HollowHills

My LGS owner said the following: He was allocated about 60 copies of both indomitus and dominion. Indomitus sold out within minutes of going on sale. As of the weekend they had sold just over 40 copies of Dominion. He speculated it had sold a lot less than GW expected as they received confirmation there would be no second print run. However, he was happy to keep dominion in stock as he felt it would sell over time. He also mentioned that a lot of younger customers are really into stormcast, but less so the adult aos crowd who tend to prefer armies that existed or are similar to WHFB armies.

The owner of my lgs told me that dominion has sold badly for GW and they aren't doing any kind of second run now. He said he sold more than he expected but will have copies in stock for awhile, compared to Indomitus which sold out within minutes. Obviously AoS is less popular than 40k, but I think it's also fair to say that the percentage of aps players who play stormcast is much less than the percentage of 40k players who play space marine variants.

Not all Idoneth beasts are enslaved. They can make friends with cephalapods per the battletome. Also the deepmares have their eyes and I think are nit enslaved either, but the black library stuff confuses that a bit. There is every chance they could be friends with crabs. Also we could have carcinisation spell that turns enemies into crabs. Whitefang make the crabs happen.

I'm half tempted to start writing stuff like "Idoneth will get new models" and "Idoneth won't get new models" as separate one just to fish for reactions. Also I am starting to think whitefang is the GW PR department designed to keep our constant speculation going with just enough hints to keep us guessing, but never enough for us to know anything for sure.

I wonder if the vultures could be for a new harbinger of decay for Nurgle? The old model had crows, but I could see them doing vultures.

Umbraneth isn't even a real name.

1000% At least Kruelboyz being part of Warclans suggests a move in this direction. I really hope aos 3.0 is the edition where we see expansion to armies rather than new faction spam.

I heard a rumour GW are going to keep milking us dry for every last penny.

This just seems to me like they are putting stuff behind a paywall that they used to do for free. The 40k app is terrible. You can only see the core rules for free and literally everything else is behind a paywall. It's also a buggy mess. If the new aos app goes this way it will be terrible. I see zero reason for them to maintain regular free painting videos of a high quality, or the paint app they launched, if they are now making paint videos for a paid for service. All the digital content they are talking about giving you access to is old. You don't get new white dwarf, you don't seem to get new battletomes or codexes. Maybe some people are keen on the animations, but it remains to be seen how much actual content their will be and on what release schedule. Plus 90% of it seems to be about space marines. I agree it isn't a lot of money, especially compared to the cost of warhammer in general. But the cost of this hobby keeps going up, and for a lot of people their income isn't. It feels like GW knew the service wasn't a good proposition so they've thrown as much as they can behind it to try and make it mandatory.

Games Workshop clearly aren't going to be able to produce enough animated content to justify the subscription. It's going to have to include a load of dodgy ******.

I love those cartoons. I do hope, whether we get more models or not, Idoneth get featured a bit more. Extra narrative, maybe some BL stuff etc.

Nothing that I've seen. That said because Idoneth have been a top end army for so long, anyone interested in playing them already has a decent list in place. I will see if I can wring anything out but I doubt it. Idoneth and Maggotkin are obviously the safest bests for new books. The only question is whether there will be any model support. The focus on Lumineth kits combined with the lack of Idoneth in the narrative suggests to me that they are unlikely to get much love.

Basically GW have a playtester team for age of sigmar who test new rules before they are released. These playtesters also tend to be involved in the competitive end of age of sigmar. This tends to give them the ability to perceive what will be meta and what won't fairly well in advance. If an existing faction looks like it will be strong in the new book they often start building up an army prior to release. That way they have a 2k list ready to go for release. Several have now started to paint Sylvaneth as their next army. This indicates that Sylvaneth are likely to 1) Get a release of some sort in the next year or so 2) That their rules will be quite good.

I believe Sylvaneth are likely to see a new book soon due to the interest they have received amongst playtesters compared to their current place in the meta.

Someone should compile a list of all the playtesters social media platforms. You can guess what sort of stuff is getting released, particularly if it will be strong, by watching which armies they buy.

Positive interpretation - Both Idoneth and Nurgle are getting battleboxes but not against each other. My fear - Idoneth are basically an NPC faction now because they are way less popular than Lumineth.

