So...We're Getting New Battlehosts!

 

Hey Reader!

In case you hadn't heard the news from last month, word on the street is that we're getting new battlehosts for Middle Earth! So I figured, might as well dredge up the old articles about potential new battlehosts for the Forces of Good and Forces of Evil that we made like 4 years ago, and see how well we did!

Now as a quick reminder, these articles were written back in 2022, when we were getting new supplements every other year, along with new sculpts, profiles, and heroes, and while the new edition has given us some new sculpts (new Rohan warriors/horses do look good!), it's not as common as it was back in those days that we get new kits. And since we haven't gotten any new battlehosts since then, technically the details are still mostly the same from these articles from yesteryear in terms of which kits might quickly become new ones for us.

So while these article are old, let's see how well they did!

New Rohan Battlehost: The Riders of Theoden!

Surprising no one, we are getting (yet another) product for Rohan! :P As someone who started his Middle Earth journey with Rohan in 2010 I can't complain, but I do hear the many dwarf and elf players who say, "...yeah, but what about us?" But here we have yet another kit for Rohan, and it looks really good.

It features Theoden (so for everyone who wants to buy the old Rohan battlehost, you'd have both Eomer and Theoden, which is nice!), 6 Riders of Rohan (which are the new scuplts, which look really good!), and 24 infantry models (so 18 Warriors of Rohan + 6 dismounts).

This gives you the backbone of a Kingdom of Rohan list, and the starting point for a Riders of Theoden list, both of which are very popular. For players who have collected Rohan for a while you probably have models with these stats, but if you're looking for a cost-effective way to get the new Rohan sculpts without buying Dunlendings, this is your box!

Surprising no one, we didn't predict a second Rohan battlehost in our 2022 article; I stand by my thought that new battlehosts would do well to introduce people to new armies, but I'm also not going to say no to easier access to great kits, as these are the kinds of things that will get new players into the hobby, and I'm all in favor of that.

New Thranduil's Halls Battlehost: Ranger Danger!

By the way, I made up all of these names; a UK company would never use this term, :P But this set comes with Legolas and Tauriel (excellent heroes in their own right), 20 Palace Guard (for durable melee capabilities), and 20 Mirkwood Rangers (for some ranged threats, albeit with minimal Defense).

This feels a lot like the Isengard battlehost: a lot of models of an elite nature, but with arguably better heroes (the power of Saruman this edition in Army of the White Hand notwithstanding - fight me). And for people who want an army that can win fights, are unlikely to run away from failed Courage tests after break, and relatively easy to use heroes, this is a great starter set.

And I'm OVER THE MOON BECAUSE WE PREDICTED THIS ONE IS 2022!!! I did mention that people who collect Thranduil's Halls might want...you know...Thranduil...but honestly this one makes a lot of sense: we predicted these kits because they're plastic, they're relatively new, they look good, and they're elves, so elf players get something special (as they should!). And there's nothing stopping people from just ordering Thranduil along with it.

New Dol Guldur Battlehost: Bolg's Boys!

This is a great battlehost: it has the plastic Bolg (who is a monster in everything but keyword), 24 Hunter Orcs (great line infantry, albeit more dependent on charging than last edition), and 6 Hunter Orc Warg Riders (which are one of the most improved warrior profiles for Evil this edition in my humble opinion, and very useful!), which is a great start to an Azog's Hunters or Dol Guldur force.

Plus, as an added bonus, these sculpts have always been good: even though they dropped when The Hobbit movies first came out, I felt like they were ahead of their time in terms of quality. And even though over a decade has passed since they dropped, I still contend these are high-end sculpts worthy of being the means of introducing people to the hobby. They hold up, even after all this time.

And while we used the term "Azog's Hunters" (because I'm more preferential to them than Dol Guldur for no other reason than aesthetics), WE PREDICTED THIS ONE AS WELL! The only real concern we had in 2022 was that Bolg and Azog weren't available in plastic, but lo: in the last four years we now have a plastic hero who is also very effective, so doubly nice.

Conclusion

Honestly, when I heard there were new battlehosts I wasn't sure I was going to pick any of them up (as I've got the core elements of the armies I like to collect - 16 years in the hobby will do that to you), but honestly I might pick up all of these: the value on them is excellent, the sculpts are really good, and I'd been waiting to pick up the new Rohan sculpts in the hopes of a bundle deal, and here it is! And worst case scenario I give the extra Theoden to a newer player who is just getting into the hobby.

Is there one of these that you're most excited for? Are there other battlehosts you'd love to see (with the knowledge that the kits have to be 100% plastic to make it cost effective for GW)? Let us know! Until then, you know where to find me,

Watching the stars,

Centaur

"Whose forest is it now, human?" ~ Bane, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix