NOVA Open 2023 Preview: Teil 1 Warhammer 40.000

Im Rahmen der NOVA Open 2023 hat Games Workshop wieder eine große Vorschau abgehalten, mit einem Ausblick auf kommende Neuheiten für Warhammer 40.000, Warhammer Age of Sigmar, sowie The Horus Heresy und The Old World, aber zum Anfang geht es in die ferne Zukunft.

NOVA Open Previews – The Phoenecian Transformed

As the Horus Heresy ground on, many of the Traitor Primarchs began to search the mysteries of the warp for even greater power than their narrow-minded brothers could comprehend. The sons of the Emperor were a mighty prize for any god to claim, and when the Dark Gods came knocking, one such Primarch was only too happy to answer.*

During the events of Angel Exterminatus by Graham McNeill, Fulgrim became suffused with the raw power of Slaanesh, and achieved an apotheosis undreamt of by his mortal kin. Though Perturabo struck down his physical body in retaliation for his brother’s betrayal, the lord of the Emperor’s Children merely discarded his mortal corpse and ascended as a Daemon Primarch.

And what a Daemon Primarch he is!

This miniature is utterly stunning in its detail, from the intricate golden finish of his armour to a face that could have been carved from marble. If you’ve ever wondered how Fulgrim could be described as both breathtakingly beautiful and monstrously serpentine, wonder no more – it’s enough to make you consider a career as a Slaaneshi cultist..

His coiled body and epic wingspan make Fulgrim Transfigured easily the largest Primach in the Horus Heresy range, dwarfing his lesser brothers with sheer daemonic power. As only the second Primarch to receive a second model, alongside Horus Ascended, the Phoenecian is a new watermark for awe-inspiring resin miniatures.

Despite his imposing stature and bombastic vibe, Fulgrim’s finer details are what really make the miniature pop. Charms, fetishes, trophies, and ribbons adorn his mutated war plate, with no square inch free from some form of impressively gaudy accessory. Truly, he is Slaanesh’s chosen.

Fulgrim Transfigured will be fully playable in games of Warhammer: The Horus Heresy,** and is an unmissable centrepiece for fans of the Emperor’s Children. Imagine having to fight that thing with only a few Dreadnoughts and boltguns to hand.

* Was it his own decision, or did the Blade of the Laer influence his mind?

** Let’s rip the plaster off now – no, this model won’t be getting rules for Warhammer 40,000.

NOVA Open Previews – Iron Armour and Very Heavy Ordnance in the Horus Heresy

Dreadnoughts in the Horus Heresy were simply built different, in a glorious trinity of classic chassis – Leviathan, Contemptor, and Deredeo. The former two transcended their resin roots in the recent past, but the latter was still to arrive in plastic. Until now…

This heavy hitter is slowly stomping into view with serene finality of purpose, and some heckin’ big boomsticks.

As you’ve come to expect from once resin kits converted into practical plastic, the eminently posable Deredeo comes with plenty of options to provide a long-range gun platform of exquisite utility. For your primary weapons, pick from an arm-mounted Anvilus autocannon battery or a Hellfire plasma cannonade, alongside an Aiolos missile battery and a choice of torso-mounted heavy bolters or heavy flamers.

Add to that a choice of armour panels, heads, and leg poses, and you can bring a fleet of these bad boys to your next battle and no two need ever look alike.

While you’re at it, why not join them with these all-new MK III Tactical Marines?

This fantastic plastic kit replaces the existing – and now quite venerable – miniatures with a flexible new squad of Iron-armoured Marines.

They’re fully compatible with all the recent special and heavy weapons kits for the Horus Heresy, and the basic sprues include head options, bolters, polt pistols, grenades, vexillas, nuncio-voxes, and augury scanners. The Sergeants even get to pick a plasma pistol, power weapons, or a lightning claw.

You may now finally outfit Legions like the Iron Warriors, Imperial Fists, Iron Hands, and Salamanders with the hefty armour that befits their obduracy – though obviously every Legion can (and should!) field a squad or two of these tanky tyros. You can even bring them to games of Warhammer 40,000 should you so choose.

But where to acquire this fabulous new gear? It’ll all be available at first in the forthcoming Legiones Astartes Battle Group. This massive box contains a whopping THIRTY MK III Tactical Space Marines, one Deredeo Dreadnought, and a Land Raider Proteus for good measure.

But that’s not it! You also get a Legion Special Weapons set, containing five lots each of plasma guns, meltaguns, flamers, rotor cannon, volkite chargers, and volkite calivers. Shove them into the Land Raider, and deliver your choice of high-energy death to the enemies/adherents of the Emperor!

