Neverchosen

Say goodbye to 2.0 friends! 😦 This has possibly been covered but the French Canadian version of Storm Strike is no longer available online. The English version of Soul Wars is currently listed as temporarily out of stock but not gone. https://www.games-workshop.com/en-CA/Age-Of-Sigmar-Storm-Strike-2018-fre

I can easily see IDK really merging with any of the current Aelven factions to be honest. I know the idea makes people mad, but I can see them joining with the Lumineth after Tyrion is introduced. I feel that they can be accepted as part of the River Temple and be purely a Tyronic enclave within Lumineth. As such I can imagine that there will be a rule that prevents them from being run alongside Teclis. I doubt it will play out this way but I think it would be a cool thing to see unfold within the narrative. Alternatively they could also be adopted by Allarielle but I think they will have to get some Coral and Seaweed troops beforehand.

Grotbag Scuttlers!? Oh no! I cannot handle the hype! Although, I feel this will dash the hope of my cutlass wielding, tricorn rocking, sky pirate, dream for the army.

The rumour thread spent a number of pages discussing the possibility of a shared Duardin faction as well as the pros and cons of various other 'soup' factions. @RuneBrushsuggested that we cover it in its own thread as it was taking over the Rumour thread. So here we go the official soup thread! Please share your thoughts and feeling on the subject. Personally I am favour of soup lists and the two armies I currently collect are both technically soup armies to various degrees. I collect Slaves to Darkness (not traditionally considered a soup army) and mix and match between keywords using mostly traditional Chaos Warriors and Knights, but I also include a few demons and cultists. My second army is Ogor Mawtribes and so far I have exclusively purchased Beastclaw Raider units. I am considering getting some gnoblars as I enjoy the models and maybe a scrap launcher to tie the two sides together thematically but I was interested in the army for the specific purpose of collecting Ogors mounted on massive beasts. So personally I enjoy varied armies but the two I collect contain a strong thematic unity across their army and thus feel less soupy than other lists. Any thoughts on souped armies? Any you would like to see tossed into the Mawpot? Maybe some you would rather see disentangled?

There is enough chivalry in the game already! Do we truly need two armies featuring noble knights?

Sign me up! 😎

Also everyone forgot the most important fact about Malerion's recent changes... all rumour engines are proof positive of his upcoming release until proven otherwise*. As such he recently transformed from a vampiric entity to an orcish one and he also seems to borrow a lot of tech from the 41st millennium. Onto the more pressing matters of Dwarf Soup. I think that people are so certain that it will involve KO but they seem to be a much more independently minded force that is defined through it's lack of adherence to the gods. I know that Grungni was recently seen in their midst but I think that they will likely be staunch allies to their kin rather than part of a shared list. Already KO have the ability to take 1/4 units of other Duardin and I can see that rule persisting and across all Order based Duardin forces. Largely because I think they are one of the most sucessful and Iconic ranges in AOS. Fyerslayers I am less certain about as they are a cool and iconic range with strong ties to the old world. But it also seems like GW is a little tapped out on ideas for them (even though fans have suggested many awesome ideas). So they might get souped. *Once Malerion is released this terrible joke shall transfer to Valaya unless she is relesed first.

Personally, I think that Malerion and Tyrion will be released alongside one another in a narrative event about the freeing of Slaanesh. Likely it will be the two of them fighting which will cause the release of the Dark Prince as they are too embittered to realize the greater threat. I am really excited to see this occur as I am a big fan of the rivals and think it would make a major introduction for them both. In a way I think that much as the Bonereapers are tied to the Eightpoints, the Aelves will be the Order force most tied to Chaos in the next edition. Sigmar and Grungni have other fish to fry. But I think this will be a few years off, and it will be an epic event that wraps up the current Aelven storyline. But for now it is time for some bearded bros to help man the walls of Azyr and push back against the upcoming green wave.

