The Ghamak Lawsuit & The Warhammer Quest Gamble
The hobby world is moving at a breakneck pace.
Blink, and you’ll miss a new army reveal or, as we saw this month, a massive new controversy. The conversation in October has been dominated by two huge topics: Games Workshop drawing a new line in the sand with its lawsuit against Ghamak, and the big “here we go again” gamble of the new Warhammer Quest: Darkwater.
It’s a full-time job keeping track of it all, so we’ve done the hard work for you. Here’s our take on the essential intel from the front lines.
Between Coats: Our Little Journalism Corner
You know those conversations you have after a game night? When the dice are put away, and you’re just talking about the hobby?
This is the space for those conversations. Each month, we’re picking one of those big-picture topics to explore them a little futher.
Another Line in the Sand: The Games Workshop vs. Ghamak Lawsuit
Last month, we talked about the chaotic energy surrounding Games Workshop, with confusing app shutdowns and a general feeling of lawsuits unpredictability. We hoped things would find a clearer path. Instead, it seems the fog of war is only getting thicker.
It looks like Games Workshop is slowly turning into the Nintendo of tabletop wargaming. Every month is another huge lawsuit. And October is no different.
The hobby world was hit with a bombshell: Games Workshop appears to be taking legal action against Ghamak, a hugely popular and prolific 3D artist known for miniatures that many players use in their Warhammer armies. According to reports and Ghamak’s own Patreon post, this is a direct and serious challenge to his entire creative library.
And so, here we are again, standing at that familiar, uncomfortable crossroads where corporate IP protection clashes with a creative and passionate community.
Let’s be clear: Games Workshop has every right to protect its intellectual property. No one disputes that. But the strategy here feels less like a calculated defense and more like a punitive strike.
The most glaring logical problem is the scope of the action. Standard IP protection would involve targeting specific models that fly too close to the sun. Instead, reports indicate that GW is demanding the access to all data, and later removal of Ghamak’s entire creative library. It’s an all-or-nothing approach that skips any attempt at a nuanced solution and goes straight for the nuclear option.
Secondly, on top of that bafflingly broad attack, there’s the question of selectivity: why Ghamak? Why now? The 3D printing world is a vast ecosystem filled with thousands of artists creating “inspired-by” miniatures. Targeting a single, popular creator while hundreds of others continue to operate feels less like a coherent legal strategy and more like making an example of someone. It doesn’t establish a clear, predictable rule for the community; it just creates fear and uncertainty for everyone.
This is where the tactic feels self-defeating. The people who buy Ghamak’s files are not pirates trying to steal from Games Workshop.
They are, for the most part, dedicated Warhammer players. They are your customers. They buy your codexes, your paints, and your official kits. They are so invested in your universe that they are seeking out creative, alternative models to expand and personalize the very armies they use to play your games.
Suing a creator like Ghamak doesn’t “win back” a lost customer. It alienates a dedicated one. It sends a message that the passion that drives the 3D printing community (a passion for the very worlds GW created) is a threat to be managed with lawyers, not an asset to be engaged with. It’s a strategy that creates bad blood in a community that is, ultimately, on their side.
This lawsuit won’t stop 3D printing. That digital Rubicon was crossed years ago. The question is no longer if GW will have to live alongside this technology, but how. Will it be a relationship built on mutual respect and clear guidelines, or a drawn-out, messy war of attrition that only serves to alienate their most passionate fans?
Right now, it seems they’ve chosen the latter.
The Best Games We Can’t Seem to Keep: A New Chapter for Warhammer Quest?
Just when we were ready to write the eulogy for Warhammer Quest, Games Workshop pulls a surprise out of its hat. A brand new, big-box adventure is coming: Warhammer Quest: Darkwater. The initial art looks fantastic, pitting a party of Order heroes against the servants of Nurgle in the ruins of a Jade Abbey.
And our first reaction was a mix of genuine excitement and a healthy dose of “here we go again.” Because with Warhammer Quest, the quality of the game has never been the problem. The problem has always been getting to play it.
On one hand, we have the gold standard: Blackstone Fortress. It was a huge hit, a self-contained 40k adventure supported for years with fantastic expansions that deepened the story. It proved that GW knows exactly how to build and maintain a successful, long-term board game line that keeps players hooked.
And on the other hand, we have the ghost that haunts the brand: Cursed City. A game with breathtaking models and massive hype that became a PR disaster. It sold out instantly, was bizarrely scrubbed from existence for over a year, and its eventual return felt botched and half-hearted, leaving a sour taste in everyone’s mouth.
So where does this leave us with the announcement of Darkwater? Is this a return to the successful Blackstone Fortress model: the start of a new, well-supported adventure with a long and happy life on store shelves? Or is it another Cursed City in the making: a brilliant game destined for a frustratingly limited print run, creating another wave of FOMO and a feeding frenzy for scalpers?
We’re genuinely hopeful that this new chapter for Warhammer Quest will be a return to form. The game deserves it. But as always with this brand, time will tell.
