Being a summary of the most widely recognized formal period classification of Warhammer Fantasy Battles (WHFB) and Age of Sigmar (AoS), used for both forums and Facebook groups: - Editions 1-3 of WHFB are Oldhammer (1983-1992), roughly the era of Bryan Ansell. - Editions 4-8 of WHFB are Middlehammer (1992-2015), the era of Tom Kirby. - All editions of AoS are Newhammer (2015-), the era of Kevin Rountree.
I came in during middle hammer, but my first stuff was old hammer skaven. A cherished memory I have from growing up was getting the OOP metal screaming bell in box from my parents. I can't recall if it was a birthday or Christmas. It's painted I still have that bell in my storage with my first skaven army. I wish I had known then to keep the packaging.
I never played them, I started with 7th edition. From what I have read, 6th and 8th edition seem to be the most well received, but 7th has its loyal proponents too.
I would personally divide 'Middlehammer' further into the following subgroups: Old-Middlehammer (1992-2000) consisting of 4th and 5th Edition - the last editions that had the bright, bold, colourful artwork full of the potential craziness of the Warhammer universe, models, most of whom were in metal, still had a particularly cartoonish feel and paint schemes were encouraged to be similarly bright and fun. Perhaps an attempt to inject some optimism in an era where the concerns about a new millennium were many and commonplace in the mindset of the general public? New-Middlehammer (2000-2015) consisting of 6th-8th Edition, the Warhammer Fantasy era we all know and love where aesthetics and colour schemes became more muted and realistic, miniatures developed more accurate and crisper proportions, plastic emerged as the dominant medium for affordable, poseable and kitbashable model-making and the background took on a darker tone, such that these Editions would still fit in with the aesthetics and background GW produces today. Indeed these Editions pretty much laid the groundwork for the GW of today. What's more, Newhammer will be divided further when The Old World comes out into AoShammer and TOWhammer. Similarly, 40K, for those of you who'd care, would be divided into: Oldhammer: 1st - 3rd Editions (1987-2004) - Like Oldhammer and Old-Middlehammer Fantasy, defined by the use of bright, bold artwork and model colour schemes and, in the earlier editions, much more complicated and drawn-out rulebooks Middlehammer: 4th-7th Editions (2004 -2017) - The emergence of 40K into becoming the grimdark setting it always professed to be, and the era I still cling to for dear life. I am tempted to end this era at 6th because 7th really messed things up and sparked the transition to what would become 8th, but given 7th followed the ruleset of its predecessors I suppose it must blight my favoured era. Newhammer: 8th Edition onwards (2017-) - Further divided into 41K, the current editions of 40K (which is now technically in the 42nd Millennium with the new lore changes, hence 41K), and 30K, the Horus Heresy which still follows Middle 40K mechanics. Yes I also am a New-Middlehammerer through and through, unless TOW becomes so fantastic that I dip into TOWhammer, and even then I will always keep my Middlehammer stuff.
Yep, generally people either gravitate toward the overall greater balance in 6th and 8th, but 7th is definitely still playable if everyone uses 6th Edition books (given it was a streamlining of 6th, virtually nothing needs to be changed), or if every army that got one except Daemons uses their 7th book and the rest use 6th books (which would include folding Warriors back into Hordes of Chaos with Daemons). To be honest I think Dark Elves were only OP because of a particular Magic Item which put them at the level of Daemons, in which case if nobody uses that Magic Item they could be allowed to use the rest of their 7th book.
? I’d have thought Tom Kirby would be your desired quarry after he killed off Warhammer Fantasy. Indeed Kevin Rountree has done quite a lot to make amends for the mistakes Kirby made during his era - ancient factions killed off by Kirby are being brought back, Fantasy is being resurrected. The only things wrong with the current Rountree era GW are Newhammer 40K and the ever-more ludicrous price increases. To be honest things could be far worse - they could have been set against bringing back Fantasy and could have avoided bringing back Genestealer Cults, Squats and other factions that may well return along the line (of which I believe Chaos Dwarfs are one after recent discussions with staff down my local GW).
Oh well, if I'm already time travelling I'll do both.......... Or I could just visit my younger self and advise me not to get involved in this crazy hobby. Just think of all that time and money I could have spent on motorbikes....
Just make sure to kill Kirby in 2014 before he devises the End Times and releases 7th Edition 40K two years too early with no changes to 6th except a load of unnecessary crap, so that we still get all the good stuff that came out of 6th, 7th and 8th Edition Fantasy and 5th and 6th Edition 40K I’d personally still rate Warhammer, there’s no chance of dying painfully young playing Warhammer
I can feel a movie plot coming on....The Warhamminator....where a hobbyist goes back in the past to stop the destruction of his hobby.......
What a coincidence that this has arisen just after I've rewatched The Terminator... "I'll be back..." *Smashes a car into the entrance lobby of Warhammer World*
I'd watch that. Except I'd have the Terminator destroying the members of the Committee that axed Warhammer Fantasy. Not even the Committee that created AoS. Just whoever it was that axed 8th and Fantasy - completely unnecessarily. There's no reason why both could not have been continued.
Exactly, AoS could still have been created and allowed to develop, but there was no need to kill off Warhammer Fantasy, that was completely unnecessary. The Terminator could certainly wipe out those who made that decision... but there'll always be someone who decides to play Kyle Reese and attempt to stop him preventing such sacrilege...
Whoever owns the most shares in GW probably... Although it's ultimately a bit stupid as there is no REAL reason why you need to discontinue the old. Just expand facilities and add the new.