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The Mortal Realms are in turmoil. Sigmar’s Dawnbringer Crusades teeter on the precipice between survival and disaster, even as the forces of Chaos, Destruction, and Death grow in power. But you know who’s been suspiciously absent from the titanic struggles that have come to dominate the eight realms? The Skaven hordes.
So that’s what they’ve been up to. A billions-strong tsunami of fur and teeth and malice is boiling up through Aqshy and beyond, as a scheme centuries in the making comes to vile fruition – and brings with it an all-new edition of Warhammer Age of Sigmar.
That’s right, the most exciting fantasy tabletop wargame in the world has been rewritten from the ground up, building on a decade of rich storytelling and bringing with it legions of new miniatures, new rules, an entirely new game mode, and a harrowing new chapter in the existential battle for the Mortal Realms.
The Story So Far
After a long period seemingly at the periphery of the action, the Skaven have returned with a rataclysmic bang. The realms have gotten too used to a world where verminkin keep to the shadows, and the consequences are dire. All that skulking around was time spent plotting the greatest scheme of all – the Vermindoom, blossoming much of the foetid sub-realm of Blight City directly into the Realm of Fire, and opening up festering rents in reality across the rest of the Mortal Realms.
At the same time, the Great Horned Rat has struck a deal with Archaon himself, and ascended to his rightful place as a full fifth member of the Chaos pantheon – somewhat to the chagrin of the erstwhile four.
In the face of such calamity, the Stormcast Eternals of the Hallowed Knights chamber stand as the foremost bulwark against an ever-expanding tide of rodents. But the horrors they face in combating a continent-sized outbreak of Skaven are so overwhelming that they have been forced to call upon the Ruination Chamber.
These are the most grizzled veterans of the Stormcast, heroes of a thousand battles dating back to the Soul Wars and before, brave men and women who have died over and again in the service of the God-King. The innumerable reforgings have taken a heavy toll – these heroes have been sequestered in monasteries for years now, clinging to the last vestiges of their humanity.
Now they have been called upon once more – the only forces hardy enough to enter a warzone blighted by the corrupting force of the warpstone. For these mighty warriors, this may be the final time they step into battle – at least, as themselves.
The Game
This huge shift in narrative is accompanied by changes to the game. The rules for Warhammer Age of Sigmar have gradually introduced new layers of complexity over the past nine years, always building on a robust framework but perhaps not able to take stock and reassess the experience as a whole. So for this edition, the team wanted to make sure they got everything right.
The Core Rules have been reforged for the first time since the first edition of the game, released way back in 2015. The focus has been on streamlining, accessibility, and modularity – but not at the expense of depth – to ensure that the epic fantasy battles of your imagination can be recreated on the tabletop.
This new edition is absolutely still the Warhammer Age of Sigmar that you all know and love, with all the friction taken out – cleanly and smartly. It has the tactical and strategic nuance of the previous editions, driven by a real desire for the background to show through on the tabletop.
On top of all that, there are modular rules, plenty more opportunities for reactivity in your opponent’s turn via an updated system of command points and abilities, and a ton of tweaks and refinements – not least to the double turn, which has been fine-tuned into a knife-edge decision with a clever twist to scoring. Put simply, it is the best edition of Warhammer Age of Sigmar yet.
What Does This Mean for My Army?
Rebuilding the Core Rules means that quite a lot has changed, and every faction in the new edition has had its entire set of warscrolls and army rules updated and reworked.
As a result, each faction in the new edition will receive a free downloadable faction pack at launch. Each pack will contain all of the rules needed to play – battle traits, subfactions, enhancements, spell lores, and warscrolls for every unit. This also means that the battletomes from the current edition will not be compatible with the new rules, and that every faction will receive a new battletome over the next few years.
We’ll have more details on what the new warscrolls look like and what you can expect from every faction in the coming months.
Spearhead: A New Way to Play
As well as updates to Matched Play and Path to Glory, the new edition of Warhammer Age of SIgmar is accompanied by Spearhead, a fresh game mode that plays in an hour or less using the contents of each faction’s Spearhead and Vanguard boxes.
Spearhead is a fun and exquisitely balanced version of Warhammer Age of Sigmar, and a brilliant way to introduce the game to beginners – but it’s not just new players who’ll want to play this mode. It really takes advantage of the new modular Core Rules to introduce a unique tactical spin – the Design Studio absolutely love it, and it’s become one of the most popular games to play in lunch hours and after work around the office.
Despite its small scale, Spearhead is a deep and robust game system with enough depth and twists to provide endless replayability. We’ll definitely have more to say on this system in the near future.
What’s Next?
This summer will be an exciting time to be a Warhammer Age of Sigmar fan, and there’s ample opportunity for new players to discover this incredible universe and game.
Tune in over the coming months to learn more about the changes coming to Warhammer Age of Sigmar and see all the new miniatures – lots of new miniatures.
And choose your allegiance by signing up for the Stormcast or Skaven Warhammer Community newsletters at the links below, for all the latest updates from the Mortal Realms.
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