Thursday 11 September 2014

New Albion and Estalia updates out now!

Another set of small updates here, changing the following:

Albion:

  • Nerfed Cormac Chath and Conor McFeud. The former could cause way too much damage alone, and the latter were too unkillable. Don't think I have uploaded these fixes before, though they were patched quite a while ago based on feedback.
  • Several minor text formatting fixes.
  • Fixed formatting error caused by this update (20/10).

Estalia:

  • Conquistadors now have light armour by default, can upgrade to heavy armour.
  • Genitors do not lose Fast Cavalry with LA.
  • Genitors may take spears.
  • Several minor text formatting fixes and some minor edits to the fluff.

In more interesting news, I will be making some changes regarding the release order. I've decided to scrap the release of the Mordheim characters as a stand-alone supplement, these will instead be included in the special characters book. I simply felt that it would be a bit too barren of a release to put out as a whole new document, so they should make a better fit with the already existing Special Characters. What this in effect means is that I will be pushing forward the date of the planned Bretonnia update, which I know some of you have really been looking forward too. Going to try to have it finished later this month.

85 comments:

  1. Kinda a shame that Estalia is now a smoking ruin thats been taken over by skaven

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Only if you choose to take the End Times as canon! I know I don't...

      Delete
    2. End times is bunch of bull, Warhammer re-writes all their crap so often. I go with what Mathias says. Also, the end times is just a rehash of Storm of Chaos--with Nagash...bfd.

      Where are people getting this info from Mathias? I haven't read about Estalia, Kislev, etc. being destroyed.

      Delete
    3. Those people are referring to Nagash, The End Times.

      Delete
    4. That makes no sense, why would Warhammer do this? I disagree with this, Mathias' books have more canon than even Games Workshop!

      Also Mathias, I will be sending you more pics of an evil "conan" army. Maybe you can get some ideas for the Kurgans. That is what I will label my email to you: Kurgan Proposal.

      Delete
    5. Yeah, don't like the whole destroying civilizations one bit. All it does is piss people who like those factions off. Just look at Squats! In my book(s), the warhammer world is at the brink of the Storm of Chaos, and that's where the Warhammer timeline should stay imo.

      Delete
    6. It would have been far better if they had done the Great War Against chaos when assavar kul invaded

      Delete
    7. Agreed! With models for Engra Deathsword, Magnus the Pious and so on, it would be a great way to bring those characters back. Sure, the outcomes is already known to everyone, but I'd rather revisit good background than inventing new things that just kill off characters for the hell of it.

      Delete
    8. outcomes are known by everybody but that doesn't matter- otherwise they wouldn't be able to do the horus heresy books

      Delete
  2. Does anyone have an idea, what models to use when you deploy grenadiers? I have atm kind a hard time to find those within historic scultpurs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Have you tried Hell Dorado Grenadiers? Should be a good fit ;)

      Delete
  3. ..except the grenades :( I wanted really to have throwing guys. I will let you know, when I found those.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Might be trickier. Those were the models I designed the unit around though.

      Delete
  4. Hey Mathias got some news on Warhammer from an insider. I heard that the Warhammer world is going to be completely destroyed. In the end, the final battle will be between Nagash and Archeon. So the Warhammer world will go to Chaos or Undead.

    But I also heard that they are planning to start the world anew, and I heard that they are trying to blend the fantasy with 40K since 40K makes up about 75% of their profit. So the fantasy world is basically dead--and I say to that, for you to keep up the good work and keep producing those awesome books Mathias. Finish off all of 8th Edition.

    Also, I heard Skaven should get pumped as well. :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That doesn't seem too unlikely unfortunately. If that's the case, I will ofc try to update all official books to 8th ed. Difficult to say how long that will take due to work, but I will certainly try. In that case, I might even make an unofficial 9th ed as well, fixing some of the most perceived issues with 8th ed.

      Delete
    2. I would just stick with 8th Edition bud. I am in the process of creating my own armies as well. I am busy with work now too. I am going to finish off Lumbria and I will probably do an evil army for Australia. I found the map that Games Workshop bases their world off of. Lumbria is based off of Mu, and I will try to reflect that in my book.

      I can email you as usual, but I may need some help on formatting. What program do you use to edit your warhammer books?

      Delete
    3. I use MS Word, plain and simple. Not the easiest program to work it, but I'm happy with the results!

