Collaboration: Mordheim Chaos Dwarf painted

Miles drowned rivers. Seek eyeless dwarf. Ridden headless horse. Arrive reverse echo. Deliver skinless prize.

Earlier this year, I started collecting Chaos Dwarf models to create a warband for Mordheim. Rather than extensively convert the warband, like I did with my Sister's of Sigmar warband, I wanted to create this one using old miniatures from the 80s, leaning into the Oldhammer theme. After scouring eBay, I collected a group of six of the ancient models. Rather than paint the first model in the warband, we got one of our favorite painters and friends, Koltti, to paint it! We think that you will agree that the model turned out wonderfully! Also, make sure to follow Koltti on Instagram and consider supporting him on Patreon so that he can continue to create miniature works of art.

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 85: The evolution of orcs/orks/orruks: from Paul Bonner to Brian Nelson to the Kruleboyz

There are new Orruks in Age of Sigmar!

In this episode, we are joined by our long time friend and ork supporter, Brad Smith. With the recent reveal of the new Age of Sigmar edition (3rd), and the visual redesign of the included orruks, the Kruleboyz, we decided to talk about how Games Workshop’s orcs have changed over the years. We talk about the goofy looking Paul Bonner-style of orcs/orks that filled early editions of Warhammer and 40k, before talking about how Brian Nelson completely redesigned their look for GorkaMorka and 3rd edition 40k. Although Nelson’s designs have defined the orc look for over 20 years, their look has changed slightly, as designers struggle to capture the simple ferocity of his designs. Finally, we talk about how orcs changed for Age of Sigmar, becoming Orruks, and how divergent the Kruleboyz are from the previous Ironjawz models.

A look back: the models of 2018

Another year is almost over, which means it is time to reflect upon all of the models Games Workshop released in 2018, and talk about some of our favorites. It was another good year for GW with a lot it diverse releases, including a new edition of Age of Sigmar and 8mm plastic Titans for Adeptus Titanicus. And while no release was perfect, they were more complete and compelling then years prior. Some were so good that we didn't even feel the need to convert them. With this post, we wanted to talk about some of these highlights and choose what we think is the best release of the year!

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 42: Soul Wars!

Soul Wars!

We are joined by our good friend Eli Parsons to talk about the newly released second edition of Age of Sigmar and the new boxed game, Soul Wars. We spend the majority of the episode discussing the models and how they affect the undead and Stormcast model range.

Shadespire: Game Impressions and Ironskull's Boyz

Young Basha squares off against Iki-Turso - the breaker

Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire is a fast-paced board game of arena combat set in the Age of Sigmar universe. It is the newest addition to Games Workshop’s continually expanding board game line. They touted it as their first truly competitive game, one that would occupy a similar space as Fantasy Flight’s X-wing miniatures game. Interestingly, in addition to involving miniatures, Shadespire has a card-based component, allowing you to have finer control over the play-style for each warband. Being a fan of X-wing’s simple yet depth-filled rule system, as well as card-based games (like Magic: The Gathering), the hybrid system in Shadespire appealed to me. Luckily a good friend purchased a copy of the game, and I was able to play a few games, and eventually purchased one of the standalone warbands, Ironskull’s Boyz. With this post I thought that I would talk a little about my thoughts of Shadespire as a whole,and the separate warband box sets.    

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 28: Necromunda Underhive, more details emerge

Necromunda is back!

With Nova Open occuring this weekend, Games Workshop previewed a host of new products, including revealing a lot more information on the new version of Necromunda. We talk at length about the new gang models, but also about the components included in the boxed game. We also critique the new hero models contained in the upcoming Age of Sigmar Blightwar.

AoS28: Stormcast Eternal

“By day fantastic birds flew through the petrified forest, and jeweled crocodiles glittered like heraldic salamanders on the banks of the crystalline river. By night the illuminated man raced among the trees, his arms like golden cartwheels, his head like a spectral crown…”

The Crystal World (1966), J.G. Ballard

AoS28: Freyvid Hafnar - The Eclipse

Is it like the hand of God hovering above?

