Almost exactly two years ago, the Black Library issued a new Special Edition of 2020’s The Infinite and the Divine, the 2020 debut from Fall of Cadia and Assassinorum: Kingmaker Robert Rath. The book’s tremendous success came as a pleasant surprise not least to the author, who confesses in the books recent Illustrated and Annotated Edition that he pretty much shot the moon in asking for things from the editorial and studio staff, figuring this might well be the one novel he’d be allowed to write.
When in November of 2025 the book overtook Dan Abnett’s Horus Rising as the “#1 Book” on the shelf at Warhammer World, Rath’s tale of two bickering Necron frenemies had undoubtedly become one of the Black Library’s best. Little surprise, then, that Rath was greenlit for a sequel, and The Wicked and the Warped- up for preorder this Saturday- will be hitting bookshelves in a month.
And with a gorgeous Special Edition to pair with the last one, the Necron wing of my own Museum is going to need some extra space…
Value City
The other big news dropping on the mothership this week was upcoming changes to Warhammer+, Games Workshop’s subscription service whose most prominent offering is access to WarhammerTV.
Previously, a subscription cost USD $60 per year if you subscribed yearly, and $7 a month if you instead opted for monthly, and for that you got the following benefits:
Access to WarhammerTV
Access to The Vault (the digital archive of game books1 and White Dwarf back-issues)
Access to the Warhammer 40K and Age of Sigmar digital apps
Merchandise discounts and partner benefits (for example, the occasional promo code for a new Tacticus character)
Your choice of one of the two Commemorative Series miniatures released exclusively for subscribers
Whether that was worth it or not is, of course, highly subjective. Amazon Prime has a lot of benefits, for instance, but if you only watch a movie a month there are probably cheaper ways to unwind.
That said, one could also argue that the real cost could be driven down even lower, simply by selling your promotional mini each month to recoup most of the cost of the subscription. If you’re not into collecting plastic, they retail for $45 and like most Warhammer plastic they don’t depreciate all that much. Sell the mini for sticker and voila, you’re looking at a $15 annual subscription. A buck-fifty a month.
To me, this subscription has always been a no-brainer, and with the addition of the Show and Tell series here on the Wordforge in regular rotation, I’d have been quite happy to keep going at the current rate.
But lo! As such things are wont to do, this week we learned that the cost of a subscription would be increasing. The annual is rising to $75, with the monthly rate moving to $8.50. Nobody ever likes to see prices of things go up2, but I was very surprised to see that the benefits would be going up as well.
There are two big differences with the new Warhammer+ subscription. The first is that, rather than having to choose one or the other, you will now get both of the Commemorative Series figures. That’s $90 in plastic for a $75 subscription, in addition to all the other benefits listed above.
And here’s the part that got me really excited: they are also introducing a hardcover annual yearbook. “This is a lavish, coffee table-style annual packed with photos and artwork,” notes the reveal, “celebrating the worlds of Warhammer.”
Back in my Magic: the Gathering heyday, one of my favorite casual collectibles were the Player’s Guides they’d include in Fat Packs from each set. Pictured below, these would have some short lore blurbs and summaries of what the set was about, perhaps featuring decklists or different mechanics, and spotlighting some of the highlight cards from the set. Get me a Warhammer Yearbook anywhere close to that, and I’m sold.
Since it’s included in your subscription it’s impossible to put a price on it, but since it’s hardcover I don’t think $20 is too crazy a valuation based on its size in the image above. That brings us to $110 value in actual, physical merchandise for your $75 subscription. That’s… really not bad, folks. Not bad at all.
Complaints in the community about Warhammer+ typically are complaints more about WarhammerTV, and tend to fall under two broad types.
First are complaints about the WarhammerTV animations, which- at least in the circles I move in- tend to be the biggest draw3.
Second, there are complaints about the variety of programming. I get it, not every show is for every person, and I’ll be the first to put my hand up and confess I’ve never watched a single episode of Scrap Demon (even if the concept admittedly does sound cool).
Part of this, I think, lies with Games Workshop’s marketing of the channel’s offerings. Up until recently it’s been fairly footnote-level stuff, a quick blurb at the arse end of a Sunday Preview. Lately, though, we’re getting something a lot more visually attractive and clever:
I love everything about this new graphic format. First, it tells me at-a-glance what’s coming up this week in a simple, attractive format. Second, it changes what to me felt like a “content dump” every week into a programming schedule by assigning shows unique days of the week. Compare the above to what it used to look like in the Sunday Preview articles:
New week, three new shows. That’s what I mean by “content dump.” It’s a tale as old as time: if you want consumers to take your product seriously, you need to take it seriously. This is a big step up. Bravo.
