[So, who does want Tomb Kings and Bretonnians back?]

Arguably, only iconic unit with derp skeleton problem are the chariots.  Skeletons in both warsphinx and necropolis knight kits look very decent, same with Tomb Guard.

And that's what baffles me, just.. how easy it would be to add Tomb King flavoured Death faction. They have their obvious battleline unit with Tomb Guard kit. Three units out of Warsphinx box: Necrosphinx, Warsphinx, Warsphinx with hero [so a plastic leader is availible too], plus two elite units - Stalkers and Knights. As the construct theme serves them the best, re-realease of resin Ushabti [two more units, close combat and ranged] would help and... that's more units than Fyreslayers or Beastclaws already? And whatever they don't have they can easily ally from other  Death armies?

They COULD of course make a plastic mid sized non-ushabti-construct kit too. They could add plastic heroes for more diversity. But they don't NEED to, there's enough good models to just re-release.

I have no idea WHY GW decided to nt re-release those kits if they could do a reasonably diverse faction with zero miniature design cost. Maybe it'll happen at some point, who knows.

 

As for Bretonnia - I wouldn't like them to return as a faction. I would, however, give enough diversity to future Free Peoples tome to make full on armoured knight lists viable, with some classic medieval knight aestethic thrown in because no fantasy setting is complete without those. It is very much doable to make Empire and Bretonnia fans happy with a proper free peoples army while simultaneously giving fans something completely new.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

If not much changes for us in GHB it's probably a good sign - battletome is probably close. If, on the other hand we do see some major changes that might mean we're to expect a longer wait. So just let's hope no units disappear and we should be ok ; )

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

And Malerion styling his new army after the one he had in his Malekith times in the world that was just makes sense.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

It's from new Slaanesh battletome i think.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

Martial orders might actually be significant, because it fits current fluff of most of the old high elf line. If they don't plan on scrapping anything, the description fits lion rangers, phoenix temple, dragonblades, swifthawks and, if not eldritch council then definitely swordmasters in particular.

Basically things that were removed from the high elf line were the citizen militia units, while the various warrior orders stayed. Maybe that tells us aomething about the future of hysh army structure.

[Current State of the Armies]

Yeah their boxed games are still vulnerable to this - blackstone fortress is very much new and most sprues are still bundled together in most cases. Let's hope they don't intend to return to this idea with their main product lines. I'm still sour about dawnspire.

[Current State of the Armies]

50 minutes ago, Zanzou said:

Am I missing something with this?  GW discarded modern plastics with "Age of Sigmar: Spire of Dawn", modern new-looking molds  reboxed for Age of Sigmar and yet they totally removed the warscroll for the poisoned wind mortar weapon team sadly . The packmaster is completely gone, they reverted the new rat ogres they made with that box back to the ancient old and ugly rat ogres from a billion years ago.   I don't need to mention to you guys the elves that are gone from that box now either.

Yeah that was an objectively terrible idea, coming from someone with Swifthawk army. But it seems that it's unlikely to repeat.

[Current State of the Armies]

Starter set plastics on shared sprues have disappeared before - 40k orks use ancient metal deffkoptas despite having plastic ones in one of the previous two player starters. Same for heavy weapon cultists, and several others. What is unprecedented in this case is GW actually releasing island of blood models second time in Dawnspire. Luckily, they seem to have abandoned the shared sprues altogether in newer starter sets, making everything easy to sell separately later.

Only time when modern-ish plastics have disappeared is removal of Tomb Kings. While all the basic units were ancient, the fact that sphinxes, stalkers and tomb guard haven't joined Death models is, admittedly, worrying in this case.

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

That's what I like about AoS setting - the insane amount of freedom when it comes to desigining your own theme. To do something like that in the Old World would require a lot of mental gymnastics to pull off.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

It *is* a nice model, would be a bit of a shame to see a kit go, but if it does, in al likeness a new mage kit will replace it. Maybe not modular, though, they seem to be stepping away from those. Noble is in more danger than the mage - first of all, foot version doesn't synergise with Draconis at all. There are no units he can keep up with. Secondly, as mentioned, kit has a lot of non-dragon imagery in it. Like, huge Phoenix on the banner. 

I'd also like Dragonblades to stay, it's an extremely cool looking unit but I'm sure that if they intend to keep Draconis at all, they're safe.

But yeah, if both foot and mounted versions of noble and mage are kept, they will probably get different rules as now version without horse is pretty much useless (negligable advantage of smaller base and lower height nonwithstanding).

