Is White Dwarf Magazine worth it?

[Guest Triszin]

I was thinking about subscribing for a year, and my question was, do hobbyists here like what they put in it? or is it dull?

[mactire]

I suppose it's ok,I get it every month from a local newsagent. But if I missed a copy it wouldn't ruin my month.

[Axineton]

I started buying it again about 4-5 months ago but honestly I hardly read it. To much AoS for my liking and I’m really not into AoS at all. I think Julys copy is gonna be cover to cover of it too what with 2.0 out last week.

 

I suppose you have to decide what your into mate and go from there.

[MARK0SIAN]

Yeah, I didnt get it every month but I’ve stopped altogether because every issue I did pick up seemed very AoS heavy.

 

Maybe it’s not that bad and I just got unlucky but there seems far too much focus on AoS for my liking.

[Kastor Krieg]

particular issues were must-have for me, due to whole new gang rules for Chaos / GSC / Venators for Necromunda. Similarly, if you play Blood Bowl / AoS / Shadespire / Silver Tower (Quest), etc, some extended support is via WD, it will be similar with Kill Team, Rogue Trader and Adeptus Titanicus, if you're into those as well.

[m_r_parker]

Honestly, when I do buy it I usually flick through the thing in 10-15 minutes and never really go back to it. I only ever buy it if it has expanded rules for specialist games (Necromunda, Blood Bowl, etc).

The only really good article I've seen in recent months is a detailed walkthrough of how to take the best pictures of your miniatures. It covered a lot, explained how different settings work, and even give examples of photos taken with the wrong settings and shows you what's wrong with them. I think in May's issue there was also a similar article explaining the 'golden angle' for miniatures and the best positions for taking photos.

Subscribing for any length of time has never gone through my mind in the past 3 years or so, but i do buy about 1 issue per quarter.

[Stercus]

When it’s good, it’s good, when it isn’t, it’s not so good. Not a lot of help I know, but in general, as the content of each issue varies so much it’s hard to give a definitive answer as to its value. Some of the new rules for specialist games have been brilliant. Some of the guides to painting and photography have been detailed and easy to understand. The blanchitsu articles are gloomily fantastic (if you like that sort of thing). Equally, a lot of the battle reports have been confused and slightly incoherent. I think if you expect every issue to be a trove of brilliance and genius you’ll be disappointed, but if you think it’s going to just be a glorified brochure as it was in days not so very long ago, you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

[D3L]

this version is just an advertising pamphlet, it's attempted to bring back some hobby tips and techniques (compared to the even more blatant sales pitch of the last edition), but it's nothing on the 90s 

save your money, buy new minis :D
 

[NiceGuyAdi]

I didn’t like it when it really was a weekly advertising pamphlet, but I buy it most months now. At £6 or whatever it is, the only cheaper thing you’ll get from GW is a pot of paint.

 

There’s not much in there you can’t get for free on the Internet, but it’s nice to have a magazine to thumb through sometimes, instead of always trawling through B&C/Pinterest/Youtube/Warhammer Community.

 

Buy it for a couple of months from a newsagent and see how you like it before going the whole hog with a subscription.

[Arkaniss]

I find it best to just buy them when they have something I'm interested in. Unless you're into all things GW then I'd be hesitant to recommend getting a subscription, as due to release schedules and whatnot you can get a few copies that are heavy on the latest faction or whatever which might not hold any interest for you. If you don't like AoS for example then you might not like current the WD as I expect them to be festooned with Soul Wars gubbins!

[Panzer]

I honestly stopped buying them because I get my warhammer fix from this forum and WarCom already. However every once in a while there's an issue I still buy because it has rules in it or whatever.

[BluejayJunior]

I also just get the occasional one that is interesting. I enjoy them though. The battle reports are usually pretty cool. This month's is pretty AOS heavy but it's got some stuff on the Knights as well. 

