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Honestly the shared elements don't bother me, the defiler predates the shared daemon engine design language by a looooong way so it was always the outlier.

Exact copies of components? eh, it's a bit annoying, but on the bright side it does make kitbashing easier

I really hope they resculpt the dinobots sometime soon because they really are the worst of the daemon engines, especially now

That kit looks like a dream for anyone who likes to do conversions. Can't wait to see how I will "fix" the base build.

Charax wrote:
Honestly the shared elements don't bother me, the defiler predates the shared daemon engine design language by a looooong way so it was always the outlier.

Exact copies of components? eh, it's a bit annoying, but on the bright side it does make kitbashing easier

I really hope they resculpt the dinobots sometime soon because they really are the worst of the daemon engines, especially now

I'm ok with shared design elements, it's not like the DarkMech are making every component they use a bespoke single time product. They probably have their lesser adepts/servitors/demons assembly line building missile launchers, cannons etc to put on their creations so those parts will look similar.

I think the dinobots have held up rather well considering they're now the oldest demon engines. I'm torn between wanting new sculpts and not wanting to pay more for refreshed minis.

What are those dinobots you all talk about, helldrake? hellbrute?

Helldrake and Maulerfiend I believe.

 Da Boss wrote:
Helldrake and Maulerfiend I believe.

Sludge and Swoop

Noticed that there's a chainsword in the new Jump Pack Corsair kit! That'll come in handy for my regular Corsairs. Thinking I want like 3 of these jump pack models for my KT Corsairs warband, preferably with ranged weapons like in the RT illustration (its OK if they dont have actual KT21 rules, they will be purely decorative, just like the team's Arvus Lander transport)

Bit behind on the 40K news but feeling better with Valrak mentioning a smaller Knight next month. Here's hoping...

The skyreavers are cool but insanely fragile with no real means of avoiding damage.

I can't see how they'll live long enough to accomplish much. Lovely models though.

 Hellebore wrote:
The skyreavers are cool but insanely fragile with no real means of avoiding damage.

I can't see how they'll live long enough to accomplish much. Lovely models though.

Yeah, movement tricks are nice and all, but T3 5+ with nothing else is going to crumple to a stern gaze. They will need to rely on army synergy (like grenades from the new starfang) or strats.

Or just aggressive pricing. If priced low enough you can just trade up and not care if you die.

I wonder what kind of grenades the starfange is shooting out of it’s GL when not popping out hallucinogens? Same statline as the disintegrator? I wonder if there is a conscious decision to flatten the stats of multiple guns to simplify play? Like with Titus’ entourage were almost everything from that motley lot had just a few actual differences.

Don't know what I think about the Defiler. Seems to be in danger of crossing that uncanny valley where it moves from "miniature" to "toy". Although I think this is partly GW's extreme photo-friendly highlighting again.

The old kit sort became a legend, but I was never really a fan. So not bothered there.

Starfang Datasheet looks like it could go either way depending on points.

The Faction Packs have been updated with the new Detachments.

In news that comes as a shock to nobody, the new Vyper sheet just has the options for the new kit. Invalidating most old builds

 Nevelon wrote:
In news that comes as a shock to nobody, the new Vyper sheet just has the options for the new kit. Invalidating most old builds

Ah, you found the one benefit to me being halfway through assembling 3 of the old ones when the new kit dropped!

When you say that? Can you share the datafax you mention, as right now I don’t think folk are particularly aware of what options the new kit has.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
When you say that? Can you share the datafax you mention, as right now I don’t think folk are particularly aware of what options the new kit has.

New faction packs on WarCom. Short version is no change to the ability or statline of the Vyper, but on the weapons:
* Must have a shuriken cannon or missile launcher underneath (invalidates all the twin catapult models)
* Must have either bright lance/scatter laser/starcannon up top (lost a couple of options)

Okay, I think they’ve done it again with the Orks. That freebooter list has a stratagem that gives Blast to any ork unit targeting infantry.
So that adds two shots to the humble shoota if they attack a 10-man unit? And you can have how many shootas?

 Mr_Rose wrote:
Okay, I think they’ve done it again with the Orks. That freebooter list has a stratagem that gives Blast to any ork unit targeting infantry.
So that adds two shots to the humble shoota if they attack a 10-man unit? And you can have how many shootas?

The issue is, damage is so low to begin with, the ending damage won't be great either.

