Review: 40K Kill Team Into the Dark isn’t a new Space Hulk, it’s bigger

Following a reboot of the underlying ruleset in 2021, Games Workshop’s small-unit skirmish game Warhammer 40,000 Kill TeamRight now, it is in a very good place. You can feel the action moving quickly and efficiently, while it retains its small footprint and low model counts that were present at launch. Unfortunately, the product line has a lot in common with classic Star Trek movies — it seems that every great expansion is immediately followed by one that’s a bit shit.

I’m happy to report that Warhammer 40,000 Kill Team Into the DarkThe newest version of the bestselling book, available to pre-order starting September 3. Wrath at KhanMore than Spock is available for you to search. Each miniature, as well the terrain inside, are brand new. It even includes one faction that’s practically never been seen in three dimensions before. It’s also the first of a year-long cycle of Kill Team releases that should breathe life back into one of the franchise’s most storied settings — the space hulk.

Games Workshop

Note that I didn’t write Space HulkThe classic board game from 1989 that pits Space Marine Terminators and Tyranid Genestealers. Into the Dark tAkes place in aThere are many space hulks in the universe. This vast array of spaceships, asteroids and other debris that are abandoned appear and disappear at will all across the galaxy. They can sometimes contain valuable treasures, but they’re also home to all manner of fell creatures, including Chaos Space Marines, Asuryani Eldar, and worse. You can read more about this here ParticularThe Gallowdark is a space hulk, Into the DarkIt takes place in an extremely small portion of the galaxy, on a starship made by humans called Glory of Terra Victorious.

The secret to success Into the DarkThis terrain depicts the labyrinthine corridors in the doomed starship. It is made of chunky gray polystyrene. The walls are decorated with skulls as well as cables and computer screens. Pre-weathered wall sections are available in 16 sizes, each with gouges, dents and dings already embedded into the surface. It makes them an absolute breeze to paint with rattle cans, and after that you’re just a wash away from being done.

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

For those who are looking for new skills, the terrain rewards additional attention. For Polygon’s build, I took a stab at airbrushing in some object source lighting — that is, painting in the reflection of light sources as they would naturally reflect off of surrounding surfaces. Combining it with the very precise application of a metallic silver spray paint at high zenithal, it gives off that monochrome effect of lighting up dark rooms with a flashlight. I also pasted on some cheeky in-fiction propaganda posters that I’ve been hanging on to for just such an occasion. You could take this even further by creating a textured base, with holes at regular intervals for LED lighting — which would look just like the more interesting side of the included double-sided battle mat.

The miniatures included in the kit are open to modification and tweaking. The Imperial Navy Breachers, and Kroot Farstalker Kinband both have many different weapons and poses. The Breachers in particular are shockingly easy to paint, and they’re a great starting point for any newcomers to the hobby in your circle.

The included paperback sourcebook mentions several obscure races like the Fra’al and the Khrave, but there are also entirely new entities, called the Larvae of Silica and the Eclosions of the Metal, which are both described as “artificial species granted intelligence by their now extinct creators.” All four races are said to have “built settlements and waged wars across the Gallowdark” for millennia.

Just like the mysterious lost primarchs, founding fathers of the original Space Marine chapters, the new details in the sourcebook are lore gifts to hobbyists and kitbashers — open breaches in the larger universe that dedicated fans can fill in with their own creations.

As far as the ruleset goes, outside of the units and perks, there aren’t any substantive changes to the general flow of play in Into the Dark. That’s a good thing, in my opinion, as the core rules themselves are excellent. However, there are many new rules regarding the Gallowdark’s confined environment. Some deal with opening and closing doors, while others modify how and when you can interrupt or fire during your opponent’s turn. Into the DarkAlso, explosives and other area-of effect weapons are given an extra boost.

However, Kill Team — like Games Workshop’s other small-unit skirmish games Necromunda Warcry —It is very vertical and encourages the players to take their troops to places not normally visited. Into the Dark It is clearly two-dimensional and it is against the rules to climb over walls.

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

It is a great way to make your life easier. Into the Dark Similar to Kill Team’s most disastrous release: Pariah Nexus. But, while that game’s rules for terrain were essentially designed only for the factions that came in that specific box, this time around the rules are much more widely applicable. I can easily see any faction performing well in the Gallowdark; they’ll just need to adjust their strategy by, among other things, leaving their long-range snipers at home. And that’s good news, because many factions It will This terrain will be contested in the coming years.

Into the Dark is just the first of three “major quarterly expansions” for Kill Team. The roadmap, released on Aug. 25, names them — Shadowvaults, SoulshacklePlease see the following: Gallowfall — and promises participation by many more factions from across the 40K universe. The terrain found in the kits will be fully compatible with all other terrain, if past precedent is any indication. Kill Team line, and maybe even beyond. Pick up all four boxes, and I expect you’ll have at least a full table of terrain for a game of Zone MortalisThe two-dimensional fan favourite, the Horus Heresy ruleset.

This is regardless of whether or not the Gallowdark Season succeeds. Kill Team The release of terrain feels essential. There’s something here for everyone — collectors and fans of terrain, diehard Kill Team The players were those who had a big stake in the most recent Horus HeresyYou can even get a boxed set for total beginners to the hobby. Warhammer 40,000 Kill Team Into the Dark This is one of our favorite Games Workshop products, and we highly recommend it.

Warhammer 40,000 Kill Team Into the Dark Games Workshop provided a retail copy of the book for review. Vox Media is an affiliate partner. Although these partnerships do not impact editorial content, Vox Media could earn commissions from products sold via affiliate links. Find out more. additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.