New Releases - As you'd expect this section is packed with all the robotic goodness you could want! The Triarch Stalker starts things off and it looks seriously imposing. Out of the two variants I'm currently prefering the twin-linked Gauss Cannons over the Heat Ray in terms of looks, I've got no clue how they actually measure up. What's cool about this page is the handy box-out with the paints they recommend to 'get the look'. This has proved mighty handy for me as I've been dabbling with all sorts of colour schemes as those of you who follow me on Twitter might have seen.
Then there's the Tomb Blades. They come in a set of three and it looks like there's a huge amount of customisation in the kit which I really like. The way that the pilot is angled to be facing down kinda reminds of the ride Air at Alton Towers!
Staying on a Canoptek tip it's the Spyder. Again this is going to be an auto-include in my army for looks alone. All I've got to do is decide which kit is going to be top of my shopping list.
Rounding off the new releases are some upgrade kits for Destroyer Lords and Heavy Destroyers. I've never really liked these models and I'm chuffed that GW didn't go down this route for the whole release. Also there's the missing special characters such as Nemesor Zahndrekh and Illuminor Szeras. The later looking so kick-ass holding the head of a dead Eldar.
In other releases they've given the Finecast treatment to the Legion of the Damned and Librarian Tigurius. Great news for when I want to pick up my Ultras again.
News - I feel that this section is really working this issue. They cover games day, new RPG books from FFG, an expansion to Warhammer Invasion. By the way is this game any good please? I used to play a load of CCGs but the constant need to update decks put me off in the end.
The Nihilakh Dynasty - This is a cool article giving some background to the Necron army along with a few pages of painting guides. I usually just drybush my silver straight over black but I'm going to give this method a try to make them stand out from my other armies. Also the tips on painting light sources is going to prove very useful.
Tomb Worlds Unleashed - Simon Grant and Mat Ward chat about the new releases and what they can do on the table. There's not a lot of real content here, most of it is just statements to sound cool.Citadel Painting Guide - This looks like it might be a regular segment showing the new products, this month it's a bottle of water effects, and giving us a few pages of step-by-step guides on how to paint various parts of models. Although some of the guides are basic to say the least they've looked at a wide range of miniatures, not just the new releases. Tacked onto the end of this is a big guide to the various uniforms and heraldry of the Empire. Interesting if you like the historical aspect.
Tome of Battle - Mat Ward was obviously a busy boy this month as he put together an expansion for the Storm of Magic expansion. There's a truck load of new rules here from a scenario, to the lore spells, to Battle Prayers and Witch Hunter relics. As an almost noob to fantasy and a non-magical dwarf player I can't tell if this is quantity over quality or if it's the shit but roolz iz roolz.
Standard Bearer - I think Jervis was in shock from how good this issue turned out that he spent two whole pages writing a load of shit. Quite possibly the worst Standard Bearer in a while, if not worst article overall.
The Battle for Tanrak - More Mat Ward loving I'm afraid as he brings us a great map-based campaign. I love maps and campaigns using maps and despite what popular opinion says I bought planetary empires and love it! The rules look solid and I really want to play this with my gaming group. They also show a few shots of an awesome looking 'cron army painted by Chad Mierzwa. The spyders look very similar to the mecha from Ghost in the Shell (Tachacomas?!). There's some scenarios and mini battle reps to illustrate them and then there's the apocalypse section. This has one scenario which looks lots of fun using the Forge World pylon and there's 2 apoc phalanx formations. The Triarch one looks easily achievable however the Ghost Strider one could be quite costly. I'm surprised and slightly sad they didn't print a canoptek one but hey ho.Tale of 4 Gamers - It finally comes to an end with the contestants building a diorama and completing their armies. Yeah the dioramas look alright but I'm glad this series has reached the end.
Death Worlds Modelling Workshop - I really like the idea of this article. Theming your terrain so it feels more like an actual (death) world that you're fighting on rather than a mish mash of stuff. The theory is great, but I can't help thinking how expensive the actual projects could end up being. Inspiring stuff for the 'if I ever get rich' category.
Bit at the Back - A few interesting bits this month. The College of Artisans looks like it's be quite fun so long as there weren't kids there spoiling it. Also the write up and setting up clubs was really cool and made a change from all the hobby centre talk. The back page even shows that next month there's going to be some White Scars v Necron action. Yeah that's probably not going to be the main attraction but at least it's a tidbit to get excited about.
So there you have it. I think this is the longest review of a new one I've done in a while as I found myself enjoying everything in here (well almost, I'm looking at you Johnson!). I'm going to say 7/10. Just a few little things like the lack of solid tactics in the tactics section let it down but otherwise a really fun and enjoyable issue from Andrew and the team.
ps. As an aside I really wish they'd release a digital version of the magazine along with the physical copy, kind of like what Marvel does with it's comics. Would certainly save me a huge amount of time scanning, cropping and PDFing them to put onto my phone!
No comments:
Post a Comment