[SBGC] Fw: FANATIC NEWSLETTER - JUNE 2002
- From: "Sean Harding" <mohawkrevenge@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "SBGC Freelists" <sbgc@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 21 Jun 2002 13:01:07 -0500
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jervis Johnson" <JervisJ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "The Fanatic Mailing List" <fanatic@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 21, 2002 11:11 AM
Subject: FANATIC NEWSLETTER - JUNE 2002
> FANATIC NEWSLETTER - JUNE 2002
> By Jervis Johnson
>
> On Monday the Fanatic team grew by almost 15 percent! That's right, we've
> got a new member of staff, and there are now eight Fanatics rather than
> seven. The new member of the Fanatic team is Tom Merrigan. Tom hails from
> Oz, and many of you may well recognise his name as the author of the
Vampire
> Counts army list that appeared in the pages of Warmaster Magazine along
with
> pictures of the fabulous converted models he uses for his own Vampire
Counts
> army. Tom has the unenviable task of taking control of all the important
> organisational work that I've been doing, so that I can concentrate on
> design and development work (hooray!) Tom will also be involved in helping
> test the new material we are working on, will be doing his part at the
shows
> and the other events we attend, and hopefully getting time to occasionally
> write articles for our magazines too. I'm sure that you will all join with
> me in welcoming Tom onto the team.
>
> Something else happened on Monday which was almost (though not quite!) as
> exciting as Tom joining the team, and that was a copy of Carl Critchlow's
> brand new Thrud The Barbarian comic landing on my desk. I have always
loved
> Thrud (which is why I commissioned a new Thrud miniature for Blood Bowl),
> and I have to say that it is great to see the over-muscled psychopath back
> in action again. The comic is available _exclusively_ from Carl's website
at
> www.thrudthebarbarian.com: note that it can't be ordered from anywhere
else,
> so please don't ask us for a copy!
>
> And while on the subject of people who (like me) have been around since
the
> early days of GW, I recently commissioned some new miniatures from veteran
> miniature designer Bob Naismith. When I first joined the company Bob was a
> member of the Citadel Design Team. We worked together for a number of
years
> before Bob left to pursue a freelance career. Apart from being one of the
> most talented designers in the business, Bob is also one of the nicest, so
> it was a real pleasure to be able to work with him again. Bob's has made
us
> a superb Dark Elf War Hydra for Warmaster, which will out in July and is
his
> first Citadel Miniature in over a decade. Now, where did I put those email
> addresses for Mark Copelstone and Kev Adams...
>
> Best regards,
>
> Jervis Johnson
> Head Fanatic
>
> NEW RELEASES
> This section lists all of the latest releases for the Specialist Games
> Range. Please note that the release date is for the UK, and it may take up
> to a month for items to become available elsewhere. The best way to find
out
> specific release dates and prices is to contact your local Mail Order
> department or visit your local Games Workshop store.
