With the 2020 holidays nearly upon us, it’s time to talk about gifts. Whether you’re shopping for a loved one or a Secret Santa recipient, trying to keep things lowkey or looking to splurge, or just grabbing something for yourself, Goonhammer’s got you covered with our handy gift guide.
In this guide, we’re looking at Games Workshop’s Specialist Games, including Necromunda, Adeptus Titanicus, Blood Bowl, and Horus Heresy/Warhammer 30k.
Horus Heresy
Horus Heresy is, as every fan of Warhammer knows, the best version of the game, by far. Check out our article series to learn more about this setting!
Heresy does, however, suffer somewhat by being focused around resin models from Forge World, which are not the cheapest of models available. However, our scribes have been busy trawling through the ancient datastacks, and have come up with some suggestions!
Stocking Stuffers
Forge World have got an amazing range of branded Legion Dice, and the ever-popular Legion Transfer sheets. These are not the cheapest, but are brilliant quality and easily put into a stocking. Check them out under Horus Heresy -> Gaming Accessories and Painting & Modelling -> Transfer Sheets on the Forge World Website. Just work out what Legion your loved one plays (or wants to get into), and go for it!
Entry Level
I am a huge fan of the plastics that Games Workshop produced for the Betrayal at Calth & Burning of Prospero sets. These are now online-only, which is perfect for 2020, given you can’t go out anyway. A Mark 3 or Mark 4 set will always put a smile on the face of a Heresy enthusiast – you always need more bodies on the field!
Alternatively, if you want to get them something a bit heavier – definitely go for the matching Terminator kits:
(just please, for the love of all that is holy, do not buy the plastic Contemptor).
Solid Adds
A slightly more pricey, but neatly self-contained, option would be a Legion Contemptor Dreadnought, in resin, with a couple of weapon options.
The Forge World website has a plethora of these, under Horus Heresy -> Vehicles -> Contemptor Dreadnoughts. You can go for a Legion specific version if you know what the recipient wants, or go for the generic Contemptor/Relic Contemptor bodies. Be aware that the arms and bodies are sold separately, so you will need to buy a body, and then a pair of weapons.
The weapons are “side agnostic”, and can be magnetised, so you don’t have to worry too much about getting it exactly right. All Contemptors are great! (except the plastic one)
For the Hobbyist Who Has Everything
I would say you have three choices here, depending on who you are buying for. If they are new to the hobby and you want to treat them, buy a Spartan – every Legion force can use them, and they’re large, and awesome.
If they love painting, buy them the Primarch for their Legion – all but the White Scars have their Primarch at this stage. These are beautiful centrepiece models.
If you aren’t sure, then go a Leviathan Siege Dreadnought with whatever arms you fancy – this is a souped up Contemptor which every Legion will have room for.
Happy Sanguinalia!
Adeptus Titanicus
Other than being everyone’s favorite hab-block destruction simulator, Adeptus Titanicus has a wide range of options for gifting for your nearest and dearest, making it a great range for gifting.
Stocking Stuffers
Tiny titans are adorable and make for a fantastic stocking stuffer. A pack of Warhounds is always welcome and can make for a great attempt to get a friend into the game by stealth. Otherwise Cerastus Knights are another fine complement to any force.
Despite being incredibly adorable, we would probably steer clear of vanilla Questoris Knights due to their limited use on the tabletop. That said, if your friend already has 40K knights having some teeny ones is a cute gift.
Titanicus Warhound Scout Titans
For someone who already has a complement of Titans, getting them some matching accessories for their Legio is a gift with a nice personal touch. There are some third parties around who will laser cut these into acrylic if you look around.
Entry Level
If your mate isn’t currently playing Titanicus and you’re looking to fully get them started, look no further than the 2020 starter set. This comes with all the rules, accessories and a full 1250 point Battlegroup. We had a lot more to say about this in our review, but it is hard to understate how good a buy this is to get started.
Review of the 2020 Starter Set
This only leaves scenery, which can be a very personal choice from person to person. You will be hard pressed to beat the value and practicality of the Dropzone Commander Cityscape terrain box, which will give you two tables worth of terrain for 20GBP.
Solid Adds
With its low model count, each Titan is its own project where hobbyists can go to town on the details. The Reaver is a solid workhorse and can fulfil any role – making it a welcome addition to any existing force.
Titanicus Reaver Titan with Melta Cannon and Chainfist
Larger chassis like the Warbringer and Warlord aren’t fielded in large numbers, but most Legions can make good use of two of each – so double check what your victim has before you pull the trigger.
Warlord With Plasma Annihilator
Warbringer Nemesis with Quake Cannon
For the Hobbyist Who Has Everything
With its smaller range, it is possible that your giftee may have a bit of everything. In the case they are a loyalist and don’t already have one a Psi-Titan is great centrepiece for their battlegroup.
Necromunda
Stocking Stuffers
This is where we’d suggest gang cards or dice, but these tend to be made once and you’ll never see them again. Much like with Titanicus, there are a number of third parties making acrylic tokens on Etsy and eBay. Alternatively, if you have a couple friends who already play Necromunda, you could easily split the Ambot box between them and give them each a sprue. Any gang can take them, and they can easily be painted in a chosen gang’s colors.
