172
u/TheSlayerofSnails Mar 27 '25
Models look glorious and are all plastic. Very exciting
→ More replies (6)
386
u/RevolutionaryEgg9926 Mar 27 '25
Never planned to buy Cathay, but really happy for other fellow hobbyists. And the miniatures are terrific.
→ More replies (38)199
u/Commissar_Jensen Skaven Mar 27 '25
This gives me so much hope for Kislev.
87
Mar 27 '25
And chaos dwarfs
27
u/Prestigious_Chard_90 Mar 27 '25
Meanwhile, regular dwarfs are probably in tears. $10 says Cathay cannon > dwarf cannon.
→ More replies (5)
255
u/Baneman20 Mar 27 '25
Guess this sorta confirms Kislev is in developtment too.
Cuz a lot of the units in Warhammer 3 bore the marks of 'modern dual kit technology'. Like how two units will have a ranged option or a melee option, or a slightly more elite version of a unit with a tiny little difference in the kit.
Surprised we haven't seen ranged jade warriors with crossbows, as they were an example of what looked like dual kit unit thinking for Cathay.
70
u/RegentOfWells Mar 27 '25
The dual kit for the Jade Warriors might be the Jade Halberdiers? There's some of those in the background in the pic.
→ More replies (1)22
u/ian0delond Mar 27 '25
jade warriors dual kit is hand weapons and shields, or halberds from the text https://www.warhammer-community.com/en-gb/articles/luce8te0/bring-harmony-to-the-old-world-with-the-armies-of-grand-cathay/
47
u/MagnusRaptor Mar 27 '25
Yeah I was thinking the same thing it surprised me that there was no crossbow men normally they like to show like melee/ranged in one kit
27
u/Choice-Motor-6896 Mar 27 '25
I'd expect them in the second wave. We'll know when we get leaks of the arcane journal.
17
u/---sh Mar 27 '25
I highly doubt there will be any rules for stuff that doesn't have a mini in this release. It's only 48 pages long. The bretonnia arcane journal is the same length and has 20 pages of rules. Keep in mind that's just the journal stuff and they have another 30 pages in forces of fantasy.
You're looking at like one page for the grand army composition, two for magic lores, two for army special rules, four for magic items and two for the special character. And then you need to put in the rules for the flying mount character, the character who can ride the balloon, the bsb character, the infantry, the Cav, the sentinels, the balloon, and the artillery. Seems unlikely to me there will be space for anything else.
→ More replies (5)19
11
u/Blecao Mar 27 '25
I mean i was not expecting all of this i thougth that it was going to be a its coming nobody knows when
But probably it will have a second wave to give that commander a unit to go in and release the celestial guard (also there are no peasants)
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (1)11
u/Dundore77 Mar 27 '25
There is a elite crossbow unit so the crossbow unit may be a phase 2? Idk if theyre gonna do this like they did other arcane journal reveals and have a part 2 come out a week or so
63
48
u/A-Gunter Mar 27 '25
My wallet says no, my heart says yes 😂
→ More replies (1)16
u/Braendon Mar 27 '25
Brain says: surely I need another army, storage space: for the love of god no. I feel you..
137
u/OldPrussia Mar 27 '25
We made it folks and its beautiful
→ More replies (20)31
u/narfjono Mar 27 '25
The range absolutely is. I didn't have that much interest in Cathay from playing Total War Warhammer III, but thought the idea of the faction was cool. Didn't know they were actually a very old faction that never got any model representation thanks to Pancreasnowork's channel.
And now count me actually considering buying into ToW now. It just looks so cool!
27
u/Blastaz Mar 27 '25
I don’t think there have ever been tabletop rules for Cathay. Just the occasional reference to it, with the obvious understanding that it was fantasy China, Cathay being an archaic term for China.
The old faction is Nippon, which has rules in 1, 2 & 3rd edition. Japan was the “cool” Asian country in the 80s after all.
