Is GW planning on updating any of the older kits?

[DanteeChaos]

Ironjawz player wanting to start a second army. I'm looking for something more horde-based. Armies like Serphon, LoN, Skaven and FEC felt like the ideal pick at first glance until I realized that their lines are quite old and, in some cases, ancient (we're looking at 8 - 20 yeas from what I was able to research). Don't get me wrong - most of the minis still look decent but it'd be a shame to buy and paint 100 plague monks/ghouls/skinks/skeletons just for GW to update the kit to something way better like they did in the case of StD. Thoughts?

[Vasshpit]

Gloomspite, baby!!

You've already got the destro love in your veins!!!

[Baron Klatz]

^ 

Vassh's suggestion is probably best as it's a horde army that can mix with your other Destruction forces and just got  (awesome) model updates so that won't be a worry for a long time.

Otherwise Flesh-Eaters seem a good way to go. Only a few updates but so far they wouldn't look out of place among a royal entourage you may start with to gallivant among the realms with which can also go mercenary to fight alongside your green-clad warriors. 

I'd say Skaven and Seraphon  are in the most "danger" of that.

[NauticalSoup]

Honestly they haven't really even updated STD. The stuff you get in the new start collecting augments but notably does not actually replace the corresponding regular kits (and didn't even obsolete the halberd upgrade sprue). The entire range remains otherwise untouched as far as I know.

AoS rarely gets new kits for old things, it's usually totally new stuff coming in and old WHFB stuff trickling out.

As for army selection, all the ones you listed can do hordes and would work fine. LoN is probably the only one you listed that's likely to disappear since they're a 1.0 GA kludge army book and they kinda lost Nagash to OSB, so I don't think anyone knows what the plan is for them.

[DanteeChaos]

13 hours ago, Vasshpit said:

Gloomspite, baby!!

You've already got the destro love in your veins!!!

Interesting. They just got a range refresh so they're not going anywhere. The only problem is that if you want to make them horde you need to go with the stabbas/shootas which did not get new models.

[Overread]

AoS will get updates, but there's so many armies all at once that GW is spoilt for choice on where to update first. It's impossible to say - Skaven could be getting a massive update next month, or in 5 years time. 

Necrons are getting a big update in a few months time for 40K (they are the poster child faction alonside marines for the start of the new edition of the game). Gloomspite had a big update for AoS this year. It does happen its just not always going to happen and its unpredictable.

 

Don't forget newer armies in AoS have very small unit rosters and model ranges. They work well as armies but there's massive scope to expand them. 

[RedMax]

1 hour ago, DanteeChaos said:

stabbas/shootas which did not get new models.

Hi,

you are right, Stabbas and shootas didnt get new model but are still decent.

On the other hand, there was new kit, like fanatics, that are grot and still stick to exactly same design. So I suspect that stabbas are going to stay same for some time and if recasted, will still look same (like StD, new kits that can perfectly be merged with previous existings).

So I would backup Vasshpit, Gloomspite look like most making sens to you. Going grot+squig should be safe bet for still some times (but who know).

[sandlemad]

I'm not sure there's much they could change for the basic moonclan grots even if they did want to update them. The general visual design hasn't changed at all with the new Gloomspite stuff and part of their virtue is that they're simple models which can be painted up as a horde quickly. They're got character, multiple weapon options, different banners... They work well as a baseline.

[zilberfrid]

If you're going Gloomspite, also get Zarbag's Gitz, it gives you a few extra different bodies. Having a few bodies is really nice if you want to do some kitbashing.

If you want a really big project, you could make a halfling Gloomspite force. The size fits, and there's a penchant for eating in both of them.

[Vasshpit]

2 hours ago, sandlemad said:

I'm not sure there's much they could change for the basic moonclan grots even if they did want to update them. The general visual design hasn't changed at all with the new Gloomspite stuff and part of their virtue is that they're simple models which can be painted up as a horde quickly. They're got character, multiple weapon options, different banners... They work well as a baseline.

I've been considering using Sneaky Snufflers bodies as my base for shootas and stabbas. They are a little more modernized and dynamic sculpts. 

It would be expensive and a lot of work but the end look would be killer! 

I'm going to at least do one up and see how I feel afterwards. 

@DanteeChaos of the others you mentioned I think Skaven and Flesh Eaters will be getting some love soonish. Their kits could really use some modernization for sure but both of those seem like fun projects as well. I'm just a destro fan first and foremost. Death is my mistress and after some updates I'll probably start some Skaven. 

[DanteeChaos]

First of all, thanks for all the suggestions. I'm seriously considering Gloomspite as a result. Also, there's one more thing I noticed on the GW store page. Some older kits have years in their links e.g. https://www.games-workshop.com/en-PL/Gloomspite-Gitz-Grots-2019 or https://www.games-workshop.com/en-PL/Skaven-Clanrats-2019 meaning they were repackaged recently. I think those kits are relatively safe for now in comparison to stuff like https://www.games-workshop.com/en-PL/Flesh-Eater-Courts-Crypt-Ghouls or https://www.games-workshop.com/en-PL/Pestilens-Plague-Monks. My reasoning is that they wouldn't waste resources on repackaging those if they wanted to replace them with new kits.