So sure, WarhammerTV isn’t going to be for everyone, just like some people think there’s not a lot they want to watch on Netflix, or AppleTV, or Hulu. That’s certainly fair.
But what I think has been put to bed here is the ability to call Warhammer+ a poor value. $110 in goodies… plus The Vault… plus discounts every month for Warhammer merch4… plus the other stuff. All for $75.
Seems good.
Feeling Edgy
Saw some incredible creativity this week that I had to share. Sprayed edges refer to the practice of coloring or decorating the ends of a book’s pages, so that when it’s closed it has a striking visual look. You see this frequently on the Black Library Limited and Special Editions, for example, but here one fan took it upon themselves to do a custom job.
The book in question is a French-language edition of The Horus Heresy Collection, Vol. I, which is an omnibus series collecting the Horus Heresy books that- get this- is only offered in French and German. Verrückt, non?
This stunning treatment is by Alquinas.art, and make sure to check out the reel here.
Right on Track
Last year I noted that community member Andrew Wilmot had created a free book tracking app for the Black Library, and since that time he’s continued to develop and update it. After a large update this week put it back on my radar, I gave it a spin. While I’ve never used any kind of book tracker before, I had an absolute blast walking through the different categories for a bit and flagging the ones I’d read.
I had to force myself to quit and get back over to writing the column, but not before I poked around the site a bit. There’s a lot of neat features here, from unlocking achievements5 based on what you’ve read to seeing community ratings and usage reports (catnip to us statheads).
The secret in the sauce is the layout and organization. The site’s default not only breaks things out into their respective categories, like the Horus Heresy or Age of Sigmar, but also into individual book series such as trilogies or “The Astra Miliatarum Series.” Browsing it not only is fun for marking what you’ve read, but also in seeing what else you haven’t in a particular category. If your to-be-read list needs some inspiration, this is a terrific way to find it.
Arrivals & Departures
In this section I look at what’s coming up around the corner (Arrivals) and what’s landing on bookstore shelves (Departures).
Arrivals
The big news for new books is Robert Rath’s The Wicked and the Warped. Everyone’s favorite bickering Necron frenemies are back at it, this time facing down the forces of Chaos.
Speaking of The Infinite and the Divine, that book is being again offered in hardcover this week. If you don’t yet own the book, or (like me) you only have it in softcover and welcome an upgrade, this is your chance.
Departures
Seeing their way off into the public square this week was a trio of hardcovers. Rob Young’s latest, Ghosts of Cadia, arrived in both standard hardcover as well as a Special Edition, and Longshot- the first novel to feature sniper Darya Nevic- enjoyed its hardcover reissue.
Meanwhile, the new edition of Guy Haley’s The Devastation of Baal also hit store shelves. Originally printed in softcover as part of the Space Marine Conquests series in 2017, it’s back in hardcover as well.
ICYMI
Here’s what’s been going on this week for Warhammer content!
Warhammer Wordforge
Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame weekends are always big events, with The Hall Monitor series serving as a kind of director’s commentary on the project. This time around I looked at the Horus Heresy at the midway point, as well as showcasing some writers’ reactions to being inducted.
I was also very excited to kick off a new initiative this week, the Black Library Reader Satisfaction Survey. If you haven’t had a chance to vote yet please do so, I’m looking forward to sharing the results with everyone in an upcoming Black Library Weekly!
Finally, in this week’s Warhammer RPG Weekly we look at the new release from Cubicle 7 Games, Sylvania: The Cursed County!
Tabletop Battles
Last Saturday saw five books get inducted into the Readers’ Hall of Fame from the CLass of 2013, as we next move forward to the books that released in 2014. Age of Sigmar is right around the corner!
Fantasy reviewer Saelfe spent some time with Grombrindal, reviewing the Legend of the White Dwarf anthology- and came away pretty impressed!
If, like me, you’re always curious about the lore and narrative content that comes in the different game boxes, there was also this review of the narrative elements in the new Kill Team: Exodites box!
Finally, outside of Warhammer but always worth a mention, lynnding-library’s back with another BattleTech fiction review, this time of Jason Hansa’s A Skulk of Foxes.
Warhammer Community
Salamanders fans had cause to rejoice this week, with the Pages from the Black Books series releasing a trove of lore about a prototype assault carrier designed by Vulkan himself.
Got $1000 burning a hole in your pocket? Wētā Workshop has produced a new limited-edition statue for collectors, and it’s stunning. File this one under Black Library Bibliophiles, because it would be a wonderful addition to any Fantasy-heavy library display.
WarhammerTV (paywalled)
No Black Library content this week.
