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Im sort of disappointed by this. Caving in to internet yelling isn't a great thing generally and theyre2025 early art sketches. So not only will the guard now have 4 legally distinct infantry, heavy weapons, command squads and +1 unique per regiment bloating it's ass out, it's also gobbling up a lot of releases and production effort for the next 2-3 years.
The copyright mark in the lowrr left corner that says "2025" makes it clear this was always the plan.
Not really, it shows they drew them in 2025, it doesnt mean they ever intended to take it forwards and it obviously wasn't planned to coincide with 11th even if it did. Plus, kinda sucks for the poor catachans to get moved back if this is for their 11th codex.
This. I'm guessing GW has a massive stash of concept arts by Blanche, Goodwin and others, for 'some vague time in the future', and only dug this one out to show off in response to the furor over a video detailing an alternate paint scheme.
Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote: Keep in mind the rather hysterical Valrak video title akin to “Steel Legion Am Done A Ded” is based solely on the trailer video from GW not showing Steel Legion.
That’s it. One video didn’t show a thing, and somehow that means that thing is now gone forever and ever and ever amen.
So is this something to appease fan discontent, or something to slap the hysterical back to their sense, Airplane! style?
Because the two aren’t the same. “But where are my Steel Legion” is of course a completely reasonable question. “Why Am You Distory Mai Favurit” is not.
There has definitely been a wave of the usual floor slapping "GW is destroying the setting, my favourite thing is gone, how unfair to people" in online communities, less so here. Immediately now followed by a wave of "LOOK THEY LISTENED!" which breeds a dangerous trend of people thinking they can moan aggressively as a vocal minority and get their way.
My concern is the vocal minority who were angry/upset are just GW drama tourists who like to be annoyed and they've now sinking resources into something that maybe won't actually sell well as those vocal people never really cared.
Regards slapping down drama, GW kinda caused this with the "paint krieg as Steel legion" article where they half wrote them out the setting. Which in turn makes this 180 even more confusing imo.
Dudeface wrote: My concern is the vocal minority who were angry/upset are just GW drama tourists who like to be annoyed and they've now sinking resources into something that maybe won't actually sell well as those vocal people never really cared.
Unfortunately, it's not just GW who are overly influenced by a vocal minority. Vocal minorities essentially dominate most of modern life.
"You know that saying 'Caesar's wife is above suspicion'? Well, I put an end to all that rubbish!" - Major Denis Bloodnok, late of the 3rd Disgusting Fusiliers
Dudeface wrote: My concern is the vocal minority who were angry/upset are just GW drama tourists who like to be annoyed and they've now sinking resources into something that maybe won't actually sell well as those vocal people never really cared.
Yeah. Maybe I'm just becoming out of touch - but as dramas go this felt really astroturfed.
But it doesn't really bother me if GW want to release some more Guard with slightly different coats and patterns of lasgun some time in 2027.
Being negative is a miserable thing - but I feel Adepticon has managed to create anti-fomo for me. Was excited for Yarrick, but I really don't like the Commissar Carrier, and the other vehicles don't do much either. Orks seem to be going in a direction I don't love either. Space Marines are as boring as they were 3 decades ago.
Yeah. Maybe I'm just becoming out of touch - but as dramas go this felt really astroturfed.
Honestly this is just how the Internet works now. Many 'content creators' focus on reporting controversy where it barely existed, whipping up followers by telling them what they should be outraged about. Valrak himself squeezed a couple of videos from this and no doubt made a few quid from the ~100k views those pulled.
I have no doubts that the majority of the people engaging with this had no plans to buy a Steel Legion army before, and won't buy them in 2027/28 either.
Chirping on the internet is just that, chirping on the internet. People often blow stuff out of proportion to drive engagement.
I'll admit though, the memes were fun.
Commodus Leitdorf Paints all of the Things!! The Breaking of the Averholme: An AoS Adventure
"We have clearly reached the point where only rampant and unchecked stabbing can save us." -Black Mage
Yeah. Maybe I'm just becoming out of touch - but as dramas go this felt really astroturfed.
Honestly this is just how the Internet works now. Many 'content creators' focus on reporting controversy where it barely existed, whipping up followers by telling them what they should be outraged about. Valrak himself squeezed a couple of videos from this and no doubt made a few quid from the ~100k views those pulled.
I have no doubts that the majority of the people engaging with this had no plans to buy a Steel Legion army before, and won't buy them in 2027/28 either.
It should also be noted a lot of content creators don't actually like it; but the way the algorithm is coded it tends to have a very heavy bias toward such content. So when its your job you do sometimes have to follow where the money is and that's where the code takes you.
