As you may know, we tend to take a pretty cynical view of the more recent additions to the Games Workshop universe, but this weekend they held their Vigilus Open Day in the UK and no only did they preview a bunch of new minis - but they frankly they knocked this out of the park!
The first sign this was going to be a good day was this guy (right) the classic Noise Marine based on Jes Goodwin's original sculpt - and it's bloody amazing!
GW have of course hammed it up with a video (below) but have a look at the details on this guy - that mane of hair, the classic animal prints and platform boots. This is a triumph and we need multiples of them!
It wasn't all about this guy though - there's a tonne of good stuff to check out...

The Vigilus Campaign, currently making it's way through the 40K Universe is about to add some more heroes - this time we have Magneus Calgar in Primaris armour and a new Black Legion character -  Haarken Worldclaimer, a perfect accompanying leader for the current Raptors! There is also a new campaign book, which seems to have a lot of Primaris Chapters (including the Sons of the Phoenix and more) plus the Dark Angels and their Successors. I still think this will bring Abaddon and potentially a Primarch back, but the internet is full of rumours, so our two sense worth isn't really needed!

Genestealer Cults has been a massive hit, and now not only have they introduced a throwback mini of the Cult Leader looking over a battle plan, but also light vehicles. If this doesn't somehow also give Imperial Guard more light vehicles to fill the old Rough Rider slot, then that would be a massive shame.

Forge World also previewed their massive new Warbringer Nemesis Titan which is basicaly a walking artillery piece with a crew on the upper deck. This is truly a beast and a huge undertaking for anyone wanting to take on this project! Curious this wasn't released in Adeptus Titanicus scale first to see what the mood for it would be like. It does make us wonder how close we are to the Imperator Titan at this rate!

It's not all 40K - Age of $igmar also got a look in with their latest demon vs demon boxed set that pits Slaanesh and Khorne against one another. We've already seen some of the new minis, but this final reveal showed us Karanak and a harp-playing Slaaneshi. More details to come for sure!

So you've built your Adeptus Titanicus Warlord and some Reavers and those super cool Warhounds and the tiny little Knights - now what? Well, Games Workshop are proud to present not only two Knight variants, the Cerastus Knights, a mighty new version of the Warlord Titan, this one with Plasma Annihilator and Power Claw but also the most expensive decal sheets known to humanity. Yes friend, you can get the Adeptus Titanicus Legio Mortis and the Legio Gryphonicus Transfer Sheets for $34 AUD each - that's about $7 per square inch! Bargain... 
Now if you didn't buy the boxed game, then you missed out on the Adeptus Titanicus Accessory Sprue. Fret no more, it is now available separately.
How's your paint selection going? Stuck in a box, unloved and lacking sun? Well, no more, friend, for there is now the Citadel Hobby Project Box, the Citadel Paint Box and the Citadel Paint Racks all to keep your paints safe and also versatile enough to also act as paint racks! Joy...
Lets be honest, fellow traveller - Space Marines can be a tad boring at times, but Aaron Dembski-Bowden has set about making his own and they star in this glorious Spear of the Emperor (Limited Edition) bundle - and what a bundle it is. This is awesome! Have a look at the extras - everything you would need to add these guys into the Warhammer 40K universe. The normal edition isn't out for another 6 months, but I have to say, even with the price, we are very tempted to get this. Very tempted... 
Also in books, the paperback version of The Emperor's Gift is out. Grey Knights vs daemons. It's a thing.

Okay, well Games Workshop have united their Hobbit and Lord of the Rings ranges under one banner; Middle-Earth. The new book Armies of The Hobbit allows you to field the forces in battles from the not-as-good-as Lord of the Rings films.
To go with this release are two new miniature sets - Gandalf the White and Peregrin Took (both mounted and on foot) and Théoden King of Rohan (also mounted and on foot). These are both beautiful sets with very intricate and finely done miniatures - both also in plastic giving ultimate flexibility to convert! These sets are just brilliant and if there hadn't been an expensive book this week a must-buy! Surely every Middle-Earth hobbyist would want these...
There's also some Gandalf the White Dice this week and more miniatures than you could count! The entire Hobbit range has been re-released (mostly as Mail Order Exclusives), so if you are tempted by this range, now is the time to jump on board. Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, the Mahud, Corsairs, the Numenor and characters aplenty!

