Into The Archives - My Early White Dwarf Reads (Part Seven)

It's been a while since I last did one of these - about six months I think.

I thought it was about time I went back and pulled another White Dwarf from the archive. Now the previous ones ran from WD #124 to #129 so you would expect the next one to be #130...but no. I've decided to go back into some of the earlier White Dwarfs I picked up as in those days you could pick up old issues in Games Workshop stores.

So here we go...

White Dwarf #109

By Richard Dolan the cover image is 'Something Rotten in Kislev'.

January 1989, so just the 28 years ago.

A bit of everything this month as you can see from the contents page above. Adeptus Titanicus, Warhammer 40k, Fantasy and a smattering of Blood Bowl all have a place in this issue.

It's worth a look at the rogue's gallery at the bottom on the contents page.

I am not sure Bryan Ansell could look any more eighties than he does here. And Jervis looks somewhat manic.

Before we get onto the games we have the News section, aka 'Culture Shock'. Two things of most interest is the first piece which mentions that Adeptus Titanicus had just been released and more was on the way. Appropriate considering what I have been posting up post-events over the last year.

Also worth noting is the 'Space Marine Boarding Game' being play tested in the picture. I'm sure no one will realise what that is.

Another article before getting onto games and models is 'Critical Mass' - in the old days we had reviews of books. That is non-GW books. David Pringle, who edited many a GW book in those days, handles the reviews of a number of books including the Discworld classic Mort - Bloody hell, £2.99 for a softback book. They were the days.

And now we have the first of the gaming content...

Adeptus Titanicus.

You may have noticed I am quite excited about the new game coming from Specialist Games. I still get a buzz from seeing the articles from the original game - far more actually than seeing pictures of Epic, Space Marine etc. There is just something about seeing the Titans stomping around. I think it is why I am very positive about the new game being a standalone Titan game rather than Epic coming back in a new scale.

Though ironically this article brought in rules for vehicles, including, of course, Land Raiders.

 

I so loved seeing that picture above way back when I bought this White Dwarf (1990 I would imagine). I actually managed to get hold of some of the same toy kits used in this terrain. Memories...

As well as the Land Raider the article also covered Rhinos and Marine Dreadnoughts.

Realm of Chaos.

Tzeentch and Nurgle Greater Deamons, taken from the Realm of Chaos - The Lost and the Damned book (sitting on my shelf, good book).

Background and rules for these two brutes.

I really should try and use the names 'Stench Lords' and 'Wallowers in the Pit' more often.

Blood Bowl.

Gobbo's on pogo sticks. It was a simpler time, it was a wondrous time...

NAF Facts. Read it.

Warhammer 40,000 - Terminator Squads.

Well yes. The original Terminators. Funny looking buggers. These actually came up at the Horus Heresy Weekender in the discussion on the new Custodes Dreadnought.

Note the guy bottom left doesn't really look like those top right.

Holy crap, you could give them jump packs. Terminators with Jump Packs. Well I'll be.

And now a short break.

I'll just slip this in here...an advert for playtesters. Any volunteers?

Oh and the monthly comic strip, gobbledigook. And no, I don't know the answer either.

Warhammer 40,000 - Imperial Guard.

The thin blue/grey/red/green/whatever colour your regiment wears line.

This article is the core of this months White Dwarf.

It contains lots of material giving us information on the background of the Guard, it's organisation and make up and the grunts who fill it's ranks.

Codex Exercitus? Must admit I don't remember hearing of that since.

Snippets above shows some of the things covered by the article as well as the classic piece of work showing the Commissar doing what they are famous for.

When it comes to classic pieces of artwork the 9th Necromundan Regiment shown as a double page spread below is right up there among the legends of GW artwork. It was used on the box of Guard models (36 models in a box!) advertised in this issue. I am sure it inspired many a young Guard general and a great nod to the planet of Necromunda. Shame we never in later years saw a range for a Necromundan Guard line.

The colour piece above reminds me so much of what we now see in the Forge World books, both the Imperial Armour and the Horus Heresy ones.

There is a lot to see in this article with some great background material and a lot of rules covering the full panoply of the Guard, left are the more esoteric units available to the Imperial Guard. In those days we had no Leman Russ, Chimera, Basilisk...though Sentinels came soon.

Beastmen, such an awesome thing to have those abhumans. However, Human Bombs! I know we'll never have them back in the game...but I so want them.

Illuminations. 

Warhammer Fantasy - Gobbo Chariots and Orc Artillery.

A bit self explanatory really.

Note bottom left. I cut out one of the banners. I used to have an Orc and Gobbo army so I am sure it would have gone to one of those units. Though I can't remember now what.

'Eavy Metal.

Daemons and the servants of Chaos, shown due to the release of the second Realm of Chaos book (and mentioned earlier with the article on the Greater Deamons).

Plenty of Tzeentch on show which is a nice coincidence considering what has been released in the last month.

In the accompanying text it gives details of all the numbered models - these were figures converted by John Blanche, with Mike McVey painting most of them.

Adeptus Titanicus - Reavers and Warhounds.

And we return to the big buggers of the Titan Legions. This time the Reaver and Warhound which were new releases (or about to be released).

Full rules for bringing these into games of AT with various weapon load outs.

The inside cover has some more pictures. Which as I write this are looking really, really familiar.

I've just realised I took a picture of that very page at the Heresy Weekender in the Adeptus Titanicus seminar as it came up on the slide show. Genuine coincidence that. I knew when it came up I had seen it before...

Warhammer Fantasy - Back Cover.

So to finish we have a nice diorama by Ivan Bartleet.


And there we have White Dwarf #109.

Another one to follow in the not too distant future.