I think that more Destruction armies and a new Duardin faction are a given. Malerion will come in the next edition but I think like Slaanesh's release it will be a major event (likely the two will coincide). Chaos is in a weird place where I think that they are in a great spot in terms of armies but the setting of Ghur is the ideal time to revitalize the Beasts of Chaos and Skaven ranges. We also have some vague Chaos Dwarf rumours... so they are another possibility although will they be an independent faction or not? I think if anything is taking a back seat it will be Death for the next edition, not only did they receive a lot of love already but I actually think they are the most cohesive and realized alliance in the game (alongside Chaos). I expect range expansions but no revamps or new armies. My best bet is that with Nagash down and out there will be growing autonomy among the death factions and maybe at the end of the edition or the begining of the next a new independent death faction will rise but it will have a lot of narrative lead up.

Here is some gameplay of the new Stormground game I was looking around and didn't see anyone post this yet, but sorry if it was covered already: I don't think it looks bad but I think it would have been cool if this was a video game version of Warcry.

This suggestion may not mean much but I got a friend into AOS simply by getting him to collect an army that he could play in both AOS and 40K (Thousand sons/Disciples of Tzeentch). He was not hesitant to play AOS but simply did not have the funds for starting a new army... but after playing a few games he converted to AOS fully. He was able to get his friends on board and now we have a small little community that plays AOS and we have a tentative little get together arranged when we all have our vaccines. We are thinking of doing a massive 2v2 of Chaos (Slaves to Darkness and Disciples of Tzeentch) vs Death (Soulblight and Ossiarchs). But I enjoy seeing your posts so I am likely being selfish in my suggestion. 🙂

I think that edition updates are a rather arbitrary thing for many game systems and AOS 2.0 had reached a decent equilibrium. However, it is still such a new game that and there are still some serious problems to be worked out. I read over the new 40k rules on a lengthy train ride and I really liked what I saw and I am excited to see if AOS will get the same degree of improvements. I do think that everything we have heard about 3.0 so far, sounds like an improvement and so I am really looking forward to it. Lorewise I am much more interested in the upcoming setting and Broken Realms has shown a willingness to take greater risks with the narrative than I was expecting for such an event. So yes I am hyped for the release and I am even more excited for the upcoming models.

Any speculation on the other boxes? I am guessing the Sylvaneth box will be Dryctcha and two units of Revenants... the BOC and Slaanesh boxes are a little harder to predict.

I am hoping for more dragons in AOS and this is a positive sign. I also hope the Stardrake will make Dracoline and Dracothian Guard battleline for SCE. It would be well beyond my price range but it would be cool to see fighting against the Hosts of the Everchosen.

I must say that is an amazing paint job.

I think my earlier prediction was pretty accurate he has a good warscroll but nothing that breaks the game. Furthermore his lack of synergy is likely his biggest draw back. I think as @Belimanpoints out he will be easy to play around while not being terrible. Many of his abilities make me wonder about 3.0 rules namely will defensible/garrisonable terrain make a bigger impact on the game going forward? Hopefully hinting at proper siege mechanics?

All of these are armies that interest me to a huge degree... I need to be very cautious around these particularly the Slaanesh and Drycha sets! 😧

All this talk about the return of Hobgoblins (or their AOS equivalent) has brought to mind another quaint and nostalgic fantasy world that I think could inspire some interesting themes and schemes:

I think that it is not a single thing and tastes of course vary. I know my opinion may be in the minority, but I have a unique relationship with these little guys that I wanted to share. Keep in mind I am a fan of them no matter the iteration so my preferences are not deal breakers. I personally like them as I am a fan of their aesthetic and their lore. I got into Warhammer Fantasy Battles in 6th edition and I remember having a generals handbook(?) that had the points and maybe rules for legacy Chaos Dwarves but the catalogue and store didn't have any models. I was playing Chaos at the time and I was excited thinking it was an upcoming army that I could run with my Warriors and Beastmen and I waited with each release and eventually got this beauty: But then while Googling Chaos Dwarves one day I found out it was a full range with a unique aesthetic and it's own fantastic lore. Now I am a huge fan of both iterations of Chaos Dwarves and although I favour the Hellcannon and hope to see Chaos Dwarves return to Slaves to Darkness I am also a fan of the big hats and Bull Centaurs. Personally my hope would be a fully playable subfaction in Slaves to Darkness that combined the aesthetic of both and made use of demon forged warmachines. However, I could also imagine being blown away with a completely original take. But I will be happy no matter what, if they find their way onto the tabletop. 😇

I think that he will be a very charge dependent character, and we really need to emphasize the word potential. I assume it will be a case of the warscroll looking busted but between point cost and lacking certain synergies he will be used as an expensive beat stick and likely not see the most competitive play. With all that in mind I really like the model and what we have learned about the surrounding lore and hope that he is functionally Destruction's answer to Gotrek.

