Alex Kierkegaard's Metaverse

[icycalm]

What I think is the next narrative supplement (that should also include a campaign) after 500 Worlds [ > ] and The Maelstrom [ > ] has been teased.

The New Year Preview – Revealed: The Eye of Terror
https://www.warhammer-community.com/en- ... -of-terror

We'll give you the full lowdown as soon as we can. For now though, we can only confirm that these are all part of a new Warhammer 40,000 supplement on the horizon titled Eye of Terror, due out in a few months.

The Reign of Iron – Teaser Trailer | Warhammer 40,000
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZyCmcrIIPw



This should be coming out by late spring, which is about when 11th Edition is expected. So this will probably be the last campaign of Season 10, so it should be a banger.

[icycalm]

A powerhouse Warsmith leads a new campaign for the Iron Warriors
https://www.warhammer-community.com/en- ... n-warriors

You wait for a whole year, and then two Chaos invasions come along at once...

The Red Corsairs have barely begun their great excursion from the Maelstrom [ > ], and already traitorous forces have begun to move elsewhere. The Imperium of Man is a monolithic fortress that must be brought down from all sides, and when it comes to siegecraft of the highest order, there's only one Legion with the chops to see it done.

Enter the Iron Warriors, and Warsmith Kravek Morne.

Insane character design, 40K Doc Ock.

So what could this terrible campaign into Imperial space entail? We'll reveal more when we know, but rest assured—it's a biggie.

More to come soon. Iron within, iron without.

It sure sounds like the Season 10 finale.

[icycalm]

Warhammer 40K: Apocalypse Returns With ‘Eye of Terror: Reign of Iron’ Books
https://www.belloflostsouls.net/2026/03 ... books.html



This is incredible news for me. It's what Project Apocalypse [ > ] is about. The Apocalypse mode is a way to play 40K with more than 3000 pts. armies without any upper limit. People have played 10,000 and 20,000 pts. games with these rules, which are actual armies, and you can play 100,000 and 200,000 games with enough dedication, which is Planetary Annihilation-size armies. Problem is the last incarnation of those rules was published in 2019 for the 8th Edition of 40K so it's not fully compatible with the current edition. So my plan was to simply... play with 8E Apocalypse rules when the armies got large enough for it. The problem with that approach is that between 8E and 10E a shitload of new units and even entire factions were released, and those don't have 8E Apocalypse stats so we wouldn't be able to use them. So my plan was to start off playing with pre-9E factions and units we could use, and once I got confident enough in my grasp of the rules I would stat all the newer units myself for Apocalypse.

Now I don't have to worry about any of it, as official support for 10E Apocalypse is coming in mere weeks with this campaign plus they already stated that these rules will be compatible with 11th Edition that launches in June, meaning full compatibility is assured for at least the next three years, by which point I will be a master of the rules and won't care what they do or don't do beyond that stage.

Truly incredible news for me, massively simplifying my job of launching Alex Kierkegaard's Warmaster this year, which is what Project Apocalypse is, allowing you to take the ENTIRE armies you have been amassing in Battlemaster and unleashing them into full-size planets and systems for PA-size 40K wars!

The guy's analysis is worth reading, and don't miss my own commentary on his thoughts in the end.

Games Workshop is re-introducing Apocalypse to 40K once again with Eye of Terror: Reign of Iron. The new expansion is coming soon.

I am a simple man. I see “Warhammer 40,000: Apocalypse” and I check it out. The sheer spectacle of Apocalypse games catches my attention every time. Even if I’m not playing in the game/event, I will happily wander around the boards just to see what’s going on. I love to check out all the armies in action. The sheer size of these games is just eye-catching and that’s what I like the most about them. Playing in them over the various editions, to be honest, has been a mixed bag. So I’m curious about this new expansion that Games Workshop has cooked up. So let’s get into what’s on the way and then we can get to the return of Warhammer 40,000: Apocalypse.

...

