Christmas Day 2019 saw probably some of the ugliest Dark Angels models made available for Made To Order - well this week we get one of the prettiest in the form of the new Primaris-flavoured Dark Angels Master Lazarus, Captain of the Dark Angels 5th Company, lover of kittens, and probably wishing he was wearing black! This is another amazing Primaris character model, with alternate weaponry and head options to make this your own. Probably easily convertible to a Black Templars character too, this is a must-have, even though at $70 he is at the higher end of the Primaris character models. Keen-eyed observers will notice the small feather amongst his decorations - a throwback to a time when the Dark Angels were identified with Native American cultures and before their psuedo-Gothic reformation. The model is being released to coincide with the next Psychic Awakening book, Ritual of The Damned, which comes in both Iron & Feathers Collectors Edition and The Bells, The Bells Standard Edition. If you do order either of these through the webstore you also get the Psychic Awakening: Ritual of The Damned Datasheet Cards for free. Free cardboard - amazing!!
If you're not a Dark Angels fan, then this week is probably about the Sisters of Battle/ Adepta Sororitas, and this week brings out all the whacky for them. In the blue corner we have Junith Eruita in her flying eagle zap-zap-mobile and in the red corner we have the much-loved and finally-in-plastic Exorcist organ-as-missile-launcher battle tank! Have to tell you - big fan of the Exorcist - but $140 AUD for two sprues seems harsh when this could have been a combi-kit with next week's tank. Great for bitz though!! Now - that's not all the whacky BTW - we also get the combi-kit of the ​Penitent Engines/ Mortifiers AND we get the super-grim Arco-flagellants (who really just want a hug), plus nothing gives you confidence in a character model than having it stand over a mortally wounded colleague - bring on the Hospitaller... who seems to have a pesky dove stealing her scroll! Seems like the flying rats are still around in 40,000 years.
In books - we have the paperback version of book 15 in the Gaunt's Ghosts series Anarch and the paperback that seems really interesting - Vaults of Terra: The Hollow Mountain.

They're here! After much Community excitement (we'll see if this is actual or not), the Sisters of Battle - the Adepta Sororitas - are here! Flowing robes, snazzy power armour and bad haircuts, these miniatures are pretty bad-arse.
The battle line unit box is actually a combi-kit, with the Battle Sisters Squad and the Dominions & Celestians (the specialists/ special forces version) coming out of the same set. With a range of weapon and head options, this kit seems pretty flexible, even if the minis are only multi-part and not truly multi-pose. The Sisters of Battle also have some heavy hitters, with the Retributor Squad toting heavy weapons and some obligatory creepy cherubs. As befits the Adepta Sororitas, there is a massive centrepiece, the Triumph of Saint Katherine, which (like the Mortarch of the Necropolis of the Ossiarch Bonereapers) is a huge multi-mini piece that will be the focal-point of your force. It's a beautiful piece and be really interesting to see what the Community turn this into. As befits the release we will of course have a new Codex, which comes in Rosary and Eagle Collectors Edition and The Nineties Want Their Hair Back Standard Edition, plus their are some rather nice Dice and of course the Datacards. Now if you do pre-order either of the Codex, you will get the Adepta Sororitas Art Print - The Beseechment of Saint Dominica.
Now this made a few hearts skip a beat... next week in books we have a Siege of Terra novella which looks suspiciously like one of the main books. Sons of Selenar (Limited Edition) is by Graham McNeil, so sure to be a big hit. Next week is also White Dwarf week...

