Warcry Hunter And Hunted Preview - Who Let The Dogs Out

Nobody has mastered the art of skirmish miniature wargaming quite like Games Workshop and their masterful Warcry. We've previously reviewed plenty of their boxed sets, including the wonderfully bloody Warcry Crypt of Blood, the haunting Warcry Nightmare Quest, and the bestial Warcry Blood Hunt. Games Workshop just sent along their newest set Warcry Hunter And Hunted, which we're taking a quick look at as it hits pre-sale!

What is Warcry Hunter And Hunted?

Warcry Hunter And Hunted is a new box set release for Games Workshop's skirmish wargame set in their fantasy Age of Sigmar universe. In Warcry, players take control of a Warband of fighters, moving them across the battlefield using measuring tape, and rolling dice to attack, use special abilities, and more.

Whether just trying to eliminate your enemies, or gain control of powerful objectives, the game moves fast and furious, with easy-to-understand rules.

Warcry Hunter And Hunted contains the following materials:

• 64-page Hunter And Hunted warband tome
• 16 fighter cards
• 3 ability cards
• 3 divider cards
• 42 battleplan cards
• 1 Mawpit (Scenery)
• 5 Gorger Mawpack miniatures
• 11 Wildercorps Hunters

Note: This is not an all-in starter set. To play the game, you'll still need a copy of the Warcry Core Rulebook, sold separately.

Warcry Hunter And Hunted Introduces Two New Warbands

With Warcry Hunter And Hunted, two exciting and vibrant new warbands are introduced to the game. First, there's the Wildercorps Hunters, a group of expert trackers aligned to the Cities of Sigmar army (their warband is even its own unit in a Cities army).

As with much of the Cities of Sigmar, the Hunters are what I would consider "non-superheroic" -- that means they don't have crazy powers, they're just everyday humans picking up the sword to strike back against evil.

They also have a pack of dogs with them, who are all very good boys and girls. But why are they on this quest? It's not for glory or treasure. Instead, it's because a group of ogors ate their friends, and they're out for revenge. Now, about those hungry ogors...

Also included in Warcry Hunter And Hunted is the Gorger Mawpacks, a group of terrifying ogors struck with the Empty Belly curse, which leaves them feeling as though they're constantly hungry. With huge claws and even bigger jaws, they're out to chomp their way through the Gnarlwood.

Warcry Hunter And Hunted Is More Bite Than Bark

What I love most about these box sets is the way they differentiate between the two different forces facing off against one another. This is not a case of Chaos Worshippers who like fire vs. Chaos Worshippers who like poison. These are two different species, with entirely different goals, clashing in the heart of a terrifying jungle.

Each of these Warbands seem, from my initial deep dive into their rules and abilities, to be well balanced. The Wildercorps Hunters far outnumber the Gorger Mawpack, with 11 models (including the 4 dogs) vs. the Mawpack's 5 models, and while this is always a huge boon (because having more models means getting more activations and having more objective control), the Mawpack's hitpoint values more than double (sometimes triple) that of the Hunters.

There's also a really nice distribution between the kinds of damage dealt. As you'd expect, the Mawpack hits very hard, with multiple attacks each deal heaps of damage. They're all close range, but once you rush your opponent... they're in big trouble.

On the other hand, the Wildercorps Hunters have a lot of ranged attacks, which plink plink plink the Mawpack for low damage, while their dogs can rush in and start chomping.

Warcry Hunter And Hunted: Mawpit Fighter

One of the coolest aspects of this box set is the inclusion of the terrain piece known terrifyingly as The Mawpit. A giant chasm of grinding stone teeth, the Mawpit features a giant skull platform, and could spell instant death for hapless adventurers.

There are also exciting new abilities attached to the Mawpit. One which really stood out is called Desperate Gambit, which essentially is a reaction you can take if your next to the Mawpit and melee attacked. If any of the attacks hit, you die (narratively you're flung into the pit), but if all of those attacks miss, your opponent is taken down! What a cinematic, risky struggle at the mouth of this horrible pit!

Warcry Hunter And Hunted First Impressions

I've still got some more building and playtesting to do here, but my first impressions after reading through the rules is that this is another great release for Warcry. Skirmish gamers are lucky to have such an accessible game from such a big brand as Games Workshop, and Hunter And Hunted is going to continue to scratch that itch.

The copy of Warcry Hunter And Hunted used in the creation of this preview was provided by Games Workshop.