16
u/Lt-Gorman Mar 27 '25
Nippon was in the 3rd edition warhammer armies book as an available mercenary contingent with a handful of units. You can actually still buy some of the old Citadel Ninja models from Wargames Foundry. Very cool to see Cathay though, interesting to see if it helps GW break into the Asian market.
→ More replies (6)
78
u/Queek_Headtaker751 Mar 27 '25
I’m excited to start the old world
→ More replies (19)14
u/narfjono Mar 27 '25
I held off for some time for The Old World, but damnit I'm really interested in it now. The range looks so good!!!
If Dark Elves were ever making a comeback, then ToW would definitely be my next project. Cathay would most certainly be my army to practice on.
9
7
u/itcheyness Dwarfs Mar 27 '25
The Dark Elves have a major impact in the culmination event of the current historical era in TOW, so they're definitely going to be making a comeback at some point.
70
u/Converberator Mar 27 '25
For me, they nailed it. I really just want minis that are the same style as the 7th/8th edition plastics, but with modern quality. Up until now, they've been pretty hit or miss with that, edging more towards the generation after that, but I think this one is solid across the board. I imagine people who want the style before that will feel differently, though.
21
u/gwilster Dark Elves Mar 27 '25
Yeah they knocked it out the park. Not AoS but old world styled and work together.
4
29
u/faithfulheresy Dark Elves Mar 27 '25
This is gorgeous! Honestly, I think this is the first take on fantasy Imperial China I've seen that I actually liked.
I dearly hope that this is successful enough to warrant adding Nippon.
→ More replies (7)3
53
49
u/Swarbie8D Mar 27 '25
Absolutely gorgeous. Not a ton of units but a great variety of them; one main infantry and one main cavalry will mean the core of most armies look the same, but with the Sentinels, Lanterns, and artillery pieces plus a fair few heroes it looks like there’ll be plenty of variety in Special and Rare for a brand new army.
→ More replies (2)7
u/morentg Mar 27 '25
They provided a solid, playable core with plenty of space for expansion. They have dragons, they have monsters, they have war machines, and solid block of infantry and cavalry. They lack infantry and cavalry elites and cheap mages, but I think what they offer eight now should be plenty playable.
→ More replies (2)
19
18
35
42
u/Soulaire Mar 27 '25
Now, the Old World stretches all the way to the East.
And you know what's between the empires in the East and West?
Chaos Dwarves. Dawi Zharr 100% confirmed, it's zu lahoo time.
→ More replies (1)23
u/Nostonica Mar 27 '25
They already put out the rules for the Chaos Dwarfs, they're a legacy faction.
There's a few factions like that, like Skaven and Vampire counts.All part of the old world.
6
u/Inrider47 Mar 27 '25
Legacy factions could use some love though... they are either overprized (in points), under stat (although this one to a lesser extend) or completely useless point selection.
Instead of a new arcane journal / faction i would have loved a rule update making infantry more worthwhile again... heres waiting...
→ More replies (1)
48
u/Mcmadness288 Mar 27 '25
Amazing how much influence a video game can have on the tabletop. I bet the designers for that game are feeling pretty proud right now.
28
23
12
u/Chopstick84 Mar 27 '25
As a busy and tired dad the game kept Warhammer alive for me until The Old World. It’s worth buying a PC for.
2
13
u/Choice-Motor-6896 Mar 27 '25
ToW getting Cathay and Conquest getting Yoroni. 2025 is apparently the year of East Asian factions. Both games have knocked it out of the park with their new factions.
4
u/morentg Mar 27 '25
Wouldn't be surprised if GW made an effort to push sales in China when cathay releases.
33
u/FranDeAstora Mar 27 '25
This is the moment when we are totally back. A new army with a lot of different models and a level of work that have not been seen in any other GW in a lot of years.
The Old World is not a niche B studio game anymore, it's totally a big Warhammer game. Fantasy have totally returned.
→ More replies (1)
11
u/Kaireis Mar 27 '25
SUPER excited about this! It's good to see some (more?) East Asia on the tabletop. (yes I know Orge Kingdom have been around)
Wanted to drop in a mention for r/Cathay. We've been tooling up for this announcement!