For fans of the DCU we've finally got a look at the full Aquaman trailer... and it's pretty damn good!
Great news - this is only a month away too.

With the recent Beasts of Chaos releases, GW have delved into the depths of their archives - not deep enough to hit Mordheim unfortunately - to bring us these blasts from the past.
Gorthor is a mixed plastic and metal kit, and would make an awesome centrepieces for an army. Speaking of centrepieces, the 'rare' Wargor Standard Bearer is back - still in white metal - and so is  Ghorros Warhoof. We don't see Centigors get much love these days, so this is a nice commander for them. Chaos Devoted armies can add the Khorngor Command and the Khorngors as well as the Pestigor Command and Pestigors. Now if you're not a fan of the newer Chaos Warhounds, you can get your hands on the old Chaos Warhounds. Not entirely sure why you'd want these, but more power to you!
In books there's Warmaster, which basically looks like all the other Gaunts Ghosts books, except this guy looks more like David Beckham. It's actually not very smart. If I walked into the shop I wouldn't know if I had this book or not. Pick your game up, folks!

The Legio Ballista forces have been a very slow build - in fact starting back in the Epic days. More recently with the plastic Skitarii units - including the Kastelan - Legio Ballista had more of a flesh out, and not with the advent of Adeptus Titanicus, it's a chance to get some more Titans from the Legio on the battlefield.
What's interesting is to compare these new models to the older Epic scale models and see mow much bigger the Titans are! Strangely the vehicles are now to scale because in Epic they certainly weren't!
The level of detail on the plastic Adeptus Titanicus kits is excellent, with the Warhound being great fun to build with a brilliant result, but the Reaver is more fiddly - especially the leg armour and was really more of a pain to build than anything! Not in a rush to do more Reavers, but the Warhounds are the gift that keeps on giving.
++ It has not, BTW, missed my attention that every one of these photos is out of focus ++

The internet is alive with the sound of music - and that music is fanboys in exultation at the site of the new GW boxed game Blackstone Fortress. Building on the seminal Rogue Trader and Explorer Fleets fluff, we have a group of adventurers heading out to explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations... oh hold on! It's actually good to see GW haven't forgotten the Rogue Trader - considering the game released just weeks ago and the Mechcanicum Explorator Fleets are pretty much a similar idea, just with more guns! It's actually the foundation of the 40K universe and a somewhat popular RPG universe as well, coincidentally reacquired by GW earlier this year. The range of miniatures in this set is very cool really, we see a Kroot outside the Tau forces (as they regularly are and not dissimilar to the one we did back in 2014), some Imperial Ratlings (maybe this will see an end to this xenophobic absolutist change to the fluff that was made somewhere in the mid-90s that saw the end of Beastmen and Ratlings and others in Imperial service), we see another Navigator and of course the much touted "Iron Man" (which was always an amazing piece of fluff, but this mini isn't really our personal vision of who they were), plus there's the bad guys - amazingly Beastmen return to 40K, new Chaos Marines, the Renegade Guard, tainted Psykers and the Ur-Ghul from the Dark Eldar range turn up too. Really there's a lot in this and the excitement is understandable - maybe it's GW's marketing that just isn't hitting home. Isn't it funny - even after all the work that's going into Warhammer Community, it's the actual community on social media that drum up all the interest and hype.
Outside Blackstone, Kill Team continues with more additions to the Commanders range with Crasker Matterzhek from the Genestealer Cults and Nemesis 9 Tyrantis from the Tyranids. So far all the Xenos names in this range of Kill Team have been on point! Amazing job.
In the world of books, there is of course a Blackstone Fortress novel - it comes in Half-The-Price-Of-The-Game Special Edition and Oh-Look-It's-Just-A-Book Everyone Else Edition. Not to be left out the Stormcast get a new novel, Hallowed Knights: Black Pyramid and there's an audio drama, Eight Lamentations: War Claw with some adventurers in some rather unusual outfits - I wonder if this is a look into the future...
Now when one becomes a Rogue Trader, the Imperium gives you sanction to do so - because in reality you really are just a pirate with permission to do stuff and bring stuff back, no matter the mess you make. Well, not this honour is upon you, because with every purchase of Blackstone Fortress from the webstore you could be sent your very own Warrant of Trade. Now personally I would have thought a Warrant of Trade would have been dripping in ribbons, honours, a wax seal - but no, it seems you just need a foil sticker. Who knew? Look, this is a cute idea, but really, if  Rogue Trader unfurled one of these in front of the leader of some far-flung world, they may as well be wearing an "... and all i got was this t-shirt". This is pretty naff, especially for such an expensive purchase. You can save over $30 online buying this game from somewhere pother than GW and this certificate cost about 10 cents to make. Not an enticement!