Freyvid Hafnar, Chief investigator of the Barak-Nar Biologis Guild, had been commissioned, alongside an Overlord warfleet, to venture into the humid cloudbanks of Ghyran in search of a missing explorator fleet. The Kharadron had long forsaken the realm of life for the riches of their native Chamon, but greed and hubris garnered from their dominion over the skies eventually pushed them outward. Rumors circulated the airways of some daemonic taint that had begun to overtake some of the farther reaches of the realm, and the Admiral Counsel began to fear that their ships may have been lost to its vile clutches. In hopes of salvaging something from the lost venture, they commissioned a Grundcorps reconnaissance fleet to investigate, with Hafnar amongst their storied crew. Never ones for superstition, the Barak-Nar Admirals reasoned that a scientist would prove useful in case the lost fleet met their end via some unconventional means. Hafnar was also somewhat of an expert on Nurgle pox and maladies, if anyone could truly be called such, studying the Guild’s labyrinthine archives on the matter. Whatever the fate of the lost ships, the decaying hand of Nurgle or otherwise, they would be found and avenged…

AoS28: Exploring a crystal world

“There is an immense reward to be found in that frozen forest... the gift of immortality a direct consequence of the surrender by each of us of our own physical and temporal identities. However apostate we may be in this world, there perforce we become apostles of the prismatic sun."

The Crystal World (1966), J.G. Ballard

In some forgotten grottos and neglected glades of the Mortal Realms, a singular transformation is coming over all organic matter. Living or dead, all blossoming into vitreous spurs of crystal. An inexhaustible tide, physically and psychologically. White static on periphery of conscious thought, beckoning all to return to face absolution. A new horror to add to the many that plague the Mortal Realms. But perhaps the capacity for it has been present all along, since the World’s molten core was placed within the firmament, some antediluvian certainty finally coalescing into being?

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 18: The Dark Age of Sigmar

The Dark Age of Sigmar.

We begin this episode by talking about the new Age of Sigmar releases, focusing on some of David Waeselynck’s work, the Vanguard-Palladors and the new Slambo. We also discuss the recently released Warhammer Quest game, Shadows over Hammerhal. We then transition into describing how Jake from Ex Profundis started a movement to bring the narrative style of Inq28 to Age of Sigmar, creating AoS28. The Age of Sigmar setting is a veritable blank slate upon which you can explore virtually any creative impulse, without feeling beholden to droves of background knowledge. This has encouraged us to start building a warband of warriors afflicted by an odd crystallizing disease, inspired by the J.G. Ballard novel The Crystal World.

AoS28 meets Outgard: The Funeral Procession rules

In death there is life and in memory there is revelation. They gather confused to celebrate dagmál, to strengthen themself before the gods, to have the will to walk on. They cannot know what awaits.

If one wants to explore the darker edges of the Warhammer 40,000 setting, bereft of Space Marines and Knight titans, and instead populated with frail humans on the edge of sanity, along with shady Inquisitors, and ghoulish cults, then Inq28 is there for you, with many great communites with like-minded individuals (Such as the Ammobunker and the Inquisitorium. Until recently, If you wanted to bring this narrative- and conversion-focused theme to Age of Sigmar, however, there was no distinct community to welcome you. Excitingly, this is a thing of the past now, with Bruticus from Ex Profundis coining the term “AoS28” to describe the Inq28-style of hobbying being applied to the Nine realms of Age of Sigmar. In addition to penning some guidelines for getting involved in AoS28, the Grand Alliance forums started a thread for people to post ideas and models and a facebook group was also started. In a very short time, these places have been flooded with all manner of fantastic conversions and warband ideas. When first reading about AoS28, we could not help but think of the Outgard project held last year. While technically set in the 40k universe, the gritty stagnation of culture and lack of technology beyond that of the middle ages, fits quite well with Age of Sigmar. Possibly the most iconic warband that took part, and certainly our favorite (in no small part because its leader was already dead before the games started!), was Alexander Winberg’s Funeral Procession! As a first venture into exploring AoS28, we figured we would try our hands at adapting their rules to Age of Sigmar, and talk a little about our thoughts about warband design.

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 7: Orruks in Age of Sigmar and Warhammer Quest!

Orcs/orks/orruks are back!

This episode is focused on the orcs arrival in  Age of Sigmar, in the form of the Orruk Ironjawz.  We talk about the new Ironjaw models, and discuss how the image of the orcs has changed over the years in Games Workshop products. Special mention is given to Brian Nelson’s key role in defining how they look today.  We also speak briefly about the newly revealed Warhammer Quest boxed game, marveling at the surprising diversity in the models included in the box.