If lion chariot goes, so does swifthawk one - which, to think of it, doesn't hurt a faction much. They're weak now anyway and don't fit the theme all that well - why use regular chariot if you have flying ones. But generally, who knows - the storyline is advancing towards releasing of Slaanesh, which is a very Aelf-related matter. Maybe we'll get some news relatively soon.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

That's.. entirely reasonable. I agree that lack of repack and allegiance abilities might be interpreted positively - they're waiting for their proper army to come out. There's no reason to think, even if literal angels ARE what we're having, that army won't also contain regular aelves that joined them. That's literally what happens with Daughters of Khaine - more than half of their units are just... aelves. From older kits, at that. They just got like three boxes of more monstrous units [melusai, khimerai, Morathi].

Also, we more or less know (again, shadowblades' fluff) that Malerion's forces will have normal looking aelves in them, so why not Tyrion's.

We have a lot of potentially reusable kits, giving both light and shadow like 3/4 new ones each makes for a bigger model lines than some of the supported armies.

Hell, here's a list of what I think is safe, just from current 'aelves' line, not counting Wanderers:

Skycutter/Skywarden [with possible return of foot warden. Spirewarden?]

Sorceress/Dreadlord on black dragon

Executioners/Black Guard

Shadow Warriors [sisters are folded into Wanderers now, they seem safe].

Phoenix Guard

White Lions [by fluff i wouldn't be surprised if they're folded into Wanderers maybe..?]

Scourgerunner/drakespawn chariot

Darkshards/Dreadspears, Bleakswords

Dark Riders

Drakespawn Knights

Hydra/Kharybdiss

 

Ones I'm uncertain about:

Dragonlord/Archmage/Drakeseer - well, the model is quite old. It still looks good though, and both Skaven and Beastmen retained some way older kits.

Dragonblades - also not all that new, and less dynamic than modern cavalry kits. Their fate is probably tied to the dragon.

Archmages - Showing their age now... And characters are usually easy to redo.

Dragon Nobles - Same, also, they don't fit the 'dragon' aestethic fully as they were designed as generic high elves.

Swordmasters - ancient. As good as gone.

Chariot/Lion chariot - Depending on both Lion Rangers and Swifthawks' fate. Also quite old, but holding itself up quite well.

Corsairs - pretty, but old. Base for a mini faction with newer rest of models.

Assassin, Fleetmaster, Loremaster, Sorceress - All have square bases built into their sprues. But so do Seraphon characters.

 

Those are, however, mostly newish and ood kits. Only instance those disappeared was Tomb Kings and it was one time under previous management. We also can't be certain their newer kits will return one day, as Nulahmia exists in fluff.

 

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

Those are some nice phoenix guys! Phoenix kit is another model I can't really imagine GW abandoning - people were complaining it's too epic-high-warcraft like when it came out first and now it fits seamlessly into AoS aestethic...

Considering Mistweaver, I've been thinking what models we have that have been specifically mentioned as tied to Light and Shadow realms, and if i'm not forgetting anything:

Shadow has the Mistweaver and Tenebrael [both unlikely to go, i think] and also Assassin and Dark Riders - they're mentioned as a 'gift' from Malerion to Sigmar. And Dark Riders are staying for sure, sharing the kit with DoK unit.

Only current model tied to realm of light i can recall now is a Skycutter. Swifthawks themselves have a base there, and the Skycutter is their only unit consistently mentioned in fluff (Dawnspire is in Hysh too, but we know that fate of its units is uncertain). Skycutter had its own malign portents story even. The question is only if swifthawks are getting bundled with Tyrion's aelves or not. Had any high elf legacy units been specifically mentioned as Hysh/Tyrion related?

 

One more thing comes to mind about Mistweaver - I think people are getting too attached to literal interpretation of 'angelic' aelves. While Malerion's aelves are described as dark, majestic and terrible if i recall correctly, while both her and Tenebrael look... well, no more dark and shadowy than old dark elf line. Doubly so for dark riders, where only monstrous thing about them are the horses. No idea what that means when we interpret 'angelic' that way, but wings, halos and flaming swords is not wat I'd expect. Not for basic units at least.

 

As for the future of the spireguard and shared ruleset of all basic Aelf infantry - that could work, but it's not really something GW is doing with rules now. One set of warscrolls coming from multiple kits doesn't seem to fit their current design philosophy. So if I had to guess, shadow aelves will keep dark elf infantry units, while Light will get completely new kit. Probably something new, not a rehash of any old unit, and if spireguard return, it would also be a new kit.

To think of it, looking at current armour designs, it would be entirely possible to make a dual spireguard/swordmaster kit without compromising aestethics of any of them.

