This April there is a lot to look forward to from Warcradle Studios, with exciting new pre-orders for Dystopian Wars, Wild West Exodus and Warcradle Scenics.
April ushers in the introduction of a new faction to the sea as the Sultanate makes a valiant entrance to Dystopian Wars with the Anatolia Battlefleet Set. Waves begin to crash over the decks of a mobile stronghold as the Murmansk resurfaces for the Commonwealth and the Union call in more supporting vessels with the Union Support Squadrons.
The wild side of Wild West Exodus gets that little bit wilder as the Ceruleans are back with a separate box of Cerulean Infiltrators for the Watchers.
The town of Retribution returns to your tabletop with the Retribution Town Range, now available as individual terrain kits.
With so much to come for Dystopian Wars, Wild West Exodus and Warcradle Scenics, make sure you don’t miss out when they are available to pre-order from the 25th of March 2022.
Due to be released at the end of April 2022.
Dystopian Wars
The Sultanate joins the fray as the Anatolia Battlefleet Set is ready to set sail with their enriched knowledge unlocked by the New Learning.
Almost as large as the Ice Maiden itself, the gigantic Murmansk Mobile Stronghold breaks the surface of the water and emerges in all its glory to repair any Commonwealth vessels.
With these two huge releases the Union are forced to deploy additional reinforcements in the form of the Union Support Squadrons.
Anatolia Battlefleet Set
Once assumed to be at the brink of collapse due to their idleness, the Sultanate can no longer ignore the pressures of foreign enemies and has launched their first fleet to the seas of Dystopian Wars with the Anatolia Battlefleet Set.
Designed to replace the bulky and antiquated Fettah class battleships, the Anatolia Heavy Battlecruiser has proven to be a much leaner and more advanced vessel. The combination of manoeuvrability, firepower and armour is considered, by the Sultanate Military, to be unmatched by the other Great Powers.
One of the oldest flagship classes still in service to the Sublime Porte, the Hurrem Grand Cruiser is a beloved command for many seasoned Captains. Refitted and modernised with the latest weapons and magnetic impeller propulsion, her age still shows with the lack of an Orichalcite core and her cramped confines making it difficult for her crew. Despite this she is still able to bring considerable firepower to bear against her enemies and her striking design has inspired much of the look of the modern Ottoman fleet.
Nowhere is this more clearly seen than with the Mehmed class Grand Monitor. This modern ship was intentionally designed to harken back to the venerable Hurrem class, a silhouette so distinctive that it confuses enemy analysts as to the exact size, strength and composition of Ottoman fleets. The class was named after the great Mehmed himself and Sultanate naval doctrine often sees these vessels deployed to show that the Sultan is always watching over his people. As the captains of these Grand Monitor are drawn from those most loyal to the Sublime Porte, this is not always a comforting notion to the rest of the fleet.
The Izmir Monitor can often be seen supporting a Mehmed class, making sure that the great rivers and coastlines under the Sultans' protection are well defended. Assignment to an Izmir is often seen as a sideways promotion as the constant presence of a Grand Monitor can make a captain and his officers feel they have little chance to show initiative and that any orders they give their crew may be changed at a moment's notice.
When magnetic impeller advancements were acquired by the Sublime Porte for its navy, it was the Iskandar class that first bore the fruit of the development. Quickly these cruisers
have become the mainstay in the highly mobile Sultanate armada, particularly when partnered with Pasha class vessels. These Light Cruisers are often the first to attend a conflict, they are outfitted with extensive observation systems allowing any reconnaissance to be as detailed as possible. This helps the Iskanders and flagships be in the best position to bring their formidable weapons to bear.
Sadrazam Heavy Cruisers are the envy of the world's navies. Advanced Sultanate engineering, the match of even the Covenant of the Enlightened, combines speed and manoeuvrability with enhanced firepower to deadly effect. Regularly fitted with particle beamers, the sight of a squadron of Sadrazams on the horizon is often enough to shake the resolve of the bravest enemy Commodore.
Often seen as part of large battlefleets, the Temir Frigates are employed as flanking squadrons supporting Pasha or Izmir class warships. These frigates are sometimes tasked with engaging a secondary objective while the larger ships proceed with the main thrust of an attack.
This box contains:
1x Anatolia Battleship
2x Cruiser (can be built as either a Iskandar, Izmir, Pasha or Sadrazam Class ship. Both cruisers can also be combined to build a Hurrem Grand Cruiser or a Mehmed Grand Monitor)
4x Temir Frigate
Murmansk Battlefleet Set
Rising from the depths, what at first looks like a small blot in the ocean becomes larger and larger until the massive Murmansk Mobile Stronghold breaks through the surface of the water. With a monumental crash of water the Murmansk is ready to aid any Commonwealth vessel.
Part firebase and part repair yard, a Murmansk allows the Commonwealth to expand its theatres of operation around the globe. Utilising integrated void engine technology acquired by Helsinki Markov, the Murmansk can appear unexpectedly, rising from beneath the waves in a matter of minutes. The engineering teams aboard a Murmansk are so well drilled that they can even make emergency repairs during an engagement. Often an opponent of the Commonwealth thought a key target was critically damaged only for the brave teams aboard a nearby Murmansk to keep it in fighting condition.
