Having spent the better half of the year working on nothing but 40k I've been eagerly looking to get stuck into another project and it just so happens Games Workshop gave me a wonderful solution in the form of Warcry. The game was teased for months and with every drop of information I became more and more excited. A skirmish game set in Age of Sigmar, with a focus on small bands of Chaos influenced humans. Sign me up!!
Though the game has been out for over a month I haven't really had the chance to sit down and crack on with painting it. Finishing off the last of my Custodes took a priority towards the end of July and I spent August taking a break and play testing everything Warcry had to offer. Needless to say the game is great fun and does exactly what I want, provides thick and fast action with a real drive of narrative and fun gameplay whilst only taking around 30mins to an hour to get a full game in. Having been utterly hooked in I decided it's finally time I paint one of the starter boxes I've bought over the last few years and cracked on with some pieces last week.
The amount of things you get in the starter set is simply mind boggling. It's in my opinion easily one of the best value boxes you can buy from Games Workshop. A whole 4x4 worth of detailed and modular terrain as well as 2 warbands, chaotic beasts, the rulebook and loads of markers. What more could you ask for from a starter kit!
I decided to start painting the terrain as it's something I've never done before and I wanted to see how fast I could turn around the pieces. Starting on the smaller bits seemed like my best bet as it gave me a chance to test out any paint schemes before moving onto larger sections. For the stonework I decided to follow Games Workshop's tutorial for some hints on techniques to use, but changed up the paints to better match my own idea. I wanted the ruins to look worn and covered in moss as though they'd sat for an age after the coming of Archaon to the Eightpeaks. I'm overall really happy with the results as it took me very little time to achieve and let me experiment with drybrushing, which I rarely have the chance to use on other projects.
The stone colours are just Mechanicus Standard Grey spray, washed with a 50:50 Nuln Oil:Lahmian Medium mix, then drybrushed Dawnstone, washed with a Loren Forest wash, then again drybrushed Dawnstone. The pillars and masonry were given a final highlight of Administratum Grey then Longbeard Grey on the upper edges and detail.
Similarly for the barricades I wanted them to look slightly worn and aged. I can't imagine the dregs around the Varanspire are particularly well supplied. With that in mind I just did some simple drybrushing on the wood to give it a dried out feel using the paler Gorthor and Baneblade Brown. The metal was washed with some Skrag Brown to give a rusted effect prior to some light drybrushing.
My experience with the game so far has been great. I've been struggling to get back into Age of Sigmar recently as I don't have an army that's really grabbed my attention (though that is potentially soon set to change with the release of the Ossiarch Bonereapers!), so Warcry was a great way to set foot back into the Mortal Realms. The fact that the gameplay is nice and streamlined but still manages to retain a deal of depth thanks to the way that activation's interact and fighters counter each movement and charge makes the game surprisingly engaging. The real highlights for me are the activation dice and the setup cards. The activation dice provide a nice way to determine who gets to go first every round as well as balancing that against having more faction abilities to activate in the turn. It creates a to and fro as players try to work out the value in handing someone first turn but being able to activate their most powerful faction ability. The mission and board set up cards are a fantastic way of ensuring each game feels unique whilst also making set up nice and quick. Having to divide your warband into the dagger, shield and hammer before knowing what the terrain will look like or what the victory conditions are makes the game that much more unpredictable (something that I'm sure the Chaos Gods would be truly joyous to hear).
For now I'm planning on working my way through the rest of the terrain whenever I have a free evening as it's so simple to do. As for my warband of choice I've decided to join the Cypher Lords and spread madness through the halls of Nochseed and the Bloodwind Spoil.
Overall I'd say if you enjoy quick, brutal skirmish games that let you get stuck in fast I'd definitely recommend Warcry. It's a fantastic intro game for someone interested in wargaming that maybe doesn't have the money or time to commit to Age of Sigmar fully, but still wants to roll some dice and recklessly charge everything in range. I'll be back soon with another update as I slowly trudge my way through the terrain.
Until next time,
James
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