I guess Idoneth aren't getting any love for a little while. Oh well. One day. Nurgle deserve a new book so good for them.

Next Battlebox Nurgle vs Idoneth let's go.

I hope this queue system doesn't impact my ability to sell splits at £100 per half. Only joking. Bought one copy from LGS and picking it up launch day.

Didn't read part one then.

Idoneth Deepkin Analysis Part 2 Leviadon - 380 points up 40 The leviadon is another unit that saw almost no play following the initial faction launch. However, a new warscroll plus the addition of mount traits dramatically increased the viability of the turtle. The leviadon brings excellent shooting, moderate combat damage, a very high save and a large plus 1 to save aura. Unfortunately, both the save and damage deteriorate quite quickly once the leviadon starts taking wounds. Although many would see an area of affect save bonus as an incredible buff, arguably this is of limited impact in an Idoneth force. The forgotten nightmares battle trait makes Idoneth highly resistant to shooting, high tide ensures combat dominance without reply and movement enables the Idoneth to control the battlefield without needing to survive enemy damage. Secondly, taking a single monster unit over more eels further weakens the ability to play objectives in a low model count army. For that reason the Leviadon has not seen widespread play at the top tables. Regarding the point increases it seems likely the new monster bonus effects have played a role in pushing up costs. It remains to be seen how useful these abilities will prove. The viability of monster units may also depend on how many anti monster units see play in the meta.For instance, both Kragnos and Yndrasta both have very powerful anti monster abilities. Overall the Leviadon is likely to be a less attractive pick. Verdict - Unjustified increase Eidolon of the Sea - 355 points up 25 Both Eidolons saw changes as part of Morathi, sadly this has had little impact on the eidolon of the sea. This unit suffers from several compounding issues, some of which are specific to Idoneth but others reflective of the wider meta. Firstly, the Idoneth spell lore is largely lacking in either potent buffs or damage. Steed of Tides offers certain utility, but is often redundant given the high movement of most Idoneth units. Secondly, although the Eidolon has a potent spell for reducing enemy hit the range is so low that this is rarely useful. Thirdly, the presence of three extremely strong magic armies in the current meta means the risk of having your magic shutdown is high. Lastly, this Eidolon offers little utility or damage with a lackluster bravery buff and low damage when compared to the storm Eidolon. The Eidolon of the Sea was an unattractive choice previously and despite the addition of universal spells is likely to remain so. This point increase is perhaps the most egregious of the Idoneth range. Verdict - Unjustified Increase Ishlaen Heroes - Increases of 5 to 10 points each The small Ishlaen heroes all saw minor point increases which are unlikely to impact the meta. The Soulrender is focused on supporting Namarti units. As both type of Nemarti see little to no play in the meta the Soulrender has equally seen no play. No point change was likely to impact this. Lotann is a named character designed to buff Nemarti units. Unfortunately for him not only are Nemarti extremely poor units, but his buffs are also obtained from other sources within the battletome. This has made Lotann redundant since the release of the army. No point cost could ever make Lotann viable. The Tidecaster is a basic wizard similar to other foot wizards. Her casting does little to nothing for the army, but she has previously seen some play with a so called "reverse tide" build focused on a turn 2 high tide. Again this point increase is unlikely to change anything. Finally the Soulscryer. This is a key hero in most Idoneth lists enabling both deepstrike and a significant bonus to charges. The power of these buffs are such that the Soulscryer will continue to see play in many lists. It is possible that the smaller board size combined with point increases may encourage some players to do away with the Soulscryer. Verdict - Unjustified Increases Nemarti Reavers - 115 points down 5 Reavers are an archer unit that provide neither high damage nor long range. Their shooting, even at the best profile, provides less reliable damage than that from an Allopex harpoon. Plus they cannot provide anywhere near the same level of combat support. If shooting is required then either an Allopex unit or allied units from elsewhere are likely to be more desirable. This unit has seen little play and this very minor change is unlikely to impact that. Verdict - Irrelevant Decrease

