Hello everyone,
We’re back today to share our thoughts and comment on Games Workshop’s first 2026 live stream. Until now, we hadn’t taken the time to give our impressions on previews, but we felt it was important to revisit the recent GW announcements and releases with you.
In the future, we plan to provide more regular preview reviews, without falling into an overload articles of news, which others already cover very well, nor focusing on leaks, as we remain committed to official rumors and, above all, the element of surprise they provide.
This review will be divided into three separate articles:
- Warhammer 40,000
- Age of Sigmar / Blood Bowl
- Horus Heresy
A structure designed to make the reading clearer and more digestible.
The Return of Huron Blackheart
The V10 end campaign for Warhammer 40,000 is now underway. This time, Games Workshop seems to be directing its storyline across several distinct campaigns, which, for the moment, do not appear to be interconnected. It remains to be seen whether these campaigns will open multiple fronts for the future or eventually converge in a final apotheosis. Only time, and the reading of the various campaign installments, will tell. Of course, we will cover them in reviews when the time comes.
Now, let’s move on to the miniatures. The box dedicated to Huron Blackheart and the Masters of the Maelstrom is simply stunning. The mix of profiles and origins truly brings out the pirate nature of the faction. The nod to the origins of the different chapters composing the warband is particularly appreciated and fits perfectly with the history of the Badab War and the flight of members from chapters loyal to the Astral Claws.
The inclusion of members from the Executioners and the Mantis Warriors is a fantastic detail that we really enjoyed. Additionally, for the first time, a Tarellian has been released as a miniature. Until now, this species had only appeared in a few scattered illustrations in older rulebooks, where it was just a subtle detail. Seeing it fully realized as a model is a wonderful surprise. The human captain is also magnificent, and this overall design really makes you want to play the warband in boarding-action scenarios.
The fact that we see renegades who are still uncorrupted by Chaos is also very interesting from a narrative perspective, adding real depth to the lore. In the future, probably some way off, we will try to produce an Index Chaotica and Index Astartes article dedicated to the Astral Claws.
The Red Corsair Raiders are simply stunning. They brilliantly blend the different classic Space Marine armor styles at a time when the term Primaris seems to be gradually fading in favor of a more uniform Space Marine range, with the “classic” line having nearly disappeared over time.
Our only real regret concerns this general rescale: Games Workshop still hasn’t clearly taken a stance on officially ending the Firstborn Space Marines. These units can still be played as proxies or through Legend rules, allowing them to remain playable outside of competitive formats.
In any case, these veterans exude experience and character, they are truly badass. It’s clear that we will very likely cave in and add this new line of miniatures to our collection.
The Reave-Captain also allows you to field a generic renegade captain, uncorrupted by Chaos, offering multiple customization and gameplay options.
Finally, an upgrade kit will also be available. While the concept is excellent in principle, we are somewhat more cautious about the choice to include elements from Chaos Space Marines. That said, since the Badab War, it’s entirely plausible that some members of the Red Corsairs were more heavily corrupted than others.
This kit nevertheless raises two interesting questions:
- Will we see a dedicated Red Corsairs codex supplement?
- Will other renegade chapters also receive specific upgrade kits?
Everything points to a positive answer for the second question, but it remains to be seen whether Games Workshop will follow through with this logic.
This reveal focused on the Red Corsairs is an excellent introduction and provides real content, going far beyond a simple command squad. The whole set is coherent, rich, and gives the faction a true identity.
Our only major disappointment is that we had hoped for a redesign of the Chaos Space Marine bikes, an iconic unit for this renegade chapter. Their absence leaves a slight feeling of incompleteness, as they would have fit perfectly within this wave of releases.
Moreover, this series of miniatures sheds light on many Rumour Engines, which we will detail below.
Prince Yriel Strikes Back with New Aeldari Corsairs
This wave of releases is an excellent surprise, especially since we never expected Games Workshop to revisit the Aeldari Corsairs. Originally developed as miniatures by Forge World during the Imperial Armour Volume 11: The Doom of Mymeara campaign, we didn’t think they would ever return to the main range.
The release of the first corsair squad was already a very pleasant surprise, but the expansion of the range is even more exciting. We can only hope for the return of other iconic kits, such as the Aeldari Lynx, for example.