Orruk Megaboss: Unboxing and assembly impressions

This beakie looks outclassed...

In my mind, the orcs/orks/orruks really came into perfect form when Brian Nelson started to sculpt them, starting with a few Warhammer Fantasy models, then moving to Gorkamorka (Mad Max-style gang warfare game), before finally sculpting the majority of the 3rd edition Warhammer 40,000 range.  He was able to take the somewhat comical humanoid designs of Rogue Trader and 2nd edition Warhammer 40k and completely revitalize them.  He turned the orcs/orks into more simian-like creatures with long arms corded with muscle and hunched postures.  Beyond the orcs’ frame, Nelson gave them a very distinctive facial structure, with a flattened nose, small beady eyes and a pronounced lower jaw.  A lot of these features were already part of the orc aesthetic, but Nelson was able to combine those elements into something very distinctive and unique for Games Workshop. Brian Nelson made me love the orcs.  A number of other sculptors have handled orcs for Games Workshop since Nelson’s reimaging, but none ever fully captured their essence like he did.  The last few Warhammer 40,000 orc releases seem more like imitations of Nelson’s greatness, never quite reaching the same heights (despite being very good).  I had long hoped for the day that Nelson would return to sculpting orcs, and when I saw images of the new Orruk models for Age of Sigmar, my heart lept.  After seeing the expressive faces on the models, and the careful attention to scale, I knew that Brian Nelson must have had a serious role in their creation.  As it turns out, Nelson’s first sculpt for the Orruk range was the imposing Orruk Megaboss. Such was my excitement about the model that I was at my local hobby shop to get it the day it was released.

Dragged into Turbolasers Episode 2: Fyreslayers and Mantic Games' Walking Dead Miniature game

Unboxing: Stormcast Eternal Lord-Celestant

The first few Stormcast...

Having played a few games of Age of Sigmar while proxying my Dark Angels as Stormcast Eternals, I was really impressed with some of their character models, particularly the rune sword and warhammer-wielding Lord-Celestant.  Despite being geared for close combat, he wears a Sigmarite Warcloak that gives him D6 shooting attacks which have the possibility of causing Mortal wounds.  What makes him truly impressive, however is his command ability (Furious Retribution), that allows himself and any other Stormcast Eternal within 9” to add 1 to all their hit rolls in close combat.  In my first few games of Age of Sigmar, he was able to boost the killing potential of a unit of Retributors, allowing me to tear through pretty much anything my opponent could throw at them.  After having so much fun using the Lord-Celestant in game (I had been proxying an Emperor’s Champion), I decided to get the model itself.

Age of Sigmar: First few games

It has been about a month since Age of Sigmar burst onto the gaming scene, like the burning radiance of Ghal Maraz.  With the freely available rules, new models (Space Marines in fantasy!), and a complete lack of point values for units, it was an exciting, if not slightly bewildering, time.  Now that the initial excitement has died down (likely due to the slow trickle of singular releases each week), and I have had a chance to play a few games, I decided it was a good time to tell you my current impressions of Age of Sigmar as a game.

Age of Sigmar: Initial Impressions of the Miniatures

The Age of Sigmar begins.

Warhammer Fantasy has seen a slow but steady demise since the release of 8th edition back in 2010. Although they released revised rules for most of the armies in the new edition, they tended to be sparsely updated versions of their previous books, to bring them inline with the ill-favored new rule set.  Interestingly, it took GW destroying everything in the setting through the End Times to renew people's’ interest in Warhammer (admittedly, I think the increased interest had more to do with them finally releasing truly exciting models and remaking old classics, accompanied with new interesting background and artwork, rather than the fact that things were ending, but I digress). Although people were excited about End Times, it inherently left fans uncertain what was going to happen to their beloved game, and we have all been in an uneasy limbo since the Warhammer world ended, waiting to see where Games Workshop would go. After months of vague rumors and unsatisfying teases from GW, pictures of their new game Age of Sigmar have finally leaked across the internet (thanks Lady Atia!).  While these pictures have left more questions than provided answers, they are quite striking, and I wanted to talk a little about my impression of the new models and the direction their design seems to be going.