The Big Summer Preview delivered two reveals that hit very different hobby nerves.
Orks get the first codex of the new edition, plus proper new plastic toys. Meanwhile, Exodites finally step out of old lore and onto modern tables. For long-time 40K fans, that combination feels loud, weird, and genuinely overdue.
Orks Get a New Codex, Fresh Vehicles, and More Ways to Waaagh!
Orks are first out of the gate for the new edition with Codex: Orks, and that feels fitting. No faction introduces a rules cycle with more noise, smoke, and reckless confidence.
The new codex updates the classic Waaagh! army rule, letting units gain different bonuses when they get riled up. It also includes 15 detachments, which should let players build everything from Speedwaaagh! lunacy to proper green tide pressure. However, the book is not just rules. Games Workshop says it adds more lore and gaming content than before.
That includes art, painting advice, cultural background, battlegrounds, and a Collecting section with four army archetypes. The return of bestiary-style unit lore is welcome, since Orks are funniest when units feel like characters. Also, the app code now works like an edition-long update pass. It unlocks codex content in the Warhammer 40,000 App and grants quarterly rules and lore drops. That sounds like the new codex model going forward, so Ork players are the test subjects. That suits Orks perfectly. The miniature reveals are just as loud.
The new Trukk kit updates a true Ork classic with big customization energy. Players can add a grabbin’ klaw, buzzsaw, rokkit launchas, big shootas, a spiked ram, or a dozer blade. Even better, the front axles can be posed to make the whole chassis lean. That is perfect, because an Ork vehicle should look seconds from either victory or explosion.
The new Mek supports the vehicle focus nicely. He repairs nearby vehicles, gives them +1 to hit, and carries a kustom mega-slugga.
Meanwhile, the Warboss returns with even more head options, including 16 upper-and-lower head combinations.
The Abaddon-style hair squig, Commissar-style cap, bionic eye, horned helmet, and cigar jaw are wonderfully silly. Armageddon box units also get standalone releases. The Bigboss, Bannernob, and Painboy with Grot Orderly form the Armageddon Kommand Krew. Meanwhile, Weirdboyz, Dakkarigs, Wartrakks, and others receive dedicated boxes. Finally, the Command Pack brings 94 reference cards and double-sided tokens, while green Ork dice complete the release.
Exodites Finally Ride Drakesteeds Into Kill Team
The Exodite reveal is one of those moments older Aeldari fans have been waiting on for years. Exodites have sat in the background of 40K lore for decades, usually mentioned as maiden world survivors and dragon riders. Now they finally arrive in miniature through Kill Team: Exodite.
The box contains three Aeldari Dragon Masters, two Drakolithes, and invading Beast Snagga Boyz and Squighog Boyz as NPOs. That matchup is honestly perfect.
You get ancient Aeldari ritual hunters defending their world against the most aggressively invasive Orks imaginable. The Dragon Masters operate as a ritual triad, which makes them a tiny but elite kill team. The Clanblade rides a redmaw drakesteed and fights up close with powered swords and axes
. It studies prey, directs allies, and cuts down dangerous targets. Meanwhile, the Stonesinger rides a venomcrest drakesteed and acts as the psychic anchor. These psykers contact souls within the world spirit, then rupture armor, flesh, and bone or heal fellow Dragon Masters. Finally, the Leystalker is the sniper, riding with a darkscale drakesteed into ideal firing positions. It brings fast, precise rifle volleys, which should give the team a real ranged threat.
The Drakolithes support the riders as smaller predatory beasts. They chase fleeing targets, intercept flankers, and sniff out hidden prey. That is good Kill Team design, since every model needs a job when your roster is this small.
The Dragon Masters kit can also build lance-armed Exodite Dragon Knights, with future Warhammer 40,000 rules confirmed. That alternative build matters, because people will absolutely want these models outside Kill Team.
The dossier adds a lot too, with Exodite culture, weapons, beasts, and maiden world terrain guidance. It also includes 20 Joint Ops missions forming a branching campaign against the Beast Snagga NPOs.
Summary and Final Thoughts
Overall, this preview feels like a strong one-two punch for 40K. Orks get the practical army support, with a codex, vehicles, cards, dice, and standalone Armageddon releases. Meanwhile, Exodites deliver the deep-cut lore payoff that makes preview nights fun. Also, both reveals lean into personality rather than bland efficiency. The Orks look louder, messier, and easier to customize. Meanwhile, the Exodites look elegant, strange, and refreshingly distinct from Craftworld Aeldari. If this is the tone for the new edition’s early releases, 40K is starting with real momentum.
