The launch box for the new edition of Warhammer 40,000 has been revealed, and it’s an absolute beast. Leviathan contains a huge number of new miniatures – an elite vanguard of Space Marines stand firm in the face of an endless swarm of Tyranids led by some monstrous new synapse beasts.
The Hive Mind has engineered a dizzying menagerie of biomorphs suited to tackling any kind of prey – but it hasn’t been resting on its chitinous laurels. Sensing the value of a colossal four-armed beast that vomits blistering globules of bio-plasma with a shriek that can terrify even the staunchest of foes, this unknowable intelligence has taken a shot at evolving the Screamer-Killer.
The original Screamer-Killer – the name given to this breed of Carnifex by shell-shocked Astra Millitarum survivors – came with a model that defined an era. It was an apoplectic orb with a wailing face and four scything limbs arcing from its central bulk, stomping forth on two digitigrade legs. Not an inch was wasted on this solid egg of death – it was tough enough to withstand the heaviest firepower and battered tanks and infantry flat. You could also put all the metal parts into a sock and use it to break through walls.
The first Screamer-Killer got its name from its ability to brew up deadly bio-plasma in its guts – which it ejected with a high-pitched screeching noise. The new Screamer-Killer takes all of these qualities and amps them up even further, reviving a classic design in a colossal new form.
This isn’t the first time the Hive Mind has rejuvenated the Carnifex. During the third edition of Warhammer 40,000, it saw fit to give the dreaded beast a winning smile, a more beetle-like body, improved posture, and the ability to wield varied bio-weapons like a massive venom cannon.
The first plastic revamp of the Tyranid range introduced a more hunch-backed Carnifex, with even more options for heads, shells, and horrible weapons of death.
This calamitous caterwauler has now been singled out once again, morphing into an atavistic giant that stands even taller than other Carnifex strains. These armoured assault beasts have always had a nasty profile, and their new incarnation is the most fearsome yet.
It’s a monster in combat, with 10 attacks at Strength 10, and its bio-plasmic screams forces the unit it hits to take a Battle-shock test in the Shooting phase – shutting down anyone who had been planning to use a Stratagem in the Fight phase to follow…
The Screamer-Killer is just one of a range of new miniatures in the Warhammer 40,000 launch box that was announced at Warhammer Fest 2023. You can expect to see more details on other units emerging on Warhammer Community as this behemoth of a box lumbers closer to release.
