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I'm a little cold on both sides of the box.
The nids are more detailed, but have a lot of cruft (and I suspect won't work well with the painting style I used on my old nids). Plus there's outright losers like the leapers and several of the gaunt variants. The screamer-killer looks scrawny (but I'll admit that might be daft photo composition).

The marines are... eh? Fine-ish. (I do like the apothecary, but the other characters need alternate helmets and/or non-nid bases and bits).
Terminators and sternguard are fine replacements, but it mostly makes me wonder why they didn't do this in the first place.

The dread reminds me of some battletech mechs, particularly the clan Vulture, where once you take away the normal weapons array, it just looks weird and leggy.

SM really didn't need another new unit, let alone a SM version of burna boys. Ride up, jump out, flame something, get shot and/or charged and tied up for the rest of the game. Exciting!

I’d have to check the older fluff for how comprehensive it was, but IIRC there used to be a lot more symbiotic/parasitic/chimeric mashups going on. These days I think they gloss over a lot of that. Yes they use bio weapons, but it’s not highlighted as much.

Seems with the new box it’s a lot more front and center..

The dreadnought IS a bit leggy. I can't unsee it now.

I do find Space Marine side bit weird in combosition. There is lot of elite units and then the "main" unit is all-flamer unit that is just so specific that its hard to think it as "mainstay" unit. Although I do think Inferno Squad is going to be see some action.

And then tyranids are just awesome and it has mix of units that look just like a army that can go in any direction (maybe) .

Billicus wrote:
The dreadnought IS a bit leggy. I can't unsee it now.

I think it’s because the arms don’t really come below the torso, making the legs look longer.

I’d imagine next to its chassis mates, the legs won’t look unusually long.

Tsagualsa wrote:
Barbgaunt text mentions their gun being a 'organism that enslaved the gaunt' - the picture above also shows some weird brain-blob with the blue paintjob that seems to signify psychic/synaptic activity this time around boring itself into the gaunt's head.

The blue thing on the back of the Barbgaunt is what the gaunt and the bioweapon are both slaved to.

I personally love the Barbgaunts, because for once, the host creature looks like it's slaved to the bioweapon and not vice versa. They look like I always imagined Tyranid biology working - sort of cobbled together for a specific purpose, limited in function and a little misshapen because of that.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:

Billicus wrote:
The dreadnought IS a bit leggy. I can't unsee it now.

I think it’s because the arms don’t really come below the torso, making the legs look longer.

I’d imagine next to its chassis mates, the legs won’t look unusually long.

In a side-by-side comparison it's easy to see that the Brutalis has heavier armour on the legs and 'hips' - additional 'hip' armour, rims on the kneecaps, sturdier greaves.

Don't really get the dislike for the Barbgaunts. They don't wow me, but it seems like a fairly standard "Tyranid with a big gun".

Neurogaunts feel like the big loser to me. It might be the paint scheme but they look awful. Like something from 15-20 years ago.

Marines are Marines and they don't do very much for me. The Gravis Apothecary is probably my favourite, I could maybe see myself buying that to convert up in a Creations of Bile list. I don't mind the Dreadnought - but I've always liked "leggy" Mechs.

 Eldarsif wrote:
What I like about the Space Marine side of the box is that the new units seem to be there to replace the old ones and not an expansion of an existing range. Nobody in this universe or the next needs 100+ units in their roster.

Except for the Burnycessors, BigHellfire, and Sciencacary...

Tyel wrote:
Don't really get the dislike for the Barbgaunts. They don't wow me, but it seems like a fairly standard "Tyranid with a big gun".

Neurogaunts feel like the big loser to me. It might be the paint scheme but they look awful. Like something from 15-20 years ago.

Marines are Marines and they don't do very much for me. The Gravis Apothecary is probably my favourite, I could maybe see myself buying that to convert up in a Creations of Bile list. I don't mind the Dreadnought - but I've always liked "leggy" Mechs.

Funny how that works but Neurogants are the clear winners for me.
Fresh take on concepts, alien and scary like, smaller than current gaunts has they always should have been. This is for me the best example of swarm like alien creatures nids should be.

Thing I like most about the neurogaunts IS the paint scheme. The pinkier look for hive fleet leviathan is really resonating with me for some reason.

Neurotyrant is the clearer winner for me. They did a good job of it looking like a 'bigger, commanding Zoanthrope' while still being it's own beast.

The Psychophage is okay. Looks like somebody sculpted it in CAD off the Venomcrawler though. I don't really like modern GW's obsession with that blue smoke. I like the mass of mouth, very creepy, very appropriate.