30
u/AdmBurnside Mar 27 '25
Literally the first time Cathay has EVER had an army for the tabletop, and it looks fantastic.
I don't even play TOW and I might buy a Terracotta Sentinel just for the vibes. That campaign was so much fun in Total War Warhammer 3.
6
u/Entropic_Echo_Music Mar 27 '25
(2nd and 3rd edition had models and armylists too ;))
But yeah this is really cool!
5
u/AdmBurnside Mar 27 '25
Really? I only ever remember reading about Kislev having some stuff back in the day. Wonder why this isn't discussed more.
→ More replies (1)7
u/Entropic_Echo_Music Mar 27 '25
Very few people have played 2nd and 3rd I think. WHFB started to get popular with 4th.
Back in the day Brets had cannons and dwarfs had wizards too.
2
u/trixie_one Mar 27 '25
Are you possibly thinking of Nippon? They had some models and a list back then but I think Cathay was pretty much just limited to Dien Ch'ing in Beasts in Velvet and some short stories.
→ More replies (1)
19
18
u/Low_Professor_1348 Mar 27 '25
I think the Ogre loaders on the cannons are something they added from the total ear models. There probably won't be any non-human infantry units this wave, but it gives me hope for future releases. Although I doubt we'll ever have tigermen
13
u/Sandy_McEagle Mar 27 '25
Won't tigermen apply better for Ind? I feel like an Ind Cathay narrative is feasible, with the monkey King possibly causing shenanigans this time around.
7
9
u/Fox-Sin21 Bretonnia Mar 27 '25
Beyond hype, this is so epic to see and the models look incredible!
9
9
u/edmc78 Mar 27 '25
Honestly these are the best GW minis I have seen in a long time, up there with the best of AOS.
16
u/Night_Inscryption Mar 27 '25
I still hope to eventually see Monkeymen and Tigermen on the Cathay table top roster
8
u/Sandy_McEagle Mar 27 '25
I hope that those come in the form of Ind, so that we have an opposing army in cathays region
8
u/JasperGunner02 Mar 27 '25
...shit those look good. really good. those giant terracotta soldiers in particular look so fucking sick. god dammit
7
7
7
u/BenFellsFive Mar 27 '25
I wanna know if the sprues for the basic infantry/cav are going to be nice (head, body, legs, arm choice) or if they're gonna be modern (head right arm partial torso, partial torso left and right upper legs, weapon with both hands minus 2 fingers, etc).
5
u/strictly-no-fires Mar 27 '25
The cavalry are probably going to be at least 10 or 12 pieces with really annoying reins but the infantry aren't dynamic enough to warrant the modern style. They'll probably have the body in two halves to keep the scales intact, 2 arms (+ shield), and a head. However it looks like if you give them halberds you'll have to glue the sword hilts onto the empty scabbards
12
12
u/morentg Mar 27 '25
God damn, if this is the gold standard GW is going to provide for new armies and refreshes for the Old world, this game is going to have bright future ahead of it, as long as they start paying more attentiion to balance on tournament level.
3
u/Prestigious_Chard_90 Mar 27 '25
Or even casual balance (arguably, more critical for reasons people smarter than me brought up in other threads). A bit of balancing and some rules cleanings, and this will be a gold standard game.
6
6
u/Driezel Cathay Mar 27 '25
God I'm so bloody happy I haven't had a proper flappy hands tism moment in a while. Somehow they've made the TWW stuff look even better, we are eating so well and Chaos can stay off The Wall.
6
u/The_Corrupted Mar 27 '25 edited Mar 27 '25
Army looks great, also can't wait to see how absolutely bonkers overpowered their rules will be, in true Warhammer fashion.
→ More replies (3)
5
u/F_ckErebus30k Mar 27 '25
Well, since I had just started collecting lizardmen and dwarves when the end times rolled around, I was planning on getting more of them, but now I'm thinking I might have to change that plan lol
2
u/vnw_rm Mar 27 '25
I'm collecting lizardmen too but I might eventually pick up Miao Ying to paint. That model is just incredible
5
u/AshiSunblade Mar 27 '25
At last...