Okay, so we’ve got a new set of rules for "classic larger-scale Apocalypse games". That could mean a lot of things depending on what they mean by classic. There was a time before Apocalypse was even a “mode” where players would just get together and decide to play with as many points and players as they could muster. I know because I was one of those players. Anyhow, Apocalypse has had many different definitions and official rulesets over the editions.

I’m curious to see if GW is going to take a “greatest hits” approach to these rules or if they are going to start from scratch. Based on the relative size of the Apocalypse book in the image... I’m guessing this isn’t going to be that in depth though...

Now, aside from defining “classic” there’s a couple more hints at what’s coming. We’re getting rules that “add all sorts of ways to streamline games and account for significantly larger army sizes.” To be honest, yes, massive 40K games would drag on quite a bit if you just ported the standard ruleset over and had 10x the size. Shoot, even a 4,000-5,000 point game would take significantly longer to play. Unless you’re just busting out the Titans to fill points. And that’s TOTALLY a thing people do. So I’m assuming that’s also been taken into account.

That said, I’ve had mixed feelings about those streamlined rules. Still, I’m reserving my judgement until I get to see what GW is presenting in full.

Finally, we’ve got this last tidbit to chew on. These rules are apparently modular "with sections designed to be added or removed depending on how you like to play". That sounds promising. Modular rules can be used to allow players to find their fun while also building the sandbox they want to play in. For example, if the Titan rules are a separate module, maybe your group doesn’t use those rules. I’m honestly curious to see how GW chops things up in this case.

Apocalyptic Hurdles

For now, I’m going in cautiously optimistic. The first hurdle is going to be getting your hands on these books. I’m hoping that GW puts the Apocalypse rules out digitally or at least as a download on WarCom. My concern is that these books sell out fast and access to them becomes super-limited.

My next concern is about the game mode itself. I don’t know if the current format of Matched Play 40K really lends itself to the spectacle of Apocalypse. Matched Play honestly feels very rigid with its L-shaped buildings and terrain maps. While I do think that those things are good for competitive events, I think Apocalypse is quite the opposite. I don’t think anyone should come to an Apocalypse table with a WAAC Competitive mindset. Mostly because Apocalypse has always been very imbalanced. Once you start mixing in modular rules and “well we play it this way in our group” you can toss that clinical, competitive environment out the window.

And for Apocalypse, you absolutely should. Part of the fun is bringing crazy stuff to the tabletop just to see what happens. It’s actually more like a co-operative game in that way. Sure, you’re still playing against other players, but if you’re not all rallying around the tabletop to watch what happens when a Warlord Titan explodes and destroys everything in the blast wave (including your own units) and CHEERING like a fireworks display... you’re doing it wrong.

I don’t normally take such a strong stance about these things but there is absolutely a right way to enjoy Apocalypse. If you’re not there for the mass carnage and utter devastation being unleashed then stick to Matched Play. Give me the fireworks display and bring some popcorn as things go boom. Unleash the Apocalypse.

His concerns over Matched Play are unfounded. Even I know that Apocalypse has always been the exact opposite to Matched Play, and what's more, GW just announced that all these modes are going away in 11E in favor of a more unified system. So balance in the Matched Play mirror sense won't be an issue at all for Apocalypse.

He does have a point about the thinness of the book signifying simplicity, but at least to start with that's an advantage for us since we want to be eased into the rules. Plus for my planet-spanning wars, it is again an advantage. And if we outgrow those rules eventually, we still have their three earlier incarnations to study and use them to complexify, plus the new system's advertised modularity might also help with that.

Really couldn't have hoped for more favorable conditions to launch my turn-based PA successor. Stay tuned, if you're interested, and wait till you see my planet-generation tech... (and even CITY-generation, which PA doesn't even have lol). And that's not even my main release for 2026 lol. It'll be a wild year for gaming fans. Really, the best year ever if we also count Star Citizen base-building.