 

Edit for random thought:

If Malerion's battletome will be called Shadowblades, there is no need to repack Dark riders/ Warlocks.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

The way I see it:

Only Skaven thing that disappeared was a mortar, which was a new unit back then, never availible anywhere else and, honestly, with easy counts as uses after losing its rules. Skaven weapon teams still exist, just without this one option.

So, as far as Swifthawks go, I'd predict that:

Skycutter [and, by extension, skywarden] is here to stay. It's a new and interesting kit, fits into AoS aestethic perfectly andif they wanted to squat it it would probably happen long ago.

Shadow Warriors: Yeah, sharing kit with Wanderers, probably safe.

Chariot: No idea here, depends entirely on what happens to lion rangers.

Spireguard: standalone plastic spireguard sprue exists, it only lacks command group, so their either lose banner/musician options or need to be recut. Or, sadly, disappear. They might be too similar to dark elf infantry in function, but whjo knows. Swifthawks have their place in fluff so maybe they'll get a full plastic kit one day? No idea.

Reavers: No models, almost identical in play to dark riders [providing obvious counts as in case of their disappearance at the very least.]

High Warden: No model, but I'm not worried about this one. Imagine any neo-highelf army without a commander on large flying monster. They will get *something* of this sort.  Worst case? it counts as a dragon or whatever else new comes out now. Best case: Swifthawks serve Sigmar as well as Tyrion. Griffons and variations of thereof are very much sigmar's thing. If Swifthawks ever come out, either as their own faction or as a part of Light Aelves [their HQ is in Hysh, so it's likely] they might get new griffon things as a part of their army, perfectly fitting both Aelf and Sigmar's themes at the same time.

 

By the way, I asked AoS app people why Guardian battalion isn't there even though other out of print things are. They responded that they're not certain and supposedly logged this for the possible reinstating in future update. Might just be a thing to answer some random complainer, but who knows.

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

On storm's wings they come to hunt down beasts for the glory of the Thundergod!

High Wardens are done, all three of them Bonus points for recognising all the bits used ; )

 

Making each griffon a bit unique was a challenge, but I managed. As was making them transportable, but finally, they're easily removable from their bases with no problems with stability, and all wings are either magnetised or still push-fit.

 

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

Don't worry, I'm well aware they're currently somewhere around 1st place in 'most likely to disappear' category, but luckily, I've made it an extremely low budget project, and second thing, whenever something new comes out for Aelves at some point, it's extremely unlikely there won't be anything they could counts as with minimal remodelling. ; ) So yes, swifthawk rules are probably a temporary thing.  Sadly.

As for battalion: yeah, it's clearly costed for previous edition but it's allowed on warhammer world tournaments still,  so people trying to ban it are sort of acting on assumptions as far as I see. Shouldn't be a problem for now.

As for allegiance: I like, in theory at least, Tempest's Eye bonuses, as while the army clearly lacks hitting power extra move improves the chance that whatever power there is will be applied exactly where it's needed [and then hope for results, sadly. Even high warden, definitely most punchy thing in the list, isn't all that strong]. But I'm open for freeguild elements for extra bodies and cheap battleline...

As for now, yeah I don't expect it to win much but I'm willing to test how much can be done on speed alone.

[AoS 2 - Aelves Discussion]

As my army is nearing a playable number of painted models, I tried to make something out of it.

2000 pts.

Order, Swifthawk Agents (Tempest's Eye)

Realm of Origin: Ghur

Leaders:

High Warden (220) gryph feather charm

High Warden (220) quicksilver potion

High Warden (220)

Skywarden (160) swifthawk pennant, general, strategic genius

Skywarden (160) swifthawk pennant

Archmage (100) steed

Battleline:

30 Spireguard (300) banner, musician

10 Reavers (280)

5 Reavers (140)

Other:

10 Swordmasters (160) banner, musician

Battalions:

Guardians of the Dawnspire (40)

 

 

Firstly, because apparently it's a controversial subject in some circles: GW says Guardians battalion is tournament legal so I'm using it. It's not like the faction is in any way too strong, both with it and without it ; ) For those with no access to its printed rules: it gives one archmage and one swordmaster unit a Swifthawk keyword and allows one unit within 16 of battalion's high warden to either move or shoot in hero phase.

The idea is to eliminate as many enemy support units, buffers, heroes and such on the first turn capitalising on insane speed of combat heroes, shooting potential of all the units and then just hope that it reduces enemy units' killing power enough that mine are able to hold. If I go first - a lot of what I have has threat ranges of way above 30 inches, so first turn alpha strike seems very much viable. Then 1st turn bonus to saves gives some hope of surviving the counterstrike.