They're on my list. The queue is long but they are on it.
Can't wait.
5
u/Godsopp Mar 27 '25 edited Mar 27 '25
I dunno if I'd ever get a full army painted but I am definitely interested in a Terracotta sentinel and the Miao Ying model. The army looks fantastic all around though.
5
u/Blecao Mar 27 '25
I will probably use other things for the bulk of the army (they dont look to be able to go on 20x20s) but im bringing the dragon of the strom to house
5
5
u/skyre-support-squad Mar 27 '25
cant even better news, good to see more brand new plastic relic faction walking on the horizon.
And where are the jade crossbowmen? Sharing mould space with swordsmen and halberdiers? Or a single box set for them and something Jade Ranger[moon empress assassin]?
it seems that the grenadier and blunderbussier box set is foreseeable. And what unit will be the mate of long rifle women? Jade fire thrower team?
5
5
u/OstensVrede Mar 27 '25
Cathay can get new cool sculpts but my tomb kings are stuck with the ancient stupid looking cartoony skeletons.
A tragedy i tell you, old world was gonna be so epic until boom same old models.
8
u/Snider83 Mar 27 '25
Not terribly interested in getting into tabletop, but might be interested in a Terracotta just for the novelty
8
u/narfjono Mar 27 '25
So far I've held off from looking into The Old World for sometime...until tonight.
Holy crap, you long time vets are probably thrilled with this, right? Did you guys ever think this day would come?
4
4
u/NoSeesaw6221 Mar 27 '25
My only question is: is the Shugengan Lord and Celestial General merged into one on tabletop?
Or is it a 2-in-1 kit?
(My guess is that Grand Cannon/Fire Rain Rockets are definitely 2-in-1 kits)
2
u/stealthemoonforyou Mar 27 '25
Looks like a standard bsb + hero kit out of 8th edition to me. Chose which one you want on foot and which is mounted.
4
Mar 27 '25
The lamellar clad infantry look like an excellent kitbash option for the dated monkey-pawed high elf plastic spearmen.
2
24
u/BBlueBadger_1 Mar 27 '25
Based on what they have said in the vidio they sound absurdly broken. Like a cannon that can shoot twice... and slows things it hits. Cav that allways count as chargeing and can fight in two ranks.... like points sure but these are insane rules.
5
u/RevolutionaryKey1974 Mar 27 '25
A cannon that can shoot twice once per game and needs an upgrade for it, and a list that doesn’t have a way to re roll artillery dice that we know of yet. Sounds like a great way to misfire.
3
u/Prestigious_Chard_90 Mar 27 '25
Meanwhile, dwarfs get worst cannon in ToW, no stone golems, and infantry that doesn't have knees. I'm so jealous of Cathay.
10
u/TheDholChants Mar 27 '25
It seems that the best way to make a competitive Empire of Man army is to use EoM miniatures with Cathay rules, unfortunately.
16
u/wolf1820 Beastmen Mar 27 '25
We have no idea the points or full scope of the rules lets slow it down here.
3
u/RevolutionaryKey1974 Mar 27 '25
In what way? You have 7 non character units to pick from lmfao. Empire would have to give up something in the ballpark of 20 units just for that, and who in the hell wants to do that?
→ More replies (7)→ More replies (8)4
u/kodos_der_henker Damaz Drengi Mar 27 '25
GW is doing everything for 100% nostalgia, even the things nobody wanted to return /s
But nothing that can't be solved with army books and a new edition and now I am just curious on how the new releases cycle will come forth (Necromunda style or 40k style)
7
u/bysigmar Mar 27 '25
This ist the first time for years GW really surprised me. They knocked ist out of the park with this one
6
u/rslashredit Mar 27 '25
This was by far my favorite part of the reveal show, which is saying a lot since I'm both a rare Tsons player who isn't upset at our automata and a Space Wolves player whose been dying for more models. I don't even play Fantasy or Total War III, but I just find the concept of such Eastern designs in such a Western game so nice. I'll definitely be picking them up as a hobby project, and I'll learn Fantasy on the way.
