Tag Archives: Warhammer

Gav Thorpe Talks Twenty Years of Black Library – Part One

From games design and White Dwarf to freelance Black Library author, Gav Thorpe has had a huge impact on Games Workshop and its intellectual properties over the years. September 2017 marks the twenty year anniversary of Gav’s first Black Library short story – Birth of a Legend – while 2017 has also seen Gav receive a prestigious Gemmell Award for his Age of Sigmar novel Warbeast.

With both of those milestones firmly in mind, I spoke to Gav about his twenty-year career as a Black Library author and how that fitted in with his time at Games Workshop, along the way discussing his first two Black Library stories, his work in the audio medium, and loads more.

Keep reading…

Forgotten Texts: Birth of a Legend by Gav Thorpe

“A small gift hardly compares to the life of a Dwarf King, now does it?”

Gav Thorpe’s first ever Black Library story, first published twenty years ago, Birth of a Legend is an old-school Warhammer story featuring an early incarnation of one of the setting’s greatest characters. When King Kurgan and his retainers are captured by the Orc warlord Vagraz Head-Stomper, things look bleak for the Dwarfs. That is, until the local human huntsmen arrive to investigate the intrusion into their territory, led by a young man with a powerful destiny. Determined to drive them off and free the Dwarf captives, he leads his men into battle against the Orcs…and the rest is history.

Keep reading…

Warhammer Age of Sigmar – (Storm)Cast List – July 2017

I’ve been making a concerted effort of late to catch up on Black Library’s Age of Sigmar fiction, of late. I’d previously read the first few in the Realmgate Wars series, and all of the short stories that had been released over various Advent Calendar campaigns, but then I’d rather let things slip in favour of 40k and the Horus Heresy. I’m now making good progress with the Realmgate Wars, and looking forward to the books set away from that particular campaign, but there’s something that I’ve been rather struggling with – remembering which Stormcast are which.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: See No Evil – Rob Sanders (Call of Archaon part 8)

WARNING: this review contains a spoiler if you haven’t read the previous seven instalments of the Call of Archaon arc…

The eighth and final instalment of Black Library’s Call of Archaon miniseries, Rob Sanders’ See No Evil wraps things up with a story set once the dust has settled and Archaon has chosen his new champion. Orphaeo Zuvius, once a champion of Tzeentch and now of Archaon’s Varanguard, joins his fellows at the front of a vengeful force determined to drive the newly-arrived Stormcast Eternals from their beachhead in a land previously conquered by Chaos. With Archaon himself leading from the front, it promises to be an epic battle and a fitting conclusion to this particular story arc.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: Blood and Plague – David Annandale (Call of Archaon part 7)

The penultimate short story in Black Library’s Call of Archaon miniseries, and David Annandale’s second contribution, Blood and Plague brings the main story arc to a close, focusing on Ushkar Mir and Copsys Bule as they move inexorably towards a climactic final battle under Archaon’s watchful gaze. Each champion believing himself to be the worthiest, they lead their remaining forces into a brutal clash of arms and ideologies, the followers of two very different gods fighting for their patron’s supremacy as much as their own survival. Can one champion emerge triumphant and claim his place by Archaon’s side?

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: In the Lands of the Blind – Rob Sanders (Call of Archaon part 6)

In the Lands of the Blind, Rob Sanders’ second contribution to Black Library’s Call of Archaon Age of Sigmar arc, once again features Tzeentchian champion Orphaeo Zuvius as he continues to seek his fate with Archaon. Battling through the death-filled Great Spoilage to reach the Varanspire itself, he quickly finds that reaching his destination was not the final step on his path. With countless other champions and their warbands laying desperate siege to the vast fortress, Zuvius has his work cut out to even reach the walls, never mind find a way inside and present himself to Archaon for judgement.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: The Trial of the Chosen – Guy Haley (Call of Archaon part 5)

For the fifth Call of Archaon short story, The Trial of the Chosen, Guy Haley returns to the tale of Khornate champion Ushkar Mir. Following on from The Solace of Rage, Mir finds himself in the lifeless realm of Shyish, and faced with a series of tasks to prove his worth before he can go any further on his quest to reach Archaon. There’s precious little blood to be shed on the Bone Sands, but plenty that will test Mir and his warband, not just physically but mentally as well.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: Knight of Corruption – David Annandale (Call of Archaon part 4)

The fourth of Black Library’s Call of Archaon short stories, Knight of Corruption sees David Annandale take over the reins of Copsys Bule’s tale from David Guymer, continuing the story from Beneath the Black Thumb. Forging on through a new realm, Bule and what’s left of his warband stumble across a newly-raised temple to Sigmar, built atop the ruins of an older age. Hopeful at first of a quick, satisfying victory to raise the morale of his men, Bule finds himself battling a foe previously thought to be a myth, but now standing between him and his new path.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: The Solace of Rage – Guy Haley (Call of Archaon part 3)

Part three of Black Library’s Call of Archaon eight-part short story arc, The Solace of Rage by Guy Haley introduces the third of Archaon’s prospective champions, Ushkar Mir. One of many Khornate champions vying for the leadership of his tribe, Mir has…unusual reasons for following the path of the Blood God. Driven by a furious determination, he faces off against his main rival, before the appearance of a rampaging hordes of ogors sees the warring elements of the tribe put their enmity temporarily aside at the prospect of the greater bloodshed to come.

Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW: Eye of the Storm – Rob Sanders (Call of Archaon part 2)

The second story in Black Library’s eight-part The Call of Archaon, Rob Sanders’ Eye of the Storm follows Tzeentchian champion Orphaeo Zuvius, the Prince of Embers, on his quest to reach Archaon. Guided by a daemonic familiar, Zuvius leads his warband across the Blasted Plain, determined to prove his worth to Archaon. When he’s forced to ally with the warband of a powerful Khornate champion, he has to use his cunning as well as his strength in order to succeed in his quest and walk the Beaten Path.

Keep reading…