Magic comes in all sorts ​of ways; a smile from a cute person on the train, that last minute goal, the smell of rain before it pours down. All of th0se are magic, and all of them because of Tzeentch - even the one on the train which you';d think was Slaanesh but they were really just laughing at your lunch split on your shirt. Tzeentch is magic and mystery, and next week Tzeentch will be getting a brand new Battletome for Age of $igmar. which rather neatly coincides with the new boxed game Aether War. Aether War sees Tzeentch and the steampunk dwarves, the Kharadron face off. The box is pretty unremarkable except for two new miniatures; the new Magister on Disc of Tzeentch and the Endrinmaster with Dirigible Suit. The game is pretty pricey, so be aware, but it does give us the opportunity to get two new Battletomes for both factions. Disciples of Tzeentch comes in both Rabbit Out of a Hat Limited Edition and Pick A Card Standard Edition and we also get the Cogs & Steel Limited Edition and Like a Lead Balloon Standard Edition for the Kharadron Overlords. Tzeentch also gets the new miniatures with Endless Spells: Disciples of Tzeentch, the Disciples of Tzeentch Dice, plus we get the Warscroll Cards: Disciples of Tzeentch and Warscroll Cards: Kharadron Overlords.
In books we have one of the very few Kharadron-themed novels with Profit's Ruin, a massive Dan Abnett shorty story anthology with Lord of the Dark Millennium, and the new Warhammer Horror audio drama Darkly Dreaming.

Invisible - like these very cute little The Ringbearers from Forge World. In days of long ago, there was a Frodo that came in clear resin, well now you can get some more! Little tip, if they're not very transparent, give them a coat of 'Ardcoat and they will be nice and sparkly clear!
The rest of the releases this week are books - Gloomspite in paperback, Hammer of the Emperor, a new Warhammer 40k Omnibus and The Oubliette, a Warhammer Horror eBook available through Black Library.

The Dark Angels are here, but WAY crappier than I bet you remembered.
With rumours about the Dark Angels being one of the biog reveals this weekend, Games Workshop have rolled out some old Dark Angels models to spice it up. Unfortunately, for the most part, it seems like a lump of coal in our stocking, but lets start with the good news; the very popular plastic models from the old Dark Vengeance boxed set have been made available as the Armies of Vengeance in Made To Order. In fact if you do order this set you also get this rather handsome Dark Angels Pin Badge (right). Also in Made To Order this week are some really pretty rank models - not helped by the work experience kid doing the paint jobs. The bad first - Dark Angels Veteran Sergeant, Veteran Sergeant Naaman and the old Cypher model are all here. Thankfully so is the rather smart Asmodai, so not all is lost. As a nice bonus, this weekend (and redeemable until March), if you order anything from the Games Workshop webstore, you also get a Total War: Warhammer Promotional Code for a full game download. Not bad at all!

You may remember our excitement at the release of the Start Collecting! Slaves to Darkness set, which came out last week. Well since then I've been experimenting with the colours for Slaanesh - because nothing says hulking Chaos Warrior like pink armour. In the new Slaves To Darkness Battletome, Games Workshop show the Slaanesh warriors in purple armour, but getting back to their roots, Slaanesh should be pink and black. I mean go hard or go home! (Not sure I should be using 'hard' when talking about Slaanesh, but anyway...).
So we have two test models here, and I think a pretty clear winner.
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The main plan with the Slaanesh warriors was a very limited palette - pink, black, white, some steel and some gold. That's it! This then matches the Chaos Chariot already in progress. Overall the aim was to make the entire palette warm, pinks and gold with a warm white furs and even the blacks to be highlighted with a warm grey, In fact the only cool colour would be the steel and the trim on the shield that would be a blue rather than the usual grey we do for blacks.

The first one we did was the mini above; a base of Screamer Pink (what a brilliant colour) shaded with pure Abaddon Black/Lahmian Medium and a highlight of Screamer Pink with a very light purple highlight. This was a high contrast highlight - higher than we'd normally do - but why not try something a bit weird for Slaanesh. The black boots and belt were highlighted with Stormvermin Fur (a warm grey), while the cape got a drybrush of Corvus Black and then Mechanicus Standard Grey. The white fur is Grey Seer with Stormvermin Fur/Lahmian Medium as a wash and pure white as the highlight. The shield has the contrasting cool colour - a Thunderhawk Blue highlight just around the rim. All the metallics were standard - Leadbelcher for the steel and Fulgurite Copper for the gold. 
The cape edges and boots were drybrushed with Dryad Bark and then Baneblade Brown to show the dirt and dust from trudging across the world.
Overall we were happy with this and how it would look at an army level. Then, in the dead of the night I realised that I'd used Kakophoni Purple to highlight pink! Making the pink look more purple than we'd planned. What was I thinking? So...