Idoneth Deepkin Analysis - Part One Background Idoneth Deepkin are the second oldest battletome and one of the only 1.0 books still in play. Since their release they have consistently had a win ratio of greater than 60% and have been a regular fixture in competitive matched play. Since Hedonites (v1) and FEC have fallen out of the meta Idoneth have lost their natural predators in the combat phase. This leaves the army as the only current force in age of sigmar that can rely on fight first to dominate the combat phase. Furthermore, Idoneth are extremely shooting resistant which has also assisted them in the current meta. Following BR Morathi Idoneth have gained further strength due to the enhancements to the Allopex warscroll. These shark units have offered reliable shooting, good durability, combat effectiveness which scales well with buffs and a powerful counter to pile ins. Currently Idoneth are considered an S Tier army with a win ratio often exceeding 70%. Morrsarr Guard 195 Points up 25 points Offensive eels are the iconic Idoneth unit and have been the backbone of competitive lists since their release. They are a unit with many strengths, high damage, high movement, good durability and easy access to buffs. Their only real weaknesses being a low model count and lackluster damage if they haven't charged. The changes in AoS 3, such as unit champions being able to issue commands, and the overall smaller board size are likely to be beneficial to an already strong unit. For instance, a unit of Morrsarr guard fighting alongside an Eidolon of the Storm van easily reach 2s to hit and 2s to wound rerolling 1s of both. I believe three factors have contributed to their significant point increases. 1) The existing strength of this unit. 2) The general point increases associated with AoS 3. 3) The buff potential of new AoS 3 rules. Regardless, Idoneth remain reliant on this incredibly potent unit and that is unlikely to change until a new battletome is released. Verdict - Justified Increase Ishlaen Guard - 155 points up 15 points Aka defense eels. A small unit of Ishlaen has been popular in recent Idoneth lists to help screen and absorb shooting due to their ability to ignore rend. It remains to be seen as to whether Ishlaen guard can reach a save of 2 plus in the new addition. They gain a save of 3 plus on the charge, but due to warscroll wording it is unclear if this is a modifier or a characteristic change. This seems unlikely, but if allowed could make Ishaen more viable. The increase here seems to be due to standard AoS 3 changes. Verdict - Justified Increase Akhelian Allopex- 125 points up 15 points The Akhelian Allopex was extremely weak and overcosted at release. A fan favourite model that saw little play at the high end. However, following the release of Morathi the sharks got a new warscroll that significantly buffed their potential. They now have access to reliable shooting with rend, good for sniping heroes and combat damage close to that of Morrsarr which is not dependent on charging. Importantly they also have access to a shooting attack which if it hits (does not need to wound) prevents a unit from piling in. This provides Idoneth with a counter to horde style units which they may struggle with due to a small model count. It also allows the Idoneth to enter combat outside of their turn 3 advantage. One key change outside of the point increase is the reduction in maximum unit size from 3 to 2, due to the new reinforcement rules. This prevents them from benefiting as well from command abilities, such as the previously strong Lord of Tides ability which enabled large attack increases on the potent jaw attack. The point changes here are relatively minor and in line with similar general increases within other armies. However, the general changes in AoS 3 also make Allopex units less attractive. It is likely there will still be a place for an Allopex or two due to the sheer utility of preventing pile ins. Verdict - Justified Increase Volturnos - 260 points down 10 Volturnos has achieved popularity over the standard Akhelian King due to his command ability affecting up to 3 units rather than 1. This enables Idoneth to further stack turn 3 power by buffing multiple units with extra attacks. Prior to AoS 3 it was common to use multiple command points to give several units plus 2, 3 or even 4 attacks each. This combined with fight first often meant the Idoneth could table an opponent in a single round of combat, or develop a lead so significant the opponent would concede. As this strategy will no longer be viable due to the new command point rule of one Volturnos has lost some of his power. Despite this it is necessary to take either Volturnos or an Akhelian King as general to unlock eels as battleline. As Volturnos command ability remains significantly better and he is magic resistant he likely remains the choice pick. Verdict - Irrelevant Decrease

I hope everyone is looking forward to a toxic meta with every army using shackles.

Eels 195 sadge Lots of Idoneth increases including Lotann up 5 points. Give whoever thought that was necessary a raise.

Just a guess but most armies will see point increases across the board. They did it for 9th ed 40k. My theory is that it's to compensate for model costs being higher, make the game faster and to make 2k as standard have a slightly lower model count.