It’s time for the monthly news May recap!
Welcome to this month in Warhammer Underworlds for May 2021. This is your one stop shop for everything Warhammer Underworlds related, recapping everything that has happened in the past month and once again there has been a lot of news for our favourite competitive arena combat game.
I’ve also made a video version on YouTube if you so desire:
Elathain’s Soulraid Announced
The Warhammer Fest Thursday preview revealed Warhammer Underworlds’ final Direchasm warband: Elathain’s Soulraid! This is an Idoneth Deepkin warband which NO ONE could have seen coming. This is a 5 fighter warband which consists of: Elathain Ill-Fated, Fuirann, Tammael, Spinefin and…Duinclaw! THE GIANT ENEMY CRAB WE ALWAYS NEEDED! Avatar of the Ur-Grub Duinclaw?? Yes please!! Elathain’s Soulraid showed some sneaky rules off, namely about how they inspire during round 2, as per the eb and flow of the ocean waves and aethersea. How will this warband function? Well, wait for my review to find out!
The warband does look great. I’ve always liked the Idoneth Deepkin aesthetic and the warband looks like it will be fun. Whether the warband will be strong and competitive, well, er….DUINCLAW IS AMAZING! GET CRAB’D!
Hedkrakka’s Madmob, Kainan’s Reapears and Silent Menace Released
Hedkrakka’s Madmob were released. This 4 fighter warband shows off the savage power of Primacy and Orruks in the Direchasm. They look deceptively weak but explode with power the moment they get the Primacy token. Wallop da Skull and Toof Dagga are the main muscle of the warband but it has a lot a tactical depth and tricks, even as an aggro warband.
May saw the release of Kainan’s Reapers. This 6 fighter warband graces the Direchasm with the Ossiarch Bonereapers. Despite being mostly weak fighters, Kainan’s Reapers has it Mortek fighters do surprising amounts of damage with Mir Kainan almost being a hanger-on. He’s still a beast but the warband is surprisingly efficient and co-ordinated thanks to Mortek Advance and Nadirite, which helps to accurately represent how the Ossiarch Bonereapers operate in Age of Sigmar. They’re a fun warband to play with very good faction cards.
May also had the Silent Menace Universal deck released. This is 32 card universal deck for Direchasm is mainly an aggro-based deck. It’s a nice way to receive some more universal cards, almost like some kind of GIFT in a PACK. The price is a bit rubbish here, however. The Silent Menace Universal Deck comes in at £12.00 whereas the Essential Card Pack is £12.50. Otherwise it’s a nice purchase if you like aggro.
As always you can check out my in-depth reviews for all these products on my YouTube channel as well as on the rest of the blog.
What’s Going on at Games Workshop?
I meant to report on this last month but something interesting is going on at Games Workshop. If you weren’t aware, new job positions opened up at Games Workshop for Warhammer Underworlds, namely for a new product lead and games developer. Now, I don’t know exactly what is happening, but it looks like the guy who was in-charge is gone and Warhammer Underworlds and Warcry are now in the same team. What’s happened to the Boxed Games department? I’m honestly unsure but rumours say it has been disbanded. What’s the future for Warhammer Underworlds? No idea. It’s likely just an internal reshuffle but still an interesting news item of note. What will happen when Warhammer Underworlds gets a new product lead? Well, we are likely to not feel the effects of such a change for a few years due to how Games Workshop operates but I’m actually very hopeful for this new leadership and what this new change will bring to the game. The only way is up.
Warhammer Underworlds Online News
Warhammer Underworlds Online didn’t have much new stuff released for it in May. Outside of a balance patch, some more DLC skins dropped. Dropped like the average player statistics! Yes, the monthly player average for May is down to 16 again with a peak of 48 players. Despite these really bad player numbers, Garrek’s Reavers were announced! Finally, the last Shadespire warband! Unfortunately there’s no way this warband can really compete in the Warhammer Underworlds Online environment thanks to the severely limited card pool and warbands like Drepur’s Wraithcreeprs and the Storm of Celestus. Still, it’s nice to have the Shadespire warbands complete.
Podcast Corner
For Podcast Corner in April, Path to Glory kicks things off with 5 episodes reviewing the Hedkrakka’s Madmob, Kainan’s Reapers and Silent Menace product reviews.
What the Hex released 4 episodes themselves, also mostly going over the Crimson Court, Hedkrakka’s Madmob and the Silent Menace releases.
Battle for Salvation returns! This time they are joined by Matt as they have an in-depth discussion about Khagra’s Ravagers.
The Burning-Crow Wargamer Podcast have 2 episodes on YouTube dedicated to the new warbands for Warhammer Underworlds.
Finally there is me with Crit ! Cast Episode 11: Time Management and Slow Play. This episode has me and Tommy Conboy focus on how you can refine and manage your own time skills for Warhammer Underworlds as well as how to deal with dreaded slow play during tournament games.
Tournaments and Events
Tournaments and events for May only has the Straight Outta Shadespire Webcam Tournament. This was a standard Championship Format tournament using a custom FAR. This had Ferocious Resistance banned with Deserved Confidence, Mischievous Spirits, Crown of the Dead and Now Wot all restricted. The tournament had 12 players, down 6 from last month. After 4 rounds of best of 1 action, RG won with Lady Harrow’s Mournflight.
The next webcam tournament is on Saturday June 5th along with next Vassal Clash happening on June 12th.
Summary of my May Content
For the summary of my May content I had the April news recap, then my product reviews for Hedkrakka’s Madmob, Kainan’s Reapers and the Silent Menace Universal Deck. Finally I had Crit ! Cast Episode 11: Time Management and Slow Play. I also have 2 batreps showing off Hedkrakka’s Madmob and Kainan’s Reapers!
I had intended to do more stuff but there were some mitigating factors. Firstly, we had the 3 new products dropped within a 2 week window and then I had some surgery which I’m still recovering from. My output is still going to vary but hopefully I can return to a more normal pre-lockdown schedule once the final Direchasm warband drops.
Closing Crit
May was a month of mostly new releases over general news. Now we wait for Elathain’s Soulraid and a rest from the relentless release schedule we have been forced to endure.
Before I go please feel free to click my affiliate link to Element Games. Any purchases you make after clicking through the link help support myself and the channel to help bring high quality content along with being at no additional cost to you while also granting you a 15 to 25% discount on all things Warhammer Underworlds and hobby related (like the new warbands)!
Kianan’s Reapers and Hedkrakka’s Madmob rumble within the Direchasm. Yet amongst their underworld battles, warriors of the Idoneth stalk their way into the Direchasm for more souls to harvest. Who will save you? Only the ability to roll crits!
Can You Roll A Crit? 