      Delete
  5. Poor Estalia and Tilea, in the campaing are conquered by Skavens... but maybe can be good for new ideas, maybe in guerrilla warfare context, and could be a good begining for a book together, like " still resist" or something like this for this two countrys :3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't have any plans on rewriting Estalia or Tilea to reflect the End Times. The timeline stops in 2521 by my account ;)

      Delete
  6. Hey Mathias, do you have any armies based around the "Badlands" do the Border Princes count as being a part of this area?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Badlands are mostly infested with Orcs, though there are some humans who dwell in the northern parts as well. Not much in terms of armies though. The Border Princes is more of it's own area, though I suppose you could say that they were carved out from the Badlands to begin with.

      Delete
  7. Hi Mathias, two questions about Kislev characters. Saltan isn't a bit overprized? And this sentence of Gryphon Wing(Tordimir, the captain of Gryphon legion) "Enemy units must always test for Glorious Charge, regardless of the size of the unit."... what does it mean? Thanks for the answers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Will look over Saltan, but he came out even when I last did his points cost. Tordimir's item needs to be update, it's till based on an earlier version of the rule.

      Delete
  8. Hi mathias,
    The new albion book has format errors on pages 52 - 57.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for letting me know, I'll fix it immediately!

      Delete
  9. Mathias, we need a new book asap! Hate end times. Give us your allied book, Bretonnia, or something.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know, I know. Just been really hard to get the time to work on them, working a day job 8-9 hours and currently looking for a new apartment. When I get the time, I will sit down and finish the Bretonnia update, I promise.

      Delete
  10. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Why do the horse archers of Ind and Bretonnia use bows? The fluff in the rulebook says that shortbows tend to be used by either goblins or cavalry. The former because a bow that's too long won't be fireable in any direction but up and the latter because a normal bow is too unwieldy for horseback riding. The Hobgoblins, Steppe Archers and Ungol Archers get around this by inventing recurve bows but Ind and Bretonnia are primitive compared to the rest of the old world. I don't think they have that innovation.

    Also, why can't Cathay heroes and lords take ranged weapons?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bretonnia has always had normal bows for their cavalry actually, as fits their models. I'm fine with giving short bows to the Indans though.

      Will also include missile options for Cathayan generals.

      Delete
    2. I looked at your army books again and I noticed the same problem for Araby and the Amazons. The page on Desert Riders even said that they are usually armed with shortbows.

      Delete
    3. And also for Cavalry in the Nippon army book they should be equipped with hankyū (bows) instead of daikyū (longbows).

      Delete
    4. Samurai were famous for their longbows. The Samurai longbow was considered very sophisticated and was surpassed later by the English Longbow. So I am fine with Samurai having longbows.

      Mathias, keep everything as is. Do the books the way you want them to be done. Short bows are really quite useless. I mean, you want these guys to handle weapons that halflings use? Come on...

      Delete
    5. I'm talking about cavalry, not infantry. Bows tended to have to be downgraded a size for use on horseback because the horse would get in the way. This is represented in the High Elves and Bretonnia army books by having the Ellryian Reavers and Yeoman wielding bows instead of longbows.

      The Halfling archers in the Halflings army book use bows, not shortbows. Though I did notice the same thing in their cavalry where their bows are not downgraded a size when on a hound or swan.

      Delete
    6. Araby use recurve [short] bows, but Amazons and halflings should probably use short bows for their cavalry at least.

      For Nippon, most artwork depict them with long bows, so I'd rather keep that. The design of the yumi made them rather fitting for horseback to begin with, so it shouldn't be much of a problem.

      Delete
    7. You trained with one bow. I don't see the need to change everything just because of that. Samurai are DOCUMENTED using Longbows on cavalry and infantry.

      The Mongolian Comp. Bow had the same range as Samurai Longbows and they used those on cavalry and infantry as well.

      Mathias, don't change anything, you just make more work on yourself. Work on the Allied Contingents or Bretonnia.

      Delete
  12. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  13. The kislevite War Wagon causes Fear?¿

    ReplyDelete
  14. Got a few typos for you
    Nippon: Hitomi Gozen should be classed as Infantry until he gets a horse
    Special Characters: Sehenesmet is not Nagash. He is referred to as such in Magic
    Halflings: the timeline has two errors. Gorbad Ironclaw razed Nuln, he didn't raise it and the sentence "The Moot was founded to" just ends.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fixed those, couldn't find the last sentence though. Where is it exactly?

      Delete
    2. Took me a while, but I found it.
      "1010 - The area was called the Moot to remember the difficult
      circumstances under which it was formed, and how the Halflings."
      How the Haflings what?

      Also,
      "1111-1115 - The Black Death devastates the Empire. As the House remains largely unsettled, the effects of the plague are mild."
      House should probably be Moot there.

      Delete
    3. Oh, and under the Bretonnian description for the Priestess of Shallya it says that "Priestesses of Shallya know the three Prayers listed to
      the right.", but there are four Prayers listed to the right.