Let’s start with Prince Yriel, resurrected by Yvraine. We are thrilled to see this legendary hero in a new, beautifully sculpted miniature. Does Games Workshop still officially associate him with the Iyanden Craftworld? Will the Ynnari lore evolve following his resurrection? These are all questions we’re asking, as we have high expectations for his return after his encounter with Yvraine, a lore part, unfortunately, seems to have stagnated for some time.
In recent years, the Aeldari have been particularly well-served with new sculpts, and it is truly enjoyable to be able to field an army composed almost entirely of recent miniatures.
Here is the first surprise: the return of the Skyreavers. Previously available as a resin conversion kit, they now make a grand comeback in a fully redesigned version.
The artistic direction has evolved somewhat. Back then, the Corsairs had a very distinct visual identity; now, the style leans more toward a blend of Aeldari and Drukhari aesthetics. This release raises an interesting question: does Games Workshop intend to position the Corsairs as a standalone sub-faction? Especially since these miniatures strongly resemble, in both silhouette and potential role , to the Swooping Hawks.
Another surprise miniature is the Void Dreamer, Kharseth the Aethyrmancer. This new character is simply stunning and showcases many elements reminiscent of older Aeldari models, a real nod to the historic range.
It is, however, difficult to determine whether this is a special character tied specifically to this campaign or if it is intended to eventually become a generic special character. Two possibilities emerge: either Kharseth remains closely linked to this campaign, and the miniature later serves as the basis for a generic character profile of Void Dreamer, or a new sculpt will appear later to represent this role in a more standardized way alongside the special character. We believe a clear decision will eventually need to be made for the Aeldari codex, which is seriously accumulating a large number of entries.
In any case, while this release is exciting, we are still eagerly awaiting a new sculpt of Karandras, who remains one of the major absences in the current Aeldari redesign.
The Vyper has also been completely redesigned and now features a truly aerodynamic design. While it is an iconic unit, it is particularly satisfying to see a new sculpt for a vehicle whose older models were beginning to show their age.
The Starfang is the second miniature in this kit and supports our idea that an Aeldari codex supplement could be considered in the future. However, the model is less striking; the turret facing backward can be a bit disconcerting, and we are eager to learn more about this vehicle.
On the positive side, since this is a dual kit, we hope it will provide a good number of bits for our conversion box, which is always a bonus for creative hobbyists.
So that wraps up the Aeldari. For a complete update of the Forge World list, we will still need to see Corsair-specific jetbikes as well as a few vehicles that were initially released in resin.
The future looks very promising for the Aeldari, especially considering the growing number of entries in the range. It is also possible that, in the future, Games Workshop might turn its attention to the Exodites, opening up new possibilities for players. One Rumor Engines have been spotted for this army.
Finally, the second campaign supplement, The Maelstrom, will cover 500 worlds. As usual, it will include missions, lore, and all the content typically found in these campaign books. A particularly interesting addition for players is the creation of rules that allow you to customize your own army general, offering greater flexibility and tactical depth. Unfortunately, we don’t have much more information at this stage.
The Eye of Terror
It seems that the next campaign supplement will feature the Iron Warriors.
We will try to decipher these miniature parts, still full of mysteries, which reinforces our idea that each renegade chapter will likely be treated in the future with its own series of upgrade kits.
Here is the list of mystery photos, to be explored and analyzed in order to get a first glimpse of future releases.
Here are our speculations on the mystery photos.
At first glance, we believe we are seeing a character in Cataphractii armor, judging by the shoulder pad visible in one of the images, more specifically, that of an Iron Warriors Forge Master. It remains to be determined whether this is a generic character or a named character.
However, the Iron Warriors shoulder pad visible in another photo does not match Cataphractii armor, and considering the surrounding pieces, we lean toward this being an upgrade sprue, similar to what was done for the Red Corsairs.
Two other parts appear to correspond to a resculpt of a new Defiler, while the open claw, if it does not belong directly to the character, could indicate a resculpt of the Mutilators, and perhaps even a dual kit including Obliterators.
We are therefore keeping a close eye out for more photos to see if our predictions hold true.
In conclusion, with Games Workshop increasingly releasing books for The Old World and Horus Heresy, one might wonder about a potential direction for V11, running alongside the classic codexes. This could include codex supplements for factions such as Aeldari Corsairs, Harlequins, Red Corsairs, and possibly even the Death Korps of Krieg. Only time will tell whether these factions will eventually be integrated into the main codexes or remain as independent supplements.
This 40K reveal was very enjoyable, and we look forward to discovering future releases leading up to the next starter box of the edition.
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