CitizenSoldier
10-04-2011, 01:17 PM
My copy of IA:A2e arrived last week the day before FW said it would ship, and I've been browsing through it on and off ever since.
In terms of production quality, its the usual FW format, hard-back, good quality binding and print.
As for the contents, its important to realise its not a new volume, but a second edition. It is a book of datasheets, and many of them are, to be honest, simply minor updates to the originals. I'd be lying if I said I'd checked every single one, but in the main the updates essentially bring them in line with the current rules and codices. In addition to this, some units have been re-costed - for example, the various Malcador variants have been reduced in cost by around 10% - something that might see them deployed a little more.
Other datasheets have simply been removed, as they are now covered in GW's Apocalypse books. Almost all the remaining datasheets are now for FW models (with a couple of exceptions, for example, Acients Assault Force). There are also rather few formations now.
If you already have IA:A, of most interest will be the new units. These include the final rules for the Crassus and Praetor (much more useful that just AA!) and as yet unavailble Dominus, and a several Contemptor dreadnough variant. As a SW player, I was very pleased to find a SW specific Contemptor, and delighted to read the rules. Without going into too much detail, its a cantacerous, fleet, furious charging dreadnought with access to some codex SW wargear. There is also a Chaos Contemptor, with solid rules too.
The TOC is available at FW's site, so I won't go through the enumerations here. Beyond datasheets, there are some Apoc missions which look interesting to play as-is, but there's nothing startlying new. Also included is are 7 pages of appendices covering the basic Apoc rules, looking very like the text from GW's Apoc - maybe someone will find them useful.
Overall its a great resource for dedicated Apocalypse players - a solid catalog of datasheets for some different units, which you can at least proxy in game or two to try out. If you already have the first edition, or you have no interest in FW models/units, then it might not be of much use to you. That said, I think the Crassus-chassis vehicles and particularly the Contemptors will prove very popular, and this is the volume with their rules.
Critisisms: The first edition had a useful index to all datasheets, which is gone from this edition. Apocalypse could do with a little consolidation now, which this volume doesn't really deliver. There's also no "hobby" content in this book, which in generally is good (more space for datasheets), but just a little more inspirational artwork would have been nice.
Overall: For me, £26 well spent.
Citizen.
In terms of production quality, its the usual FW format, hard-back, good quality binding and print.
As for the contents, its important to realise its not a new volume, but a second edition. It is a book of datasheets, and many of them are, to be honest, simply minor updates to the originals. I'd be lying if I said I'd checked every single one, but in the main the updates essentially bring them in line with the current rules and codices. In addition to this, some units have been re-costed - for example, the various Malcador variants have been reduced in cost by around 10% - something that might see them deployed a little more.
Other datasheets have simply been removed, as they are now covered in GW's Apocalypse books. Almost all the remaining datasheets are now for FW models (with a couple of exceptions, for example, Acients Assault Force). There are also rather few formations now.
If you already have IA:A, of most interest will be the new units. These include the final rules for the Crassus and Praetor (much more useful that just AA!) and as yet unavailble Dominus, and a several Contemptor dreadnough variant. As a SW player, I was very pleased to find a SW specific Contemptor, and delighted to read the rules. Without going into too much detail, its a cantacerous, fleet, furious charging dreadnought with access to some codex SW wargear. There is also a Chaos Contemptor, with solid rules too.
The TOC is available at FW's site, so I won't go through the enumerations here. Beyond datasheets, there are some Apoc missions which look interesting to play as-is, but there's nothing startlying new. Also included is are 7 pages of appendices covering the basic Apoc rules, looking very like the text from GW's Apoc - maybe someone will find them useful.
Overall its a great resource for dedicated Apocalypse players - a solid catalog of datasheets for some different units, which you can at least proxy in game or two to try out. If you already have the first edition, or you have no interest in FW models/units, then it might not be of much use to you. That said, I think the Crassus-chassis vehicles and particularly the Contemptors will prove very popular, and this is the volume with their rules.
Critisisms: The first edition had a useful index to all datasheets, which is gone from this edition. Apocalypse could do with a little consolidation now, which this volume doesn't really deliver. There's also no "hobby" content in this book, which in generally is good (more space for datasheets), but just a little more inspirational artwork would have been nice.
Overall: For me, £26 well spent.
Citizen.