Topic: Questions about previous edition releases

[pmaurant]

So just got back from the gw store all army books are gone.  I just got into the game a year ago.I gather that in the past even though a new brb came out the army books were still good So they kept them on the shelves right?   Removing the army books means that the current army books are no good any more and that they are revamping the whole game right?

[Baron von Klatz]

Indeed, they are getting things ready for the coming of ninth.

Rumors are split on the future of armybooks however. Some say the new system will be rule cards in the boxes of the models that tell how a unit works while others say they are moving to a 40k codex like system. I'm a little divided on what sounds more favorable but to me it's really about the fluff so I'm hoping that either the cards will include some interesting background or that the new books will be as flavorful as the last ones.

[knightofthelance]

So just got back from the gw store all army books are gone.  I just got into the game a year ago.I gather that in the past even though a new brb came out the army books were still good So they kept them on the shelves right?   Removing the army books means that the current army books are no good any more and that they are revamping the whole game right?

Except when they went to 6ed. They all went away then too (though maybe they were big enough jerks to still sell them, not sure as we don't have GW store anywhere close).

All signs point to this being an even bigger change than that was.

[Zygmund]

The sixth edition had the Ravening Hordes cheap/free supplement. When did that come out? With the 6th ed brb, or some time after?

Not for a moment do I think that GW would be so freegoing this time, so please, indulge me.

-Z

[Oxycutor]

I think Ravening Hordes came with the White Dwarf that was for the launch of 6th.  It's 15 years ago, so I can't remember exactly

[valmir]

Does anyone remember if, for the release of 6th/Ravening Hordes, GW provided any kind of advance notice or rationale?

I'm pretty effing bothered by GW's willingness to continue selling stuff, with no forewarning, until a month before it all goes obsolete. I'm sure there's some poor bastard that just dropped a tonne of money on Khaine and all three Elf books to make a world-destroying ET list, only to have it all disappear the next day.

[Fidelis von Sigmaringen]

To be fair: if there is any truth in most of the rumours, they may not become instantly obsolete. We just do not know, but I would not be too optimistic either. And regarding ET: those are separate campaigns anyway.

[Oxycutor]

Does anyone remember if, for the release of 6th/Ravening Hordes, GW provided any kind of advance notice or rationale?

I'm pretty effing bothered by GW's willingness to continue selling stuff, with no forewarning, until a month before it all goes obsolete. I'm sure there's some poor bastard that just dropped a tonne of money on Khaine and all three Elf books to make a world-destroying ET list, only to have it all disappear the next day.

I would hazard a guess that someone who knew enough about the game to buy all those books, was probably already in the hobby, and it's pretty hard to avoid the rumours when so many people in the hobby are probably talking about them.

If they were a complete noon, and had wandered into a GW this week and was convinced to spend over 100 quid on books, and probably as much on models, then I'd say more money than sense. 

I'm pretty sure the GW store managers don't find out more than a day or two ahead of the rest of us though.

Sent from my thingamajig via wadyamacallit

[Finlay]

Does anyone remember if, for the release of 6th/Ravening Hordes, GW provided any kind of advance notice or rationale?

I'm pretty effing bothered by GW's willingness to continue selling stuff, with no forewarning, until a month before it all goes obsolete. I'm sure there's some poor bastard that just dropped a tonne of money on Khaine and all three Elf books to make a world-destroying ET list, only to have it all disappear the next day.

I think stopping a month before is actually pretty reasonable, as far as GW goes.

you would hope that any newbies not in the know about the changes would be given a suitable warning before spending too much.

"buy these models and paints, but maybe not the book and you don't need £200 worth of models now, wait and see..."

[Oxycutor]

I'd hope so too.  I wonder how much pressure from above to make targets would put pressure to sell unscrupulously

[Gneisenau]

The sixth edition had the Ravening Hordes cheap/free supplement. When did that come out? With the 6th ed brb, or some time after?

I think I remember a 6th ed BRB with Ravening Hordes included. Whether Ravening Hordes was included in the very first prints is a different matter.

Does anyone remember if, for the release of 6th/Ravening Hordes, GW provided any kind of advance notice or rationale?

