Unified Warhammer Fantasy thread

Yeah, Norsca often have this shift between neutral and downright evil that swing back and fort depending of the writer.

But of course even the most heroic will see chaos gods very diferent that someone from the empire.

It's kinda annoying to read youtube comments who seem to 1) keep confusing 40k's grimdark nature with fantasy like making 40k memes but with Sigmar 2) make comments akin to "this is what true warhammer is like"(like vermintide 2's wind of magic cinematic trailer) ignoring all the intentionally silly parts of lore as if warhammer was just brutal violence and darkness and not also the game with faction of football hooligans.

I think that is big part of why I find it hard becoming part of the fandom despite interest in miniatures and speculative fiction genre overall

The juxtaposition of a grimdark fantasy world with some absurd British-style comedy is what made me interested in the Warhammer world to begin with. While the game lore presents itself as a grittier and more cynical take on typical Heroic Fantasy, it is softened by the overt silliness of Greenskin antics and some darker humor from other sources. Another thing that makes it (relatively speaking) Lighter and Softer than 40K, is that there is more room for genuine heroics and the Warhammer world is a more realistic type of Crapsack World, where life can even be kinda alright.

I always understood the difference between the two settings as being that 40k is grimdark because everyone's an asshole, whereas Fantasy is grimdark because everyone is screwed.

That being said, it's absolutely true that Fantasy has a streak of dark humor that 40k doesn't, although its prevalence has varied over time — I would say that 5th, 6th Editions are probably the peak of that? 8th definitely toned that element down.

Ye its why I have even less interest in 40k, 40k is satirical without being funny.

I personally prefer Warhammer to 40K because of what I said above, with the Warhammer world offering a potentially more heroic and decent side than just A Lighter Shade of Black. Compared to more typical High Fantasy tabletop settings, like Forgotten Realms, it is still quite dark and cynical, but it's seldom too bleak to be entertaining. 40K does have a lot of interesting lore written into it, but in general I like the miniatures much more than the setting and I'd prefer the tone less oppressively Grimdark.

Personally, I think Blood Bowl has always had the best humour of all the GW games. Speaking of which...

Today on Warhammer Community:

Norse Blood Bowl Star Player Thorsson Stoutmead

The Norse Team was announced at AdeptiCon last week, and it brings with it one of the greatest players Blood Bowl fans have ever seen – the almighty Beer Boar. But sometimes you need more booze than one small pig can carry, which is where Thorsson Stoutmead◊ shines.

As his name implies, this Norse star player is both powerfully stout and filled to the brim with mead. He’s so enthusiastic for a mid-match pick-me-up that he carries an entire barrel around with him for on-the-go refuelling purposes, which handily doubles up as a blunt force trauma weapon◊.

His signature move, Beer Barrel Bash◊, lets him toss his keg to knock down rival players. However, the ever-enthusiastic Stoutmead may have had a bit too much to drink – if you flub the roll, he’ll drop it on himself instead.

This muscular mead-fuelled macho man can lend a bit of extra power to any Old World Classic team. So if your Norse, Dwarves, Halflings, Humans, Imperial Nobility, or Ogres need a helping hand, they may just want to recruit this barrel-bowling, player-tipping, drinking horn-appreciating legend.

Also today we have an unboxing of the Arena of Shades set for AoS, which includes a look at the sprues for the High Gladiatrix & Scriptor Mortis◊, and Craventhrone Guard◊ as I know some people like to see those.

Edited by SebastianGray on Mar 28th 2022 at 5:27:10 PM

Another example that most modern Blood Bowl figures would demand very little converting to become fit for Warhammer Fantasy. The Norscan team would make for an excellent band of Marauders for a skirmish-game, while Thorsson Stoutmead would be fine as-is, if you'd use him as a hard-partying Viking chieftain.

Seeing the sprues is always nice to see for the sake of planning. Seeing the sprues can seriously affect whether I will buy something or not.

Edited by Mara999 on Mar 28th 2022 at 10:24:17 PM

Today on Warhammer Community: The Adapticon Golden Demon winners. Here are the Aos winners.

Single Miniature: Gold and Slayer Sword winner◊; Silver◊; Bronze◊. I actually think that Sigvald in Silver is a lot better than the Skink that won.

Unit: Gold◊; Silver◊; Bronze◊. A good win for the vampires, although I love the green weapons the Bronze Skeletons are wielding.

Large Miniature: Gold◊; Silver◊; Bronze◊. It may just be because of the awesome banner, but I love Ku'gath in Bronze.

Mixed Game Chatagories

Diorama Gold (AoS)◊; Silver (40K)◊; Bronze (40K)◊. I agree that the Gold is the best as I feel Silver and Bronze are too busy.