      Delete
    4. Thanks, fixed those! I think parts of the chronicle was originally translated from Spanish, so that's why the structure was so weird.

      Delete
  15. Is there a presumed date for the update of Bretonia?
    And: isn't the level 3 / 4 for the Brets a bit oversized concerning points? (as well as I think the priestess with bound spells is way too cheap)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hard to say at the moment, been really busy lately. I will look over the points cost for the prophetess, she does seem a tad expensive. The priestess of shallya is fairly costed compared to a warrior priest considering she has no Hatred or fighting ability.

      Delete
  16. The Samurai bow was shaped like it is on purpose, with the bottom consisting of a short end and the top being way longer, in order to be able to fire it from horseback.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Who cares how it is shaped, it fires using the longbow rules. Period.

      Delete
  17. Mathias, not sure if you have an error on the halfling book or not. You have the thieves M being 5s but Clegg is a Movement of 4. Is this an error or intentional?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They should all be 4 really, will fix it in the next update.

      Delete
  18. Hey Matthias: I want to make my wife a special present: she wants to use one of your armybooks as well but hardly speaks any English. So I want to translate the whole book for her. Would it therefor be possible, that you could send me the sheets so I could exchange the text?
    It will be printed and and bound as a book as well.

    Regards,

    Michael

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Which book is she interested in? If you email me, I can give you a direct link to a copy of the the original document.

      Delete
    2. Thanks. I sent you an email!

      Delete
    3. Did you receive it?

      Otherwise: Email me please: isegrim666@gmx.net

      Thanks a lot! (Need if tor christmas :D)

      Delete
    4. Yes, I got it, just forgot to upload it. I'll send you the file later today when I come home from work.

      Delete
  19. About the Centaurs from the Albion army book. I know that they can take Spears but what are the benefits for taking spears? RAW the spears would allow them to strike in three ranks but I'm wondering if your intention was for them to gain a +1 strength bonus when charging instead. Also, Centaurs of mythology are renowned as being archers. I think that they should be able to take S 4 longbows and be BS 4.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Javelins as an upgrade that's cheaper than longbows would also be a good idea.

      Delete
  20. when are you going to add more characters to Hobgoblin book? They need a mage too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will do so when/if I have the time. Hobgoblin special characters are rather low on my priority list, but Stefan Wolf (who helped out with the Sartosa book) might be able to write up some more of them in the future.

      Delete
    2. Alright, that did it, I am going on a fast until you get your books done.

      Delete
    3. Well, that should work well towards losing a couple of pounds then, because it will likely be a good while! ;)

      Delete
  21. Comment on Araby:
    - Genies do not have magic attacks? Would be good, because no other unit in the army has.
    - Its unclear, how the three wishes work. As the text says you do not need to roll any dice for the wish.
    - there are some units which are pretty useless in my point of view:
    -- Cosairs (In close Combat they loose against everything, i can't find any
    tactical possibility for them) "Skirmisher" could prob. solve the problem a bit.

    -- Janissaries: with shields - not much better then warriors. With Halberds: probably the only option but far worse than palace guard with spears. Bow: not much better than Bowmen an far more expensive. Handguns: far worse than normad hunters.

    -- Blade dancers: 45 is very expensive i think.

    good work, beautiful army

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I personally think that Bladedancers should be a hero choice meant to challenge other characters like the Duelist and Kensai. The same thing for the Droyaskas.

      Delete
    2. Or make the Droyaskas S4, equipped with a single hand weapon by default and cost 12 points each. The S4 is so that a group claiming to be "the strongest men in Kislev" aren't as physically strong as an average soldier while the hand weapon default would be so that they can be customized with points being paid to add shields, halberds, an additional hand weapon and other options.

      Delete
    3. - Genies should have magic attacks, will add it.
      - It's currently missing some text, will fix that.
      - Corsairs are already skirmishers, they fulfill the same role as Duellists in the DoW army, i.e. they are fast cavalry on foot, meant to harass the enemy and attack their flanks.
      - Janissaries are an "all-rounder" choice, they are not meant to excel in any one role. I've used them with handguns to very good effect, because they can hold the line much more effectively than Nomad Hunters.
      - The Blade Dancers have been a bit off in terms of pricing, because they are real glass cannons, similarly to Cairn Wraiths. It's possible they could use a slight price drop.

      Delete
    4. Bladedancers used to be Hero choices, but I found they encroached too much on the Hashishin, which is the anti.character choice.
      I think Droyaskas might be better as hero choices though, like they were originally.

      Delete
    5. They should function more like the War Dancers. This means 1 wound and a large point drop.