Games Workshop have ​put something on pre-order this week, and I'm not too sure they actually know what it is. Let us introduce you to the Citadel Assembly Handle - apparently it's to hold things while you put glue on something else. Personally I use my hands for that, but okay! What this actually is (GW - pay attention) is a copy of something that Gundam builders use - the little arms are actually for holding small pieces so you can paint them. Maybe GW should have asked the 3rd party that made this for them what it actually is! Now, there is finally the Citadel Painting Handle XL and the new tapered Citadel Water Pot - better for no spills! The paint range is also getting some new sets, the Citadel Ultimate Project Set and Citadel Project Paint Set with interlocking inserts, the Citadel Layer Paint Set and the Citadel Base & Shade Paint Set. There's new scenery with the Sector Mechanicus: Derelict Factorum plus some bundles- the bank-breaking Thermic Plasma Nexus Collection, the Sector Mechanicus Munitorum Munitions Hub (check out the bad Photoshop on this one- the work experience kid must have been in this day!), all the pipes with the Thermic Plasma Nexus,  and the Sector Imperialis: Imperial Sector bundle. Age of $igmar also get some terrain love with the Desolated Township, Azyrite Townscape (a good price this one in terms of outlay and return) and the Vale of Ghyran. 
Keep in mind, a bundle doesn't always equal value, so do the maths!
With news that the main Horus Heresy novel series is coming to an end, there two novellas forming part of the prequel - and they both sound like they will be fluff-impacting stories... Dreadwing centres around the Dark Angels and how The Lion is such an emo twat that his Legion actually have to work AROUND him to get the job done and Spear of Ultramar centres around the Ultramarines and why they didn't reach Terra in time to play a part in the final battles. In 40K land, Steel Daemon tells the story of a surviving Cadian just making his way in the world - even with that shocking haircut, The Bloodied Rose seems like Sisters of Battle hack and slash, Auric Gods tells the heartwarming story of how the Custodes just want to be loved, the Necromunda story Wanted: Dead and finally Death Knell, the backstory to the upcoming Space Marne Heroes miniature release. Age of $igmar get a look in too, with the Gotrek novella The Bone Desert, the Dark Elf story Heart of Winter, the last stand novella The Red Hours, and the Darkoath-themed Warqueen.
Yet another journal makes it's way to us - this time Nagash-themed. The quality of these is generally very nice, but the print job on the cover of this looks pretty ordinary to be honest!
There's also a Webstore offer on at the moment that if you buy everything in the webstore, you will receive this Brush Wallet - probably valued at around $15. Seems fair...! 

With the potato camera working overtime last night, it seems GW have decided to drop the whole Blackstone Fortress reveal in one rather epic video. This boxed set will be highly prized we would think - with not only new Chaos Space Marines and Xenos characters, but Cultists, Ratlings, Beastmen and more.

The next gang in Necromunda also got a look in and these guys are spectacular - possibly the best yet! House Delaque. We have dynamic poses, some great head sculpts, new weapons and a look that can be transferred straight across to 40K for Mechanicum, assassins - whatever you like. These will be big on the bitz market for sure! A must buy for us! The rules also get an update with the new Necromunda Rulebook combining the rules found in the Necromunda: Underhive boxed set plus content from Gang War, FAQs and Errata. There is now also, thankfully, the Gangs of Necromunda supplement with rules for all six of the House Gangs, plus Hangers-on, Brutes, the trading post and more.

Wrath and Rapture turns out to be a boxed game of Khorne vs Slaanesh. Seems those nice Fiends of Slaanesh models are from this set plus there's also Flesh Hounds for Khorne and more on the way!

The next Age of $igmar Battletome will be Destruction and looks like the mushrooms are back! Not much in this video, but maybe we should expect to see more of the weirdness... 

Meanwhile Warhammer Underworlds sees additions to the Darkoath range with the Godsworn Hunt. These are basically the new Chaos Marauders, skirmishers for the Slave To Darkness