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Bit of a relief to be safe from this year’s boxes. I want 10 JP marines and the matching captain, but too much other stuff in the box to make it worth picking up.

Nid one looks fun, but I’ve already got plenty of duplicate stuff from there, and the new big bug does not appeal to me.

Thing is, Space Marines are GWs best seller which is why they get 1 or more boxes every year... because they will sell.

Stormcast do not have the same weight amongst AoS factions, the playerbase is generally more diverse and Gloomspite Gits, Slaves to Darkness, and Soulblight Gravelords are actually among the best selling factions which is why they have had as many battleforce boxes as they have.

 Lord Damocles wrote:

I hear that such things exist on ebay...

Even better. Whichever way one wants to go about it, there's a third large bug in that set.

Edit for anyone who looked at the Ork box, missed the Painboss at first, should now be correct in both the above post and the first page

Also the votann box has an EChamp along with the Grimnyr.

Domandi wrote:
Also the votann box has an EChamp along with the Grimnyr.

You are correct, also missed that one, will edit posts now

chaos0xomega wrote:
Thing is, Space Marines are GWs best seller which is why they get 1 or more boxes every year... because they will sell.

Stormcast do not have the same weight amongst AoS factions, the playerbase is generally more diverse and Gloomspite Gits, Slaves to Darkness, and Soulblight Gravelords are actually among the best selling factions which is why they have had as many battleforce boxes as they have.

Thats interesting because Stormcasts get top billing in launch and starter sets, and the first battletome of the release schedule - not to mention the on-going magazines with free stuff. Not saying you're wrong but its strange that GW are pushing Stormcasts as the poster boys but not going the full length with the Christmas boxes.

Would like to know where those bestselling stats for AoS are from.
Anecdotally it’s definitely Stormcast here

I feel the the Nid box is the big winner given you get a very big chunk of the new range at significant discount, and it synergises nicely with the launch box contents. I expect that one to sell out fast.

One of the reasons for the lack of a Stormcast box may well be that almost all the newer range has just been/is about to be in the Stormbringer partwork, so there may be less appetite for a discount box...

Soulblight is almost identical to the previous one...


Might get Seraphon, I did want the new Slaan, Kroxis and Skinks and the rest is more or less free.

Immediately getting 2 of the Nid boxes. God, that's an INCREDIBLE selection of models if you started nids with leviathan.

In terms of Stormcast vs Marines, whilst they are of course the “good guys” of AoS, I think GW have been careful not to tent pole that range in terms of background.

They are a major part of it, yes. But in terms of what happens within the Realms, they’re not really driving much. That’s been Archaon, Nagash and Alarielle, and to a slightly lesser extent Teclis.

Sigmar provided the initial toehold for recovery, but since then has been busy trying to put out lots and lots of fires, where the others have been pretty focussed in their efforts.

Definitely picking up the Nids box. Have no use of the Tyrant myself, but the discount and the rest of the box make it quite interesting, getting all new stuff in there. And I could sell it on the cheap for a bigger discount on the rest of the box (if I can bother with selling it in the first place)!

Genestealers are also on the low end of the "need" list, as I already have about double the max I could field so there's 0 need for them gaming-wise. But I still want to build and paint the new one

Was a good idea to hold off of buying the new models and stay with the Leviathan models for now. Just got around to finish paint my first set (out of two... with extra Psychophage ... with many extra Leapers ... still a lot to do)

Danny76 wrote:
Would like to know where those bestselling stats for AoS are from.
Anecdotally it’s definitely Stormcast here

Insider info from a GW corporate employee, can't share my exact source or I won't have a source anymore

Idoneth Deepkin are (or were as of a year or two ago) the worst selling.

You can actually loosely track top selling factions by battleforces, the top selling factions in the prior fiscal year are usually the ones that get boxes (if its an edition launch year, both factions in the starter box get boxes that same year, not clear if its because they tend to sell better that year or if its just standard policy). There have been some instances where this wasn't true (2017 they skipped Space Marines and Death Guardand instead released them 2018, increasing the 40k battleforce count from 4 to 6 for the first time).

Slaves to Darkness have been a perenniel top 3 best selling going back to the WHFB days (when they were known as Warriors of Chaos). In fact I heard for most of WHFBs existence they were the #1 selling faction in the game, their popularity has continued to the modern day though perhaps not as dominant as it used to be as they aren't always in that top bracket.

Gloomspite were hugely popular from the getgo and were one of the only factions to have a battleforce box within about a year of being introduced into the game (though IIRC that was due to timing of their release). They've had 3 battleforces that I can recall (2019, 2020, 2022), as well as two 2-player battle boxes since they first released at the very end of 2018/early 2019.

Soulblight have been technically popular since the Cursed City fiasco, and managed to snag battleforces in each of the last two years back to back.

Nothing there for me I can save money for Votann wave2.

I am tempted by the World Eaters. Angron and a small force can scratch an itch.

Imperial Guard box is good for me. One Dorn can join my two current ones in the Praetorian army with the second being painted up with my Ventrillian Nobles.

We all buy ourselves Christmas pressies don't we?

I think the Votann box looks great - might try to get 2.

The main benefit with the Votann army box is that it gives you everything that isn’t included in the battle force box. Between the two box sets, the only things you don’t get are the stuff in exo frames.