If I don't start: it's potentially even better. +1 to saves makes most crucial units durable enough, other can stay hidden and my speed allows me to deploy at the far edge of the battlefield and still hope to achieve something.

I lack in mortal wounds departament but that can't really be remedied and seems to be a general problem with legacy factions, however two stacking +1 to wound auras make regular bows deal a lot of wounds. Something WILL fail their saves.

High Wardens with their 20 move, access to skills for run + charge (with potential re-roll) and pile-in jump above whatever it reaches towards the valuable targets can be, I think, counted on reaching whatever they want. In this case: whatever generates troop boosting auras.

Sky Wardens, being neither warmachines nor behemoths despite their nature and size seem to make use of look out sir, which combined with 3+ re-rollable save against shooting on 1st turn can be a very solid bullet traps if enemy is determined to get rid of their extremely strong aura fast. They can, also, keep up with griffons with their aura, while being safely screened by reavers.

Reavers have access to both double move and extra dash in shooting phase (32+2d6 on 1st round) and 16 range can, while near skywardens, also be counted on as a reliable damage dealers able to hit basically anything on the table. Sadly, they can't be 15 man horde due to battleline requirements...

Spireguard are meant to survive, screen and and be killy if allowed.

Archmage is here to boost my survivability a bit  and try to unbind anything important.

Swordmasters are here because of batalion requirements, but they're reliably durable against shooting and if ignored and in aura range can do terrible things. Plus their banner boosts spireguard's bravery a bit, too.

[edited for list legality purposes ; )]

 

So, people with more Aelf-knowlege than me, could this work and be any fun at all against modern armies?

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

Thanks Thiagoma!

Still WiP but more advanced one ; ) Griffons themselves are done, riders are nearing completion. Griffons are easily removable from bases and wings are detachable for ease of transport.  Otherwise they'd have some extreme space requirements ; )

 

 

After finishing touches on these: Swordmasters and Archmage, because I'm a believer in Dawnspire ; ) Also, I need 5 more shadow warriors to make them legal sized (i'm not a big fan of their rules, but with such limited unit roster it would be a shame to just forgo one completely)

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

Thanks! I'll probably have to build some more reavers so I hope they won't lose this dynamic feel in larger horde.

Cloaks are a mix of fur and scaly skins press-molded from green stuff and put onto glade rider plastic cloaks, some ornaments from random fitting bits added on top of that.

Also!

Here's a new thing, still work in progress but I just need to share it because it's turning out very well. First of the griffon riders!

As Dawnspire griffon is very much monopose I slightly converted every griffon to avoid them looking identical. This one had a faceswap with skycutter hawk (identical size, surprisingly) and repositioned legs. Rider, the first of the wardens, is the fanciest of the bunch, with Corsair leader helmet and Dark Rider cloak with tattered hides over it. Lance is from drakespawn knight - some wicked barbs fitting a more savage monster-hunter. The griffon itself has white gyrfalcon inspired colours - I see their homeland as this cold, rocky coast with harsh winters, so arctic bird fits well into this.

 

 

Taming a wild griffon, considered Thundergod's  most sacred animal is a greatest achievement a hunter can aspire to (with great eagle holding a place not far behind) so every rider is an inspiring sight, clad in best armour tribe's artificers can make, and usually holding a high ranked leadership position.

Two more riders are not far behind this one, but will be shown only after I finish all three ; )

 

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

Thanks, I saw your Ghur-freeguild and love the idea. Are those fireforge Mongols? I want to add some human element to the force to branch out into Tempest's Eye rules and planned using Frostgrave barbarians for that.

First big base-thing coming next week, just dug myself out from under few painting comissions and can return to the project ; )

[Storm-Aelves of Ghur]

Hello there!

 

EDITED FOR A FULL ARMY PHOTO (original post below ;)):

Some time ago I decided to build a pretty unique force, with no model left unconverted and, in many cases, pretty much scratchbuilt from whatever bits were fitting.

Army fluff is, in short, that they are descendands of Azyrite Aelf force isolated in realm of beasts for generations, changed by their surroundings, harsh life and lack of any support. Now they're less cultured, more savage and brutal than their ancestors and make their life hunting monsters that are the one thing they have in abundance, adorning themsleves with their hides and other trophies. Still, they guard their fortress, as ordered hundered of years ago and await the return of Sigmar and his warriors to serve once again,  holding violent thunderstorms of their land in reverence and taming those creatures they view as noble and connected to the thunder god.

 

 

 

And some close ups:

Spireguard

 

Reavers (on properly monstrous horses, thanks be to weird dark steed design ;))

 

Shadow Warriors

 

More to come soon ; )