As an avid BCR/Gnoblar fan I only want Kragnos, Yetis and a Gnoblar hero... I feel that will give me enough variety to make some alt lists and keep things fresh while sticking to a theme. Although, I would probably grab some Firebellies if they expanded that side of things. I am also hoping for some roaming monsters and to get my hands on a wild dragon to wreak havoc on the battlefield. I can't wait to see what you do with those models. I am happy that some of my favourite posters are getting some awesome releases... meanwhile I am battling with the thought of starting a third army and caught between waiting for Malerion and Tyrion or jumping on board with the new SCE when they drop...

As Nagash licks his wounds, the forces of order tear themselves apart and chaos is trapped in a war of attrition with an ancient undead general... it is now time for destruction to take the centre stage. I have a feeling that this will be @KingBrodd's edition... 😇 As someone who is slow to getting around to painting hopefully my Ogres will see the field before 3.0 is over 😅

I think the thing that intrigues me most going forward is this notion that the pantheon of gods is being somewhat opened up. I am curious if the TIki styled iconography indicates a move away from the traditional GorkaMorka worship into an expanded Kragnos or better yet animistic faith for these new Hobgoblins? The axe is cool but as someone with an Ogre and Slaves to Darkness army I am going to pass on these fellows as it might feel a little redundant... even though they are honestly ticking a lot of my boxes. I think if I add another army to my collection it will be an Order army to create a proverbial Good, Bad and Ugly with my collection... however, I am weak and will likely fall to the sway of Malerion* and have a Bad, Bad and Shrek collection on my hands. 😁 I post about what order army I should collect and then I learn next week we are getting the release Galen and Doralia ven Denst the best father daughter duo in the mortal realms. *Although in true Aelven fashion I may stab him in the back and create a Tyrion inspired Vanari force to shake up my collection and paint schemes.

I should have clarified a little better. I think there is nothing wrong with liking bad guys and I do not think it makes someone automatically agree with the ideology of the villainous characters or organizations. I have spent enough money on Boba Fett and Vader merchandise to prove that I can enjoy the villains in these works. I also think that typically the villains are often more compelling as characters. Heck, my favourite book is probably Blood Meridian simply because I find it to be such a chilling look at humanity's dark side. Rather I was mentioning that many people who share the views of the bad guys often overlook the inherent critique within the works. I am personally not a fan of fiction that is overly didactic but then again as I mentioned in my previous post I am a huge fan of Chaos in our shared little narrative world. This was not intended as a warning against people in Stormtrooper cosplay or people playing with Spacemarines... simply it was acknowledging that there are fans that have a hard time separating their ideologies from the works they consume. This goes far beyond geek culture and is often seen in sports and business as well.

I mean there are an absolutely terrifying number of Star Wars fans that ideologically support the Empire and First Order. Star Wars is extremely upfront about the fact that these organizations are blatantly and objectively evil. Warhammer fans in particular get into a strange territory of identifying with the politics of their armies. Which is really uncomfortable in a setting in which everyone is meant to be seen as the villain to everyone else. There are some fun and interesting transgressive politics at play dating back to their roots in British counterculture, steeped in a heavy dose of irony... but those parodic elements have begun to erode as more and more people have become invested in the world and characters. Now there is an uncomfortable tension that exists within the narrative between the satirical take on Sci-fi/fantasy tropes and the audience that earnestly identifies with the things being satirized. The Imperium was clearly a satire of real world imperialism taken to an intergalactic scale. AOS is less outwardly problematic or one dimensional but it still makes me a touch uncomfortable that people really want to identify with their plastic army. I will often joke that Chaos are a progressive and inclusive faction but I know they are also a uniformed army dedicated to the worship of Evil Gods wishing to undo the fabric of reality. The narrative I developed for my army is that they were religious crusaders of Sigmar who entered the Eightpoints and upon seeing the might of Chaos determined they were following the wrong God. Now they return to the mortal realms to convert the forces of order to their new faith. The army does not remotely match my politics but it does function as a critique of they way religion is often used to justify war.