This boxed set will arrive for pre-order sooner than you think – and there’s even more to come from the Horus Heresy soon (yes, including those hotly anticipated MK VI Assault Squads).

NOVA Open Previews – Space Marine Terminators Fire Up the Teleport Homer and Prepare for Rapid Ingress

Space Marine Terminators are the heavily-armoured heroes* of the 41st Millennium, indestructible interstellar knights fighting the good* fight against the alien, the witch, and the heretic. And with the recent release of Warhammer 40,000: Leviathan, they’ve been dragged punching and bolter-ing into the Era Indomitus with imposing new sculpts.

Seven hulking new Terminators have already zapped into the fray in the launch box – a squad of five monopose veterans, accompanied by a Librarian and Captain – but we want more…

Terminator Squad

…and more we shall get! These five multi-pose, multi-part Terminators are in scale with the push-fit squad found in Leviathan, but come with a whole bunch of extra options. The classic Terminator arsenal is all present and correct – storm bolters, plus a power fist or chainfist for every model, a heavy flamer or assault cannon, and a shoulder-mounted cyclone missile launcher, on top of a great big bundle of aesthetic options.

Note that this set does not contain options for Assault Terminators – the current kit will remain available for the time being.

Chaplain in Terminator Armour

Complete the “classic three” of Terminator-armoured characters with this imposing fellow! Armed with his crackling crozius, inspiring litanies, and a storm bolter or relic shield, he adds 1 to your squad’s Wound rolls in melee, on top of granting them Feel No Pain 4+ against mortal wounds.

In short, this guy is a powerhouse when attached to a squad of Terminators.

Captain in Terminator Armour

The Terminator-armoured Captain from Leviathan is an epic hero, striking a suitably fearsome pose atop the severed head of a defeated hive monstrosity – but he wields only one of the wargear loadouts available to a Space Marine officer of his station.

This new Captain in Terminator Armour is a multi-option kit who can be equipped with a combi-weapon or storm bolter and a relic sword or relic fist, to really make him your own. There’s also head options, and he has the choice of whether to wear a tabard to battle or not.

* Your mileage may vary.

NOVA Open Previews – Jump Packs Send Captains and Assault Intercessors Soaring Into the Sky

Ever since Humanity first looked up into the sky, they have dreamed of flight. Today, the Space Marines follow their own dreams of sending chainsword-armed warriors hurtling into the enemy at Mach 1. Warhammer fans have clamoured for Primaris assault troops carried aloft on jump packs since the dawn of the Dark Imperium, and now they’re finally here.

The Jump Pack Intercessors are selected from the most aggressive members of their Chapters, and pair dizzying close combat skills with the raw mass of a fully armoured Space Marine flying headfirst into enemy ranks. Their incredible models are some of the most dynamic Space Marines miniatures ever created, and give each Intercessor a real sense of weight and power on the charge.

Sergeants may carry a power weapon or power fist into the fray, making them a threat to heavier armour while their comrades bury the enemy under a storm of chainsword cuts. Sergeants also have the option of a plasma pistol or hand flamer, while one member of the squad per five marines can also grab a plasma pistol.

Of course, such illustrious company deserves a properly outfitted Captain to lead them.

The new Captain with Jump Pack is a majestic warrior posed in a dynamic charge, with multiple weapon options to choose from – either a bolt pistol, plasma pistol, or hand flamer in his right hand, and a power fist, relic blade, or chainsword in his left. When leading his fellow flying enthusiasts he lends some extra pep to their charge, increasing the Strength of their melee weapons by 1 whenever they slam home.

NOVA Open Previews – A New Generation of Space Marine Scouts

It’s typically considered quite difficult to become a Space Marine. You can’t just be the toughest 10-year-old in your village; you have to be the hardest-brawling pre-teen in the whole region. Then you’ll meet all the other children selected by the Angels for their over-the-top belligerence. Perhaps you’ll have to fight them to prove your mettle, or perhaps you’ll have to work together to face insurmountable challenges. Either way, the mortality rate is extremely high.

And that’s before you have a single iota of transhuman gene-therapy. If you pass the gruelling selection process, you enter years of organ-implantation, body-modification, psycho-conditioning, and an intensive course of space bootcamp. Survive all that – far from a given – and you still aren’t a Space Marine.