[icycalm]

First details on the new Apocalypse rules are out, and they go a long way towards assuaging concerns! Above all we learn what they mean by "modular" and it's kind of revolutionary! It means that instead of getting an entirely new ruleset for large battles you get a range of rules simplifications that can be applied à la carte so that the bigger the battle the more of these you are using! So a 10,000 pts battle will have a different ruleset than 50,000 and 100,000 and 500,000 pts ones, and the choice of how much simplification to apply will be up to the players! (could also potentially apply them progressively during the battle, either to speed it up if it's taking too long or complexify it as more units are eliminated??) This might also open the door to incorporating rules from previous Apocalypse editions as merely extra modules. Also, since the base ruleset remains the same, it means units don't need to be restated for Apocalypse, which might explain why the book is thinner than previous editions. Finally, the modules aren't just simplifying things but also adding abilities that only come into play at larger army sizes!

Terrific news all around then and the icing is that the boxed set is shipping imminently. Of course Wahapedia will take some months to put the rules online, but we should have rough scans soon, and anyway the good scans will be out long before year's end, so Alex Kierkegaard's Warmaster is still on track for a late 2026 release leading to its first-runner-up win for 2026 Game of the Year that's now undisputed among industry veterans.

Check the full news update for hype!

https://www.warhammer-community.com/en- ... ttles-easy

New Apocalypse rules make gigantic battles easy

Massive games of Warhammer 40,000 are loads of fun, and new rules in the Eye of Terror expansion make running these Apocalypse battles easier than ever. Grab your biggest army and your grandest plan, and find out how.



First, what is Apocalypse? This type of game tends to be anything beyond the scope of a normal 2,000-point battle, from as little as two friends throwing hands with oversized armies to entire teams of players shepherding tens of thousands of points around enormous battlefields. If the prospect of simply moving all of your stuff leaves you checking your schedule for the rest of the day, there's a good chance you're in Apocalypse. Armageddon is the ideal setting for these types of battles, as hordes of Orks take on regiments of Astra Militarum, but conflicts of this size take place across the galaxy.



Unlike some previous incarnations (the first version of Apocalypse came out in 2007, introducing rules for massed battles and big miniatures, including the Stompa and Baneblade in plastic), this latest version of Apocalypse uses the core Warhammer 40,000 rules with a few artful tweaks, so you don't have to learn a whole new system to get stuck in. A new suite of 12 rules adaptations offers ways to cut down on turn time and simplify complex rules, so that you spend less time reading rulebooks and more time blowing Titans to pieces. Engine kill!

In big team games with massive hordes of miniatures, for instance, you don't always want to wait for your friend with 120 Kroot Carnivores to finish his Advances before Deep Striking your single unit of Warp Spiders onto the table. With the Ready Reinforcements rule, you can now do your Reinforcement step at any point during the phase – easy as that.



Perhaps most importantly, given the sheer size of the weapons found on the super-heavies that rule the Apocalypse roost, units that would otherwise get shot off the table before doing anything at all can hold on for one last hurrah – Giving Their All to get some payback before dramatically expiring.



These are only a couple of the rules available to tweak your experience, and they all work just as well at 3,000 points as they do at 30,000. To cap it all off, each faction has at least three impressive new Stratagems made specifically for the size and spectacle of Apocalypse games – Orks can feed off the chaos around them to call a Waaagh! as often as they can afford the Command point cost (don't worry if the costs look a little high – you get loads more Command points in Apocalypse games), while Chaos Space Marines can rip open a yawning portal to the Warp and spirit a significant chunk of their army across the battlefield. We can't guarantee that it's as comfortable as jumping in the back of a Rhino, but it is fast.





Once you've had a quick look at the rules adaptations and found which ones work for you, you’ll be fighting Apocalypse battles in no time. The only thing you need to worry about is getting all your players together (proving once again that the greatest threat to the 41st Millennium isn't heretics or xenos – it's scheduling), and wouldn't you know it, there's a section in the Eye of Terror: Apocalypse book about that too.



Pre-order the Eye of Terror: Reign of Iron expansion tomorrow and join the Iron Warriors on their hellish campaign to dominate the Cadian Gate – and if you have your eyes on an Apocalypse game or two, you might also want to stock up on the devastating new Defilers.