Everything announced for Warhammer AdeptiCon 2024, at a glance

Mar. 21, 2024

A new edition for Age of Sigmar, Skaven, and mysterious teases of things to come

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1.Age of Sigmar2.Warhammer 40K3.Kill Team4.Underworlds5.Warcry6.The Old World7.Horus Heresy & Necromunda

Because publisher Games Workshop dropped a lot of info over its hour-long AdeptiCon stream, I’ve broken it all down here so that you can quickly catch up on everything new in the world of Warhammer at a glance - no matter which of its games you like best, or how long you’ve been in the hobby.

Buckle up – some of thebest board gamesand wargames are about to get spicier…

A new and more accessible game mode was also unveiled, giving Age of Sigmar (AoS) an equivalent to Warhammer 40K’s Combat Patrol.

New edition & the return of Skaven

Fans finally got what they’ve been clamoring for, too – a comeback from the Skaven ratmen. This faction was revealed as one of the armies launching the new edition, and that means they’ll show up in starter sets and a potential launch box (Games Workshop normally makes one to ‘see in’ a new version of its games).

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Going up against these monsters will be the knightly Stormcast Eternals (who can be revived after death, if you didn’t already know). They’ll be battling alongside their most experienced veterans, the brand-new Reclusian Stormcast. These warriors tie into the ‘Sigmar lied’ plot hook that Games Workshop’s been teasing for a little while, largely because Stormcast aren’t immortal as was promised – with each resurrection, they lose part of their soul until nothing is left. And as it happens, Reclusian Stormcast are on their last life…

While I’m generally more excited about the Skaven and a more approachable AoS in general, this plot twist makes the Stormcast much more compelling in my book. What were fairly stoic warrior-heroes are now tinged with tragedy, adding depth to them.

Besides the new edition, AdeptiCon also revealed that Age of Sigmar would be getting a leaner and more beginner-friendly match type -if you don’t have enough time for Warhammer Age of Sigmar, this new game mode is for you. Called ‘Spearhead,’ it’s a streamlined version with a much shorter run-time. Indeed, sessions should apparently take an hour or less.

Rather than faffing with army composition or points costs, this will also use pre-balanced armies found in Spearhead boxsets. Apparently, every faction will get one.

Seeing as AoS can be a bit dense, having a more straightforward way to play is no bad thing. Plus, Spearhead means we don’t need to set aside an afternoon or whole day to play - you can get through a couple of matches in as many hours.

Even though Age of Sigmar’s current edition is drawing to a close, the ongoing Dawnbringer narrative campaign has yet to wrap up – and it’ll do so while being stomped under the heels of a dinosaur-riding Chaos champion, Abraxia, Spear of the Everchosen. She seems to have stepped off a metal album cover and is really hacked off about that, so the model certainly makes a statement if you want a showstopper.

She’ll be available first in the Abraxia’s Varanspear box, which I suspectmightbe a Spearhead pack - but that’s not confirmed.

Dropping alongside the 10th Edition Codex for Chaos Space Marines, two new Chaos Lord models are leading the charge (one on foot and another using a jump pack). While I’m a bit disappointed we didn’t get more to go with them, these are both dynamic sculpts that I’m already stoked to paint.

It was also confirmed that not one but two army boxes are on the way for these fallen Space Marines. We can look forward to ‘Veterans of the Long War,’ which is a classic setup with traditional Legionaries, Terminators, and Possessed, and ‘Dread Talons’ with cultists and fast-moving jump pack units.

Yes, that’s not quite as exciting as all the shiny new models in theKroot army fans lost their minds over, or even theDeathwing Assault box that made me turn my back on my beloved Chaosfor a while. Revised and new models seem unlikely if the Battleforce boxes have already been shown, too. But hey - I can hope we get something else before release. Right? Right…?

The Bheta-Decima campaign continues in 40K’s shorter, more bite-size sibling with Kill Team: Termination. Specifically, we’re getting more scenery (which ismassiveand can turn deadly fast thanks to it being an unpredictable plasma generator) and another two factions for Kill Team – the scout Hernkyn Yaegirs and Genestealer Brood Brothers.

The first of these are vanguards for the Leagues of Votann (read: a sci-fi spin on fantasy dwarves), so are clad in western-style dusters and love close-combat weaponry. Shotguns, plasma knives, and pistols? Absolutely. In all honesty, these might be my favorite Votann miniatures so far - they ooze style, attitude, and a Clint Eastwood-esque personality.

I’m also sold on the Genestealers, which is unusual for me – I’m not usually a fan of theirs. However, these guys hit the sweet spot by providing fairly normal troopers that have subtle and unsettling mutations peeking from under the surface. Their leaders, mainly the enormous Tyranid Patriarch, are equally stunning.

So far (and as I mentioned in myKill Team: Salvation review), I’ve been mighty impressed with this narrative series. Fingers crossed it keeps that winning streak going with this pack.

This pack, called Wintermaw, delves deeper into the icy Deathgorge where frostbitten monsters dwell. Only truly unhinged warriors dare to tread there, so it’s fitting that the two warbands featured in this starter box are out of their minds. One (featuring a preacher riding around on his son’s shoulders) are Sigmarite zealots who are truly unhinged; they worship lightning and seem to have been hit by it more than a few times.

Opposing them are what I can only describe as ghoul chefs that are trying to gather the best cuts of meat.

See, this kind of zany nonsense is why I love Underworlds.

Anyway, because this is a starter pack, you get everything you need to play in the box – general rules, card decks for these warbands, two extra decks for mixing things up, a board, and tokens.

It seems as if the Gnarlwood saga is coming to an end in Warcry, as this AdeptiCon reveal suggests that the end-goal all these warbands have been striving toward (to hit a downed starship) is in reach.

This particular boxset, Warcry: Briar and Bone, pits the forces of life and death against each other. On one side are the skeletal Teratic Cohorts. On the other sit the Twistweald fey. These may seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum, but they’re actually very similar thematically – they have both been twisted into something horrible.

I’ve not been the hugest fan of either faction in the past (I still miss my Wood Elves from old-school Warhammer, now replaced with the Sylvaneth), but the lore of these two warbands makes me sit up and take notice. The former have been cobbled together from other skeletons into a horrific mish-mash by their god as a punishment, while the latter are infected with parasites from the Gnarlwood that fractured their minds. Do they need a hug? I feel like they need a hug.

Oh, and a giant man-eating tree as scenery doesn’t hurt either…

The classic Warhammer Fantasy Battle dwarfs are coming back in the next Old World drop, and though many units are simply returning to production, wearegetting a handful of new minis too alongside a book telling you how to run this grumpy, grudgeholding faction.

There are four new models in total: two lords (one on foot and the other being held aloft on a shield), a dwarf Thane wielding a rifle, and Ungrim Ironfist. The latter is a classic Warhammer character that’s having an encore for Old World, but this version is younger and much more imposing.

Because I was such a big fan of this game (Warhammer: The Old World is like a time capsule, and I’m obsessed), I’m very happy to see more old-school factions being added to the mix.

As for Necromunda, the teaser dipped below-ground to a hidden, ominous facility. I’m assuming this will be the setting of the next boxed set, because it feels like we’re due another one soon.

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