Around the Webway
Cinderfall Gaming’s been busy this week, offering not one but two reviews! First up is Morvenn Vahl: Spear of Faith by Jude Reid, while their second one is a bit unusual. Lair of the Skaven is part of the Warhammer Adventures series, an AoS line aimed at younger readers. Cinderfall typically reviews the audiobooks, with this one being narrated by none other than Dr. Who star Billie Piper!
Speaking of Jude Reid, Kenny Boulder dropped a new book review this week of Fulgrim: The Perfect Son.
The Fluffenhammer gang is back with their series that’s an issue-by-issue deep dive on Warhammer Monthly! This time up it’s the Kal Jerico-packed issue #29!
Not just Cinderfall, Arbitor Ian and Mira Manga’s Book Club podcast dropped two episodes this week as well! First up is a look at Faith & Fire by James Swallow, then Mike Brooks’s Voidscarred goes under the microscope!
Finally, just had to pass along this terrific read I saw this week on Substack from Thomas Rawlings, The Odyssey of Warhammer 40,000 - Exploring the links between Ancient Greece and Warhammer 40,000. Rawlings covers a lot of Warhammer history, and is well worth subscribing!
Cold Open Stories
This week’s featured story is Lockwarden, by Graham Pritchett. “In the deepest depths, amid the darkest caverns, the Imperiums most profane secrets lie. The prisoners that are too valuable to kill, the creatures too dangerous to allow free. Arcane things are sequestered here, enigmas and mysteries set side by side and watched. But those things despise confinement and are always seeking that which is denied to them. A way out.”
Also, a reminder that the current fast fiction competition’s deadline is the end of this month. Once again, I absolutely encourage anyone- even those folks who are just getting their pinkie toe wet writing- to give it a shot. After all, if I can do it, anyone can!
Quick Hits
Given my involvement in fiction, I often get the question as to whether or not I’d like to be a writer myself. If I’m completely honest, while that intrigues me I think being an editor might be more up my alley. Thus I particularly enjoyed this piece from Danie Ware (The Triumph of St. Katherine, Aestred Thurga: Pyre of Faith), On Editors.
As if Nottingham wasn’t already cool enough, the Mayhem Film Festival will have just gone on sale at the time this goes to print. An annual celebration of horror, sci-fi, and cult films, the co-director of the event is Steven Sheil (Tithemarked, Ghost Planet).
Ben Counter (Battle for the Abyss, Phalanx) is one of the writers on the upcoming multimedia podcast project called American Abyss. It’s set in a quarantined town where all manner of strangeness has been occurring, and you can listen to the first episode here!
Coming Attractions
Here’s a list of the known upcoming releases from the Black Library based on the available preorder information we have. As always, take all of this with a grain of salt unless it’s Games Workshop-confirmed.
This section will be updated weekly in this column, and anything in bold has been added (or updated) this week.
Upcoming but Undated
Ghazghkull Thraka: Prophet of the Waaagh! (Illustrated and Annotated Edition), by Nate Crowley
Current PODs in Production
Hive, by Dan Abnett (Special Edition)
Upcoming in 2026
Mephiston: The Box Set, by Darius Hinks (8/1)
Archmagos, by Guy Haley (paperback, 8/8)
The Relentless Dead, by Steve Lyons (paperback, 8/8)
Warhammer Age of Sigmar: The Ultimate Guide (hardcover, 8/11)
The Wicked and the Warped, by Robert Rath (hardcover, Special Edition, 8/15)
The Infinite and the Divine, by Robert Rath (hardcover, 8/15)
Raldoron: Revenant, by Guy Haley (hardcover, Special Edition, 9/246)
Words of Waaagh!, by DK Books (hardcover, 10/6)
The Sundering, by Gav Thorpe (paperback, 10/6)
Dropsite Massacre, by John French (paperback, 10/20)
Apostle, by David Annandale (paperback, 10/20)
Master of Rites, by Rob Young (paperback, 10/20)
Death Rider, by Rhuairidh James (paperback, 11/19)
Ghost Legion, by Mike Brooks (paperback, 11/19)
Chem Dog, by Callum Davis (paperback, 12/17)
Ghazghkull Thraka: Warlord of Warlords, by Denny Flowers (paperback, 12/17)
Ashes of the Imperium, by Chris Wraight (paperback, 12/17)
Thanks again for joining me for all the going’s on in the Black Library, and see you next week!
These have only lore value now, as out-of-edition texts typically have the rules sections removed on The Vault. A pity.
It’s almost a reflex at this point to shop my auto insurance whenever they try to raise the rates on me and my perfect driving record at renewal time.
Scribes & Scriveners is damn fine viewing too, folks.
I believe the standard discount is 15% off.
Still in development, but off to a terrific start!
Thanks to Black Library Nutters group member David Sinclair for the catch on Amazon!