Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you:
No adverts like this in the forums anymore.
Times and dates in your local timezone.
Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance.
Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely.
Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net.
If you are already a member then feel free to login now.
Overread wrote: The whole Pixelation thing is just a visual way to represent the whole phasing in and out of the Necrons which has been a thing for ages. Originally it was just a background detail and a thing that happened in battle.
Now we see the digital pixelation as basically GW's way to represent that effect on the battlefield.
I guess. It's not quite how I imagined phasing out to be. I always envisioned it as being like kind of fading in and out of reality. But then again, I have no idea how one can show that on a model so fair enough I suppose.
And honestly I think that's how most of us saw phasing and it still gets shown like that in videos now and then; but yeah on a model it becomes hard to show. Plus blocky squares kind of suggests a cybernetic connection and also its much easier for people to paint and identify; whilst hazy edges can be harder to model and require a good paint job to really look good.
Overread wrote: The whole Pixelation thing is just a visual way to represent the whole phasing in and out of the Necrons which has been a thing for ages. Originally it was just a background detail and a thing that happened in battle.
Now we see the digital pixelation as basically GW's way to represent that effect on the battlefield.
I guess. It's not quite how I imagined phasing out to be. I always envisioned it as being like kind of fading in and out of reality. But then again, I have no idea how one can show that on a model so fair enough I suppose.
And honestly I think that's how most of us saw phasing and it still gets shown like that in videos now and then; but yeah on a model it becomes hard to show. Plus blocky squares kind of suggests a cybernetic connection and also its much easier for people to paint and identify; whilst hazy edges can be harder to model and require a good paint job to really look good.
I'll note that the pixelation isn't just used for phasing, but also is meant to represent the constant deconstruction and reconstruction of the Necrodermis in the constant push and pull contest between the Shard and its Canoptek minders.
You know you're really doing something when you can make strangers hate you over the Internet. - Mauleed
Just remember folks. Panic. Panic all the time. It's the only way to survive, other than just being mindful, of course-but geez, that's so friggin' boring. - Aegis Grimm
Hallowed is the All Pie The Before Times: A Place That Celebrates The World That Was
2025/08/16 14:57:43
Subject: Warhammer 40k news and rumours - Leagues of Votann + Salamanders preorder announcement pg 213
MajorWesJanson wrote: I find the new one looks far better- actually fitting the C'Tan and necron aesthetic rather than being some minion of Nagash who got lost and tripped over some scarabs.
Major Wes knows this I'm sure, the but reason the original model looks like it doesn't fit is because... it was never meant to. The C'Tan and the Kroot were both failed proposals for a separate faction that didn't make but were then mashed into a another new faction. That's why they had so little in common visually with the main faction.
Not sure that quite adds up. I'm aware that those are the origins of the concepts, but as far as I'm aware, the decision to merge the concepts was made before any of the models were made – or, at least, I'm not aware of any evidence they'd already been designed prior to the decision to merge them into their respective armies. The concept for the C'tan might have predated their inclusion as part of the Necron army, but I don't think the model's final look was necessarily decided before the decision to combine them was made.
EDIT: Small typos corrected.
The C'tan were first mentioned in the background of Codex:Assassins in 2nd edition iirc, when the Callidus' C'tan Phase sword marked their first appearance in a capacity that was not too different from other minor xenos species that get mentioned irregularly, but repeatedly (like the Hrud or the Fra'al). As far as i know, the 2nd edition "egyptian" necrons had not official relation to them at first (mostly because they themselves were only presented via two articles in White Dwarf and the occasional offhand remark in a novel or short story). Later on, Gorkamorka off all things did a small bit of background building and laid the first groundwork for a connection (at a time at which long-term development of Codex:Necrons for the next edition of 40kmight have in the concept stage) and the frequency of occasional mentions in novels, short stories and Index articles significantly increased, until it was made official in the first "real" Necron codex. For most of that time, not much was known about the C'tan, other than that they were related to phase technology, old, and quite advanced in general. Their state of being as basically realspace gods basically sprung fully-formed with the Codex as far as anybody outside of the studio was concerned.
2025/08/16 15:15:23
Subject: Warhammer 40k news and rumours - Leagues of Votann + Salamanders preorder announcement pg 213
MajorWesJanson wrote: I find the new one looks far better- actually fitting the C'Tan and necron aesthetic rather than being some minion of Nagash who got lost and tripped over some scarabs.
