This update week feels like three different hobby tables talking at once.
Age of Sigmar gets fiery Death faction rules for Aqshy. Meanwhile, Middle-earth receives a careful FAQ aimed at competitive rough edges. Finally, Horus Heresy fans get another classic Black Books lore download. Together, these pieces support list building, smoother games, and narrative inspiration.
Death Armies Get Fiery Seasonal Tricks
The Scourge of Aqshy rollout reaches the forces of Death. It covers Flesh-eater Courts, Nighthaunt, Ossiarch Bonereapers, and Soulblight Gravelords with free seasonal rules. Each faction gets new enhancements and warscroll options for the 2026-27 season. That should matter immediately for players rebuilding around the new General’s Handbook. Flesh-eater Courts lean into their glorious delusion with The Royal Treasury.
The Fool’s Cap is especially funny, because it manipulates rage and fury while baiting an enemy toward the wrong fight. However, the Flayed Flags may be nastier, since they can block Fight Through the Pain at a key moment.
Nighthaunt get Vociferous Defamers, which boosts friendly Wizard casting near the marked unit.
If that unit is fighting an enemy Wizard or Priest, the bonus gets even better. That makes ghostly cavalry like Dreadblade Harrows look like arcane harassment pieces.
Ossiarch Bonereapers receive Mortis Reapers, who can teleport into an isolated enemy Hero during the charge phase.
In practice, that is classic Bonereaper cruelty, all discipline until your support character suddenly vanishes. Vokmortian also gets new rules, while relics like Soulweb Gem can even bring back a destroyed Hero.
Soulblight Gravelords add folk-horror flavor through Origins of Terrifying Folk Tales.
The Empty Graveyard lets a unit redeploy near terrain or a board edge. However, it cannot move during the first turn.
Middle-earth FAQ Takes a Light Touch
The Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game FAQ is framed as a careful rules tune-up rather than a sweeping rewrite. The team says it focused on common questions, unclear rules, and a few profiles showing too strongly in competitive play. That approach feels sensible, because Middle-earth plays best when small changes preserve the game’s clean feel. Clarifications cover banner passing, Brutal Power Attacks, heavy objects, and War Beast trampling. Notably, banners cannot be passed to a model involved in the same combat. Also, Monsters cannot pick a Brutal Power Attack if they cannot make Strikes.
Errata updates special rules like Fly and Swift Movement so they work before models enter the board. War Beasts also cannot pick up light or heavy objects, which sounds obvious once stated. Prince Imrahil gets cheaper, hopefully bringing Dol Amroth back onto more tables. Conversely, Gwaihir goes up in points because he was underpriced beside similar Monsters.
Legolas gets a Deadly Shot adjustment, nudging him toward solo hunting instead of universal efficiency. Fords of Isen armies can now take more throwing spears, which should make list building less awkward. Crebain lose Defence and Wounds after swarming top tables, while Mordor Orcs join more Evil lists for film accuracy.
The Usurpers of Edoras gain War Mumak access, although taking one means leaving Freca behind. Finally, Hill Tribesmen and Wild Men gain banner and war horn options for the new command set.
Calth Returns Through the Black Books
The latest Pages from the Black Books download turns to the War at Calth, one of the Heresy’s defining betrayals. After last week’s Ultramarines background, this entry follows the Shadow War, the Betrayal at Calth, and the XIII Legion’s counterattack. That is heavy material, because Calth is not just another battlefield. It is where trust turns into slaughter, and the Word Bearers turn doctrine into atrocity. The lore comes from The Horus Heresy: Book 5: Tempest, first published in 2015. It covers bitter civil-war fighting involving Ultramarines, Solar Auxilia, Mechanicum forces, Titans, and a Knight Household.
For Heresy players, that mix is a goldmine. You can build Zone Mortalis raids, Titan-supported city fights, or desperate loyalist counterstrokes from one campaign seed. The article also points readers toward Dan Abnett’s Know No Fear. Meanwhile, next week previews Mechanicum Taghmata from the Calth muster.
Overall, this is a strong rules-and-lore week. Death players get fresh tools, Middle-earth gets cleaner play, and Heresy fans get campaign fuel too.
