So the Dark Elves are now all up for pre release, so if you have not looked at Games Workshops webstore yet, go do it. We now have the confirmation of what the cover looks like pictured above.
We also get to see the limited edition cover pictured here. Above we see the dust cover which is just the Army book cover without the writing, however below we get a new picture of a Witch Elf looking rather pleased with herself...
But on a more interesting note, a quick look at the webstore gives us some insight into what to expect next Saturday when the book is publicly available.
Lords & Heros
Not much to see here. We do see the Cauldron of Blood/Bloodwrack Shrine listed in lords and heroes. Not unexpected as the White Dwarf battle report had a Cauldron chosen as a hero option. Interestingly we see no sign of any Beastlord/Beastmaster model
Core
Moving into core the first thing we notice is the Witch Elves multi kit sitting in core. Some people had suggested that they would only be core if you select a Cauldron of Blood, however they are nowhere to be seen in Special. The other notable change is lack of Harpies. Hmmm no Dark Riders here either...
Special
We see Harpies moved into this new slot, and the disappearance of the Witch Elves. We also see the disappearance of Black Guard and Executioners! With all the rumours around these guys are getting new plastics, and I have had it confirmed they are on stock run down. Another change we see which is not unexpected thanks to White Dwarf leaks, is the appearance of the War Hydra. With the points drop to 180 including fiery roar but the loss of "standard regeneration" it remains to be seen if they will still be a regular.
The surprise in this section is the appearance of Repeater Bolt Throwers! A very nice change from rare, but remains to be seen it they will still be 2 for 1.
Rare
Rare sees the new Kharibdyss rare its ugly head, as does the Bloodwrack Shrine and its Medusa. We also spot the new Witch Elf variant Sisters of Slaughter. This completes an all new line up for Dark Elf rares!
Then we get the new warriors. What a waist of an opportunity. GW remakes a plastic kit for the first time in how long, and this is all they can come up with? From the poor decision to have have one piece heads/bodies for that oh so fashionable mono-pose, to the oversized shovel heads for spears, not to mention the surfboard swords... We don't even get plain shields and a transfer sheet! You must make do with a stupid skull motif.
Whoever gave these models the go ahead needs to be fired. Seriously GW, hire someone who actually knows a good model from a bad one. Its not hard! Worst remake ever! We could have had the elegant sleek weapons Dark Eldar received, and for a $50 kit I would expect a large amount of variation in the builds, but instead we get these models which look like they are more at home from a core box game from 1996... They still have ham fists! 3/10, and even this is generous...
The Hydra model on the other hand is more of a mixed bag. I can see the design emphasis and its good to see a shift away from the random drake like styling of old. Unlike others I like the new heads, and think that the model has captured the more serpentine look they where going for nicely. What I dont like about the figure is the pose. When will we see a large monster kit that has options to change the pose? Hell even the Tomb Kings Warsphinx had a different leg option. 7/10 but only because of the lack of possibility.
Oh, yeah we have some new Witch Elves. They even moved to core ensuring that demand would be higher, yet they priced them out as elites in NZ but priced them out of the market for the rest of the world. $80 for 10 models with 5 poses. Welcome to Australasian prices world. Ok so its a dual kit, but these are also meant to be a core option now. Games Workshop has the technology and capability to create a far better kit than this options wise. We have seen it before but of late we tend to get more emphasis on making a second troop type rather than making the first one marketable. Don't get me wrong, they are nice models, better than most, but GW missed the boat on variation. People will be running 30-40 of these girls in core. 6/10 thanks to price and lack of variation.
We all wait with anticipation for the Black Guard/Executioner kit. Hopes are high for many, but I expect to see a rather unexciting mono-pose kit thanks to all the options required to switch between the two elites. I still hold out hope that they will be two separate kits. Dark riders and the other option will see an introduction of the new Elfen horses seen in High Elves/Wood Elves, and the chariot will get the new Cold Ones. They can't possible fuck them up right?
And the parting shot, and my pick of the release goes to Shadowblade. 9/10!
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