[Noserenda]

Since it went back monthly ive been on and off with it, its good that they are bringing back designers notes and some behind the scenes stuff that is actually interesting but the battle reports are still weak and the To4g hasnt been particularly inspiring either, both need more words! New rules and expansions is definitely a plus, though they vary greatly in quality (Genestealer gangs rules are powerfully half arsed for example). 

Readers models, Blanchitsu and the Army focuses are nice though, lots of non standard models and conversions is what i love :) 

[Corswain]

I enjoy 40K and AoS so I find it worthwhile, if you don’t like AoS then maybe not.

[Kite Senet]

To add my two cents, I'd say a subscription isn't worth it unless you like both AoS and 40k and have diverse interests in both games. There are certain issues that are must-haves if you like certain factions (as a Thousand Sons player I have the Burning of Prospero issue next to my bed right next to my codex every night in case I can't sleep) and there are occasionally must-have rules if you play certain games (like the additional Necromunda army lists) but overall I was disappointed about 75% of the time when I bought a White Dwarf, when they had little to do with 40k and even less to do with the Chaos stuff I'm most interested in. I'm refraining from it myself since the issues lately have been really AoS-heavy.

[Red_Shift]

I've got a subscription and I enjoy it. I agree that my level.of interest varies depending on the flavour of the month but in general they do keep a bit of variety and have really put in the effort with designers interviews etc. In all honesty I have a hard job and its nice one day a month to have the pleasant surprise of a mag full of warhammer when get back home.

 

The latest issue has Duncan's knights!

[Mileposter]

I would posit that getting each issue is also a veritable trove for those with open minds, creative outlets, or those who look for ideas.

 

I do not like Age of Sigmar, the game. I have no interest in it. I think some of the models are amazingly cool, sure, and I've painted a few. However by and large I would not have any interest in most things AoS for AoS reasons. I do still, however, read through many AoS-related postings and articles from GW because it helps inspire my 40k. Painting articles for AoS are still the same paints and techniques that can be used on 40k models, AoS lore articles can still help inspire ideas and tropes for 40k projects, new AoS models often offer conversion and kitbashing opportunities for 40k, and many of the same minds and personalities are involved with 40k so it helps get a bigger picture.

 

It's not the same as casual enjoyment, and nothing wrong for only wanting to treat it casually, but if you're the sort to dig under the surface... It's all hobby at some level. Regardless of label.

[Bulwyf]

I only stopped my sub to WD when they did that weird split of the magazine. It is worth it imo if you are really into the hobby.

[G8Keeper]

I got a decent launch deal and have subscribed ever since (£12.50 per quarter).  I don't really notice the cost and so it's worth it, providing very welcome distraction during my lunch breaks.

[Malios]

I enjoy white dwarf myself. I've been in the hobby for a while and have a decent white dwarf collection (mainly from people giving away old issues) so I like to see white dwarf as a history of the hobby.

 

I agree with the others that the White Dwarf magazines from the late 90s / early 00's were excellent. They to me reflect a good time in the hobby where GW were open and pushed warhammer as a hobby first. The chapter approved articles, the terrain building articles and the themed army articles were big ones that stood out for me but, objectively speaking, I'm not 100% sure if this was due to the quality of the magazine's content during the late 90s / early 00's or merely nostalgia on my behalf as I was in my early teens in the early 00's and had less internet access (and with that, less hobby exposure) then I do today. New readers who read back may see it differently I suppose.

 

I also agree that, particularly between 2008 - 2016, White Dwarf's quality significantly declined, transforming more into a catalogue opposed to a dedicated hobby magazine. Interestingly, this was the "Kirby Period" where everything GW declined (no event support, price hikes and point cuts, one man brick and mortar stores, break down of relations with independent stockists, no news and rumours, no social media or official rumour / preview sites, discontinuation of official support for specialist games etc). White Dwarf really suffered from the "if it can't be sold by us then it can't be featured" mentality and the price hikes for half the content during the era of weekly White Dwarfs was a really bad time for the magazine compared to its preceding decade.