Duel: Gold (HH)◊; Silver (HH)◊; Bronze (AoS)◊. I am torn between Gold and Silver but I think I would say that Jonson vs. Russ was a worthy winner.

Small Scale: Gold (AI)◊; Silver (AT)◊; Bronze (AI)◊. All good.

By the way, if anyone's into tabletop gaming, Humble Bundle is doing a thing this month for the Soulbound game.

I'm kinda bummed in general hearing that 8th edition is the darker warhammer fantasy edition since the silly stuff from earlier editions is more amusing to me than trying to copy 40k's feeling in smaller degree

Today on Warhammer Community: Another Norse Star Player

We’ve only just revealed the Norsca Rampagers, the latest – and drunkest – Blood Bowl team to hit the astrogranite. But the Norscans aren’t just a bunch of mead-swilling hooligans. Sometimes, they even turn up to play – and when they do, it’s usually with the undisputed star of the Northern Leagues, Ivar Eriksson◊.

Strong, fast, and agile, Eriksson is the complete package. He’s a dashing Blitzer who can Block, Tackle, and Guard, adding crucial punch and muscle to the Norscans’ already mighty front line. And with his infectious grin and flowing blonde locks◊, he’s perhaps one of the more aesthetically pleasing star players to grace Nuffle’s sacred gridiron.

On top of all that, Eriksson’s got some serious leadership skills – the Raiding Party special rule◊ allows him to quarterback his team, ignoring tackle zones to shunt key personnel to where they’re most needed. You may even find him giving orders to that adorable Beer Boar, in order to help it deliver its life-giving consignment of booze.

Ivar Eriksson will be released soon from Forge World, as a Star Player for all Old World Classic teams. You’ll find a spotlight on him – along with all his rules, and the rest of the Norse Team – in the next issue of Spike! Journal. There’s more to come from Blood Bowl over the next few weeks, so sign up to the Warhammer Community newsletter to catch all the latest plays as they happen.

A bit static for a Blitzer but he has swagger.

That same swagger can easily be used for a named character. I'd give him a new hand, holding a sword or an axe, lazily leaning on his shoulder.

I think a big hammer over his shoulder would look good myself.

Yeah, a hammer would fit really well. Especially if it looks vaguely dwarf-ish.

It's going to be a Norse Easter.

I love the Yhetee Star Player Skrorg Snowpelt◊.

Those Norscan tokens make me want to craft a longship.

Today on Warhammer Community: A Halfling riding a sheep

What’s making those menacing hoofbeats? Is it a Thundertusk? Is it a Bull Centaur? No, it’s Rumbelow Sheepskin◊ and his cantankerous pet ram.

That’s right – Blood Bowl’s new hotness is a deadly combination of Halfling and bloodthirsty ovine. As the first Halfling Star Player to be released since 1990, ewe’ll definitely want to add this unique player to your team.

As a Blocker, Rumbelow is famed for terrorising the Blood Bowl pitch. He tightly grips the reins of Longshanks, the dangerous ram he rides into play, who is all too eager to leap head-first towards the opposition. This stylish sheep even has his own custom helmet in a true show of team spirit!

You can pull the wool over your opponent’s eyes with the pair’s unique ability, the aptly named Ram◊, which allows Longshanks to trample any rivals knocked down by the Block action once per game.

This dynamic duo can play for teams associated with the Halfling Thimble Cup, Old World Classic, or Worlds Edge Superleague, and they’re the perfect recruits if you’re looking to ram through a few touchdowns.

If there will be units for halflings in The Old World, then sheep-cavalry would seem appropriate. Mantic has halfling dog-riding cavalry with rifles for Kings of War.

Like in the Battle of Five Armies movie and how the Dwarves rode big goats.

They keep teasing deeps.

Are we finally getting the fish people?

Age of Sigmar already has fish people.

Aquatic elves aren't fishmen and you know it

(also them existing canonically and existing as miniatures are different things)

Harrowdeep probably has something to do with the Abholons. To quote the latest Deepkin Battletome: "Those stygian empires that lay too close to the Idoneth's territories were beaten back, including that of the chasm-dwelling Abholons, formless beings possessed of malign psychic powers." So unfortunately they probably won't be fishmen. Fishmen have been directly mentioned in Blood Bowl lore, however, and have at least one team so that game is likely to be the best bet for models.

I'd like to see minis of fishmen in Warhammer. While the Fimir (whom I hope to see returning soon) are already a close stand-in for Deep Ones and other servants of Cthulhu Mythos deities, there can always be some more direct expies of the Deep Ones. The Genestealer Cults are pretty much Insmouthers in space, so I could see a fantasy-version of the Genestealers introduced to AOS.