I also think I remember that the 5th ed High Elf book (the one with the snowy cover, and with spearmen striking from three ranks) came out not too long before 6th edition. A year, maybe? But I may be mistaken. I had all but given up WHFB in 5th because it was so atrocious.

[Darknight]

The sixth edition had the Ravening Hordes cheap/free supplement. When did that come out? With the 6th ed brb, or some time after?

I think I remember a 6th ed BRB with Ravening Hordes included. Whether Ravening Hordes was included in the very first prints is a different matter.

Rav was free with White Dwarf and either free or available for a nominal cost from stores, IIRC.

Based on rumors in the other thread, the new game is based on "army cards" which can be combined cunningly.

[knightofthelance]

They also had it available free on the website. Which back then was fairly amazing.

[The Peacemaker]

Does anyone remember if, for the release of 6th/Ravening Hordes, GW provided any kind of advance notice or rationale?

I'm pretty effing bothered by GW's willingness to continue selling stuff, with no forewarning, until a month before it all goes obsolete. I'm sure there's some poor bastard that just dropped a tonne of money on Khaine and all three Elf books to make a world-destroying ET list, only to have it all disappear the next day.

They had rumors and announcements back then. Although it was a little different than today with the internet. You used to hear about a rumor. Chat about it, then wait and see what happened.

The thing is that when they do a big change like this where it revamps all the books its mot too big a deal if you just bought the old edition because its such a big change that its a whole new game.  You can still play the old game.
Although years ago this was much worse because it was hard to find people to play against. Now we have the internet.

[Darknight]

I was working for GW when 6th was released - I seem to remember that it was well-known old army books would no longer work and that Ravening Hordes would be used to allow previous armies to function.

I don't remember the exact timeframe, but I do remember that RH contained an Empire and Orc army list - the Empire one I recall specifically contained Ogres and Halflings, like the 5th ed Empire list, which were taken out of the 6th. So, I think it might have been that Ravening Hordes hit earlier - before the release of the Empire Army book. And it might have been that the Empire army book hit WITH the boxed game.

[Sig]

My memory was that Ravening Hordes was released with the White Dwarf that spruiked 6th edition, and the Empire Army book came out a few weeks later. I remember picking up a copy at Games Day 2000 here in Aus, they only had like three copies and I got one of them. I'm certain there were Empire starter set models featured in White Dwarf well before this happened.

[Warlord]

I think it was a spearman and an Orc boy?

The Empire Ravening Hordes had Kislev stuff on it too. I quite liked the Ravening Hordes list.

[knightofthelance]

I think it was a spearman and an Orc boy?

The Empire Ravening Hordes had Kislev stuff on it too. I quite liked the Ravening Hordes list.

In the case of Empire I liked it a lot better than the one in the eventual Army book. That wasn't the case for the Brets though.

[Philhelm]

Indeed, they are getting things ready for the coming of ninth.

Rumors are split on the future of armybooks however. Some say the new system will be rule cards in the boxes of the models that tell how a unit works while others say they are moving to a 40k codex like system. I'm a little divided on what sounds more favorable but to me it's really about the fluff so I'm hoping that either the cards will include some interesting background or that the new books will be as flavorful as the last ones.

Keeping track of a bunch of loose cards would be terrible.

[ZeroTwentythree]

I never made it past a few games of Warmahordes, but during that brief experience, I bought some 9 pocked card sleeves to keep the cards organized.

[Deuce]

I also think I remember that the 5th ed High Elf book (the one with the snowy cover, and with spearmen striking from three ranks) came out not too long before 6th edition. A year, maybe? But I may be mistaken. I had all but given up WHFB in 5th because it was so atrocious.

Nah, High Elves preceded the 6th ed changeover by about three years. They were also the only army actually re-released during 5th edition; the others (Bretonnians, Lizardmen, Dogs of War and Vampire Counts) were either new or didn't supersede the existing army book. I think Vampire Counts came fairly late in the day, though, possibly only about a year before the issue of 6th.

I can't remember whether 6th edition was extensively trailed but GW were generally a bit better about telegraphing incoming big changes in the late 90s than they are now, if you bought White Dwarf at least (which I did), and I remember the changeover being a shock in terms of content and scale (invalidating many existing armies) rather than the mere fact of its happening.