>
> Item Game Release Date
>
> Catachan Scout 'Toothpick' Murke Inquisitor May
> Warmaster Magazine 11 Warmaster May
> Dark Elf Character Set Warmaster May
> Dark Elf Spearmen Warmaster May
> Dark Elf Crossbowmen Warmaster May
> Witch Elves Warmaster May
> Cold One Knights Warmaster May
> Dark Riders Warmaster May
> Repeater Bolt Thrower Warmaster May
> Battlefleet Gothic Magazine 9 BFG May
> Epic Magazine 9 Epic May
> Exterminatus Magazine 3 Inquisitor June
> Chaos Magus Inquisitor June
> Chaos Henchman Conversion Pack Inquisitor June
> Town Cryer 20 Mordheim June
> New Sisters Of Sigmar Warband Mordheim June
> New Sisters Of Sigmar Blister Pack Mordheim June
> New Sigmarite Auger Mordheim June
> New Sigmarite Matriarch Mordheim June
> New Sigmarite Champion Mordheim June
> New Sisters Of Sigmar Novices Mordheim June
> Battlefleet Gothic 2002 Annual BFG June
> Necromunda Magazine 9 Necromunda June
> Warmaster Magazine 12 Warmaster July
> Warmaster 2002 Annual Warmaster July
> Crested Stegadon Warmaster July
> Dark Elf War Hydra Warmaster July
> BFG Magazine 10 BFG July
> Tyranid Leviathan Hiveship BFG July
> Tyranid Razorfiend Hive Cruiser BFG July
> Tyranid Stalker Droneship BFG July
> Tyranid Prowler Droneship BFG July
> Epic Magazine 10 Epic July
>
>
> EVENTS CALENDAR
> The following events feature one or more of the games in the specialist
> games range. Events marked with an '*' will feature a Fanatic stand manned
> by members of the Fanatic team, and display cabinets crammed with our
> upcoming releases. Further details of the events can be found on our
website
> at www.specialist-games.com. If you are planning to run an event and would
> like it listed here then mail us with the details at
> fanatic@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
> Featured Events
>
> 28-29th June 2002: Games Day USA, Baltimore Convention Centre, Baltimore
MD,
> USA. The US Games Workshop team have very kindly invited us to attend
their
> Baltimore Games Day. We'll be bring over a big selection of new models for
> you to look at, and I'll be on hand to answer any questions you may have
>
> about the specialist games range. There will also be plenty of top-rate
> demonstration and participation games featuring the specialist games
range.
> If you live anywhere near Baltimore then I have to say that you'd be crazy
> to miss this show. A 'general admission' ticket costs $20.00 and can be
> ordered from the GW on-line store or by phoning US Mail Order on
> 1-800-394-GAME.
>
> IMPORTANT UPDATE: 7 July 2002: Bifrost, Birmingham. In my last newsletter
I
> incorrectly listed Bifrost as being held in November. It actually takes
> place on the 7th July! My apologies to the Bifrost team. Bifrost will be
> held at the Haden Hill Leisure Centre, Halesowen Road, Cradley Heath, just
> North of Birmingham in the United Kingdom. Tickets cost a mere £2.00. You
> can find out more at the Bifrost website at www.bifrost.org.uk.
>
>
> Full Events Calendar
>
> S 26 May 2002: Black Library Day*, Warhammer World, Willow Road,
> Nottingham
> S 22 June 2002: Conflict Bristol*, The University of Bristol Union
> (UBU).
> S 28-29 June 2002: Games Day USA*, Baltimore
> S 6-7 July 2002: Warhammer Players Society Warmaster GT, includes
> Blood Bowl tournament, Bristol, UK
> S 7 July 2002: Bifrost, Birmingham
> S 14 July 2002: Chaos Wastes Open Day*, Warhammer World, Willow Road,
> Nottingham
> S 27 July 2002: Games Day USA II, Chicago
> S 15-18 August 2002: Britcon*, tournaments & exhibition games,
> Loughborough University, UK
> S 17 August 2002: Games Day Canada, Toronto
> S 25 August 2002: Games Day Germany*, Cologne
> S 14-15 September 2002: Colours, Reading, UK
> S 29 September 2002: Games Day UK*, National Indoor Arena, Birmingham
> S 27 October 2002: Games Day Australia, Sydney
> S 24 November 2002: Games Workshop Open Day*, Warhammer World, Willow
> Road, Nottingham
>
> WEB NEWS
> Keith Krelle is the member of the Fanatic team responsible for producing
the
> Specialist Games Range pages on the Games Workshop website. Our front page
> can be found at www.specialist-games.com. Each specialist game has its own
> section which includes an 'archive' of important rules articles we've
> published for the game.
>
> Website Updates
> * The revamp of the Blood Bowl site went live. Visit www.bloodbowl.com
> to see what Keith has done.
