Age of Sigmar Cover Art

We are delighted to show you the Age of Sigmar cover art following its reveal on Warhammer TV just now! We are also excited to share a substantial update from our Age of Sigmar Producer Emmet below and look forward to your feedback on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages! You can also get involved in the discussion over on discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/WeXmJqP

Hello! My name is I’m Emmet Byrne, producer on the Warhammer Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. Today we’re excited to share a major update about the Age of Sigmar RPG!

On the Cover

Firstly, we are incredibly excited to share with you the cover for the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. This amazing piece of art was created by the incredibly talented Johan Grenier and was first revealed on the Warhammer TV Twitch channel. You may recognise Johan’s work from other Age of Sigmar products, including the triumphant return of Gotrek in Realmslayer. Johan has a wealth of knowledge and experience with Age of Sigmar so having him create the cover for the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game was hugely exciting for us.

On the cover itself, you can see a band of heroes from across the Mortal Realms facing down the forces of Chaos and the undead legions of Nagash, the Lord of Death. Our group of heroes is made up of a valiant Knight-Questor of the Stormcast Eternals, a devoted Excelsior Warpriest, an Isharann Tidecaster of the mysterious Idoneth Deepkin, a resourceful Endrinrigger of the Kharadron Overlords, and a towering Kurnoth Hunter of the Sylvaneth. These represent some of the types of characters you’ll be able to play in the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game, but there are many more to choose from and build yourself. With that in mind, let’s talk about the game itself.

The Age of Sigmar

The Age of Chaos saw the Mortal Realms overrun with violence and death, but Sigmar’s return and the beginning of the Age of Sigmar saw hope rekindled. But now Nagash, the Undying King and Lord of Death, has set a thousand-year plan in motion. The dead stalk the lands and the mighty Stormcast Eternals are stretched to the brink. The Realms need heroes or risk falling into a new age: The Age of Death.

When you play the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game you will be taking on the roles of heroes of the Mortal Realms. Your disparate group are a beacon of hope in the Realms and it is up to you to ensure that light isn’t extinguished. You will drive back the forces of Chaos, Death, and Destruction and help to return life and civilisation to the Realms.

The System

As we mentioned in an earlier update, the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game uses a D6 dice pool system. You’ll create your dice pool by adding your Attributes together with any Skills you are proficient with. Attributes describe your innate capabilities such as physical prowess, intelligence, and strength of will, while Skills represent your competency and experience in a particular area. Each character has 3 Attributes — Body, Mind, and Soul — and can choose from up to 24 unique Skills.

As well as Attributes and Skills, you will also have Talents. Talents are unique abilities and features that further define what you are capable of, such as spellcasting, aethercraft, or channeling the power of Sigmar into your strikes. When you choose your Archetype (read on for more on Archetypes!) you will have a predetermined list of Skills and Talents to choose from, but as your character grows you will be able to select from a wide array of unique options. This will give you a huge amount of freedom with how you grow and shape your character.

We also have a number of systems within the corebook centred on having your party work together, interacting with the factions of the realms, crafting, pets and mounts, and creating your own spells. We will discuss these and more in future updates.

The Archetypes

Your Archetype is who you are when you begin playing the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. It may be your job, a calling, a military rank, or something a little more esoteric, but whatever it is it represents who you are when you first pick up the dice. Your Archetype is who you are now, but who, or what, you might become has yet to be decided.

Each Archetype presents your Species, your starting Attributes, your Core Skill and a number of other Skills to choose from, your Core Talent and a number of other Talents to choose from, your faction Influence, your starting equipment, and anything else that is important for your character.

The Archetypes presented in the corebook are drawn from some of the most well-known heroes of the Forces of Order. We will share more details and artwork for each Archetype in a future update, but for now we are happy to confirm the Knight-Questor and Knight-Incantor of the Stormcast Eternals, Auric Runesmiter of the Fyreslayers, Aether-Khemist of the Kharadron Overlords, Isharann Tidecaster of the Idoneth Deepkin, Witch Aelf of the Daughters of Khaine, Excelsior Warpriest of the Devoted of Sigmar, Former Freeguild Soldier of the Free Peoples, Kurnoth Hunter of the Sylvaneth, Skink Starpriest of the Seraphon, and the mysterious Realmswalker.

For players who prefer a more free-form approach to character creation, we also present rules for creating characters without Archetypes. Future products will introduce expanded player options, including Archetypes from outside the Forces of Order.

The Setting

The Mortal Realms are almost endless, so packing them into a single book would be impossible. The Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game presents an overview of each of the Mortal Realms and what life is like for the people who live there. These give players and GMs an idea of what it would be like to adventure in these lands, who they might meet, and the threats they might face. It provides a grounding for you to set your adventure in any Realm you choose.

As well as giving an overview of each of the Realms, the corebook has a chapter dedicated to the lands of the Great Parch in Aqshy, the Realm of Fire. This chapter gives an insight into the daily life of the inhabitants of Aqshy, how they survive, how they trade and who they trade with, and how they have recovered from the events of the Age of Chaos. The great cities of Aqshy are explored, as are the havens of Chaos, Death, and Destruction. This chapter presents all the information a GM will need to run a campaign in The Great Parch.

The Team

To help us create the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game we sought out some of the authors who have helped to shape the Mortal Realms into what we know today. David Guymer (Realmslayer, Hamilcar: Champion of the Gods), Josh Reynolds (Soul Wars, Plague Garden), and Clint Werner (The Tainted Heart, Overlords of the Iron Dragon) have all contributed to the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. Their input, insight, and knowledge of the Realms has been immense. These talented folk are some of the people who know the Realms best so to be able to pick their brains has been great. Expect to see more from them as the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game grows and we explore more of the Mortal Realms.

What's Next?

In the coming months we will continue to share more information on the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. Future updates will focus in detail on how Archetypes work, showcase some of our talented artists, explore the complicated relationships of the factions of the Realms, and look into the future of what you can expect from the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game. Be sure to keep an eye on our website and social media channels as we announce where you can come meet us, including which events to attend for a chance to be one of the first people in the world to play the Age of Sigmar Roleplaying Game.

Until then, blessings of Sigmar be upon you!

Emmet Byrne.