Aden

Amazing!

You beat me to it! If you're model represents the same thing as another model, why not count it as that other model? Far as I've seen people don't really mind as long as the base size properly corresponds.

Tainted Heart featured a character who used celestial navigation to find his way through Chamon's shimmering desert. Not sure if that helps much, but might be a puzzle piece.

Bretonnians - A life of training culminates in knights who bring all their splendor to battle. Then add the grail -- they're the Captain Americas of the Old World. Skilled warriors are many but who more noble, more seasoned than the grail knights? Able to go toe to toe with the biggest Warbosses and the powers of evil and chaos. Might for right. Fyreslayers - I was looking for concept art and saw this guy and it captivated my imagination. It was everything a dwarf barbarian should be - metal but naked. At once fierce and sophisticated. Then I read Eight Lamentations, and thought these guys are the Wolverine faction. No size, no odds, no skills will deter me from fighting you and reveling in my death. What more intoxicating mix of honor and brutality. Free Peoples/Ironweld/Devoted/Collegiate Arcane - In this crazy life, they're the downtrodden, the threatened, and the marginalized. But hope springs eternal, and in them it's in their spirit, their wit, and their determination. What're more satisfying than overcoming with that?

@Blisterfeet Ash-cloud Rune: lets you unbind 2 spells a turn on your runesmiter but if you're using realms Ghyran has the Verdant Mantle which will let you dispel endless spells and unbind. I wouldn't ally in allies unless I could provide some synergy for them or thought they looked super duper cool.

Only maximum 1/4 units can be allied. It would be legal as allegiance: order though. I do like some KO with my slayers too to help with movement, and skyriggers can shoot some too which I like. Now it seems fyreslayers' weaknesses are low movement, weak shooting, no wizards. Another option might be instead to run Vostarg Lodge for the increases to movement, then grab a battalion for an extra artifact that helps/mitigates spells or unbinds.

Curious, is the White Dwarf Battalion matched play legal? Last I checked I didn't see a points cost for it.

I admit there's much more good than bad. Mercs and Meeting Engagements I can definitely see myself using. I suppose I'm not used to these kind of results after a week full of hype. Here's to hoping the next updates go from good to great.

"This year’s General’s Handbook also contains allegiance abilities for several factions, with expanded rules for Ironjawz, Seraphon, Wanderers, Darkling Covens, Free Peoples, Slaves to Darkness and Dispossessed" - First Teaser I thought this meant new stuff but by and large it seems like reprinting stuff that's written elsewhere, Only 3/7 of those factions seem to have gotten significant changes. Ugh.

Looks like Longbeards get a horde discount and seems Ancestral Pickaxe's changed from one unit within 3 inches to 6 inches.

Obligatory battalions incoming reminder. They could be really good battalions like Hermdar and Vorstag. They also might give context on some of the changes.

I suppose the gripe over narrative doubt should be over how one's playmate narrates the reason for their choices. It seems to me both in the lore and history that its possible that two people who really don't like each other may join forces temporarily toward a common end. Survival, greed, revenge and hatred, tend to be convincing reasons imo.

I'm dying for a soup to nuts skirmishy scale game, I really hope everything is put together when we all kick the tires.

I'm mad excited for the 1000 point structured matches coming in the GHB and hope Skirmish style play becomes heavily supported. In an era where many things demand your time, I really appreciate the option that matches don't take as long and I'm that I'm not hauling a piece of luggage to the game store.

The argument has been made that GW is under no obligation to support anything, which is very true but I think it flat out has more negatives to squat support. It's made me wary of which collections I collect because who knows if it'll get dropped in the future too? And it can demoralize the fan base. Even if its not your army, maybe you lose one of your best hobby buds because his collection is plain disregarded. Considering the size and success of the company I think it's a elaborate (read: infuriating) marketing ploy for a top secret dev project I want Byzantine Undead! Make vampires blush with how bougie their desert cousins are.