I'll take one Marine and one World Eaters box.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
If the WE box has 6 Eightbound in it, expect it to fly off shelves!

But it won't. It'll have Angron, 10 Zerkers, 10 Jackhals and maybe 3 Eightbound.

Uhh... happy to be wrong!

semajnollissor wrote:
I think the Votann box looks great - might try to get 2.

The main benefit with the Votann army box is that it gives you everything that isn’t included in the battle force box. Between the two box sets, the only things you don’t get are the stuff in exo frames.

Its a weird set that doesn't go together. From a filling out a collection perspective, its.. fine, if a bit heavy on hearthguard, but they can't ride in a Sagitaur and the Grimnyr can't join them. Which makes the box feel a bit off.


The aggravating thing about these sets is how many things have been unavailable individually for months (at least in the US).
Also a little surprised at the amount of new stuff.

the first year where I'm not interested in any of the battleforces, oh well more money to spend on the Necromunda Ashwastes terrain box

Guess I'll go for the Guard box if I can get one, can never go wrong with more tanks and bods.

Was still hoping just a little that the Soulblight box might have all the minis for the Cursed City expansions it, but alas no.

The AoS forces are a nice mix of models, sort of, "a lot of models you'd want" if you're not already invested in the faction. I wouldn't find it that surprising if there's no Stormcast box, I think there are still Dominion boxes out there kicking around waiting for somebody to care.

How much are we expecting these to be in AUD? Because that Vengorian box has everything I need.

Assuming there hasn't been a dramatic jump in the price, hopefully it sticks to the price from last year (AUD$350). That's still eye-watering, but the Marine box (for example), is $540 worth of stuff.

So, that's a 35% saving. Throw in a further 25% discount if you can get it, and you're getting it for more than half-off.

Ah groovy. $350 is in line with what I was guessing at. The Vengorian Court is $500 individually, so yeah get it on 25% off would be a tasty tasty discount.

Tempted by the World Eaters one, that plus a combat patrol is probably a decent start (also pretty much the entire World Eaters range but…). Guard is also tempting, been considering a Blood Pact style traitor guard force after rereading Gaunts Ghosts. Seraphon is the only real tempting one from AoS. I do like how almost everything is at least pretty recent in this years boxes, if not very recent.

 ImAGeek wrote:
I do like how almost everything is at least pretty recent in this years boxes, if not very recent.

Very much so. For 40k the Hive Tyrant is the only model that wasn't release in 9th or later (and Tyranids got all brand new units for the rest of the box) and for AoS the oldest unit is the Morghast which still hold up very well. The Ossiarch box on a whole is the oldest stuff since its from their release in 2019 but everything else is newer than 2021

My takes on the 40k boxes:
Leagues of Votann- Defenders of the Ancestors: This is probably my favorite of the boxes in terms of what I need (10 Hearthguard and another Sagitaur and Land Fortress? Yes please!), but for new players you would definitely want to grab 1-2 of the Combat Patrol instead, as you can't really run the contents of this box by itself (Sagitaur has to have a unit embarked, and the Grimnyr doesn't have anyone to join). That being said, if one was starting Leagues of Votann, you could certainly do worse than 2 Combat Patrols and this box. If I get one of the boxes this year, it'll be this one or the Tyranids.
Orks- Beast Snagga Stampede: I love this box as it has a very cohesive theme and should play okay right out of the box. I don't play Orks so it's not for me, but for Ork players this is probably a very good buy.
Astra Militarum- Cadian Defence Force: This is another cool box; 2 Rogal Dorns definitely spark joy as they are pretty cool looking, plus 20 of the new Cadians are something most Guard players are going to want unless they already have a bunch (new players won't have that problem).
Space Marines- Spearhead Force: I don't entirely understand the hate for this box; sure it's not super competitive but it at least sticks to a theme (fast moving stuff) and the models are all pretty cool. Beats the snot out of yet another box with 10 Reivers in it. New Marine players could do worse than getting their flavor of Combat Patrol and this box together to have a decent start to an army. Or is the hate because it's not that many points worth of stuff (off the top of my head it's like 500-ish?).
Tyranids- Onslaught Swarm: I love this one; it's a nice selection of the new kits plus a Hive Tyrant (an old kit that has held up remarkably well). Players like me that started Tyranids with Leviathan should be thrilled to get this one to expand their swarm. If I can't get a Votann box, I'll pick this one up instead (assuming I don't have any major unexpected expenses that slash my hobby budget).
World Eaters- Exalted of the Red Angel: Putting a unique character into one of these boxes immediately kills any reason to buy multiples of this box, but I think most World Eaters players should want one unless they've already got Angron and/or a bunch of Eightbound.

Overall I think this is the best selection of Christmas boxes they've done yet. I don't think any of them are terrible, and most are potentially worth getting more than one of if you wanted to. As I said, the ones that interest me the most are the Votann and Tyranids ones, as they would give me great expansion options for those armies. The Marines one I don't need, as I have plenty of Outriders and ATVs, and I've got some nice files to 3D print some of the Jump Pack guys (complete with Dark Angels details).

 NAVARRO wrote:
Nothing there for me I can save money for Votann wave2.

This was my thought as well at first because I already have five Hearthguard and I figure I'll never need 15 of the little sods. But then I'm still a little tempted because I'd likely need another Saggitaur and land fortress and I don't have a Grimnyr yet..