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I've just opened up the new dark eldar book and oh my god?! what is this!

The new layout is HORRID! why have they done that? I felt aggravated the whole time I was reading it!

anyone else feeling this? the full colour 6th edition books where perfect - The Tau Codex is the perfect example of how a codex should be - layout wise.

Yeah. Pretty annoying.

None of my factions have been seventhed yet, but I'll miss the summary at the back.

You're not alone, bro.

The majority of us HATE the new codex layout - nobody asked for it, but Gee Dubs, in their infinite wisdom, simply couldnt keep from showing us EVEN MORE PWETTY PICTUREZ because slapping Warhammer Visions full of them and making them even spill over into the BRB apparently was just not enough.

It's a shame, really, because SW, Orks, BA, DE and GK now never got the chance to have all their B&W unit artwork make the transition to full colour.

 Sir Arun wrote:
You're not alone, bro.

The majority of us HATE the new codex layout - nobody asked for it, but Gee Dubs, in their infinite wisdom, simply couldnt keep from showing us EVEN MORE PWETTY PICTUREZ because slapping Warhammer Visions full of them and making them even spill over into the BRB apparently was just not enough.

It's a shame, really, because SW, Orks, BA, DE and GK now never got the chance to have all their B&W unit artwork make the transition to full colour.

I wish they'd just ask for feedback on these things. I'm dreading a 7th ed Nid book. I really don't like it!

The actual functional layout of things isn't awful, it isn't great, but there is slightly less flipping too and fro for relevant info than the older 'dexes.

The lack of art, however, is a travesty. For the most part, codex fluff is pretty god damn terrible; it's written to a juvenile standard to hype a faction up to the nth degree, particularly with the "popular" factions like Eldar, Marines and Grey Knights, but they were indisputably full of fantastic, inspiring pieces of artwork created by very talented, dedicated people.

Now they've got an average of, what, 5 pieces of art?

I don't want to see studio paint job models; for the most part their very cartoonish, simplistic and too reliant on edge highlighting. I can press random image on the gallery here and stand at least a 50/50 chance of seeing something better, with more love and investment evident than the assembly-lined out simple studio jobs which are often not very flattering to the model.

Pictures of models have no value, not in a $50 codex, art which captures the imagination and expresses the nature of the setting, that has value to me. I love the art in the IG, SM, CSM, DA and other codexes, going back edition after edition. When I think of a Commissar, for instance, the fantastic imagine in the IG book of one charging into a breach in a wall, sword and pistol drawn, is perfect. When I think of Dark Eldar, or Orks, I don't think of gaudily painted models in their Studio Approved poses standing on a Realm of Battle Board with Citadel Ruins in the background. Such a thing will never inspire the same interest as the art of old did in me, and many others.

If GW wants people to buy these codexes, they have to give them some reason to value them. Recycled fluff, lack of art and piss-poor rules do not inspire me to shell out $50 or more. Necessity will maintain that need for a while for some, but reducing value like this only encourages alternate routes to acquire rules.

Also, one thing I noticed of particular bemusement in the Dark Eldar codex was the half dozen pages featuring the art Kabalite Warriors in one of two poses coloured differently to represent different kabals. They reminded me of a cheap imitation of FW's example art in their books for the factions therein, but where FW produces a single fantastic piece of art, and then proceeds to spend the next page explaining everything therein; significance of markings, particular equipment, a short blurb on the individual represented, things which again, help provide inspiration for one's own projects, GW just copies and changes the colour of a few simple pieces of digital art and says, "here's wot these guys look like." No detail, no character, no evidence of giving a damn.

It's extremely disheartening to see GW little by little wreck every last scrap of goodness in their product.

The thing is with the Grey Knights I dont reeeealy mind the pics so much because most players who collect Grey Knights use the default silver colour scheme anyway.

Same goes for Space Wolves.

But when Orks or DE start having the same layout it gets worse. Okay...Orks...a lot of green anyway, but there's still enough metal chunks on them to make for different colour schemes. And clearly the Dark Eldar are even more distinct.

I dread when the next Codex Space Marines releases and we'll have Ultramarine pics from start till finish.

I hate the new layout mostly because I loved the full page of back ground per unit and the drawings the pics just look tacky why the hell do I need a PIC blown up to half as page for some dull uninspired paint job.
If I want a catalogue I will get one

Yeah for those cruel people out there get the ork dex and flick it thru in front of some ones eyes who takes migraine's the colours in it are a night mare personal experience

Functionality: I love it, I don't have to spend time going from page to page chasing down Special Rules for the Unit, Now the Points Cost. There are a few of the older ones that sent you to Page #XX, then Page #XX before you finally get to the one rule you were looking for.

Art and Fluff: Could have been done a lot better and I wish it was Art not Models. Though I got over with it quickly the first time I Pen and Paper wrote my first list.

I have to agree. After playing a few games (took a 15 year hiatus) I find that the amount I have to flip back and forth in the codex to be a bit of a pain when compared to how they used to be.

On the other hand what I just noticed is that the Dark Eldar codex has 49 pages of fluff. That is nothing short of AMAZING!

The new codex's are pretty bad, GW is releasing them so rapidly one after the other the quality has decreased markedly. They don't even have artwork for the army units anymore.

It's of course ironic given how obscenely expensive they are now. Just a few years ago you could buy a full, quality (and softcover) codex for $25. What crazy times those were.