There are certainly a good number of ways that the masters of youtube and so forth could adjust their sites to better favour other content.
It is true that the new guard vehicles look rather tame, but I like them. The commissar's vehicle is most 40K of them, but frankly, that I like the least.
I wonder how expensive the guard battalion will be. It seems like pretty solid with all new or newish models.
As for 11th box tease, could they have chosen any other marine model to use for the preview? A basic intercessor with a head swap is not particularly exiting. This is how half of my intercessors already look like.
Is the new intercessor slightly more squat/thicker proportions? Not so much in the posted image but more so.in the video and resembling Oldstartes a bit more in that regard.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2026/03/26 13:25:10
GaroRobe wrote: I highly doubt GW would decide to do Steel Legion solely because there was a day of people moaning that they were mostly wiped out lol
If GW reacted that fast to feedback and that much then we'd have Exodites as a full army right now; be on our 5th round of Sisters of Battle plastic resculpts; have Space Crusade on the shelf and be at least 4 editions into Battlefleet Gothic and Epic 40K
I for one am sick and tired of companies listening to the thoughts and wishes of their customers. It's a dangerous trend... nuclear proliferation level dangerous? Yes.
I hate to break the bad news to some of you, but yes, the Steel Legion coming back was 100% by fan backlash. As far as a conspiracy theory by GW to make people want the Steel Legion and then give them the Steel Legion (two years from now when you won't remember any of this happening), I need to paraphrase Rob the Honest Wargamer when he said, you're vastly overestimating both how much GW marketing cares, and how competent they are at their jobs.
There's no reason for GW to no longer make multiple Imperial Guard regiments, they don't take many sprues to do, and they sell. It's toy soldier making 101.
I feel like if this is half the price of a chimera (points wise, I know it will cost more dollar wise) and faster it fills a new role. A quick way to dash out your men during the endgame to claim objectives is very useful.
If you think Steel Legion coming back is due to backlash I have a bridge to sell you.
Now showing off concept art? That may be just to show people they haven't forgotten them. Most likely what they are showing is just a Kill Team anyway which would make more sense to bring them back in some form. Just like how bringing in Krieg started as a Kill Team.
Commodus Leitdorf Paints all of the Things!! The Breaking of the Averholme: An AoS Adventure
"We have clearly reached the point where only rampant and unchecked stabbing can save us." -Black Mage
*quietly sits here constantly eyeing Krieg as a potential army*
I think its because they lean into that WW1 style aesthetic with the gasmasks, artillery and cavalry whilst having an alien/unhuman edge to them that just fits a sci-fi setting.
frankelee wrote: I for one am sick and tired of companies listening to the thoughts and wishes of their customers. It's a dangerous trend... nuclear proliferation level dangerous? Yes.
I hate to break the bad news to some of you, but yes, the Steel Legion coming back was 100% by fan backlash. As far as a conspiracy theory by GW to make people want the Steel Legion and then give them the Steel Legion (two years from now when you won't remember any of this happening), I need to paraphrase Rob the Honest Wargamer when he said, you're vastly overestimating both how much GW marketing cares, and how competent they are at their jobs.
There's no reason for GW to no longer make multiple Imperial Guard regiments, they don't take many sprues to do, and they sell. It's toy soldier making 101.
My opinion is that they had the SL in the tube, weren't ready to show them off yet, and released the yellow Krieg video as a stopgap. It wasn't malicious. It takes time to draw up concept art, approve final designs, et cetera, woof and woof.
The thing about Warhammer is that no one person can grasp the fullness of it.
frankelee wrote: I for one am sick and tired of companies listening to the thoughts and wishes of their customers. It's a dangerous trend... nuclear proliferation level dangerous? Yes.
I hate to break the bad news to some of you, but yes, the Steel Legion coming back was 100% by fan backlash. As far as a conspiracy theory by GW to make people want the Steel Legion and then give them the Steel Legion (two years from now when you won't remember any of this happening), I need to paraphrase Rob the Honest Wargamer when he said, you're vastly overestimating both how much GW marketing cares, and how competent they are at their jobs.
There's no reason for GW to no longer make multiple Imperial Guard regiments, they don't take many sprues to do, and they sell. It's toy soldier making 101.
My opinion is that they had the SL in the tube, weren't ready to show them off yet, and released the yellow Krieg video as a stopgap. It wasn't malicious. It takes time to draw up concept art, approve final designs, et cetera, woof and woof.
It also takes time to make videos and the fact they had assets for Krieg from past animations likely made it easier to use them for a super short trailer that was about Yarrick and not about the grunts than make brand new assets for something that isn't coming out for a while and would have tipped their hand on the new designs.
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