Well GW’s response to the Votann crisis just dropped and ….it’s good? One of the things I found so striking about this new release was that it was: funny, clever thoughtful and addressed the issue. While newer players probably expect this it hasn’t always been this way.
In part of their video there was a line with Mr. Workshop saying “Some are calling it the most powerful codex ever..” This I think is false. In my personal experience this was the 5th ed Inquisition/Grey Knights codex but the 3.5 ed Chaos Codex is a close comparison. Back then, old GW was notorious for slow FAQs and balance updates. I forget which event it was, possible the SoCal Open or maybe the LVO but at one point half of all armies at a major tournament were Grey Knights. As I wasn’t playing frequently back then I don’t remember how long the army remained broken but I feel it was a true terror to face for close to a year. Even when they eventually fixed the issue through FAQs and releasing a new edition there was never any sense of apology or acknowledgement that they made a mistake. Instead we rolled into the dumpster fire of 6th ed. with the Eldar receiving a book so broken it was replaced in a year.
So as we look at this news release, let’s take some notes. The first thing to note was how fast it happened. Maybe it was in response to the German ban, or just the concern being expressed by all quarters of the internet that prompted such a quick response. Most people don’t even have their armies yet and they are already being addressed. Secondly, it was brilliant was involving the character of James Workshop as a scapegoat. He plays the role well and gives them a tongue-in-cheek way to acknowledge the error. Involving the live steam chaps was also a great way to build on our portfolio of in-house names too. Thirdly, I felt their explanation for the power level of the army was believable even if not totally forgivable. If they did test all armies in their pre-FAQ nerf format I fully believe there is a perverse balance between the codexes post-Space Marines. I think that issue is something that they can admit to one or two times more but will get old fast if this becomes a pattern.
I think GW gets a lot of justifiable flak for their choices. I am not wild about the latest expansion to Cursed City, and their codex releases have been wildly unbalanced this edition. At the same time, I think we can give them some props for taking the right steps. They not only implemented changes fairly rapidly, they managed to do it in a self-deprecating explanatory manner that will go a ways in quelling dissent. It is evident that they want this message to spread quickly and permeate the various crevices of the 40k community. While we cannot be certain as to what response was the most important in bringing them to take such a drastic and public action I think we can’t discount the public response. Whether it was the threat of bans, the complaints of influencers or some combination it would appear that collective action on the part of the player base won the day. I think the 40k community should be proud of this result.
At the same time, we need to be on guard for this trend in the future. The next codex will be heavily scrutinized by players. If it was designed to stand up to pre-nerf Votann, the Guard codex should be good. It will be enlightening to see if this represents the high-point of imbalanced codexes or if this issue will continue into 10th ed. If it does the 40k community shouldn’t be shy about flexing our muscles and demanding that GW “DO better”
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