It was time to go pink-tacular and replace the Kakophoni Purple with ​Emperor's Children. Now THAT'S pink armour! The recipe for the rest of the miniature is basically the same, but this time testing Dawnstone as the highlight on the boots. Will return to Stormvermin Fur for the next model as the first mini's boots look better. The skin cloak is Ionrach Skin with a Stormvermin Fur/Lahmian Medium wash. Tried a spot colour of Sybarite Green with an Incubi Darkness/Lahmian Medium wash on the handle of the mace which matches a piece on the chariot. Not sure it will carry on to the other minis, but good to try!
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So - the takeaway is that Emperor's Children is the key to making Screamer Pink pop. The second mini looks much better, so will be the paint master for the rest. Overall, we think the warm palette works, with only the steel, shield rim and the cloak drybrush bucking the trend of being cool colours.
Also the green grass was a purposeful way to make the pink look REALLY pink!
What do you think? Overall, very happy with a first try at Slaanesh Chaos Warriors - the Chaos Knights look like a pretty scary prospect though...

Just a small week for pre-orders as we go into Christmas. with some reinforcements for Blood Bowl. When Blood Bowl first launched there was some excitement that we might get a new Chaos Dwarf team (and maybe we will) but this week sees the return of the old/"classic" Chaos Dwarf Team & the Bull Centaur as Made To Order. Chaos Dwarves have a real cult following (with a number of third-party companies making great versions of them), so it will be interesting to see how this goes and if it leads to a plastic boxed set down the line.  With only those in the miniature releases, we have a new hardcover - ​The Court of the Blind King - with not only an excellent cover but also an insight into the Idoneth Deepkin. Maybe we'll see exactly how much like the Dark Eldar they are in personality since their mini range is so similar. It's also time for the "gift-filled" White Dwarf December 2019​. It's a real pity it's not a free miniature, but seems like GW doesn't do that anymore.

The day has come - the brand new Chaos Warriors and expanded Slaves To Darkness are here. In an unusual move, Games Workshop have put the new Chaos Warriors, Chaos Knights and a new General in a new Start Collecting! Slaves to Darkness set. These are mono-pose miniatures, so it makes a bit more sense, but also begs the question; were these meant to be an adversary in a different collection? To Go with the new minis, there's the brand new Slaves To Darkness Battletome which comes in Dark & Spiky Limited Edition and of course Bow Before Me! Standard Edition. As with all new Age of $igmar army releases, we also get the new Endless Spells set and the Warscroll Cards - no dice though #sadface! Part of the new Battletome is to expand the forces of the Slaves To Darkness. which now include the forces from the Warcry game, so we get sets of Cypher Lords,  Corvus Cabal, The Unmade, Iron Golem, The Splintered Fang, and Untamed Beasts, but with double the miniatures, but not double the price! Speaking of Warcry, two of the scenery sets from that, the Azyrite Ruined Chapel and the Azyrite Shattered Plaza, are now available separately. In yet more related Warcry news, the Warcry: Tome of Champions is on it's way with with rules for all the other factions in Age of $igmar - even the Seraphon get a mention!
The big boyz of the Ork fleet arrive with the new Aeronautica Imperialis Grot Bommers. These minis don't seem to be getting much love, but there's something Miyazaki about them, so we could be tempted...
Blood Bowl steams along, this time with the new Fire Mountain Gut Busters, the Ogre Team Card Pack, Ogre Team Dice, the Blood Bowl Ogre Team Pitch & Dugouts mat set, Spike! Journal Issue 8, and The 2019 Blood Bowl Almanac which compiles Spike! Journal, issues 4-7  plus an updated FAQ and more.
The Blackstone Fortress Annual 2019 is out next week with new content and also the articles from White Dwarf from December 2018 to December 2019. Interestingly it's softcover!
Middle-Earth has such a cult following, and the recent book releases continue with War in Rohan for Lord of the Rings. Adding new terrain to the system, we get the Rohan House and Rohan Watchtower and Palisades which can be combined to build a walled town, plus there's new Isengard Dice Set. The usual round of re-release miniatures get a run too, with a particularly nice set of Saruman the White & Gríma. The rest have been released a few times before, so I won't bore you with their relisting.
There is a cool book release next week though - the Sabbat Worlds Crusade by Dan Abnett. This is a background book that tells the story of this campaign, but there's also some extra stuff to go along with it, including a Sabbat Worlds Crusade Map in the form of a rolled faux-leather scroll, The Sabbat Worlds Crusade Pin Badges and The Sabbat Worlds Crusade Coaster Set. All Sabbat, all the time!
In other books, Spear of The Emperor, originally a limited edition hard cover with decals and extra stuff is finally out in paperback!