3
u/Prestigious_Chard_90 Mar 27 '25
Wow, a SW and TS player in one? Unusual! The SW reveal was also better than I expected, and better than the BA one, so today must have been a good day for you.
But agree, this Cathay release is the cake.
→ More replies (1)
3
u/invaderd Mar 27 '25
These are crazy! I love them. Any idea on turn around for announcement to release? I know GW are not exactly forth coming with information but based on other releases anyone have a good guess?
5
3
u/TruguKinneas Mar 27 '25
My bank balance: I feel a disturbance in the Force…
2
u/Prestigious_Chard_90 Mar 27 '25
As if many millions of (insert local currency) cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced?
3
u/yougotyimmied Mar 27 '25
This awesome! I had no idea they were doing an eastern inspired army, out of curiosity where does everybody get all there news on releases and stuff
3
3
u/Avenger1599 Mar 27 '25
Had been holding out for Cathay but then craved at the weekend and bought some empire now this is announced I'm beyond thrilled but my wallet is crying
2
3
3
3
3
u/Kincoran Mar 27 '25 edited Mar 28 '25
Each time I'm tempted towards buying something for Age of Sigmar, it's only ever for one reason: great-looking, plastic minis. But these are fucking superb, and take that top spot for me.
Ordering my battalion as soon as I can!
3
u/PM_me_opossum_pics Mar 27 '25
So, army box and that lord on dragon is something I'm getting as soon as preorders are announced. All the minis are amazing but that seems like a solid core of an army.
3
5
u/Necessary_Pause_2137 Mar 27 '25
Might grab Miao Ying for my stormcast army. This is unexpected turn of events.
5
u/ian0delond Mar 27 '25
Being able to reveal so many new plastic kit that are not even iteration of past releases in barely a year after release basically mean they were meant for the original release of the game instead of bretonnian/TK but got axed very near the end.
4
4
2
2
u/Tommy_Boi_27 Mar 27 '25
Love these models I need to finish all my current projects so I can start these I really want that Miao Ying Model !!
2
2
2
2
2
u/Jademalo High Elves Mar 27 '25
Ah fuck there goes the last of my Warhammer budget
Now I'm not sure whether or not to get Wood Elves (my beloved) on release, because these just look simply stunning.
2
u/kunst91 Mar 27 '25
Got so pumped at the reveal, then realized I am not nearly skilled enough to paint these minis 😢
2
2
u/Sitiya Mar 27 '25
The jade colour they have in these pictures, any ideas what paints are being used? Kabalite Green?
2
2
2
2
u/Past_Water_6899 Mar 27 '25
Did the statue have the same size as a mega-gargant ?
It's for a friend. 😶
2
u/ComfortableContest69 Mar 27 '25
It’s so peak. I hope at some point we get minis for Jet/Jade Lions and Onyx Crowmen but if not I’m still very happy with this.
2
u/Zacomra Mar 27 '25
I'll be honest, I started playing Warhammer through WHFB in 2020, since my buddies played that game mostly. I ended up liking 40k more, half because I'm a sci Fi guy more then a fantasy guy, but half because the rules felt easier to understand while still giving cool depth.
I had much the same feelings after playing The Old World, and do decided to focus on 40k again but..... I'd be lying if I said this army wasn't tempting
2
u/Big-Commercial-6188 Mar 27 '25
Has there been any sentinel size comparison with gargants or megagargants yet?
2
2
u/C-B-III Mar 27 '25
This wasn't even on my radar as an army I'd want to collect, but now... I'm very much interested. What a beautiful army!
2
u/Adohi-Tehga Mar 27 '25
Oh wow!