A development on the Murmansk, the Tobolsk Mobile Stronghold is often deployed in the far northern waters where it provides a tactical advantage to the Commonwealth in those isolated freezing seas. Though the void-engines still require many hours to recharge, the element of surprise makes this a uniquely viable technology for these mobile strongholds. Scores of pilots replace the engineers of the Murmansk while launch bays of Cometa fighters are installed instead of repair yards.
Despite the discombobulation brought on by the void-engine, all fighters are ready to enter the fray at a moments notice, prepared to launch a lightning offensive catching a target off guard and ill prepared.
Volodymyr Nikonov was gifted a modified mobile stronghold by the Tsar and in gratitude he named it after his love, the Tsar’s eldest daughter, Anastasia. Based near Novo-Arkhangelsk in Alaska, this vessel is the home base for Nikonov and his Black Wolf Mercenaries. A pinnacle of the stronghold design, the Anastasia is armed with multiple Tri-Railguns, decked in generators and fitted with both repair facilities and bays of Cometa fighters. Fortunately, if you think they can help, the Black Wolf Mercenaries are available to any commodore for a price. However, you’d better hope that someone else hasn’t thought of hiring them first.
Each Mobile Stronghold is treated as a support vessel so are never seen unaccompanied. Any manner of frontline ships will be sailing alongside but most often will be the Kutsov, the iconic ship of the White Navy seen on recruitment posters throughout the Commonwealth.
This box contains:
1x Mobile Stronghold (Can be built as either a Murmansk, Tobolsk, or Anastasia Class Ship)
4x Frontline Cruiser (can be built as either a Kutsov, Oleg, Sineus or Norilsk Class Ship)
2x Support Cruiser (can be built as either a Khatanga, Morozko or Pravda Class ship)
2x Stoletov Ekranoplan
8x Rurik Class Frigate
4x SRS Token
Union Support Squadrons
Following the soon-to-be released Enterprise Battlefleet Set, the Union are looking to strengthen their forces with the deployment of Support Squadrons. Packed with Cruisers and Automata this set adds a punch to any Union fleet.
The Union fleet has seen a number of technological improvements since the defection of Nikolai Tesla from the Imperium, and a significant overall increase since the end of the Ore War. Support Cruisers and Automata have all been upgraded by the creative team in the Pipeworks.
The Washington Missile Cruiser serves to increase the long-range firepower of the battlefleet as well as providing additional cover against enemy aircraft. Armed with Kettering pattern cruise missiles, the crew of Washington class vessels often make use of observation rotors and spotters in fighter squadrons to ensure the deadly payload strikes true.
The Roanoke Strike Carriers provide air support to any fleets they are attached to. These Cruisers employ powerful electromagnetic catapults to rapidly launch their Corsair strike fighters into the fray; the Roanoke carrier is a valuable vessel in the Union fleet. The class was named after the Union naval base on Roanoke Island, destroyed in 1862 during the Ore War.
A rarer sight are the new Discovery Class Arc Cruisers. Given sufficient development from The Pipeworks to be given general deployment in the Union Fleet, the Discovery class are replete with Edwina Houston and Nikolai Tesla's Arc technologies. These deadly state of the art weapons can flash burn through the hulls of the mightiest enemy battleships in a burst of incandescence.
Finally, with a reputation for working miracles, the crews of Montgomery support ships are always a welcome addition to any battlefleet. Scores of repair teams use a combination of flight gear and escort craft to effect repairs and rescue to friendly vessels in need.
These ships are also able to provide field repairs to the RC-52 Patriot Automata. These towering simulacra are designed by the brilliant theoretical engineers at The Pipeworks, and are the largest automata in the Union's military. Just like smaller automata, over time their adaptive computations develop quirks that give veteran Automata distinctive personalities.
This box contains:
2x Union Support Cruisers (can be built as either a Discovery, Roanoke, California, Montgomery or Washington Class ship)
4x RC-52 Patriot Automata
2x SRS Tokens
Wild West Exodus
The pre-orders this month are out of this world as the Ceruleans return to Wild West Exodus. Eager to blend in and observe, these Cerulean Infiltrators are ready to aid any Watcher posse you may possess.
Cerulean Infiltrators
Hidden deep within society, the Cerulean Infiltrators have long lived amongst us and are now available outside of the Cerulean Clade Posse box. Full of undercover extraterrestrials, bring these masters of mimicking to your Watchers force.
The Vreib possessed a naturally evolved chameleonic ability that helped them avoid or manipulate the many predators of their home world. When it was time for the species to join the Watchers Hegemony, this talent was seen as uniquely valuable.
The Watchers spend centuries observing, trying to understand the sentient species of the galaxy. Being able to infiltrate such societies and live among them, even to think like them, was now possible thanks to the genetic talents of the Vreib.