No, to really prove you’re worthy of a place in the Chapter’s ranks, you’ll need to pick up some light armour, a shotgun, and a rugged pair of combat trousers, and head off to make your mark on some of the most dangerous missions open to the Adeptus Astartes. Yep, you’re a Space Marine Scout.

Scout Squads have been part of Space Marine lore for roughly as long as there have been Space Marines. With their lighter armour, tactical visors, and nifty mohawks, these stealthy youngbloods have been hitting the dirt upon distant objectives for decades.

The new Scouts are taller and leaner, but they keep the carapace armour and other classical accoutrements of the Space Marine neophyte. It’s all there – you’ve got a choice of boltguns, Astartes shotguns, or pistols and combat knives for each of the rank’n’file, with plenty of accessories and heads sporting a fresh trim.

Those who need to sneak heavier firepower onto the battlefield will find options for gunners lugging missile launchers or heavy bolters, as well as a cloaked sniper for picking off enemy CHARACTERS. Everything a youngblood needs to prove themselves to the Chapter!

NOVA Open Previews – Codex: Space Marines and the Heroes of the Chapter

We’ve been spoiled for new Space Marines in recent months, what with the bursting box for Warhammer 40,000: Leviathan, and today’s other reveals of new Terminators and Jump Pack Intercessors. Sounds like we’re going to need some new rules to go with them… perhaps even a new Codex?

Codex: Space Marines

This is the comprehensive guide to the Adeptus Astartes in the latest edition of Warhammer 40,000. It contains 93 datasheets – somewhat slimmed down from the Index, but still a massive roster – and seven complete Detachments. That means seven ways to combine your units, and seven distinct styles of play with seven unique sets of Enhancements, Stratagems, and Detachment rules.

Six of these styles bear a distinct resemblance to the favoured doctrines of specific First Founding Chapters – the Ultramarines, the Imperial Fists, the Iron Hands, the Salamanders, the Raven Guard, and the White Scars – but importantly, you are not limited by Chapter. Any army can load up on Outriders and unleash a lightning assault with the Stormlance Task Force – you don’t have to paint them white.

The seventh Detachment – the First Company Task Force – instead represents the absolute elite of a given Chapter, backed by an evocatively named Detachment rule: Extremis-level Threat.

This is accompanied by other great content, including Crusade rules for winning honour and promoting your heroes through Oathsworn Campaigns, as well as lashings of background information on the Adeptus Astartes in the Era Indomitus, and loads of fabulously painted miniatures. There’s also going to be a luxurious Collector’s Edition featuring unique cover art, gold page edges, and silver blocking. The release will be accompanied by a deck of new-look Datacards, containing all the rules for every unit in the Codex.

Speaking of First Company task forces, all those new Terminators probably need some power-armoured pals to play with…

Company Heroes

This tasty update to the Command Squads of yesteryear features a Space Marine Captain and his trusty honour guard. In-game, this functions as a unit of four formidable comrades – a Company Ancient, a Company Champion, and two Company Veterans – led by a Captain.

The kit’s got cosmetics for customising the whole retinue, plus plenty of weapon options for outfitting your new Captain. In all, he has three head options, as well as numerous weapon options including a master-crafted bolt rifle, a neo-vulkite pistol, a plasma pistol, plus a power weapon or a power fist. He even gets an optional tabard and scabbard.

Between them, they represent a nasty block of stats – the Veterans are toting master-crafted bolt weapons, including a heavy bolter, while the Champion totes a master-crafted power weapon that can cut down rivals with [Precision]. The Ancient’s banner helps with claiming objectives, and as dedicated bodyguards, the whole squad penalises incoming Wound rolls while there’s a Captain in their midst.

Sternguard Veterans

When you’ve got a persistent xenos problem and your regular battle brothers just aren’t quite cutting the mustard, it’s time to call upon the Sternguard. These veterans of dozens of wars are festooned with honours and bristling with special weaponry. We’ve already received a squad of five push-fit Sternguard in the Leviathan box, but now we’re getting a set of five more – and these ones come with multitudinous options for customisation.

As you’d expect, there’s a wide range of guns on offer. Every model can be armed with a Sternguard bolt rifle with a variety of attachments, or a combi-weapon. One lucky Veteran can be loaded with a heavy bolter or pyrecannon, and the Sergeant can augment his armoury with a chainsword, power fist, or power sword.

Plus there’s oodles of cosmetics – sculpted pauldrons, greave options, eight helmets and seven bare heads, and dozens of accessories. Perhaps most importantly, the much beloved back banner makes its long-awaited return to a Space Marine squad!

Quelle: Games Workshop