Warhammer Quest In Review



Greetings Gamers!  I did it.  I broke down and bought the Silver Tower.  After a couple weeks of absolutely consuming the contents of the box I thought that I would write a quick post on my initial impressions of the models and game play.

To start off, if you’re like me and the new edition of Warhammer Quest brings out some feelings of nostalgia, go get the damn thing!  The price tag is high but you absolutely get what you pay for.

The Miniatures

I won’t list all of the miniatures in the box as you can see that on the GW site but it goes without saying that they are gorgeous.  You get 6 Heroes to choose from that fill all of the niche characters in a classic dungeon crawl setting.  They are all extremely detailed and surprisingly constructed of a shit load of pieces.

Mistweaver Saih – Caster

Tenebrael Shard – Assassin

Darkoath Cheiftain – Barbarian

Fyreslayer Doomseeker – Dwarf Fighter

Excelsior Warpriest – Cleric

Knight-Questor – Tank

Along with the heroes you get 45 additional miniatures.  2 of the enemy minis are the Gaunt Summoner himself and the Ogroid Thaumaturge (one of the main reasons I bought this game).  All of the other enemy models have 2 of the same pose but GW has addressed this in the placement and choosing of miniatures when generating them for the dungeon.  The only one I was curious about was the Skaven Assassin as there are only two of them.  Why are they in a Tzeench dungeon?  This conundrum is also addressed in the story and rules behind the Skaven character.

There are also additional rules for the use of Tzeench Flamers, Screamers, and a Herald if you happen to have the miniatures already in your collection.

The Game

Play through is similar to the original Warhammer Quest.  You build your dungeon as you move through and explore rooms.  Characters gain renown through the defeat of enemies and each has their own special way to earn additional renown.  As you gain renown you gain skills.  After each dungeon there is a quick run through of how to finalize your quest. This is one of the biggest differences between the new and old game.  The end game portion in the new edition is quick and simple.  You check to see if you are able to retain the skills and treasures your hero attained throughout the run and once complete you move on to the next test.  That’s it that’s all.

The new game seems to be a simpler version of the original but it has all kinds of replay value and huge room for growth.  Each dungeon layout is dependent on how the cards are shuffled and the enemies you fight are randomly generated.  On top of the different enemies in each of the rooms there is also the possibility that a Random Encounter will occur.  If this is the case you could end up fighting a couple crappy little minions, get a boost for you next turn or the Ogroid Thaumaturge could walk out of a portal next to your character.

 

With all of that said I feel like we should look at some of the problems with the set.  I say problems (plural) but I really only have one, although to me it’s kind of a big one.  The packaging!  Come on GW what the hell!  I realize that there are a lot of pieces and sprue to place into one box without getting to crazy but the box isn’t split up at all.  It’s a free-for-all in there.  The sprue is tossed on top of the tiles and cards which doesn’t seem like a big deal but there are a lot of sharp pointy bits all over these minis.  The cards, books and tile pieces that were against the sprue ended up getting damaged.  Some more than others mind you but for the price of the set it would have been nice to see a little more thought put into the layout of the box.  Who knows, maybe there was, but it doesn’t look like it.  At least GW’s customer service is fantastic and they are all for replacing anything that gets damaged.

So to wrap up I am definitely a fan of this game.  The collector in me sees all of the possibilities for expansion and the chance to build and paint minis I wouldn't normally purchase.  This also gives me a chance to hopefully use some of the other fantasy miniatures that have recently been collecting dust in my nerd cave.  It's a large investment but I'll say it again, you get what you pay for.