Shootas have 2-3 shots normally, depending on range. Against a 10-man MEQ squad, 40 shots kills one Marine. If that's increased to 100 shots, it's still only two and a half dead Marines.
Against TEQ, hoo boy. 40 shots is less than a wound. And 100 is still under two wounds.
Adding SH1 increases that to 1.5 MEQ (40 shots), 4 MEQ (100 shots), 1 wound to a TEQ (40 shots), and almost one dead TEQ (100 shots).

However, Lootas with SH1...
Minimum hit roll is .38 hits per shot, at 6+ RR1s.
Max is .83 hits per shot, at 5+ RRAll. That's the equivalent of BS 2+.

A thought on the old vs new defiler aesthetics- the new one is a lot more techno-organic than the old design, but the old mechanical version could be reimagined as well, perhaps into a stalk tank or a 40K version of the stalker constructs.

Stalk Tanks have been mentioned recently as being part of Vashtorr's techno-cultist armies.

Wait.... Does that Stalk tank have 5 legs? Okay, that's both weird to me and a pretty neat design decision. Love it.

 JNAProductions wrote:

 Mr_Rose wrote:
Okay, I think they’ve done it again with the Orks. That freebooter list has a stratagem that gives Blast to any ork unit targeting infantry.
So that adds two shots to the humble shoota if they attack a 10-man unit? And you can have how many shootas?

The issue is, damage is so low to begin with, the ending damage won't be great either.

Shootas have 2-3 shots normally, depending on range. Against a 10-man MEQ squad, 40 shots kills one Marine. If that's increased to 100 shots, it's still only two and a half dead Marines.
Against TEQ, hoo boy. 40 shots is less than a wound. And 100 is still under two wounds.
Adding SH1 increases that to 1.5 MEQ (40 shots), 4 MEQ (100 shots), 1 wound to a TEQ (40 shots), and almost one dead TEQ (100 shots).

However, Lootas with SH1...
Minimum hit roll is .38 hits per shot, at 6+ RR1s.
Max is .83 hits per shot, at 5+ RRAll. That's the equivalent of BS 2+.

It can target any Ork unit, and there are lots of transports available with nice size firing decks. Take a Trukk/Battlewagon/Gargantuan Squiggoth and fill it up with Tankbustas or Flash Gitz.

Also, a cheap Mek can buff everything shooting from the transport, and the detachment rule can easily give sustained hits on top. BS5+ Orks in vehicles would be shooting like they were BS3+

Also also, Boyz isn't a terrible idea for this strat - not for their guns but for a maxed out Weirdboy for when you run into some of the reasonably common power blob units doing the rounds. A 5 shot/sustained hits Eadbanger would make a mess of a Necron Warrior blob or the Khorne Berzerker Juggerlord, and if those units don't show up then Da Jump is still fine for lining up a charge later on.

So here is a little scale comparison graphic I made for my review of the new Red Corsair kits. Even without the tactical rock, the Raiders are definitely bigger than the Legionaries. Proportions are more akin to the Emperor's Children Tormentors but without the weird skinny legs. Pretty much Primaris eye level.

I have high-res sprue images of all the new kits from the Battleforce plus Huron Blackheart and the Masters of the Maelstrom, inc. a list of all possible build options and a 4K unboxing video here: https://taleofpainters.com/2026/02/review-huron-blackheart-and-the-masters-of-the-maelstrom-lords-of-the-maelstrom-battleforce/

At this point I wouldn't be surprised to see GW quietly drop the Primaris/Firstborn lore within an edition or two. The whole "bigger and better" is down to just "better" now anyway, if Firstborn renegades are seeing eye to eye with Primaris.

 His Master's Voice wrote:
At this point I wouldn't be surprised to see GW quietly drop the Primaris/Firstborn lore within an edition or two.

I've been thinking that since early 9th I think, as soon as they started blurring the lines.

I’d guess it’s not a thing in 11th. 10th has almost completely removed it.

While that's possible, keep in mind that these guys are supposedly recent renegades, who unlike the Legions have not embraced Chaos fully yet.

For all we know a lot of the Raiders might be actual Primaris themselves.

Are they any instances of Primaris going renegade? It's not like going rogue is a common occurrence among Space Marines in general, and the Primaris were born yesterday, as far as the setting is concerned.

 stahly wrote:
So here is a little scale comparison graphic I made for my review of the new Red Corsair kits.

It really gives the impression that whenever they're designing another 'new' Space Marine that isn't Primaris, they don't have an actual guide/consistency for the size and proportions, they just make it up at the time and go "Eh, close enough".

Eh, the intention seems pretty clear - unify all 40k Marines. And the studio is consistently, I think, shifting the broad power armour range closer to Primaris scale and proportions on each release.