After a whole year and countless hours of painting highlights, applying decals, and scratch-building magnificent dioramas, it’s time for the Armies on Parade 2023 awards show.
This is an opportunity to recognise some of the most accomplished hobbyists in the Warhammer community, who have created not only whole armies but also a themed board to display them on.
We’ve got a live stream of the ceremony here. Stream already over? You can watch it on demand below, or scroll down to examine the winners, with commentary from Ollie, one of this year’s judges.
Ollie: There were so many awesome Warhammer 40,000 entries this year! A really nice mix of different factions, but this year the Space Marines really blew us out of the water.
Théo Lamury’s Black Templars take gold with crisp painting backed by subtle conversion work, and a display board and basing theme in a strong red tone to bring the main event into focus.
Making great use of space on a display board for his Crimson Fists, this entry by Maciej Kulesza is a visual feast with wonderful gradients and striking reds.
Emil Alégroth has elegantly mixed eye-catching pops of bright colours like a rainbow power sword with some excellent weathering on his Ultramarines 5th Company, who rest under the all-seeing gaze of the Emperor.
The Best of Leviathan category is a special celebration of the new edition Warhammer 40,000, tasking people with making a display inspired by the miniatures that were available in the launch box.
Carsten Ebert pairs Sternguard, Terminators, and a Librarian from Leviathan with a whole lotta Imperial Fists to incredible effect in a meticulous entry on industrial terrain.
The Tyranids of Hive Fleet Medusa look foreboding in Simon Coulton’s entry, which pairs a chunk of Leviathan with some classic kits.
Alvin Rotor scores a bronze trophy with a mighty Ballistus Dreadnought, Sternguard, Terminators, a Terminator Captain, and Apothecary Biologis decked out in the colours of the Black Templars.
Ollie: This was by far the hardest category for us to judge. It’s a pleasure to see so many superb armies that have clearly had a lot of passion poured into them. I cannot stress enough how hard it was to decide on just three!
Every single miniature in Josh Leak’s Soublight Gravelords entry is rich with care and detail. Crimson armour, pallid skin, glowing weapons, and some incredible freehand come together in an immaculate army.
The Soulblight Gravelords clearly won the hearts and minds of the judges. Celestin Morier’s army features a number of fantastic conversions, including a Zombie Dragon crafted from Archaon’s mount Dorghr, earning silver.
The light of Order shines on third place: Alex Marsh’s Lumineth Realm-lords. The pale palette is accentuated by deep crimson in a unique look for these supercilious aelves.
The Best of the Rest category collects the entries for every other Warhammer game, from Adeptus Titanicus to Necromunda and beyond, as well as our Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game range.
Pablo Bravo Mediavilla takes gold with a vibrant snapshot of life in Middle-earth™ as the Beornings gather to defend their territory.
A rusty and worn take on the innards of a Space Hulk with some truly inspired conversions earns silver for Johan Kølkjær – this entry really gets to the grimy heart of Warhammer 40,000, seamlessly mixing old and new.
The Death Guard make ready for war in their austere fortress in Shaun Andrews' entry, which combines war machines, dreadnoughts, and infantry in a clever tiered layout.
There are always too many entries to fit into the main categories, and the Judge’s Choice Awards are designed to highlight and reward those who did something unique, interesting, or a little out of the ordinary.
Most Sporting is handed off to Adrijano Kesegi, who has captured the claustrophobic experience of Dungeonbowl with a great array of Blood Bowl characters and clever details.
Elias, aged 12, wins the Most Inspiring Youngster award for a truly epic Middle-earth™ entry which features two War Mûmaks of Harad stomping across a grassy plain.
Erika Santarelli is awarded Most Atmospheric, and it’s not hard to see why. Some potent lighting and an entire city backdrop tie the micro and macro elements of this composition effortlessly.
The Spirit of Chaos is handed to James Taro whose pale-skinned Beasts of Chaos force stands out amongst the earthy, natural tones of the moonlit copse within which they’re performing a dark ritual.
Jose Manuel Pla Albiach scores the Most Original Composition award for a triptych that brings classic Warhammer Fantasy Battle art to life and situates them in elaborate 3D frames, which are hiding nostalgic treats for the eagle-eyed viewer.
A procession of bubblegum Gloomspite Gitz by Massimo Piazza swipes the Golden Squig award, both for excellent painting and for being chock full of squigs.
The guidelines for Armies on Parade state you have a 2x2ft space to work with… but no one ever said anything about height, did they? Nik Usher wins Be’lakor’s Prize for Ultimate Ambition for setting his sights as high as the Dark Master himself.
Finally, Steve Phillips takes the Regimental Champion award for a display that brings together the command, infantry, tanks, walkers and aircraft of the Astra Militarum.
And with that, Armies on Parade 2023 has come to a close. Thanks to everyone who took part either online or locally, and we look forward to seeing what you come up with for Armies on Parade 2024.