Warhammer Quest: Darkwater is almost here, and White Dwarf is clearly very excited. This month’s issue packs in a huge spread of Darkwater content alongside the usual hobby goodness.
You get rules talk, lore, painting help, and plenty of list fuel for the new year. Additionally, there is a strong festive vibe running through the whole magazine. If you like reading while planning your next project, this issue is very easy to justify.
A Full Feast Of Darkwater Content
Darkwater is treated like the main event, which feels absolutely right for a new Warhammer Quest. The issue gathers a commentary from one of the game’s developers that digs into design choices and intent. Additionally, there is a rundown of the heroes and villains from the miniatures designers, which helps you see how rules and sculpts connect. Y
ou also get a narrative playthrough of the first act, so you can watch the game flow before your own first session. Finally, there is a painting guide that shows you how to get key heroes battle ready for that debut delve.
Painting The Helsmiths And Their Fiery Menagerie
The ’Eavy Metal team turn up with a serious gift for Hashut fans. They walk through all the painting recipes used across the entire Helsmiths of Hashut range. Additionally, that includes Urak Taar’s bronze taurus, which is packed with rich metallic details. The article also covers the skin tones and armour colours of the Bull Centaurs so you can match the studio look. Moreover, there are extra schemes for named characters like Ur Zorn, Zharr Vyxa, and Muspelzharr to keep things varied. If you want your Zharrdron force to look sharp, this section does a lot of heavy lifting.
Astra Militarum Colours, Staff Armies, And Festive Conversions
Guard players get spoiled with a staff Astra Militarum showcase. The article highlights a huge variety of regimental schemes, showing just how many directions you can take the faction. Additionally, it includes tips on creating your own custom regiments, which is great for lore minded hobbyists. There are paint recipes for specific colours plus a follow up gallery of one off units and tanks that show variety on a smaller scale. Consequently, you come away with both visual inspiration and practical guidance.
The Warhammer Design Studio also leans into Christmas with themed conversions and festive paint schemes. These are playful projects that still teach useful modelling tricks. Additionally, with 2026 around the corner, a New Year, New Army feature helps you pick a fresh Warhammer 40,000 force. It talks about choosing a faction, building a narrative for them, and expanding popular Combat Patrols into full armies. So it is basically a soft launch pad for your next pile of shame.
Tales, Lore, Bunker Goals, And Subscriptions
Age of Sigmar fans are not left out, since the second instalment of the Tale of Four Warlords continues. You can watch armies grow and steal ideas for your own Path to Glory style journeys. Additionally, there is a lore digest on the Emperor and his Golden Throne, which scratches that big picture 40k itch. The issue also includes the regular bunker content, with monthly scenarios for Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Age of Sigmar. Finally, you get a 2026 Bunker Bingo card to track painting and gaming goals across the new year, which is a fun way to gamify your hobby progress.
You can pre order this issue on Saturday if you just want the one magazine. Alternatively, you can take out a twelve month subscription and get special full art cover editions delivered straight to your door. Overall, if you are even slightly interested in Darkwater, Helsmiths, Guard regiments, or kicking off a new army in 2026, this White Dwarf feels like a very strong pickup.
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