Major Wes knows this I'm sure, the but reason the original model looks like it doesn't fit is because... it was never meant to. The C'Tan and the Kroot were both failed proposals for a separate faction that didn't make but were then mashed into a another new faction. That's why they had so little in common visually with the main faction.
Not sure that quite adds up. I'm aware that those are the origins of the concepts, but as far as I'm aware, the decision to merge the concepts was made before any of the models were made – or, at least, I'm not aware of any evidence they'd already been designed prior to the decision to merge them into their respective armies. The concept for the C'tan might have predated their inclusion as part of the Necron army, but I don't think the model's final look was necessarily decided before the decision to combine them was made.
EDIT: Small typos corrected.
The C'tan were first mentioned in the background of Codex:Assassins in 2nd edition iirc, when the Callidus' C'tan Phase sword marked their first appearance in a capacity that was not too different from other minor xenos species that get mentioned irregularly, but repeatedly (like the Hrud or the Fra'al).
Spoiler:
As far as i know, the 2nd edition "egyptian" necrons had not official relation to them at first (mostly because they themselves were only presented via two articles in White Dwarf and the occasional offhand remark in a novel or short story). Later on, Gorkamorka off all things did a small bit of background building and laid the first groundwork for a connection (at a time at which long-term development of Codex:Necrons for the next edition of 40kmight have in the concept stage) and the frequency of occasional mentions in novels, short stories and Index articles significantly increased, until it was made official in the first "real" Necron codex. For most of that time, not much was known about the C'tan, other than that they were related to phase technology, old, and quite advanced in general. Their state of being as basically realspace gods basically sprung fully-formed with the Codex as far as anybody outside of the studio was concerned.
It's even older, from the Codex Imperialis at the start of 2nd edition:
Throughout its history the lmperium has fought many long wars against dangerous alien races. In almost every case the lmperium has won, but in some instances Imperial forces have only managed to contain the enemy. Even today the planets of Saharduin remain dark and unexplored, whilst Imperial armies guard the Gates of Varl from the quiescent perils of the Ctan.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/08/16 15:18:59
IIRC there was an interview some time back with one of the old GW grogs where they discussed the C'tans history, etc.
As I recall, they were not a discarded faction concept that got folded into Necrons ala the Kroot into Tau. The term C'tan was just a throwaway name with no real concept or lore behind it. When they were developing the necron lore they attached the c'tan name to the faction in order to tie them into the existing lore for the game snd expand on what was already there, rather than shoe-horning them in as a whole new thing disconnected from the rest of what was already established.
CoALabaer wrote: Wargamers hate two things: the state of the game and change.
chaos0xomega wrote: IIRC there was an interview some time back with one of the old GW grogs
This is an exelent referens source.
Andy Chambers wrote that in the WD when Necrons came out with their first codex, he even mentioned the Gates of Varl. And talked about Tau and Kroot and the contrast between a new hopeful species and an old menace from the past. And how snippets in the background of the past could be used to create something new. Believable reference enough?
I've never really liked the Nightbringer. I mean, big floating grim reaper dudes are of course metal and cool, but I dunno why he got attached to the robot faction. C'tan are supposed to be lovecraftian horrors but the designs don't really pull that off for me and there's nothing incomprehensible about their motives - they want to eat. They worked better as vague references than game pieces imo.
Also, the idea that this one dude was the reason that everyone in the galaxy had grim reapers in their mythologies...nah. Most Chambers background I love but that misses the mark for me. But then aside from the feel of them being an ancient lovecraftian evil I never much liked the War in Heaven re-write in 3rd or the Tomb Kings in Space re-write in 5th. It's understandable that they had to flesh them out more from a mysterious threat as they were at the end of 2e and there was a certain excitement to reading the "deep lore" of the world, but in the end I think it's been a detriment to the setting.
As to the model, scale creep nonsense as expected and a bit of a modernisation of the design cues, probably a massive price tag, but I think it's a decent re-do of a now very old model. I probably prefer the older one as just a creepy grim reaper figure, but if we're gonna go with the background version I think this one is alright.
chaos0xomega wrote: IIRC there was an interview some time back with one of the old GW grogs
This is an exelent referens source.