> * The new Blood Bowl section includes the long-awaited Blood Bowl
> living rulebook. This is a downloadable pdf file which contains the latest
> version of the Blood Bowl rules, including all of the changes from the
2002
> Rules Review.
> * The new Blood Bowl section will also include a forum from Friday. We
> plan to add forums to the other specialist games sections as we update
them
> over the coming months.
> * The Blood Bowl section also includes a short video about the Blood
> Bowl Resurrection tournament. This is very much a test piece which Keith
put
> together as an example of what he could do given the chance. I really like
> it, so expect to see more such videos in future.
> * Added a list of the complete Warmaster range to the Warmaster
> section of the website.
> * Added the editorials from Warmaster Magazine 11, BFG Magazine 9 and
> Epic Magazine 9 to the relevant specialist games sections. The editorials
> are well worth reading if you want to get an idea about what appears in
that
> issue of the magazine.
> * Added a 'playable demo' of the new Epic Armageddon rules we are
> currently working on. The demo includes a cut down version of the rules
and
> a set of scenarios which allow you to get a feel for the game. We've also
> included a set of counters you can use if you don't have any Epic scale
> miniatures. You can find the demo at www.epic40000.com.
> * Added a copy of the May Fanatic newsletter.
>
> Work In Progress
> Keith is currently working on three things. He is putting the finishing
> touches to a video about the Call to Arms event held in Warhammer World
for
> Mordheim and Warmaster players. Once that is out of the way he will be
> giving the Inquisitor section a bit of a facelift and update, before
> starting on a major revamp of the Battlefleet Gothic section of our
website.
>
>
> QUESTION OF THE MONTH
> Every month a message is plucked from the dozens sent to us and answered
in
> the newsletter. This month's message was sent to the Fanatic Customer
> Services email address:
>
> To: Fanatic
> Subject: Epic Sprue
>
> Hi there
>
> Are the plastic epic sprues coming to a end and new metal ones being
> produced to replace them?
>
> Cheers
>
> There have been a number of entertainingly misleading rumours circulating
> around the internet about this subject, so it is probably best that I set
> the record straight.
>
> It looks like I will not be able to include any of the Epic plastics in
the
> Epic range when Epic Armageddon is released next year. There are a number
> of reasons for this, none of which is a major thing in and of itself (the
> sprues are all different sizes making packaging very difficult, some of
the
> moulds are getting old and need replacing, many of the sprues include
things
> not included in the game background any more, and keeping plastics in the
> range would mean that any new races should really have plastic infantry
> too), but when taken in total make it sensible to replace the plastics
with
> metal strips. Players will be able to buy and use the plastics as long as
> stocks last, but once stocks run out they are unlikely to re-appear, as
> there has to be a lot of demand to justify setting up and running a
plastic
> mould.
>
> We're planning to release the metal strips in blister packs and boxs. The
> blisters will contain small formations like SM detachments (see the Epic
> playable demo scenarios for some examples of these), and the boxed sets
> larger formations like IG companies. The metal strips will be fully
> compatible with the older plastic infantry stands (including those on
square
> bases), and there will be no need for players to replace the plastic
> infantry with metal units. Rumours of the strips being a different scale
or
> only having three figures on them are simply not true, as are rumours that
> we are going to replace the metal vehicle models in the Epic range with
new
> models.
>
> We've had some test pieces made for the infantry strips to test their
> feasibility. The test pieces we've had made so far look as good as the
> plastics (indeed, all we've done is cast up the plastics in metal), and
> match the quality of the metal strips used in Warmaster. Looking on the
> bright side, I for one will not miss having to snip individual plastic
> infantry off a sprue and glue them to the bases!
>
> I'll finish off by underlining that the this project is still in a very
> early stage yet. It is going to be at least a year before Epic Armageddon
is
> released, and we are currently still check that it is even feasible to
make
> Epic scale infantry in metal. Expect to read more about this in future
> newsletters...