September Warhammer News Summary
The Forges of Hashut Are Open
The cruel Dawi-Zharr are making their full debut in the Mortal Realms.
New Patrols Bolster the Front Lines
Three Chapters are getting new Combat Patrols to reinforce their armies: Iron Hands, White Scars and Harlequins.
Ultramarines Are Getting Reinforcements
Magnus Calgar, Cato Sicarius, new Terminators and Ultramar bits has entered the GW shop.
Annual Battleforce Boxes Revealed
The yearly reinforcements for the Mortal Realms have arrived. Four new Battleforce boxes are on the way, offering a perfect start for a new army.
The Skirmish Moves to Ghyran
The battle is heading into the deadly forests of the Realm of Life with the new Warhammer Underworlds: Spitewood expansion.
So, that’s the big picture for October.
A ton of new models, a few big announcements, and a whole lot to look forward to.
Other Wargaming News
StarCraft Update: Heroes and Horrors Revealed
It’s been a while since we heard anything substantial about Archon Studio’s upcoming StarCraft: The Tabletop Miniatures Game, but October changed that in a big way.
First, they gave us a look at the Zerg, showing off production plastics of the iconic Zerglings and Hydralisks on their social media. Then, they dropped the big one: a full reveal of the promo miniature for Essen Spiel, the Dark Templar himself, Zeratul.
The revealed sculpts provide a clear look at the final production quality of the miniatures. With these key characters and units now public, the community is watching with interest to see how Archon Studio develops the rest of this tabletop version of a video game legend.
Kings of War Explodes with a New Edition and a New Army
Mantic Games is making a huge play for the fantasy wargaming throne. Pre-orders are now live for Kings of War: 4th Edition, and it’s a massive wave of new releases.
The centerpiece of it all is the new two-player starter set, “Claws in the Sand,” which introduces a brand-new, never-before-seen army: the Xirkaali Empire.
This release wave signals a major expansion of the world of Pannithor. Dropping a full new edition alongside a completely new army and a gorgeous starter set is a confident and exciting move from Mantic, and it makes this the perfect moment for new players to jump into one of the best rank-and-file fantasy games on the market.
Khador Gets Feral with Warmachine’s Old Umbrey
Steamforged Games is giving Warmachine’s Old Umbrey sub-faction a seriously primal new look. The latest pre-orders are all about were-bears, featuring hulking solos like the Ursine Shifted.
This is a fantastic thematic shift. It’s carving out a unique and visually exciting identity for Old Umbrey that leans hard into a feral, fantasy aesthetic. It’s a great look, full of furs and talismans, that feels fresh and should be incredibly fun to paint. This is exactly the kind of creative evolution that keeps a game world exciting.
Infinity’s Story Evolves Again with “Next Wave”
Infinity’s story is always moving, and this month Corvus Belli proved it by revealing Next Wave: a brand-new faction of humans who are now officially part of the alien Combined Army. This development flows directly from years of in-game storytelling, where the long war concluded with a tense treaty.
This has created a complex and fascinating new status quo. It’s a bold, nuanced story move that highlights the dynamic, evolving nature of the setting, proving once again that in the Human Sphere, the story is always evolving.
The Long Wait: A Candid Update on the CMON Crisis
For months, we’ve been tracking the slow-motion crisis unfolding at CMON, and in October, the company finally broke its long and worrying silence. In a “candid update” posted to its crowdfunding pages, the publisher laid bare the scale of the challenges it’s facing, and the picture is not a pretty one.
CMON confirmed it suffered a staggering $7 million in losses in the first half of 2025 alone. They’ve laid off staff, sold off assets (including the rights to Zombicide), and are now operating with a “fraction of employees” who are “pushed to its limits.”
Most importantly for backers, they addressed the nine crowdfunded games and five pre-order projects that are still unfulfilled. While they provided updates for some, nearly half remain unaccounted for. CMON described a vicious cycle: slow fulfillment leads to a high number of refund requests, which in turn gives them fewer resources to speed up fulfillment.
It’s a snowballing crisis that they admit is one of the “toughest challenges we have ever faced.”
While we have to give them credit for finally being transparent, the update offers little comfort to backers who have been waiting years for their games. The road ahead is, by their own admission, “difficult.” It’s not anymore a story about missing deadlines. It starts to be a cautionary tale about the fragility of the crowdfunding model and the trust that holds it all together.
From the News Feed to Your Tabletop
It’s easy to get caught up in the constant cycle of wargaming news. Between the drama of the Ghamak lawsuit, the speculation around the new Warhammer Quest: Darkwater, and the excitement for new releases, there’s always something to talk about. But at the end of the day, all these headlines point back to one thing: the armies we love and the games we want to play with them.
That news might have sparked an idea. Maybe you’re now planning to finally start that White Scars or Iron Hands army with the new Combat Patrols, or you’ve decided to dive into the Mortal Realms with one of the new AoS Battleforces. The inspiration is the best part of the hobby, but turning that excitement into a fully painted force is the hardest step.
You’ve got the vision for your next great project. Let us handle the painting. Send us a message below, and let’s get your next army from an idea to a tabletop reality.
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