Halo: Flashpoint, the skirmish wargame based on the iconic videogame franchise, is ramping up for a scorching summer of releases. Publisher Mantic Games has opened pre-orders for some highly anticipated new models: the humble humans of the UNSC Marines; Grunts; Jackals; even the elite Spartan Killers. And if that wasn’t enough, an updated 1.5 version of the core rules is dropping alongside them.
It’s a punishing salvo – but it needs to be, as it’s facing off against pre-orders for Warhammer 40k 11th edition which open on June 6, the single biggest launch in years. Halo: Flashpoint is a skirmish game with a much lower model count, so it’s eminently feasible to play both games – even so, model budgets only stretch so far…
The UNSC Expansion contains pre-assembled plastic miniatures for Corporals, Medics, and Marines, plus the Spartan character Tomas Horvath from Halo Infinite.
The UNSC Marines are really interesting: most players will start playing the game using a team of four Spartans, perhaps in a mirror match if they’re playing with the Recon edition, and Marines are nowhere near their power level. Their inclusion in the game really opens up the possibility for teams with weaker members but more of them, even more so than the ODST expansion did last year.
The Banished Reinforcements pack is similarly led by a big guy – a Sangheili Enforcer, aka an ‘Elite’ – and its far smaller buddies, Unggoy ‘Grunts’ and Kig-Yar ‘Jackals’. Flashpoint tournaments and game nights are going to resound to the noise of gamers making Grunt noises whenever they’re targeted.
With their addition to the game, Flashpoint finally feels like a complete Halo experience, not just a simulation of multiplayer – now if only we can convince Mantic to add Warthogs and Banshees to the game…
There are also three resin models for the Spartan Killers, Jega ‘Rdomnai, Hyperius, and Tovarus, the antagonists from Halo Infinite. It’ll be very interesting to see how these boss enemies are represented on the tabletop.
As well as these miniatures, Mantic is releasing the Halo: Flashpoint 1.5 rules update, which it calls “the smoothest, most balanced, and most accessible version of the game to date” that has been “shaped by 18 months of player feedback and organised play”.
The main product here is “a new rulebook and tokens pack that gives players more freedom in how they begin and build their collection”; until recently the only way to get a physical rulebook was in a starter set, which would have contents you didn’t necessarily need if you’re joining an active play group, like terrain or excess miniatures.
The new rules and tokens will appear in an updated version of the premium Spartan Edition starter set and be sold separately. Existing players will be able to get updated unit cards with the first print run of the new rulebook and token pack, and there’s a free “update pack” if you grab the new release bundle for August – though what’s in there isn’t spelled out. The game’s web app will of course get an update with the new rules.
I rate Flashpoint, though it’s not a game I’ve been able to dedicate much time to since I tested it for review – there’s always something new to play. Will you be picking up the new Flashpoint releases, Warhammer 40k Armageddon, or saving your moolah for something else? Let us know in the Wargamer Discord community!
Source: Wargamer
