Yes we have all seen that great pic in the recent video of the Plastic Thunderhawk box, and we all know about the mystery hawk on the front cover of Inferno and on at least 2-3 pages within.
Today another bit of tinder has been added to the speculation Fire that is the Plastic Thunderhawk rumours. Forge World have marked the Resin Thunderhawk as Sold Out, with an availability of No longer available.
Now in the past this is because the item is being repackaged (from baggy to box), or because the item is discontinued. For instance the Xiphon:
When it disappeared.
When it reappeared
Because to my knowledge, the Thunderhawk is already in a Red Box, it doesn't look like it is because of that.
It could be that it re-surfaces randomly in the next few days, maybe a different code, but for now I am going to be checking FW's site closely to see if it comes back up (but I am doubtful it will). I am fully in the camp of convinced people that a Plastic Thunderhawk is imminent (maybe GW had delays getting it completed before the Horus Heresy Weekender, and so are now planning of dropping the new sleeker pattern in Plastic at Warhammer-Fest?)
So to me it is the end of the line for this ol' girl, beautiful as she was, but we will see in the next few weeks and months.
Drake Seta
Interesting. Maybe they have made new molds? The Thunderhawk was one of their first really big models, and it was not the best engineered kit. I struggled mightily with mine. A re-do would be in order.
ReplyDeleteBut I would love a plastic one! Or two...
Hi Marcus. Would have been a possibility, but then new design Forge World were unable to comment on during the Inferno Seminar at the HH Weekender, but were happy to talk about other models they had made which were first seen in the book (including Magnus). So to me they are not making this new kit, which means that GW is (unless Citadel has another company that is about to join FW and GW to make models). If it was a redesign they would freely talk about it (Lightning, Barracuda etc.)
DeleteI hope anyone that bought and had to put together the original pewter model gets the joy of doing one in plastic.
ReplyDeleteI have a pewter one in the nice wooden crate, but oh my, never touched it. I'll Defo build a plastic one!
DeleteAwh Siph. You need to now! Even if for a static terrain piece. Then again it is one hell of a collectors piece.
DeleteOwn a resin. It was a pain to build. Plastics would be nice, but everyone and their dog is going to have one. Not such a cool center piece anymore.
ReplyDeleteIMHO at least
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DeleteA plastic Thunderhawk makes a lot of sense given the current state of 40k. When it comes down to it, I feel as though the Wraithknight is what ultimately made the idea of a plastic Thunderhawk inevitable. As soon as that behemoth strode the battlefield for the first time, it ushered in a new era for Lords of War. Powerful, resilient and most of all, accessible. Anyone can walk into their FLGS and just get a Wraithknight and instantly have access to an incredibly powerful unit that can stand on its own. And now, Lord of Skulls, Baneblade, Stormsurge, Magnus, Yncarne, Imperial Knight, Stompa. Some of these things are more efficient than others *Cough*Stompa*Cough* but will still reap a fearsome tally under normal circumstances. This is all a long winded way of saying that the arms race makes the Plastic Thunderhawk a near certainty. In the words of Nick Fury: "The world's filling up with people that can't be matched." so what to do? Does Games-Workshop will into existence another ridiculous Inception Marine, where it's a Marine in a Centurion suit, in a Dreadnought, in a super Dreadnought? Or does it take an already existing, fearsome unit in the Thunderhawk and make it accessible? To me the only other course of action that doesn't involve pulling another piece of hitherto unknown tech and just sliding it into the narrative like: "Of course it was there all along silly." is to have it part of Roboutes plan to "...bring forth new and terrible weapons whose fury not even the worshippers of the Chaos Gods could withstand." which, sure, fine, but the Thunderhawk is RIGHT THERE.
ReplyDeleteThe narrative has it fleshed out, the meta is ready for it and the people are throwing wads of cash at the screen to make it appear already. And that's why I believe that a plastic Thunderhawk is en-route.
Very very well said. Thoroughly agree.
DeleteVery well said. Where they game was, is now, and is currently heading, the plastic thunderhawk is a necessity.
DeleteUnfortunately though, I feel it will lose the center piece feel it has for marine armies. No more the unique large model to showcase with your army and field rubbery so often. Now, it will be a must have for every marine player.
For me, that tends to tarnish it a bit.
But, whom I kidding? I'll get 2 or 3 like everyone else!
I always looked at those 400+ pound models as more of a "look what I can afford". Now the rest of us can have one
Delete@Brandon Wright
DeleteIf it comes, that will indeed be a shame that the centerpiece will lose a little gleam. But I mean, at least you can field a model that's a different variant to everyone else, so even in the crowd, yours will still stand out.
I wonder if a plastic thunderhawk could be configured as a thunderhawk transporter straight from the box, without conversion ? It would make sense: most of the recent GW plastic kits have had two different configurations.
ReplyDeleteThat would be awesome! I it though. The transporter just seemed very different. But, I've not seen one side but by side to compare l
DeleteFor the whole "it won't be the centerpiece it used to be..." that "Centerpiece" idea has been replace by the mastodon and the stormbird. I actually feel a plastic Thunderhawk is more necessary purely for scale purposes. The main factions GW focuses on are Necrons, Tau, Eldar, Space Marines, and Daemons/Chaos Marines. Orks is brobably lumped in with Tyranids. ALL these armies have a variety so scale, models ranging in size and more importantly height, with the one exception being SPACE MARINES. Necrons have monoliths, elder have Wraithknighs, Tau have Riptides, Daemons have Lord of Skulls, Chaos Marines have Defilers... but Space Marines don't have that larger scale item/unit. Remember Imperial Knights are a separate Army, allied with Space Marines... it's not a Space Marine unit out of the codex. The Thunderhawk gives Marines that large scale model that they are lacking
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'd like the Storm Eagle/Fire Raptor combo kit made in plastic to accompany the Thunderhawk. I also hope that the plastic Thunderhawk is both a Gunship/Transport combo kit. Both are in the Horus Heresy FW books still, but the Transport has been gone much longer, and not the Gunship goes bye bye. Let's hope for both!
ReplyDeleteGW wouldn't have gone to the trouble of creating a 3d render for no good reason. It's in HH book 7 for sure.
ReplyDeleteAnd they wouldn't mention it at all, at the weekender. Their silence was definitely a sign that they can't talk about it yet, in my opinion.
We know they have the tech, we know they like making big models lately too.
Unfortunately for me, I think the thunderhawk is ugly as sin, so I'll wait for the plastic Warhound ;)
My only concern about plastic warhound is the lack of poseability GW have shown in the last several kits. The imperial knight's legs are stuck in their position, the plastic contemptor was, in my opinion, a total fail and completely monopose. So if poseability and flexibility is at all important to you, which it is to me... we might not want a plastic warhound, leviathan, deredeo, etc.
DeleteYea totally agree. The FW knights, dreadnoughts etc., always have way better options for posing.
DeleteIf citadel do a good job on a plastic Warhound it'll sell like hot cakes though. I'll probably end up buying 6 or even more.
Fingers crossed it has some variation.
Agreed! Fingers crossed!
DeleteIronically, all they'd have to do is copy the skitarii dunestrider. I believe that's what it's called. Have both legs posed the same, bent at the knee, with one foot flat(the forward foot) and one foot with its heel up and toe bent(the back foot), and allow you to choose which leg you want forward and back. I don't need to have the limbs totally flexible and have full range. Just make it able to have either leg forward or back. If they done that for the imperial knight and the contemptor, the knight would be an even bigger hit than it already is and the contemptor would be very appealing.
ReplyDelete