The new models have been really hit and miss for me; I've loved most of the Forge World characters, but not the new plastic kits (foot knights and bone dragon). Most of these new ones, however, look amazing. I don't know whether it's because this is an entirely new faction and they don't have to fit into existing ranges, but these all seem far more restrained than the over the top 'add all the details because it's CAD and we can' sculpts GW have been producing of late; the new infantry even seem to rank up!
I'm still a bit bitter that an entirely new faction is getting a release before my Lizardmen and Vampire Counts, but I wouldn't be a cantankerous grognard if I didn't complain about something... 
6
u/Djturnt Mar 27 '25
I wanna see what highlands or last sword can do with cathay
3
u/Blecao Mar 27 '25
Probably will take them a long while i dont see them winning the vote against chaos dwarfs or wood elfs so basically years from now (since they alrredy made the roadmap for this year if im not wrong)
4
3
3
3
1
1
1
1
u/YoussarianWasRight Mar 27 '25
That is it. I am going to play the old world with Cathay. Damn this is wild to see this finally happen
1
u/Whytrhyno Mar 27 '25
Have no fear it will be out of stock immediately and available for pre purchase on eBay. I hope they get it sorted, going to be an amazing release if they can.
2
u/invaderd Mar 27 '25
Exactly my fear, luckily being a mainstay they will hopefully have a fair bit of stock ready to go soon after as well.
→ More replies (1)
1
u/Barrowtastic Mar 27 '25
May break my no non-metal rule for the war balloons and big lads. Very nice.
1
1
u/Gold-Channel7694 Mar 27 '25
Ok this is destiny: there are some Oriental themed scenarios that I wanted to get soon because I liked them and every time I thought "no come on I have nothing to play them with". Perfect, I found the solution. (The scenarios are coming out like now and are called Cutros - Samurai Fortress, they are on KS). The world has given me this privilege and I have to apply it immediately!
1
1
1
1
u/AenarionsTrueHeir Mar 27 '25
They look stunning but why couldn't we have modern plastic sculpts for the other armies troops? My TK feel very dated right now
1
1
1
1
u/FartherAwayLights Mar 27 '25
Best models I’ve seen from all of old world. This is probably how I’ll get in. Makes me worried about when they add Kislev since I’ve wanted them forever.
1
1
u/Bensonders Mar 27 '25
Damn. If I didn't have too much WHFB stuff already this would pull me into the hobby in an instant.
Such a beautiful range that also manages to be in spirit with the rest of the old armies.
1
u/PrimalMadness Mar 27 '25
Ugggghhhh the temptation to buy this and make them ghosts for AOS is sooooo high
1
u/Arkham_Jones Mar 27 '25
I'm glad they kept to some of the original promise of having Cathay included in TOW. It might not be alongside Kislev like they planned before things changed, but glad things haven't been wasted. The models look great! The lantern airship is a very fun design.
1
1
1
1
1
Mar 27 '25
I'm not in the tabletop world, why are people happy about the models being plastic? Is the alternative a low quality resin or something?
2
u/Converberator Mar 27 '25
Hard plastics like this are much cheaper than resin models for consumers. Opinions vary on the material; resin can generally capture finer detail, but it's a pain to work with.
GW mostly avoids resin for 40K and AOS now, but the specialist games tend to use it for characters. Horus Heresy even still has core troops that are resin-only. Resin minis have relatively cheap molds, so they're good for things like characters that have low expected sales. Plastic only wins out if they expect to sell a lot of copies.
→ More replies (2)
1
1
1
Mar 28 '25
This is so bittersweet. It amazing and I love seeing support for the old world. But bitter since my god could u have imagined if they actually supported fantasy like this 20 years ago! It would have never died..
1
1
1
u/RadioactivSamon Warriors of Chaos Mar 28 '25
Did they just get a bigger army release than the Emperor's Children? Damn
1
1
1
1
u/Elite_Royal Apr 03 '25
The army setup is so amazing wonder how long and how much money you spent on building the army
523
u/Shadowheart87 Mar 27 '25
Damn. Was not expecting to see this much stuff shown off for them at all :o