![battle group warmachine battle group warmachine](https://images.dakkadakka.com/gallery/2012/12/19/442815-Battle%20Box%2C%20Battle%20Group%2C%20Battlebox%2C%20Cryx%2C%20Cygnar%2C%20Design%2C%20Hordes%2C%20Khador.jpg)
PP was very smart in identifying that with the complexity that all of the different models brought to the game, it would’ve been a disaster.
![battle group warmachine battle group warmachine](https://images.dakkadakka.com/gallery/2012/12/19/442828-Battle%20Box%2C%20Battle%20Group%2C%20Battlebox%2C%20Cryx%2C%20Cygnar%2C%20Design%2C%20Hordes%2C%20Khador.jpg)
I think that limiting the scope of the game like this by creating “Legacy” armies was 100% the right move though. Swiftblade: RIP my beloved Protectorate of Menoth. Legacy models will likely not all have rules until the end of 2023. Pre-existing factions will become “legacy” factions, where some legacy models will be legal in “Prime” mode of play, and all legacy models will be legal in “Unlimited” play. In order to not overwhelm retailers, distributors, and players alike, the new edition will focus on new armies specifically designed for MK IV. He’s definitely right that a new edition, with a new philosophy will attract back lapsed players. They actually considered shelfing the game and calling it ‘Finished’. Mugginns: I thought it was very interesting how honest writer (Matt Wilson, head of Privateer Press) was in this part of the article. The momentum WMH was carrying at the peak of Mk II as a ‘Games Workshop Killer’ is long gone and while we did have a minor renaissance a year or so ago I’m seeing the community flat-line again. On reflection, I think Mk IV might be a year too late, sadly. Though, a villain might question the ‘ living ’ part of the equation when it comes to the game of Warmachine.
![battle group warmachine battle group warmachine](https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-97uzyusD8j4/TZo15EILCoI/AAAAAAAAAs8/_Cs500vkDGA/s1600/fsa+naval+group+1.jpg)
Musterkrux: Perfectly reasonable rationale.
![battle group warmachine battle group warmachine](https://images.dakkadakka.com/gallery/2012/12/14/440944-Battle%20Box%2C%20Battle%20Group%2C%20Design%2C%20Dice%2C%20Hordes%2C%20Merc%2C%20Merecenary%2C%20Painting.jpg)
Necromancers on zombie horses, robots who protecc children, arcane duelists, Warmachine is cool and rad (Photo credit: Musterkrux) As it stands though, the community is extremely niche and needed a jolt of something exciting to get the game back into the larger miniature gaming conversation, so I’m glad they went with this new edition to resolve that. Maybe if there was more positive feeling on the MK III ruleset as a whole, the company could’ve gotten away with this and kept a decent community going. Swiftblade: Privateer Press addressing the “Living Games” issue here is an interesting way to start, and I’m intrigued that they considered just calling the game finished and walking away from it after MK III. New editions are controversial but necessary, and “Living Games” with a large catalog of models and rules become harder and harder to sustain. It’s crazy to think that Warmachine & Hordes (now just Warmachine) has been around 20 years! Why? The Skirmish variant of the game gave me some time a few years ago, but the game just died off for me – I don’t think because of MK3, but because our local crowd was a LOT more competitive than I was and I couldn’t spend the time knowing everything. I’ve still got all my Skorne, pretty much the entire line, painted and in foam in my garage. The best way to format this is probably just taking a straightforward look at the announcement blog post on the Privateer Press website and giving thoughts on each section of that post. After walking away from the game a few years back, today’s announcement fills me with many different emotions. Swiftblade: Well, I didn’t think I ever expected to think about Warmachine again. Musterkrux, Swiftblade (Dan R.) and Mugginns (Michael O) take a look at the announcement and their immediate reactions to everything packed in there. To be honest though, it’s not just the announcement of a new edition – there are a whole slew of other details and honest looks into the wargame production world that make this announcement so interesting. If you’re a wargamer and you’ve been sleeping you may have missed the blockbuster announcement of a new edition of Warmachine.