Grab the Chernobyl, and hide the kittens, this week’s Cat Tub Time Machine is here and this time it’s going to be Apocalyptic!
Way back in the summer of 2007, in the windy city of Chicago, Illinois, Games day, which they don’t do any in America anymore, Apocalypse was previewed. Oh my god the magic in that room is so hard to describe.
We had heard about a new edition, and many of us thought this would be it. Then the host takes the stage and starts talking about a new large blast, and then he unveils the massive apocalyptic blast template. Its’ silent; you could hear a pin drop as the rooms collective minds were blown.
People where just like, “Yo, WTF is that?!”
Then he starts talking about how they’re going to upscale the game and we’re going to be using this template. They tell us about how the large blast in the inner ring, the larger massive blast, and then, of course, the Apocalyptic Mega blast. Then they come out and showcase the Hellstorm template which has the normal flamer template inside of it.
People are just losing their minds because they didn’t know what was going on. We had no idea super heavies where coming or the supplement or anything like that, and then Apocalypse hits that fall…
As they keep talking they say, “hey wouldn’t it be cool to upscale the game?” but we had little vindicators and we just didn’t understand. They show us the Apocalypse barrage template which is randomized and you can get multiple hits.
They tell us about the plastic kits, and the plastic Baneblade and the madness is real, “oh my god a plastic Baneblade?!?”
No, it wasn’t as detailed but it was wayyyyy less expensive.
Remember in 2007, BoLS was just a year old, I didn’t even start writing on Spikey Bits until 2009. This was big and news traveled fast. Later, in the fall, we got the apocalypse bundles and all that.
But can you image after 20 years of playing with your little mans and then getting this book? It’s life changing. I feel like nowadays unbound allows us to accomplish the same thing as Apocalypse; so a lot of the magic is gone but at time THIS was amazing.
The art inside was so fresh, you see the warlord titan in here for the first time and who would have imagined almost 10 years later we’d actually be playing with a GW warlord titan.
You’ll notice in the table of contents they talk about flyers, and the allies matrix, and a lot of us didn’t really catch it at the time but this is kind of the genesis of all the rules we’re seeing today.
Inside the book it talks about having a structured event and the need for organization; that’s important. I know I’ve seen Apocalypse games devolve into basically a game of monopoly where after a few hours everyone is salty and you’re just waiting for someone to land on a hotel and get wiped out.
Inside the book there’s lots of toy porns, you can read this book for days because it’s so immersive and full of details. For 2007, this was bananas good.
You can see this is where Gargantuan and Super Heavies first appeared. There’s formations in here, a tons of datasheets. There’s even more in Reloaded, which, we’ll have to cover on a later day. These books can be bought pretty cheaply today and I’d highly recommend them for their hobby factor.
To experience the cat tub time machine first hand and get the full hobby showcase watch the video!
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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 also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), 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 1980s, 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.