 

Suffice to say, the White Dwarfs of today aren't perfect... but they're a leap in the right direction in bringing back a hobby magazine compared to three years ago.

 

My wallet hates me for thinking this, but White Dwarf almost feels too thin on pages with all of the specialist games in circulation alongside the big two games and regular black library / Forge World blurbs. I wouldn't mind if it was two separate magazines of the same size: one for Age of Sigmar and related games (Shadespire, Blood Bowl etc) and one for 40k and related games (Horus Heresy, Necromunda, the upcoming killteam etc). Great idea for those who only like one system... but not great for my wallet.

 

Long story short: I enjoy reading White Dwarf. Not all of them are equal in content or quality, but I enjoy them none-the-less.

[Guest Triszin]

thanks for all the help, I decided to Subscribe for a year.

[Ishagu]

I'm going to agree with what has been said already.

Some issues are great, filled with 40k goodness I can't get enough of, unique rules, conversions and painting guides.

Others hold much less content of interest.

 

I think a problem might be that the sheer volumes of new releases are leaving the magazines to function as advertisement over having a focus on the hobby, setting or narrative like they used to.

 

That being said, if you wanna sit back and flick through a magazine about the hobby they are still pretty great, and the battle reports are fun.

[Master Commander Ajax]

I think a big problem White Dwarf has now that it didn't have in its heyday is the increasing range of models that Games Workshop produces, in particular, terrain. BrokeJaw Gutripper sums it up pretty well above. White Dwarf cant exactly go publishing articles telling people how to make their own gaming tables and fortifications when they're actively trying to sell you Realm of battle tiles and Fortress of Redemption kits, especially when you consider the price difference. I love the terrain kits GW puts out don't get me wrong, its just this is one of the trade-offs.

 

Painting articles are definitely white Dwarfs strong suite now and when the magazine relaunched the other year it did a good job of putting out 'Eavy Metal Masterclasses. If White Dwarf published one of those every month then Id recommend buying it just for them, however, they've gotten fairly inconsistent with how often they publish them. Paint splatter can be decent too but the quality of painting varies quite a lot. 

 

I find the battle reports a bit sterile in all honesty. They tend to focus on game mechanics rather than narrative but I understand some people prefer that so it's subjective as to whether you find that to be a negative.

 

I'd say if you're primarily into painting then overall White Dwarf will be worth it. If not then you might be better off giving it a miss. 

[Red_Shift]

To be fair though, when I open up old white dwarfs or my copy of "how to make wargames terrain" I see a load of (very well made) reimagined coke cans, polystyrene packing and the like. Which was great at the time but now I can buy a plastic gw building I don't really want to make my own. I used to use the polystyrene inserts metal gw models came packed in, re made into ruins.

 

What would be good is articles on how to make things the realm of battle board doesn't do so well - for example I've got a necromunda board which at its base has celotex rigid foam insulation into which you can carve passageways etc - I'm not too sure I'm that nostalgic for cocktail stick cactus plants though!

[Trevak Dal]

I started buying it again about 4-5 months ago but honestly I hardly read it. To much AoS for my liking and I’m really not into AoS at all. I think Julys copy is gonna be cover to cover of it too what with 2.0 out last week.

 

I suppose you have to decide what your into mate and go from there.

Yeah if they had a dedicated 40k and 30k related magazine I'd get it, but the Age of Sigmar and Lord of the Rings stuff I don't care about at all (though I like many of the minis, I'm no going to get them)

 

And white dwarf gets heavy on the aos and tlotr stuff like how Netflix is importing forign TV shows from Mexico, Portugal and such...it's like "yo...I got Netflix to see movies and native English speaking tv shows the :cuss is this Telemundo noise?" I'm seriously getting cable TV flashbacks of a whole lot of stuff I don't care about.