Barbgaunts just look awkward and busy, which is probably the paint job's fault but my eyes don't really know which part they're meant to focus on.

I don't know what I think about the Neurogaunts. Nice concept, but they sort of remind me of what a company like Mantic or Kromlech would put out as their spin on Not-Gaunts.

Even the worst parts of it are more interesting than the marine half. I was surprised how much I don't dislike the Apothecary, I thought he'd look a lot worse in model form but the gravis armour looks less awkward on the actual model. Terminator Captain is nice. Everything else I'm indifferent to.

Barbgaunts are too slender, they should be a bit stocky, or at least posed to have the legs braced. They look to lop sided and prone to fall over.

Also their name is an absolute joke. Tyranids have a long history of having female names.

Termagant means a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman. So using Gaunt like this just looks silly.

Hormagaunt gets a pass as it is taken from an old sci-fi book, can't recall the name or the author.

I wonder if that chaos marine to the right of the new set of preview silhouettes is for Kill team or a World Eaters praetor type for HH?

To the left is clear a redesigned Knight of the White Wolf for the Old World, so it looks like the preview might cover the Empire (and perhaps even the new starter set). Certainly opens up what might be in the new box rather than Brets vs Tomb Kings.

Tsagualsa wrote:
In a side-by-side comparison it's easy to see that the Brutalis has heavier armour on the legs and 'hips' - additional 'hip' armour, rims on the kneecaps, sturdier greaves.

Having assembled the kit, those are parts you can leave off if you want and the legs underneath match the other two Redemptors exactly.

 stonehorse wrote:
Barbgaunts are too slender, they should be a bit stickier, or at least posed to have the legs braced. They look to lop sided and prone to fall over.

Also their name is an absolute joke. Tyranids have a long history of having female names.

Termagant means a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman. So using Gaunt like this just looks silly.

Hormagaunt gets a pass as it is taken from an old sci-fi book, can't recall the name or the author.

Barb is a common shortening of Barbara.

Well, my Hive Fleet Gorgon (the original, accept no substitutes) is sealed away in boxes and I may never play them again. But I like some of these Tyranids models for sure. The Prime, Neurotyrant, Leapers, and Neurogaunts are all really nice. The S-K and Barbgaunts don't do it for me personally.

But I suspect folks will come around on some of the Tyranids once they seem them in real life and in a different paint scheme. The Leviathan scheme sometimes isn't flattering for certain Tyranid models.

 gorgon wrote:
Well, my Hive Fleet Gorgon (the original, accept no substitutes) is sealed away in boxes and I may never play them again. But I like some of these Tyranids models for sure. The Prime, Neurotyrant, Leapers, and Neurogaunts are all really nice. The S-K and Barbgaunts don't do it for me personally.

But I suspect folks will come around on some of the Tyranids once they seem them in real life and in a different paint scheme. The Leviathan scheme sometimes isn't flattering for certain Tyranid models.

I think their current scheme does the miniatures no service because it kind of works like dazzle camo and dissolves the contours of the miniature when viewed from afar, and the new minis have a lot going on, so the combined effect is just 'blobby'. It's very much a paintjob for displaying single models close up, not for army shots etc. The stark-electric blue psi-effect paintjob does not help, too.

The Leviathan scheme is my favorite, but the new models they seem to feel the need to over highlight even by eavy metal norms, which is making them look extra busy. It works fine on the bigger beasties, but not on the smaller and medium sized models where they've done to town trying to emphasise the carapace. Edit: Definite dazzlecamo vibes like Tsagualsa says.

 stonehorse wrote:
Barbgaunts are too slender, they should be a bit stocky, or at least posed to have the legs braced. They look to lop sided and prone to fall over.

Also their name is an absolute joke.

Their name may refer to their weapons as we already have Barbed Strangler cannons and shooty Hierodules are called Barbed Hierodules.

Tyranids look good.

I think I'm bored with space marines only ones I have any intrest in are the terminators.

Well those Tyranids are ... odd. Hmmm. I am ambivalent.

I will say though that I appreciate their nuttiness. The Psychophage in particular.

Regarding the Neurotyrant: The left floaty bit heals, the real master brain is on the right, and the big thing in the middle is a decoy.

Nevelon wrote:I’d have to check the older fluff for how comprehensive it was, but IIRC there used to be a lot more symbiotic/parasitic/chimeric mashups going on. These days I think they gloss over a lot of that. Yes they use bio weapons, but it’s not highlighted as much.

