Warcrow Explained: Getting Started in Corvus Belli's New Fantasy Wargame

Warcrow is Corvus Belli's 28mm fantasy battle game, from the same studio behind the sci-fi hit Infinity, bringing their famously crisp miniatures and deep tactics to the war-torn world of Lindwurm. If you've wanted a fresh fantasy wargame that isn't one of the usual suspects, this is a fantastic place to start.

This guide covers what the game is and what you need to play it. If you already know you're in and just want to pick a side, go straight to our guide to choosing a Warcrow faction.

What kind of game is it?

Warcrow sits neatly between a small skirmish and a full mass-battle game. You command companies of troops led by characterful heroes, using an activation-and-dice system that rewards smart positioning and timing over simply owning the most models. A clever command-and-stress mechanic makes when you act as important as what you do. Games set up quickly and stay dramatic right to the last roll.

The scale is the selling point

This is the practical thing that decides whether Warcrow suits you. A playable force is roughly a couple of dozen models, not a couple of hundred. That means you can realistically paint your whole army to a standard you're proud of, which is not true of most fantasy battle games, and it means the buy-in is one or two boxes rather than a shelf.

The trade-off is that every model matters more. There's nowhere to hide a badly positioned unit, and losing a hero hurts. If you like games where individual decisions carry weight, that's a feature.

What you need to start

Starting is refreshingly simple. An Action Pack gives you a ready-made core force for a single faction, and there are three to choose from: the Hegemony of Embersig Action Pack, the Northern Tribes Action Pack and the Syenann Action Pack. Any one of them plus the free rules is a complete starting point.

If you're bringing a friend in with you, Beyond: Winds from the North is the better buy, since it gives you more than one force to learn with and something to teach an opponent from.

Want to see the sculpts in hand before committing to a box? A single model like the Syenann Moss Hermit costs little and tells you everything about whether the range appeals to you. Bigger pieces like the Harvesters are the centrepiece models you'll grow into.

The rules are free

Corvus Belli release the Warcrow rules and army lists free to download, the same way they do with Infinity. You can read the whole game, build a list and decide whether it's for you before spending anything at all. It's worth doing that first; the command-and-stress system is the part that either clicks with you or doesn't, and no summary substitutes for reading it.

Choosing a faction

Each faction has its own distinct look and feel: the disciplined Hegemony of Embersig, the savage Northern Tribes, the eerie Syenann and more. Choose the one whose models and theme you genuinely love, because that's the army you'll happily paint and keep playing. For a proper tour of each, including how hard they are to paint, see our companion guide on which Warcrow faction to start with. Browse them all in our Warcrow collection.

Co-op instead? Try Warcrow Adventures

If a narrative dungeon-crawl appeals more than competitive battles, Warcrow Adventures is an app-driven cooperative board game set in the same world, and a great, low-pressure way to meet the characters before you field them in the wargame.

Painting a Warcrow force

Because the model count is low, you can afford to paint these properly rather than at speed. That said, getting a force table-ready fast and improving it later is a perfectly good plan: the Speedpaint Starter Set 2.0 with a bottle of Speedpaint Medium will get an Action Pack done in an evening, and our fast painting guide explains the method.

For the range's stranger inhabitants, the AK 3G Night Creatures Flesh Tones Set is well matched, and the 3G Leather and Buckles Set covers the straps and harnesses that appear on nearly every sculpt. Armour and weapons want the Warpaints Fanatic Metallics Set. Finish on the Battlefields Basing Set, and keep Milliput Standard to hand for assembly gaps.

Learn it in an evening

Download the free rules, watch a game over in The Screening Room to see the flow, then pick up an Action Pack and your paints from our hobby supplies. You'll be fighting for Lindwurm by the end of the night.