Well love it or hate it Death from the Skies has struck, and will undoubtedly leave it’s mark on this hobby, as well as some of our wallets.
I really, really tried to be positive with this review, but honestly besides the fact that this volume collects all the flyer rules in once handy place for quick reference, there really isn’t any other reason to buy this book.
Don’t get me wrong though, this isn’t a matter of quality (well unless you take issue with the extremely flexible and IMHO non-durable soft cover binding) as the book itself is formatted well. Plus it’s flush with all the stunning full color graphics and fluff we’ve all come to expect from any 40k rules release- it’s the content itself that is lacking.
But I digress, let’s get to the particulars and keep this factual.
First off, the book itself is 72 pages long, and written by a host of authors, as it is a collection of previous released material. It’s the second 40k expansion to date (the first being crusade of fire, which was also universally panned), and has a MSRP of $33.
Controversial rules changes aside, this book introduces little to no new material besides updating a few rules. Plus technically it’s incomplete, as it omits the Heldrake altogether.
I’m not going to get into all the changes to the flyers and who can take what, etc. because that has been beaten to death already by myself and forums the world over.
Instead we’ll just focus on the book itself, and it’s contents. Once again just like I said above it’s a well illustrated book, full of page after page of full color art.
The book itself is divided into four sections; “The Battle for Cardim”, “Air War Missions”, which are followed by the “Burning Skies”. Next is the obligatory painted model section to inspire us simply titled “Showcase”, followed by the “Bestiary” which by name does not even pertain to 40k at all, but goes over all the special rules each flyer has including wargear. Death from the Skies concludes with the Army list and reference section.
Breaking down the content, “The Battle for Cardim” and “Air War Missions” are both from last summer’s two part flyer White Dwarf release. “Burning Skies” is from the ill-fated Crusade of Fire book. The Showcase and Bestiary (still don’t know why they called it that), both contain all previously published rules and images, besides of course the pictures of updated “blue” Stormravens.
So besides a few new pics, and some lines in the Army list allowing other Space Marine chapters (besides the Blood Angels and Grey Knights) access to some of these flyers, there really isn’t much new content.
Sure there were a few tweaks to the rules of some flyers, but overall this book is just a regurgitation of old material (that is actually incomplete, as again the Heldrake is left out).
However there is one redeeming trait to this book and it’s a section called “Fighter Aces”. This section is apparently 40k legal and allows players to “upgrade” their flyers buy purchasing a Fighter Ace skill and rolling a d3 on a chart.
Some of those abilities are very powerful, but it remains to be seen if they will be accepted for competitive tournament play. Plus they lack that nifty 40k approved stamp as well.
So what’s my conclusion of the book? Well for the money, you are getting a nicely illustrated book, that is smaller than a White Dwarf and way more flimsy.
Then there is the matter of content, or lack there of, as well. It is however a great collection of the flyer rules (sans the Heldrake) that’s collected all in once place.
I’ve said quite a bit on how I feel about this book, both as a retailer and as a player here and honestly I think it’s important to get both sides of any story.
Obvious this book was made with a purpose in mind, and ultimately we’ll find out if it served it intended purpose, I imagine, if there are similar releases in the future.
Checkout the video below for a full look at the book itself. -MBG
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures. Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including the Adepticon Team Tournament and American Team Tournaments, and is on a first-name basis with almost every major company in the space.
He’s all gaming all the time. With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. He advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1908s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