It's mostly in the old weapon descriptions for 1st and 2nd edition. The Deathspitter is the best one--three separate creatures working together in gribbly fashion.

Tastyfish wrote:

 stonehorse wrote:
Barbgaunts are too slender, they should be a bit stickier, or at least posed to have the legs braced. They look to lop sided and prone to fall over.

Also their name is an absolute joke. Tyranids have a long history of having female names.

Termagant means a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman. So using Gaunt like this just looks silly.

Hormagaunt gets a pass as it is taken from an old sci-fi book, can't recall the name or the author.

Barb is a common shortening of Barbara.

HIVE FLEET BARBIE

Or possibly Hive Fleet Barbarella.

On a more serious note, the 'Gaunt' thing only got going in 3rd edition as far as I remember. In 2nd edition you had Termagants and Hormagaunts--unrelated names. But in 3rd you could now put new kinds of weapons on the various creatures, and create biomorphed versions of the smaller ones. So people started talking about 'Spinegaunts' and so on. That was when 'Gaunt' became the shorthand name for the small Tyranids.

 Lord Damocles wrote:

 Eldarsif wrote:
What I like about the Space Marine side of the box is that the new units seem to be there to replace the old ones and not an expansion of an existing range. Nobody in this universe or the next needs 100+ units in their roster.

Except for the Burnycessors, BigHellfire, and Sciencacary...

Less than previoux boxes so in my mind an overall improvement.

Although wasn't there a rumor that the dreadnought is replacing the boxnaught?

Barbgaunts are... okayish... but seriously, why pull another new unit out of thin air when Biovores need new models?

 lord_blackfang wrote:
Barbgaunts are... okayish... but seriously, why pull another new unit out of thin air when Biovores need new models?

They may yet get a new mini with the post launch wave/codex.

Barbgaunts are almost more like a pyrovore as they are closer range.


I wonder if the intention with this edition is to give Tyranids more buffing large models whilst also making gaunt swarms far more viable as a niche tactic. With barbgaunts and neurogaunts in theory there is the potential for a gaunt only force to not only have good synapse coverage, but also a heavier hitting medium ranged model.

Things that might not beat things like Hive Guard or Warriors; but which let you build a different kind of swarm.



I kind of hope that these new ones are mostly for the boxed set and, like Necrons, we'll see a few other updates here and there. We already know Hormagaunts are getting a rework so there's still potential for boivores and pyrovores to get a new kit (come on GW a combined kit please?). We also have potential for the Lictor to get its own release, perhaps getting a bit of a size upgrade and going solo as a solo leader model whilst the new mini-lictors fill the role of smaller mass unit

So the roadmaps, looks like GW is expecting production capacity to double by this time next year? Seems kinda odd.

Kind of surprised we haven't seen gameplay leaks/impressions given the number of people who queued for demo games

The main thing I don't like about the Barbgaunts is their lopsidedness, I don't think it was necessary to fuse one of the forelimbs into the weapon and it is something unseen in any other Tyranid organism. It just looks wrong (and aside from anything else, it also means you only need to shoot out the one leg and it can't aim anymore.

Everything else looks fine. Not a big fan of the screamer-killer's head but otherwise it's not terrible, the Neurotyrant is great, they certainly seem to be pushing the psychic dominance of Nids this time around, which is no bad thing.

I note that, as per the roadmap, it looks like it will be at least a year before I can expect more World Eaters models. 10 years is way more likely. Freaking bastards.

 lord_blackfang wrote:
So the roadmaps, looks like GW is expecting production capacity to double by this time next year? Seems kinda odd.

Depends on how much model support each Codex is planned to get. Marines and Nids will both get a lot as poster armies for the starter. Necrons need named characters, lokhust destroyers, and lokhust lord. Maybe Pariahs with Blackstone weapons. Admech would be new units, maybe just a character again. Dark Angels could use Belial, Sammael, and Asmodai updated. Orks need Tankbustas and 3-4 single models, past that is bonus. Custodes hopefully will get their tanks and dreadnoughts from the HH range plasticized, and a proper clampack shield captain. Tau need plastic Aun Va, Vespid, Kroot shaper, hounds, and krootox, and could really do with a redo of the kroot carnivire and devilfish hulled kits. CSM need bikers, a winged lord, and a biker lord plus could do with a terminator dark apostle and multipart obliterators.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Bob Lorgar wrote:
I note that, as per the roadmap, it looks like it will be at least a year before I can expect more World Eaters models. 10 years is way more likely. Freaking bastards.

Yes, feed that anger! Kill! Maim! Burn!