5 on Friday 24/01/25

It’s Friday, and here on No Rerolls that means it’s time for an all-new 5 on Friday. We’re going to start with 5 exciting releases for this week before moving on to our usual digest of some of our favourite articles from the past week. Of course, we’re slow readers, so don’t be surprised if there are some articles that are a little older – these are just some of the great articles we happen to have actually read in the past week.

Releases & Previews

Every week there are many games, books, and miniatures released. This will probably be a mix of previews, preorders, and releases, and with release dates being the way they are in this industry, it’s always pretty approximate. Excuses out of the way, here are 5 of the releases that caught our attention this week:

Games Workshop releases Frydaal the Chainmaker for Warhammer: The Old World – In addition to releasing all the old plastic sets, Games Workshop has been putting out a whole bunch of really excellent new character miniatures for The Old World. This latest offering the the Warriors of Chaos is particularly excellent:

Isn’t that stunning? A true champion of Chaos on her way towards Daemonhood with those very fetching horns! I won’t be playing much Old World, and I certainly won’t be grabbing the Warriors of Chaos, but if I had a ‘normal’ Slaves to Darkness army, I’d be all over this model as my Chaos Lord. Fantastic!

Oddity Press releases Gaelenvale supplement for Grimwild – Last week, we took a look at Oddity Press’ cinematic fantasy roleplaying game, Grimwild. This week, one of the supplements grabbed my attention. Hello, Gaelenvale!

This is a sandbox setting in a countryside valley. It’s not a sprawling sandbox, but seems intended as a starting point for adventures, populated by NPCs and stocked with narrative hooks. It does seem like a nice starting point.

Affiliate Links:

DriveThruRPG

Wizards of the Coast to release Aetherdrift set for Magic: The Gathering – February is going to see the release of Aetherdrift, a racing-themed set for Magic: The Gathering. I’ve already preordered the Living Energy Commander Deck. I like energy decks, so it makes sense to double down and grab this one to introduce some green into my energy cards.

As usual, you’ll be able to grab boosters. Both Play and Collector’s Boosters are going to be available. I’ve not heard a huge amount of buzz about this set. I feel there are other sets this year (such as Tarkir and Final Fantasy) that folk seem a lot more excited for. Still, there will be some cool new cards and reprints, I’m sure.

Affiliate Links:

Element Games (Aetherdrift Bundle)
Wayland Games (Aetherdrift Bundle)
Element Games (Finish Line Bundle)
Wayland Games (Finish Line Bundle)
Element Games (Eternal Might Commander Deck)
Wayland Games (Eternal Might Commander Deck)
Element Games (Living Energy Commander Deck)
Wayland Games (Living Energy Commander Deck)
Element Games (Play Booster Box)
Wayland Games (Play Booster Box)
Element Games (Play Booster)
Element Games (Collector’s Booster Box)
Wayland Games (Collector’s Booster Box)
Element Games (Collector’s Booster)
Grab singles at Big Orbit Cards

Mantic releases Battle for the Coral Gate, a 2-player starter set for Kings of War – Until the return of rank and flank Warhammer in The Old World, Kings of War was really the biggest massed-ranked fantasy battle game. They seem to put out a lot of 2 players starter sets. Here’s a very aquatic one:

Honestly, this is, to me, one of the less appealing starter sets they’ve offered. Kings of War has some truly stunning armies and a lot of really nice minis, but this boxed set includes two of the armies on which I am less keen. Still, the value seems decent enough.

Affiliate Links:

Wayland Games

Everdell Duo currently up for preorder – Oh, nice! I do love me some Everdell! It’s cool to see a dedicated two-player edition up for preorder:

I do think that Everdell works with 2 players, but the board is built for more. generally, these duo versions of games tend to just work that much better than playing a larger game with fewer players. I’m keen to see the board for this one and really see how it’s set up to be optimised for some 1v1 play.

Affiliate Links:

Wayland Games

Blog Posts & Articles

The meat of 5 on Friday, the articles are listed in no particular order, so let’s get into some recommendations:

This is a Prince-Free Bash – Rebel Princess Review @ Dude! Take Your Turn! – Oh, this is pretty! I’ve never played Hearts, so the mechanics described in the review are new to me. The game sounds a lot of fun, and it feels like the effect cards take the game well beyond the core gameplay that’s based on the classic Hearts. Sounds like a good game to play with the in-laws. Will need to consider this for the next holiday.

Book Review – Head On @ Woehammer – I think I’d have probably rated this book a little higher than this reviewer, but I know that I’m an unabashed Scalzi fanboy! Most of the criticism is fair, to be honest. It’s actually on the list for a review, so I daresay I’ll get around to it at some point.

Gnomes away from home: adventures in Frostgrave @ The Wizard’s Bookshelf – Frostgrave! Gnomes! What’s not to love? It’s always fun to read any Frostgrave writeup, especially when they’re accompanied by such fantastic pictures of painted miniatures and terrain.

Kroot Hunting Pack @ Túbal Villar – Virakotxa – Gorgeous! I love the Kroot, and the more recent Kroot miniatures have been fantastic. They look particularly good here with some excellent paint jobs. That turquoise really pops as a spot colour.

Frigate @ Eloths Endeavours – Battlefleet Gothic! It’s not a game I’ve ever played, but I do like the idea of it. In this era of 3D printing, it’s probably a lot more accessible, too. Seeing posts like this, with lovely, painted ships really helps to whet the appetite for it, too.

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There have been a few posts since my last 5 on Friday: