As crowds flock Games Workshop and independent retailers across the world today to get their hands on the Warhammer 40K 10th Edition Launch Box, pre-orders for next week bring us some more goodies for our existing armies.
If you didn't order Leviathan, then here it is, the new Warhammer 40,000 Core Book which comes in Blanchitsu Limited Edition or Which Primarch Is Next Standard Edition. This is John Blanche's last publication with Games Workshop as he enters retirement, so the Limited Edition is sure to be popular, but at $390 AUD, a bit rich for even our blood. To go with Leviathan, and actually carry it forward, we have the narrative campaign expansion Crusade: Tyrannic War which covers the rules, units and lore of the Fourth Tyranid War. Like the Core Rulebook it's also out in Chompy Chompy Special Edition or Cleanse With Fire Standard Edition. As Leviathan hits the shelves this week, there's the new Chapter Approved: Leviathan Mission Deck to expand the options in Matched Play. If you like the sound of that, then you can get the 10th Edition Essentials and get one of each of these to start your 1oth Edition adventure. The newer innovation with this edition is to replace the waste-of-time Index books from last edition with a cheaper and more easily accessible option - Index Cards. The Index Cards are broken up into two categories - the ones that are expansions to existing Index Cards so you will need to buy them first (Black Templars, Blood Angels, Space Wolves, Dark Angels, Deathwatch) so you need to have Index: Space Marines to have all available units, and the second category which are all encompassing (Grey Knights, Leagues of Votann, Genestealer Cults, Adeptus Mechanicus, Chaos Demons, Tau Empire, Drukhari, Necrons, Knight Houses, Imperial Agents, Adeptus Custodes, Adepta Sororitas, Chaos Daemons, Tyranids, Astra Militarum, Aeldari, Orks, World Eaters, Thousand Sons, Death Guard, Chaos Space Marines, Space Marines).
In books this week we have the Book Six of the Dawn of Fire series, The Martyr's Tomb which comes in Special Edition or Paperback. There's a new Warhammer Crime novel out,  The King of the Spoil 
in paperback, the Blood Angels Omnibus Lords of Blood in paperback and the paperback version of Void King which is all about Rogue Traders,

With information dribbling out of Games Workshop for the upcoming release of Warhammer 40K 10th Edition (next weekend), it seems the huge amount of information they have released is causing more confusion than the previous editions who held the information back until the Community could hold it in their hands.
This isn’t a huge surprise, however! We have seen recent issues with Codex releases with huge errors or errata after errata and the commentary around that. We see this specifically with the Leagues of Votann Codex released in the Limited Edition Army Box, showing so many key errors in points and balancing that the book was completely redone and those who were early adopters to that faction soon abandoned it in frustration.

Many believe the issues with the multiple versions of rules, errata and updates is due to Games Workshop contracting games and rules writers for specific assignments rather than having them on staff. There have been comments from these writers in the past about how they were given very short deadlines, the beta testers were not always as knowledgeable as they could be, and when it came time to revisions their contracts were over and the product was already rolling out. Obviously having rules writers on staff is expensive, and this move by GW makes economic sense, but Games Workshop are missing the very real fact that gamers are just using older rule sets and not adopting the new ones that are purportedly full of holes. A great example of this is Horus Heresy.

When 8th Edition came out, many Horus Heresy gamers were reticent to change – Games Workshop had all but abandoned supporting the system after the death of Alan Bligh and 8th Edition was a big leap away for a community who had been self-sufficient for years. The Community at large stuck with 7th Edition, with the very strong podcast scene (Eye of Horus being the prime example, with Age of Darkness also being a rallying point for a while) supporting a burgeoning tournament and social scene, also developing rules that Games Workshop themselves would later adopt. The existing rules system could, and did, exist completely without Games Workshop – and if they believe it or not – this should cause a major concern for them. It’s not unprecedented though, with various camps in the Dungeons and Dragons Community also only playing certain editions. The big difference here is that Dungeons and Dragons does not rely economically on Edition updates every 2 years or so to keep sales going. They rely on supplements and mission packs, something Games Workshop is trying with Necromunda and Adeptus Titanicus, but their short attention span and divided priorities in terms of supporting not one but multiple games systems means they loose momentum, and therefore the interest of their Community.

The danger with this for Games Workshop goes deeper than 10th Edition Warhammer 40,000. At the recent Adepticon 2023 the largest crowd reaction was for Horus Heresy and the upcoming Warhammer - The Old World, a relaunch of the pre-Age of $igmar Fantasy world. Interestingly, and worryingly, when the live crowd were asked who was excited for new Age of $igmar content, there was very little enthusiasm – in fact both Horus Heresy and Warhammer - The Old World gained even louder reactions than Warhammer 40,000. I digress, the issue is that with Warhammer - The Old World being a existing games system that has been played for well over 20 years (in the current state anyway, 30 if you want to go back to a darker age), the rules are already out there and if Games Workshop don’t get the rules correct for this new version, then people will use the miniatures and ignore the system. In fact with some units being simply remanufactured, the second hand miniatures market may even threaten Games Workshop’s miniature sales for this new incarnation.

So with that as background, what is happening with Warhammer 40,000 10th Edition? Great question!
 
Games Workshop have done something they haven’t’ done before – they have effectively given away a lot of the content that would previously been a paid item.
Not only did they release the core rules, but also points costs, well-produced Faction Focus information and Index Cards for all existing units in the game. This is a lot of information, and unfortunately for Games Workshop there seem to be inconsistencies and errors, which of course have raised questions on Facebook and other social media platforms.
Here are a few just in cursory reading:

• There’s a Data Sheet for the Venerable Dreadnought (which is discontinued from sale) but not one for the Dreadnought that they do sell.
• There is now no way to take the cheapest weapon options in a squad as the squad has one cost, despite the loadout. You are effectively paying for the most expensive loadout even if you take a less weighty combination of arms.
• The rule about attaching characters to units – something that’s very common in Horus Heresy – has caused confusion as some can, some can’t, some buff, some don’t.

 
Now sure, you can say that this is just quibbling and the usual social media grumbles, but the reality is that releasing this information early is meant to make people feel better, more secure and ready to play, not annoyed and confused.

Games Workshop have also released an interesting Games Commentary (v1) document that goes over some decisions, adds context and clarifies – but in reality if you need an 18 page document to explain this simplified rules system, a document that doesn’t come anywhere but from a website download, then already there has to be a fundamental flaw. Maybe the Games Commentary will make it’s way into the soon-to-be-published 10th Edition Rulebook, but for now it is an orphan – ready by some, but not part of the main rule set.
 
As we all know, nothing is perfect, and things will be ironed out in errata, in v1.1 and v1.2 etc, but there seems to be something fundamentally flawed in the execution if there’s this much confusion. Even if it is confusion and not errors – let’s be generous – the most important part of this game has been left out, the Community.

Do Games Workshop have a flaw in their game design? Is it too many cooks in the kitchen? Is too much information too soon a mistake? Are the rules too complicated?
 
When Games Workshop first released the guides to the changes in 10th Edition our little group were excited to learn more. But even the explanations of the changes seemed to need explaining, obviously written by someone with a lot of assumed knowledge and understanding. Good for them, but to assume makes an “as” of “u” and “me”.
 
With the new rulebook only available in the boxed Leviathan set, or in various downloads off the Games Workshop website, this current mess will continue. In editions past, the rulebook would be released outside the boxed set on Day 1, giving the Community time to sit and digest the book all at once. Now, with this strategy of having bits and pieces and no clear idea when we can get the book in store, the Community could potentially lose interest, spirit, drive, or they will buy into the commentary online and decide it’s all too hard.
 
As much as knowledge is power and having the information early is generous and helpful, that’s only if the information is a. correct and b. digestible and interesting. It seems for 10th Edition, the Community have ruled that it’s neither – at least so far! 

Having been around for Warhammer 40,000 1st Edition, it's really quite weird to be here for the Warhammer 40,000 10th Edition. I guess this is what it's like to be one of the old school Dungeons and Dragons players who've seen edition upon edition, and so follows Games Workshop and their flagship product, Warhammer 40,000!
 10th Edition launches with the Warhammer 40,000: Leviathan box - 72x brand new plastic miniatures pitting the Imperial Space Marines against the the Tyranids of Hive Fleet Leviathan. Like recent releases, these miniatures are unfortunately push-fit, so will lack the intrinsic ability to be easily customised, but a sharp knife and some glue will fix that! The Space Marines side has 25 miniatures including a Captain in Terminator Armour, a Lieutenant with Combi-Weapon, a Librarian in Terminator Armour, an Apothecary Biologis in Gravis Armour, a Ballistus Dreadnought, five of the new Terminators, five Sternguard Veterans and ten Infernus Marines.
The Tyranids have 47 chitinous murder machines with a Winged Tyranid Prime, a Neurotyrant and their Neuroloids, a Screamer-Killer, a Psychophage, three Von Ryan's Leapers, five Barbgaunts, eleven Neurogaunts, twenty of the new Termagants and two Ripper Swarms. The set also includes a huge rulebook, Space Marines Transfer Sheet, a 66-card Chapter Approved: Leviathan Mission Deck to generate missions.
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Now before you scuttle off and order your set today, keep in mind that different retailers have different promotional Items - the GW webstore for example has the carboard Leviathan Battlefield, where as in-store pre-orders have acrylic tokens and independent stockists have other items. So work out which junk you want and order accordingly. Independent stockists will also have a hefty discount on the RRP price, which may be a better bargain than some promotional stuff.
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To go along with the release of Leviathan, there's the background novelisation imaginatively called Leviathan which comes in a very attractive Special Edition and a hardcover edition.
There's also some squad-sized bundles this week to start you on your way in 10th Edition - Armoured Fist Squad for the Imperial Guard, Big Breaka Boyz for the Orks, Death From Afar for the Eldar, Repentance Through Death for the Sisters of Battle/ Imperial Agents, and The Strong Prevail for the mighty Chaos Space Marines.
With Warhammer 40,000 Leviathan being a two week pre-order window (so you won't get your box until 24th of June), we expected next week to have some Made To Order minis to keep us busy on a Saturday morning.  Interestingly though, they were listed this week, with classic Seraphon appearing from the vagueries of warp space. We have the Skink Starpriest (Classic), Tehenhauin (and his shocked sidekick), Skink Chief with Blowpipe (a pose we later see repeated in the Chameleons), Skink Chief with Scythe and Shield, Skink Chief with Sword & Shield, the Saurus Oldblood on Carnosaur (Classic) and the Slann Mage-Priest on Palanquin. Some of these minis have been OOP (Out of Production) for a very long time, so interesting to see them back,
In books we have the paperback of Siege of Terra: Echoes of Eternity and it's a ​White Dwarf week, with issue 489 on shelves on Friday.

Now, initially we we told by everyone's favourite passive aggressive GW Guy, Eddie, that there would be tonnes of these Leviathan boxed sets available - but now it's limited, one box per customer and there's a queue system on log in to the GW webstore. 

As the slow build up to Warhammer 40K 10th Edition rumbles along, we have a small week this week - an opportunity to save your pennies!
In yet another drive for sales, Games Workshop have released the 300th starter set for Warhammer Underworlds. This one comes with a very small set of miniatures and targets the 30 minute game length. Interesting to see this in GW stores and not as one of the US Target Exclusive sets, which is where these much smaller sets generally end up.
In other Warhammer Underworlds news, the new Wyrdhollow warband - The Headsmen's Curse - are out, bringing four more ghoulish warriors to the game. Certainly not a spectacular release, but a nice addition to the range. To accompany the warband there's also the new ​Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow – Voidcursed Thralls Rivals Deck which adds new cards for Rivals, Nemesis, and Relic games and can be used by any warband.
In Warhammer 40K releases we have the new Space Marines Heroes Series 3 Death Guard miniatures, which are not only packed with detail, but bring the "cute" back into Nurgle with each Space Marine accompanied by some form of Nurgling or Kawaii Death Machine. These miniatures really are amazing - even as a non-Nurgle fan, the detail packed into them is really impressive - as are the paint jobs.
In books this week we have the new Age of $igmar Yndrasta: The Celestial Spear Limited Edition, which is indeed a handsome tome.
In the "rubbish to clutter up your desk" range, the new ​Warhammer 40,000 Chibi Figures Series 2 are here. These again follow the tradition of a single Blind Bag, so you don't know which one you're getting! How exciting... Mind you, the inclusion of the Crimson Fist from the cover of Warhammer 40K 1st Edition - Rogue Trader - is pretty cool.
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Speaking of Warhammer 40K 10th Edition, Games Workshop have released the rule so we can brush up on the changes pre-release. As you may have heard, the rules were leaked a week or so back, but this is the official pre-erratta, pre-points rebalancing, pre-typo fixing version - please enjoy!