White Dwarf (398) - February 2013

Yep, I'm a whole month late in reviewing this, so I'll try to keep it brief as I imagine that if you wanted to know about what's inside you will have found out by now!

Opening Salvo - Jes is up to his old tricks again, going to great lengths to tell us how great the new models are.

New Releases - The big release this month were the Warriors of Chaos for fantasy. None of them particularly caught my eye, but if I had to pick a favourite I'd go for the Vortex thingy. Speaking of models that aren't what I'm into, there's some new Hobbit stuff including a non-limited edition Radagast. This model definitely isn't as awesome as the one from the box set, but is still sweet.

From the satellite companies we have a few nice releases. A Ciaphas Cain novel featuring the Tau, and the Legion Champion and master of the signals from Forge World.

Army of the Month - I've been looking at these pages for a month now and I'm still not bored. This is exactly the kind of cool shit I want to see in this magazine! It's a well painted army with plenty of kit-bashing and also and very flexible approach to collecting. Using various different 'types' of Astartes and painting them as one unified chapter. Love it!

Jervis Johnson - I think this whole issue is subliminal. Jerv ties in nicely with the previous army by talking about what it's ok to collect. The answer is do what will please yourself. This, coupled with Blanchitsu and the Army of the Month has had a profound affect on my attitude to the hobby over the past few weeks while I've been unable to do any actual hobbying. I always knew that the freedom was there, but I guess I was just always too busy working on army projects and really stop and think. I'm even contemplating buying a Hobbit figure just for the hell of it!

Battle Report - Once again I'm afraid I kind-of glazed over, except for the great shots of the Night Goblins. I think there might've been an issue at the printers as Andrew's army is so black it's almost impossible to make out details.

Blanchitsu - When this article first returned in the new WDs I didn't get it. The models showcased didn't look like they could easily be used in a game so I passed them off as an odd curio from a talented man. Something happened this time around and I realised the joy of modeling for it's own sake rather than as a means to an end (I hope I got my cliches correct!). The minis on display this month were sent in by a reader and are oozing with detail. I'm already planning in my mind the Inquisitorial Warband I'm going to try and make!

Hall of Fame - Juan Diaz' Sternguard are the focus this month. They are amazing sculpts, however I'd probably rate the Tyrannic War Vets over these, but they're not current.

Parade Ground - Continuing on from last month we get some highlights from Golden Demon 2012. Stand-outs for me this time are Adam Haton's Inquisitor, and Kornel Kozak's Skaven.

Kit Bash - This month it's a look at 40k command squads. There's some really cool examples like the kit-bashed Tau suits, with great posing and an inventive use of different bits. Inspiring stuff.

Battle Ground - Four of last years Armies on Parade entries. These must have taken so much time and money. I was happy to see the Deathwing again, with much better photos than I took. Also there's the overall winner, from Cardiff no less!

Paint Splatter - Mostly focusing on Chaos tips but it does branch off to other areas. Much discussion has taken place about how this article lacks the focus of the old 'Eavy Metal masterclasses. It's just a different beast. I prefer to look at it as a handy collection of tips and tricks that you might not think of on your own, and these techniques can then be learnt, adapted and used on whichever minis you like.

Jeremy Vetock - Some people say this is a waste of two pages, that it's not important and that it's nothing that you can't find on hundreds of blogs online. I think it's actually a very important article. It's very rare, probably impossible to find a hobby blog written by a member of GW, and this is an insight into one of the design teams life in the hobby. Yes it's not telling you how to win at all costs, but it is a slice of fun, written in a very personable manner and shows that the designers are still passionate about the hobby the create.

This Month In - The photos in this section are really dark. It's a shame because this is another area where the passion of the Dwarfers really comes across. There's artwork and designers notes about the Warriors of Chaos, but the star of the show in my eyes is the FW section. Abaddon and Loken are previewed (they've been released now though!) and there's shots of an awesome looking Necron Realm of Battle section. I saw it at GD2012 but there was no clue as to when it'd be coming out. Now it's been shown to the masses I really hope it's coming out soon. It'll be a huge amount of fun to paint.

There we go, short and sweet. I'm not sure if you can tell that I think this issue is great, it's packed with ideas, inspiration, non-studio models and plenty of enthusiasm. So on to the score, wait for it, a whopping 9 out of 10. Nice one Jes, Andrew and co.