Armies of Imperial Japan just landed, and it closes out Bolt Action’s classic “Big Five” cycle.
So now Germany, the US, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and Japan all have their Armies of… books again. However, the obvious question is what comes next. The answer is a short breather, followed by a steady drip of releases. And as a tabletop gamer, I love seeing a clear plan instead of vague promises.
The release rhythm and why the next wave feels different
They are taking a couple of weeks to prep for Armies of Italy pre-orders. Then it is back to the one book per quarter schedule. Moreover, the next three books are not just safe repeats. Italy, the British Commonwealth, and France are framed as bigger swings, both in scope and in how you can build forces. So, if you like list variety, this is where things start getting spicy.
Armies of Italy, British Commonwealth, and France
Armies of Italy covers Italian involvement across the war. Although Italy is mostly Axis, the book also supports Co-Belligerent forces fighting with the Allies and the Axis-backed RSI. Therefore, you can run Italians right through to the end of the conflict, with new units and national rules. Also, once pre-orders hit, they plan “intelligence report” previews of the contents.
British Commonwealth is the wild card. It covers Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, South African, British Indian, and British African forces. Because that scope is huge, they brought in worldwide experts to represent contributions properly. Mechanically, it offers a new way to use existing British models, yet it is not an add-on. Instead, it is standalone, with six army lists plus matching rules and units.
Armies of France aims beyond the Fall of France. So it includes Free French and Vichy French lists, again with new units and national rules. Moreover, both France and Italy pull specialized units from older Campaign and Theatre books into the main books.
Summary
With Japan released, Bolt Action finishes the Big Five and pivots into expansion mode. Italy pre-orders are next, then quarterly books continue with a massive Commonwealth standalone and a broader France book. After that, Armies of the Axis & Allies is in development to upgrade many nations currently living as free PDFs, while “fringe” forces will get updated PDFs later. Meanwhile, the miniatures pipeline keeps rolling with new plastics, resin and metal teams, and a secret new project.
And remember, Frontline Gaming sells gaming products at a discount, every day in their webcart!