During the process of hyper-evolving the species into the Cerulean Clade, this extraordinary natural mimicry was taken to an extreme, combining mental and physical processes to allow a Cerulean to become a near identical facsimile of a targeted individual. Creating the appearance of clothing, equipment and even vocal sounds and surface thought patterns, a Cerulean is only limited by a mass differential of 46% and an inability to remove any mimicked items such as taking off their jacket or putting down a mimicked gun; as it is in reality part of their own body.
The majority of the Cerulean infiltration for mimicking rank and file groups is conducted by Infiltrator Myriads, smaller than the Vixens and Primes but no less intelligent or dedicated to the task at hand. On Earth in the Dystopian Age it is the Cerulean that are the most valuable to the Watchers in keeping their presence a secret from the wider world. Ceruleans infiltrate key areas of human society, authority and politics to misdirect attention and identify threats to the Watcher’s ultimate mission.
This box contains:
5x Cerulean Infiltrators
Warcradle Scenics
Now available for the first time in individual terrain kits, the bustling town of Retribution returns to your tabletop as the scene of epic gunfights and deadly shootouts.
Retribution Town Range
As the dust settles and the blood dries up in the scorching heat, the town of Retribution surely will not remain silent for very long. Following the conflict between Gustave Eiffel and Nikolai Tesla in Showdown at Retribution, the town of Retribution is now available as separate terrain kits to further customise the settings of your favourite wargames.
Retribution - Union Station
As Retribution becomes the foothold for the Union in the untamed west, Union Station is always bustling. Bringing in new soldiers fresh out of boot camp to reinforce the troops, folks of all kinds hoping to make their fortune, supplies from back east to keep the growing population fed and watered as well as moving money back east along with those people who don’t make it in this rough and tumble part of the Arizona district.
This box contains:
1 x Retribution Union Station
Retribution - Theater
Though Retribution is undoubtedly a growing town that those back east would consider uncivilised, it is at least gaining a veneer of sensibility thanks to the recent building of a Theater on Main Street. In the time since its construction it has hosted readings of Shakespeare, dancing troupes and more diverse displays of diversion.
More recently however, it has been host to various plays that are the creation of the Union. These productions have the goal of promoting the Union’s way of life to all those in the west who don’t have the access (or willingness) to read the Union-backed newspapers that circulate in the cities back east.
Displays of troops with rousing songs, demonstrations of the latest Union engineering and even some appearances by genuine heroes of the Union Army. If you’re not fully sold on the Union gaining more control of your life when you enter, you may well be by the time you leave.
This box contains:
1x Retribution Theater
Retribution - Residence
Traditionally, houses in the early days of Retribution were hand built by the folks who planned to live in them. As the town grew there were building crews who used the lessons they learned from erecting their own homes to earn a living by building the homes and businesses of those who would increase the population.
Now a third stage of building has arrived. Thanks to advances in engineering, prefabricated walls and roofs can be assembled in places like the Pipeworks and be transported by train to the heart of Retribution ready for teams of workers to construct them in record time. The town of Retribution is fast becoming a city, though it is still a backwater place in comparison to the urban landscape back east.
This box contains:
1x Retribution Residence
Retribution - Barracks
The town of Retribution has become a centre of the Union’s active hold in the Arizona territory, previously considered a lawless place. Whether this is the result of its proximity to Dr. Carpathian’s Promethean Complex, the Warcradle, is anyone's guess. The fact is that as the town grows so does its population of soldiers.
The official line is that they are needed to protect the townsfolk from Enlightened influence, Warrior Nation raids and outlaws making a menace of themselves. Strange though that so many soldiers are sent on exercises out of town given they are sworn to protect the public. While they are in town they can mostly be found at the Union Barracks, performing light duties and recuperating from their exertions in the field.
This box contains:
1x Retribution Barracks
Retribution - Tower
Though the town of Retribution has changed rapidly with the coming of the Dystopian Age, one landmark still stands in the skyline. The windmill, known simply as ‘Retribution Tower’, has been there since the town was first settled. Self-governing water pump windmills are a staple of the Union homestead and this example has brought fresh drinking water from below ground to the people of Retribution for years.
Some newcomers to the town wonder why an ageing scaffold of wood and metal is still here when so many wonders of engineering appear day by day but the long-time inhabitants know better. If it ain't broke, don’t fix it. In fact, most fighting groups in the area are loath to cause damage to the wind engine, no matter their allegiance, knowing that without clean drinking water they’d all be soon dead.
On occasion, some outlaws think to use the high point as a position to snipe the enemy in times of violent dispute; this in fact paints a target on the ruffian. The enemy, making sure they are removed swiftly so they don’t cause any accidental breakage. While the town has it’s rare times of peace then local children dare each other to climb the tower to where the last marksman found their end and in the warm twilight a gentle breeze turns the sails and seems to let out a creaking laughter.
This box contains:
1x Retribution Tower
There’s a lot to love this month with so much coming for Dystopian Wars, Wild West Exodus and Warcradle Scenics.
Make sure to pre-order yours on the 25th March 2022 from your FLGS or Wayland Games online.
Want to keep up to date with all the latest news and releases? Check out the Warcradle Studios Blog and socials, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.