Thoughts Ahead Of Nagash Release

So the End Times hit this Saturday.  I have pre-ordered the interactive version of the rule book on my iPad - $88 vs. $165 for the physical book.

And I'm excited. In fact I'm probably more excited about this release than any release since 8th Edition hit.

Why? Well this is the first time in almost a decade that GW have advanced the Warhammer Lore. I loved the Storm of Chaos campaign (even though I wasn't playing WHFB at the time) and the 40k Eye of Terror summer was a "golden time" for me as far as GW games go.

While I love the gaming aspect of WHFB I like the imagery and background more. One of the reasons I could never play X-Wing or Lord of the Rings/Hobbit is that regardless of how good the game the background does nothing for me. I found the LotR movies (and books) tedious and overblown and I haven't bothered with The Hobbit movies. Similarly while the original Star Wars movies were good I always found them (and the universe) overrated. The second set were just dire.

However with the Warhammer World I think GW has done a phenomenal job over 2-3 decades to create a fantastic backdrop for their game ( they have done similar for 40k though the current millennium lacks the majesty of the previous nine).

Therefore the opportunity to have the backdrop progress is very appealing for me. My reading - so far - of the "story" is that this is indeed epic. Powers are afoot and responses required. This draws in all theatres with the WW and that is exciting.

Now I appreciate that this is all an effort to sell more models and source material but the critical thing is that there is an "effort". Over recent years "effort" in Fantasy has been a rare commodity. A couple of limited campaign books, one expansion but generally just "treadmill" releases. By that I mean Army Books that from a lore point of view have been uninspiring.  When your biggest fluff advance of the past five years is the discovery of Demigryphs in Empire forests, well you do have problems.

Now don't get me wrong, the models and the rules are the best they have ever been (I've only played three editions). But that for me is only part of the story. This End Times storyline is the missing piece.

In fact I'd be a very happy gamer if GW delayed 9th for another two years (or issued it as v8.5), released the remaining three Army Books and then concentrated on these campaign style additions to add models, units, scenarios etc.

If they wanted to ice my cake they'd then only have to update the FAQs.