It’s Wednesday my dudes, and thus it’s time for a rambling article. I have long been interested in the role the Forge World plays in the GW portfolio. In years past it had a clear role providing high quality miniatures, of dubious in game ability, and spinning high-end campaign stories. Since the re-invention of 40k in 8th edition it’s role has been largely subsumed by the main GW line. This came to a head in this summer when the Horus Heresy made its debut as part of the main line up of GW products. While this makes it a lot more accessible for average players, it also makes one question what role the studio has going forward.
I think to really understand what I think GW should do with the studio we should go back to it’s heyday. Near the end of 7th edition, Forge World was hitting on all cylinders. The Horus Heresy line was roaring and they were churning out a book fairly frequently. The studio had just re-released a version of The Doom of Mymerea (one of my all-time favorite 40k stories and campaign books). While this book did turn the meta on it’s ear with some stupidly op rules it was a triumph of design and visuals. This would also be one of the last books they would make in the 40k universe. Since then they have focused on 30k which has been a shame. While their 30k content is unrivaled a few older players like myself look back fondly at the rich lore of the older Imperial Armour series. The Badab War is a really interesting set of rules and battles that is sadly inaccessible for most players. The Siege of Vracks is another expansive story spanning two books that pulls in a number of factions while featuring a sad but poignant tale. I think these books have done more to shape the lore and feel of the 40k universe than almost any other non-codex release.
My advice to GW would be to use this strength to really focus Forge World on the narrative side of the game. They have already announced that some of their new expansions won’t be having Crusade rules any more. That’s fine, and I think it opens up the opportunity to give Forge World some reign to take the lead on Crusade and Path to Glory rules. I think the higher price point and limited runs of models are suited to the narrative player base as that is the group that cares the most about the lore and the stories being told. Furthermore, they can divorce themselves from the implications of poorly balanced models by labeling all their rules as “Legends” or as “Crusade/Path to Glory Only”. One of the saddest parts of Forge World’s decline has been the lost potential of the fantasy side of the studio. They only ever produced two books Mosnterous Arcanum and Tamurkhan (originally designed to be part of a wider series) but both are truly dazzling in their visuals and ideas. Many of the units that appear in the Total War series first showed up in these books. There are so many fascinating gems here waiting to get new rules or an actual model. Imagine the possibilities if GW gave FW license to start telling smaller (in terms of 40k) stories for the 40k and AoS universes.
As both the 40k and AoS universes have grown, they have struggled to have meaningful stakes. Both settings are large enough that it becomes hard to really care about some of the narrative implications. In the past FW books filled the void with grounded stories where the “good guys” don’t always win or lose. Stories such as Vraks, or the Raid at Kastoral-Novem provided a lot of depth to existing factions while also adding some new ones. I think a narrative-focused Forge World could bring some depth to these settings while also giving it a sense or purpose and identity with GW’s corporate structure. Forge World has a reputation at producing bespoke, high-quality add-on units and rules to 40k and AoS. Let them lean into that reputation and give the players a rich experience to enjoy.
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