Andy Chambers wrote that in the WD when Necrons came out with their first codex, he even mentioned the Gates of Varl. And talked about Tau and Kroot and the contrast between a new hopeful species and an old menace from the past. And how snippets in the background of the past could be used to create something new. Believable reference enough?
To be honest, i figured someone here would know the exact article and pitch in .
As for the new nightbringer: thats an incredible paintjob! I usually dont like GWs marketing paintjobs, but this guy look great.
Da Boss wrote: I've never really liked the Nightbringer. I mean, big floating grim reaper dudes are of course metal and cool, but I dunno why he got attached to the robot faction. C'tan are supposed to be lovecraftian horrors but the designs don't really pull that off for me and there's nothing incomprehensible about their motives - they want to eat. They worked better as vague references than game pieces imo.
The C'tan necrodermis forms were designed by the Necrontyr before they were robot people and were based on impressions of what the Star Gods were, imprinted on the Necrontyr by the Star Gods themselves, if I recall the old lore correctly. In that, they follow the rules set up Nyarlathotep or Hastur - a largely incomprehensible entity under the guise of a human(oid). It made perfect sense that they didn't look like the Necrons, and their presences on the tabletop was explained fairly neatly.
That they wanted to consume things wasn't really an issue either, as it didn't preclude them from having other, more inscrutable goals.
Really, with Lovecraftian style writing, at some point you just have to trust the author that things really are incomprehensible and unmentionable. There's just no writing around some concepts.
2025/08/17 12:16:44
Subject: Warhammer 40k news and rumours - Leagues of Votann + Salamanders preorder announcement pg 213
It's even older, from the Codex Imperialis at the start of 2nd edition:
Throughout its history the lmperium has fought many long wars against dangerous alien races. In almost every case the lmperium has won, but in some instances Imperial forces have only managed to contain the enemy. Even today the planets of Saharduin remain dark and unexplored, whilst Imperial armies guard the Gates of Varl from the quiescent perils of the Ctan.
You sir are a gentleman and a scholar.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Abadabadoobaddon wrote: The C'tan fit when you consider that they are supposed to be the T-1000 to the Necrons' T-800.
I had never thought of that. Kudos.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/08/17 12:17:52
Don't know if anyone has seen, but the Khorne and Death Guard really special edition codices are back on the UK site. As well as the Space Wolf launch box.
Nevelon wrote: Wonder if the minis that were in finecast will be done back in metal?
Every single model aside from the plastic Noise Marine and Webway Gate is called out as being metal.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/08/18 14:51:37
You know you're really doing something when you can make strangers hate you over the Internet. - Mauleed
Just remember folks. Panic. Panic all the time. It's the only way to survive, other than just being mindful, of course-but geez, that's so friggin' boring. - Aegis Grimm
Hallowed is the All Pie The Before Times: A Place That Celebrates The World That Was
Once again me being lazy pays off, too lazy to get the noise marine mini before the emperors children released, then too lazy to buy it off scalpers. Now it returns, and I’ll finally get to paint rocker boy
One day I will have something funny enough to be in a signature.
Glad I picked up my Fabius Bile clone squad cheap off eBay, as I'm assuming these prices are going to be insane. WOnder if they're going to sold in the groups pictured, so it's all or nothing on buying all the Phoenix Lords, for example.
Why does it all have to be in packs? I'm fortunate enough to own several 2nd edition Noise Marines already, but I could see myself buying more if you could buy them in sensible units (champion+sonic blaster+blastmaster) instead of just one of each. Same thing with the Phoenix Lords: I already have the Avatar and Maugan-Ra, so no point in buying the entire set. Already own the RT farseer and one of the 2nd edition warlocks (the cool one), so no reason to buy this set either.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/08/18 17:04:14
Also: I had no idea they stopped the plastic Noise Marine. I guess I have to stop putting off that purchase & grab the MTO,
Yeah, they took the Noise Marine down right before the Emperor’s Children Codex was released. I’d also been putting off a purchase and kicked myself when I saw that I had waited too long, so I’m glad for a second chance. Some of those Jes Goodwin Eldar look mighty tempting too!
.
Ultramarines, 3rd Co. and friends, 16k+ 
4k 
4k Points
Competition Index
You are almost certainly correct.