>
>
>
> LIFE IN THE BUNKER
> Some highlights of life down in the Fanatic bunker over the last month:
>
> * In August we'll be releasing a range of Pit Fighter models for
> Mordheim. You'll be able to use the Pit Fighters to field a Pit Fighter
> Warband, but the models are so nice that they have inspired us to come up
> with a Pit Fighting game too. The game lets each player take control of a
> Pit Fighter model and lead them to fame and glory in the pit fighting
arenas
> of the Old World. The game will be available as a free download from the
> Mordheim when the Pit Fighters are released.
>
> * We've received the master models for several new alien creatures for
> use in Inquisitor. Mark Bedford has finished his Kroot, including a
> conversion pack, and jolly scary (and large!) it is to. We also have not
one
> but two Purestrain Genestealer models to choose from, one by Citadel
> designer Mark Harrison and one by new freelancer Daniel Pacey. Expect to
see
> the Kroot in September, and the 'Stealers round about Christmas.
>
> * Warwick Kinraide and Steve Hambrook have been burning the midnight
> oil getting the Annuals ready for BFG and Warmaster. Warwick finished the
> BFG Annual at the end of last month, and we are eagerly awaiting the first
> printed copies as I type this newsletter. The BFG Annual includes the
> findings of the 2002 BFG Rules Review, rules for all of the new ships
> Fanatic has released, and also all the important rules from Warp Storm.
Note
> that Warp Storm will not be reprinted once current stocks run down, as it
> has effectively been replaced by the BFG Annual, so if you want to get a
> copy for your collection you'd better snap one up now!
>
> * Steve Hambrook has been working closely with Rick Priestley (a hard
> taskmaster!) on the Warmaster Annual. Like the BFG Annual, it will contain
> the findings of the 2002 Rules Review and the rules for the new models
we've
> released, though in this case for Warmaster rather than BFG. It also has
an
> extensive Q&A session and an expanded colour section to show off some of
the
> armies we have released. The Warmaster Annual should be out towards the
end
> of July or in early August.
>
> * As noted right at the start of this newsletter, the Fanatic team has
> been joined by Tom Merrigan, who wrote the Vampire Counts army list that
> appeared in Warmaster Magazine. Tom's original article was designed for
use
> with his own scratch-built army, but such has been the popularity of the
> list that we've decided to go ahead and produce the units needed for the
> army as part of the Warmaster range. The units will be designed by Mark
> Bedford and Bob Naismith, and should be ready for release in September.
>
> * Andy Hall has been working hard to get Blood Bowl Magazine ready for
> its re-launch in August. The magazine will start off with issue 3, picking
> up where we left off from issue 2 which was published some eighteen months
> ago (see, I promised it would come back!) The new magazine will be in our
> standard 24 page format, and is crammed with all kinds of good things, not
> least of which will be rules for the Khemri team we'll be releasing at the
> same time.
>
> * Whilst on the subject of Blood Bowl, we just received the master
> models for a new Blood Bowl Ogre team. The models are a collaborative
effort
> by veteran Citadel designer Aly Morrison and rising star Mark Harrison.
Aly
> was one of the members of the original design team for the very first
> edition of Blood Bowl, along with myself and Marc Gascoigne (who now heads
> up our Black Library publishing division), and he and Mark have come up
with
> a set of really superb multi-part models that really capture the 'feel' of
a
> Blood Bowl Ogre player. This just leaves me with the challenge of coming
up
> with a set of balanced rules for fielding Ogre teams, in time for the
> release of the models next year. Gulp!
>
>
> CONCLUSION
> At that is all for this issue of the Fanatic Newsletter. As ever, please
> don't hesitate to get in touch with us at fanatic@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx if
> you have any comments, questions or suggestions about anything you've
read.
> We'd love to hear from you!
>
> Best regards,
>
> Jervis Johnson
> Head Fanatic
>
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