He melts faces with his fire-breathing fists.
He has rocket fuel on the tip of his lance.
No-one will work with him because he is kind of a dick.
Sound familiar? That's right. The Countess's Headman is out for... well, heads. Theodore Bruckner is one of the three most recent Empire releases from Warhammer Forge, and quite frankly I couldn't be more excited.
Bruckner is a Special Character Lord choice from the City State of Nuln, whose colours I paint my Empire army. The fact that two of the three Warhammer Forge first releases are expansions to my chosen army 'fluff' is very exciting, and while I may not be able to use the new rules accompanying these releases often, the quality miniatures add so much to the satisfaction factor and hobby side of my Empire army.
Of course, I may even be able to use their rules once the rumoured campaign book comes out.
Theodore Bruckner
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| Theodore Bruckner on his demigryph, Reaper |
A fantastic model, in my opinion. Besides being anatomically correct (see below), Bruckner's armour is emblazoned with the lion and scales of Nuln iconography. Pure gold. Little details like that, and the branding mark on the demigryph adds just the right amount of gritty realism to make it 'Warhammer'.
Yes, I have read the 'giant chicken' jokes on the forums and all I have to reply with is "I dare you to say that to his face".
Rules-wise, he is slightly disappointing. Indisputably the strongest man in the Empire with S5, Bruckner can wreak some serious havoc, along the lines of a dragon. But he has the same shortfalls as dragons in 8th edition, and very little maneuverability or survivability for his whopping 335 point Lord investment. At that cost you need him to match a Steam Tank in effectiveness, which he would in certain situations, but without a Ward Save is likely to generate too much attention to live long enough.
His lance gives him a once off Killing Blow on the charge, but for the points he costs I wonder if making it a once off Heroic Killing Blow would give him a bit more use.
Not being able to take him as general means cutting down on my other Lord choices, which I simply cannot do for more competitive games. So besides looking pretty in the display cabinet, Bruckner will probably only see the light of day in 3,000+ point battles or campaign scenarios. And I will definitely make sure that happens, because he is too cool a model not to use.
Nuln 'Ironside' Handgunners
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| Nuln 'Ironside' Handgunners |
Another Nuln-specific release? Mmmmm. I sometimes get asked about my choice of using handgunners over crossbowmen in my army lists, and it's true that the extra range would make a difference. But I can't stand to even think of a Nuln force without handguns. And getting their own upgrade kit is a boon, as the current state troops do look like some inbred Jed Clampet-lookalike racoon-hunting hillbillies rather than the elite-specialist trained sharpshooters they are described to be.
I do wish that Warhammer Forge had released a model for Captain-Engineer Jubal Falk, whose addition to the force allows the handgunners to take heavy armour and re-roll their '1's' rolled. The current Games Workshop Master Engineer with long rifle may suffice but I don't think he fits in well with the look of these guys.
Compared with Bruckner, I like the Ironside's rules better. However both choices come at considerable cost points wise (as well as money-wise!), which is fair enough because the same goes for other Special Characters.
What I feel to be the true value is the level of character the models bring to Nuln flavoured armies. I imagine the Nuln focus will be explained in the upcoming campaign book, but I think it's great to see something other than Altdorf and Middenheim for a change.
Oh yeah, there was also a Marienburg land ship released, but those heretics ceded from the Empire decades ago and don't deserve much mention. They can't even afford get their grubby mits on their own genuine Steam Tanks.
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| Marienburg Class Land Battle Ship vs Steam Tank |
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