[Martin87]

What about all the plague monks in the starter kits and the bigger one with the verminlord? 

[Fairbanks]

Dear GW,

If you ever wanna SEE me update my precious LITTLE 4th Edition Lizardmen again, bring a new plastic Slann kit in an untraceable box to my local LGS.

PS. I mean it and I'm a very big Seraphon player.

Love,

Fairbanks

[NinthMusketeer]

I think an important factor to consider is which parts of the army you would actually use. Skaven, for example, have some extremely old miniatures but can make a strong (and even competitive) build using only newer kits--clanrats being the oldest of what you really need to have. 

Something else to consider is that the older low-detail kits can be extremely nice when making a horde army. When you are painting up 100+ infantry having less detail to paint speeds up the process considerably, while on the tabletop they are going to die in droves anyways.

As for mentions of Gloomspite--it is a good idea; while the stabbas/shootas are very old they have aged well and are extremely quick to assemble & paint.

[EccentricCircle]

Yeah, I'd argue that the actual age of a model doesn't necessarily mean much. There are some great old figures, some terrible newer ones. While people complain a lot about old static kits, those are actually precisely what you need for a horde army. They are simpler to paint than the modern, hyper detailed, really dynamic models. They are quicker to build and they are designed to look good in massed ranks of dozens of models. Those older kits are also a lot more customisable. I've just been building warcry bands, and while each model taken alone is a work of art, they don't make for good hordes. They are so complex and so dynamic that nothing is interchangeable. Besides the two or so variant figures in each kit, you are basically just making the same guy over and over. Older l ts usually have dozens of interchangeable heads, arms weapon options and accessories. As a resukt you can oftn make dozens of unique figures, even if they are all based on the same few bits. Conversion and kit bashes are much easier with older troop kits. I'd planned to do some kit bashing on my duplicate warcry figs, but they hardly gave me any bits, and in building them they were so complex that I didn't know where to start. 

[DanteeChaos]

On 5/26/2020 at 5:56 AM, NinthMusketeer said:

I think an important factor to consider is which parts of the army you would actually use.

Good point, although, the main problem is that you almost always need chaff battleline units which, for some bizarre reason, GW refuses to update.  Gitz are a prefect example of this - they updated most of the range except the Moonclan Grots which is the unit that every Gloomspite army needs. Other units, such as Fanatics and various Squig units, are entirely optional but they're the ones that got updated instead of the core unit.

[Vasshpit]

@DanteeChaos this is true however the squig hoppers got updated with the exact same rider models as the foot troops. Same proportions, scale, design, etc.

Hell, you can even mix and match the arms now. I've done all my foot gits with the boingrot Lance's converted to spears. Even chopped off all their heads and used the helmets. 

Edited May 27, 2020 by Vasshpit

[DanteeChaos]

10 minutes ago, Vasshpit said:

@DanteeChaos this is true however the squig hoppers got updated with the exact same rider models as the foot troops. Same proportions, scale, design, etc.

Hell, you can even mix and match the arms now. I've done all my foot gits with the boingrot Lance's converted to spears. Even chopped off all their heads and used the helmets. 

Holy ******, those are some epic looking goblins - congrats man. But yeah, I have to agree with you on this one. Regular stabbas/shootas don't look out of place along the new kits. In fact, they're one of the best-looking older chaff units, in my opinion. Stuff like crypt ghuls and skinks look like golum-ass retards in comparison.

[michu]

16 hours ago, DanteeChaos said:

Stuff like crypt ghuls and skinks look like golum-ass retards in comparison.

Agree with ghouls, disagree with skinks.

[Lucur]

If you think skinks are ugly, take a look at saurus... ugh...

Edited May 28, 2020 by Lucur

[EccentricCircle]

I'd like to point out that Crypt Ghouls are supposed to look like ugly little gollum creatures. The two basically derive from the same mythic inspiration.

Also skinks are fine, they might not be the most elaborate models, but they are not Zombies or derpy bats.

Edited May 28, 2020 by EccentricCircle

[michu]

7 minutes ago, EccentricCircle said:

but they are not Zombies or derpy bats.

And even Zombies can be a good source of rotten heads for conversions, while bats need a Grymwatch-like update.

 

[EccentricCircle]

3 minutes ago, michu said:

And even Zombies can be a good source of rotten heads for conversions, while bats need a Grymwatch-like update.

 

True, I mock them, but I literally have both kits sat on my "to build tray" at the moment! I mostly got the bats for a laugh, since they are hilariously silly. For all practical purposes GW already actually makes a far superior bat swarm for their Lord of the Rings range, which is a lovely dynamic model on the right base size to be a Legions bat swarm.