      Delete
    6. I had considered that too, but they they would just be like the Dervishes, which are also skirmishing infantry with 2 HW:s. By making them semi-characters (like Wraiths or Eshin Triad) they still fulfill their own role.

      Delete
  22. Hello, I've been reading this, and don't know where else to put this, so will do it here: have you considered arari units for Kislev, as a supernatural creature?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't think it fits to have a lot of supernatural creatures for Kislev, I think they need more bears if anything ;)

      Delete
  23. thanks mathias, sounds good. I probably will just test these units more in battle, probably they'll work.

    just two ideas:
    - Dread Maw would be an interesting choice for araby
    - Basilica Canons should be a really huge cannon (which probably need one round to reload)

    here some other stuff for use:
    SpellCards: http://www.file-upload.net/download-9921532/ArabyCards.pdf.html
    My gallery: http://warhammer-board.de/arabia-galerie-allgemein/warhammer-fantasy-battle-f18/t32844-f19/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They should, they have for me at least :)

      - Seeing as Dread Maws are already part of the Hobgoblin army, I don't want to include them in Araby as well. Dread Maws are also influenced by Chaos, which does not make sense in Araby due to its distance to the gates of Chaos.
      - There are no models available for real Basilica cannons that I have found, and they would be rather hard too convert. So for simplicity, I just made them great cannons.

      Will look into your links more later, but your Araby army looks really good! Where are the Mameluke horses from?

      Delete
  24. http://www.grippingbeast.com/shop.php?CatID=173

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hey Mathias, Warhammer is not finishing Skaven, Beastmen, or Bretonnia. Will you put these all into 8th Edition?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have already updated Bretonnia to 8th ed (will get another update), but I don't think I will have the time to work on any other books, I'm afraid.

      Delete
  26. Just giving a short Info: I will be finished with the german translation of Sartosa Jan 2015. Will you need it for other people @ Mathias.

    And another question on Estalia:
    1. Is it meant to be, that a Inquisitor may not ride a horse?
    2. If ai have 2 mages in my army - do I need 2 inquisitors? I think so. And for a an archmage - will I need a high inquisitor?


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Inquisitor in horse would open interesting options in my opinion.
      I believe you need for each mage or archmage an inquisitor or high inquisitor.

      Delete
    2. I only intend to host the English version on this site (this is due to possible updates, in which case the German version would go on-updated), but if you want to share the German version with others, then go ahead :)

      1. At the moment they cannot, but I would not have a problem giving them that option.
      2. You require at least the same amount of inquisitors as wizards - hero or lord does not matter.

      Delete
  27. As Halfling Ram Riders are a melee unit, shouldn't their champion have +1 A not +1 BS?
    The same applies to Housewives.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That they should! Fixed, but not updated.

      Delete
    2. Reading through some of the fluff and I have a few notes.

      This bit from Araby could probably use a rewrite.
      "...Few had been spared the spiteful wrath of the Sultan, and the sight of the murdered innocents horrified the Knights. Those few who survived begged the knights from Bretonnia and the Empire to rescue those family members which had been brought to Araby. As the inhabitants were enslaved and forced to fortify the city, the crusader army marched south through Estalia. As the crusading Knights pursued the Sultan they came across the burning remains of entire villages that had been put to the torch by Jaffar's retreating army. Few had been spared the spiteful wrath of the Sultan, and the sight of the murdered innocents horrified the Knights. Those survivors they found begged the Knights to pursue Jaffar and free their loved ones from the torment of a life spent in shackles."

      The line "Siege craft is not common in the Araby, and the
      Arabyans generally lack the war engines of the
      northern nations." should probably be removed since you swapped the Onager for the Basilica Cannon.

      Finally, there's a reference to the Crab Clan (presumably from Legend of the Five Rings) in Nippon.

      Delete
    3. Good for noticing that, will update it!

      Delete
  28. With the new elven dragons at 300 points our celestial dragons still deserves cost 320 points? Even with their leadership 9. Or keep that cost but make the option of a sorcerer drake more interesting, maybe with an increase of only 40 or 35 points instead 50. In new books like demons or WoC the cost of improving a muggle to a lvl 1 wizard is only 35 points :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have not checked the latest End Times book, so I'm not sure if that is fitting or not. Do people still use the High Elf book, because I think that should override it. I'll look into the wizard upgrade though.

      Delete
  29. You don't need ET: Khaine to look at the new dragons, you can check the current HE/DE/WE books. ET: Khaine doesn't invalidate any book (except for a few special rules, like Lord/Hero permission increased to 50%, Lore of Undeath, and the like).

    ReplyDelete

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.