more from this kit. I think of how Necromunda sprues are usually bursting with options and while you have plenty of choice here, it’s not quite on the same level. That being said, these are generic Underhivers – they do not need to have the same sort of frames that the Gang Houses get – this works absolutely fine. I’ve built a few already and here’s one that I had the chance to paint.
I kept the paint job quick and easy (there’s no need for this guy to look to fancy for me), and I know for sure that this lasgun-wielding dude will be providing back up for some of my more expensive Bounty Hunters one day in the near future. It was a very intuitive and simple build – each character is made up of 5-6 parts. Great if you just want to get some grunts glued together. So it’s not a super special kit, but it does the job it needs to do very well and you get enough options to keep things interesting.
Next up is the market. I knew there was a reason I’d been stashing all those guns that didn’t have hands on them! By far my favourite thing about this set are the weapons racks, but the whole kit is full of fun. The market stalls look excellent, and the crates and containers work really nicely. There is a minor scale-issue with the coins and mugs in that they’re a bit big for the minis, but if you made them the same exact scale as the minis, you’d not be able to see the coins and the mugs would be daftly tiny. I like to think of these as mugs and coins for Ogryns – makes tonnes more sense then, and they too look great.
If you are building your own physical slice of the Underhive, you 100% should get this kit just because of the variety it adds. Also, there are some super fun rules for using this scenery in the Book of the Outcast so it will certainly be a real pleasure to work with.
So there’s my in depth review of the Book of the Outcast, and the kits it comes with. A great little release for Necromunda this, and I’d say the book especially is a must have for anyone who loves to create the grittiest and grimiest of the Underhive. Another ‘well done’ to all involved. Until next time; Onwards!