Entry Level
Whether they’re Necro-curious or already have a gang, a Necromunda gang box is a safe and solid buy. Any gang box is an affordable and enjoyable start to a gang. If they’ve got a “House of ____” book out, now is the time to get them the box with their associated aspirants and brutes. If they’re a bit more literary-minded, you could get them started with one of the Necromunda offerings from Black Library and get them acquainted with the setting.
Death Maidens and Wyld Runners
Underhive: A Necromunda Anthology
Solid Adds
If your friend is a scummer looking to start their own hive or add to a new one, some of the perpetually out of stock Zone Mortalis terrain would be a great buy. If they’ve already got a decent collection, you could grab them the new Gang Stronghold set and really give them something to fight over. The next step is picking things that folks might not get for themselves, and that would be weapon packs from Forgeworld. There’s weapon packs for almost every gang, and they’re a great way to expand a gang. You could even go the extra mile by getting a weapon pack and a gang box for some bodies to equip.
Zone Mortalis Columns and Walls
For the Hobbyist Who Has Everything
If there’s one thing Necromunda has a lot of, it’s weird yahoos who live in the sewer. Forgeworld makes tons of these, ranging from gang-specific characters like the ‘Zerker to named characters that any gang can take. Even if they’ll never use a Dome Runner or Ratling Slopper in an average campaign, Necromunda players delight in the wonderful weirdos who live in the Underhive. Each is characterful enough to make for a fun painting project.
Blood Bowl
Stocking Stuffers
Blood Bowl has a number of good little options here, such as dice and cards, but many of those cards are now obsolete, and Blood Bowl dice are so valuable people buy them and trade them. That said, Star Players from Forge World make a pretty good case, as they’re fairly inexpensive in most cases (roughly $30 per player, save Deeproot).
If you’re looking to go beyond Games Workshop, Greebo Games offers quite a few interesting 3rd party models that make nice options to spruce up your teams, and are currently selling a Rabid Squirrell mini to celebrate the release of Akhorne:
There are some nice options for dice and accessories as well, such as Charlie Victor Products and Black Orc Down:
Entry Level
The newest Blood Bowl starter set is the obvious choice here. For $140 US, you get 2 entire teams, covering all positions, a Big Guy, and a Star Player, as well as the pitch, tokens, and the hardcover rulebook. As far as GW products go, this set is honestly a steal. It’s hard to really recommend any other way to start Blood Bowl 2020 than with this box.
Blood Bowl Second Season Starter
Solid Adds
If you are instead shopping for someone who already has a toe in to Blood Bowl, or has expressed deep disgust for either of the new starter teams, there are a couple of other options. One would be a box of whatever team they’re missing from GW. Other options include the new rulebook, now sold separate from the starter box, and honestly it might be worth having 2 copies for sharing purposes during the pandemic era. Spike 11 comes with rules for Necromantic teams and other fluff, and as it is the first Spike supplement of the new edition, it might be worth picking up just for any fringe changes the main book doesn’t cover (unlikely but you never know!). While it is only available at Barnes and Noble, Blitz Bowl (seasons 1 and 2) make great options for players who already have their feet in. While the game plays like a very simplified version of Blood Bowl, there are some cute ideas that can be done by combining Blitz Bowl and Blood Bowl for big ‘campaign’ leagues, and it makes the much crunchier game of Blood Bowl a little more accessible. Savvy buyers might also note that the Blitz Bowl team boxes, which are about half a regular GW team box, are a great way to flesh out some teams that need more than 1 box to buy and come a bit lower in price than a full GW box. You can also very easily make an Old World Alliance team from a Blitz Bowl Season 2 box and a Halfing Blitz Bowl box! Avoid the Undead one, though–you still won’t have enough ghouls, and you’re better off buying either 2 Undead, or 1 Undead and 1 Necromantic.
For the Hobbyist Who Has Everything
If you happen to be dealing with a Blood Bowl Superfan, then it can be a little difficult to find that perfect gift. In this case, Star Players again make great choices, as Forge World is the only place to currently get GW products that aren’t sold in the regular site; for example, the full Goblin team is a great pick up. If you want to get a little wild, you may also want to check out Greebo Games, who create 3rd party teams in metal and resin. Some of these teams are better than others, but they’re pretty nice and generally gel with the BB aesthetic; the best ones are included in links here, but dig around and see if anything pops out at you. Their Cutiemals line is certainly something, but has a very unique aesthetic, so you might want to get some hints first. Finally, if you’re looking for something to hang on the wall, this “Slow Drive” print is a great choice, as is a very nice Bob and Jim print.
Slow Drive Take it Easy Poster
Looking for more?
If you’re still looking for more, be sure to check out our other holiday shopping guides for different games and categories – we’ll be posting them all week and doing a round-up on Friday. And if you have any questions or feedback, shoot us an email at contact@goonhammer.com.