It's been some time since the Blood Angels got some love, but with the next part of Psychic Awakening (and bravo to GW for getting these out so quickly BTW) we see not only the Blood Angels in action, but a pretty damn spectacular new model in the Primaris-ified Mephiston, Lord of Death. With an alternate arm, he goes form Mark Gibbons drawing to plasma toting bad-arse!
The Psychic Awakening: Blood of Baal book itself comes in Nosferatu Is My Homeboy Collector's Edition or Look Mum, We're Bright Red Again Standard Edition. Either way, Blood Angels players are notoriously picky with their fluff, so it will be interesting to see what the fan base thinks. For thos very dedicated fans out there there is the Darkness in the Blood (Limited Edition) by Guy Haley which tells the story of the new Primaris Space Marines and Commander Dante, who has been made warden of Imperium Nihilus, doing what Blood Angels do best - be all angsty with inner demons. Of course anyone who orders Psychic Awakening: Blood of Baal from the webstore will also get the Datasheet Cards.
Still on Warhammer 40K, the Chapter Approved 2019 Edition is on it's way, which not only combines the White Dwarf articles from throughout the year, but also gives you rules for the tank and vehicle expansion Spearhead, plus rules on how to link your games of Kill Team, Warhammer 40,000 and Apocalypse. There's also a supplement with it that gives you all the updates points costs for your units. There's also a Warlord Edition, with a pad of 50 tear out army roster sheets, 2 game trackers, and 3 packs of cards featuring content taken directly from the Chapter Approved book, available as handy references.
Speaking of Kill Team, the Kill Team Annual 2019 is next week too, with compiling all of the rules from White Dwarf over the year, plus points updates, rules for using Sisters of Battle, Kroot Mercenaries and Chaos Daemons kill teams, as well as units from Blackstone Fortress. You can also create your own specialisms (is that a real word?).
The Battleforces are a bit early this year, but we have them again, some tweaked, some new - there's the Blood Angels Crimson Spear Strike Force, T'au Empire Starclaimer Hunter Cadre (another great core Tau set), Chaos Space Marines Vengeance Warband, Drukhari Poisonblade Raiding Party, Space Wolves Talons of Morkai, the massive Tyranids Bioswarm, Nighthaunt Court of the Craven King, Gloomspite Gitz Caveshroom Loonz, Skaven Corrupting War-swarm, probably the nicest Stormcast box ever - Stormcast Eternals Exorcism Soulstrike and for the Titanicus players, Knight Household Battleforce.
Blood Angels also get a book - the Mephiston-focused City of Light, there's a new Warhammer Horror anthology Invocations, the horror novel Dark Harvest. Horus Heresy gets Born of Flame re-released and the Black Library Advent Subscription 2019 begins giving you the 12 audio dramas, 12 digital shorts and 2 digital novel premieres for 26 stories for the price of 17.