Tabletop GamingWarhammer Age of SigmarWarhammer Age of Sigmar used to scare me, but Skaventide changed all thatWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Tabletop GamingWarhammer Age of SigmarWarhammer Age of Sigmar used to scare me, but Skaventide changed all thatWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)
Of all the things I’d expected from the Skaventide boxset for Warhammer Age of Sigmar, it wasn’t feeling like a kid at school again. Do you remember seeing something and writing it off as too big, too complex, and too overwhelming? For me, that was math. Place arithmetic within forty paces of teenage Benj and he’d make a getaway plan that would put the Great Escape to shame. But if I took a breath and actuallytried, I’d be hit upside the head with a slightly embarrassing realization of “oh – so it’s not that hard after all.”
Skaventide reminds me of that.
I’m no stranger to wargaming, and have been dabbling in all things Games Workshop since I was around seven years old. Coming back after a lengthy break threw me for a loop, though; the old-school Warhammer Fantasy of my youth was six feet under, replaced with Age of Sigmar. Learning this new system and digging into a vast, alien world with years of lore to digest gave me the cold sweats, so I put it into a ‘maybe later’ pile at the back of my mind. However, going hands-on with the Skaventide boxset early makes me regret not diving in sooner. While this introduction to the game may seem intimidating, it’s anything but once you get your hands dirty. Like so many of thebest board games, you’ve just got to screw up your courage and dive in.
The gnarly and the grim
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)
‘Straightforward’ is Skaventide in a word, with a bow on top. For anyone new to wargaming, this enormous box – crammed as it is with multi-part sprues and weighty tomes that are probably as heavy as my newborn – is likely to be alarming. Yet it’s actually quite approachable. That’s Age of Sigmar’s new fourth edition all over, and this box (which launches the revamp) epitomizes the idea.
For starters, those models aren’t nearly so formidable as they appear. Despite being cut up into many pieces, they slot together easily thanks to being push-fit. No glue is needed here; all you’ll use are pliers and a miniature sanding file for smoothing rough edges, if you have one. (Though some Green Stuff putty for filling a couple of gaps will come in handy.) The models I’ve built so far are expressive and dynamic in spite of this apparent simplicity, getting across what makes the factions tick purely through poses and clothing.
Essential info(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)Skaventide will be available to pre-order from June 29, and hits shelves this July 13 for $275 / £160. It contains 74 miniatures (24 Stormcast Eternals and 70 Skaven), a handful of terrain pieces, two range rulers, the Core Book, the Spearhead: Fire and Jade book, a double-sided game board, a card deck, and General’s Handbook cards. Weirdly, there are no dice.
Essential info
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)Skaventide will be available to pre-order from June 29, and hits shelves this July 13 for $275 / £160. It contains 74 miniatures (24 Stormcast Eternals and 70 Skaven), a handful of terrain pieces, two range rulers, the Core Book, the Spearhead: Fire and Jade book, a double-sided game board, a card deck, and General’s Handbook cards. Weirdly, there are no dice.
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)
Skaventide will be available to pre-order from June 29, and hits shelves this July 13 for $275 / £160. It contains 74 miniatures (24 Stormcast Eternals and 70 Skaven), a handful of terrain pieces, two range rulers, the Core Book, the Spearhead: Fire and Jade book, a double-sided game board, a card deck, and General’s Handbook cards. Weirdly, there are no dice.
Similarly, the Skaven have enjoyed a long overdue revamp that renders them as even more gnarly than before. In contrast to previous versions, these ones are quite unnerving; they still have touches of goofiness to them (theyareunapologetic cowards, after all), but the faction is much more rabid on the whole. Take the Clawlord general, for example – its monstrous mount isdisgusting. As someone who’s always fancied collecting a Skaven army because of how unsettling and simultaneously ridiculous they are, that’s exactly what I wanted from this update.
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Stripped down skirmishing
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)
Much like the models, Skaventide’s rulebooks are much easier to penetrate than I’d been expecting. The hefty Core Book (which weighs in at an impressive 274 pages) actually spends most of its runtime getting you up to speed on the Age of Sigmar world, its factions, and everything that’s happened in the broad-strokes narrative so far. The actualrulesdon’t appear until the final quarter, and it’s a similar story with the book that covers the game’s new Spearhead mode – Fire and Jade.
From initial inspection, it delivers. It strips back the more advanced mechanics for something simpler, so newcomers can be shown the ropes with a speed that surprised me. Indeed, the rules only make up 27 pages… and a decent chunk of that is given over to examples and a terms glossary. It’s Age of Sigmar, distilled to the core of what makes it appealing. There’s flavor here, but many of the layers have been peeled back.
A world at war
(Image credit: Benjamin Abbott)
Anyway, those are just my initial impressions. I’ll have more on Skaventide and Age of Sigmar 4th Edition as a whole in the coming weeks, so watch this space. In the meantime, you’ll be able to pre-order your own copy of Skaventide from June 29, 2024.
Disclaimer
For some recommendations on what to play before then, check out these must-haveboard games for adultsor thebest tabletop RPGs.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
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Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2
Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
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2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
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3
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4
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5
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