Warhammer 40K: Three Decades of Lords of Change Minis
Take a look back at one of the most venerable and magical units in Warhammer 40,000 – Tzeentch’s tricksy Lord of Change.
Welcome to the Twisting Path adepts! We are starting with the most recent Lord of Change and rolling the clock back with each earlier version. Note how these magic chickens keep getting bigger with each update!
Lord of Change Basics
Lords of Change, more fully known as the Watching Lords of Change and also as the Eyes of Tzeentch and the Feathered Lords, are the Greater Daemons of Tzeentch. The most powerful servants of their master, Lords of Change are in many ways essentially minor embodiments of all the characteristics of Tzeentch, renowned for their long-running and intricate schemes that weave across time and fate.
Lords of Change are notable for being allowed access to Tzeentch’s very own reserves of wisdom and for essentially being expressions of his cunning, which gives them great power. As individuals, they are all said to possess the attitude of wicked children; playful but mischievous and even openly malicious towards the lesser beings they delight in manipulating. Nothing is more pleasing to a Lord of Change than to break open fate and reshape it, be it by manipulation of individuals or direct action. Even without access to Tzeentch’s knowledge of fate, they are said to be deeply intelligent and understanding of life’s mysteries.
Winged Prisms of Tzeentch
Gangly, winged, and feathered like a bird, Lords of Change are actually most notable for their gaze. Walking portals to the mind of Tzeentch, their eyes are gateways to the madness of fate; and few mortals can withstand the gaze of a Watching Lord. The Lords of Change are able to perceive the hopes and dreams of individuals they look upon, as well as read the possibilities awaiting them. Often appearing multi-colored in hue, Lords of Change actually have no default coloration and take whatever shades please them at any given time. Lords of Change typically choose to appear physically frailer than they actually are. They take on wasted, cadaverous forms and seem to need staves to hold themselves up and walk around. This is one of their trademark deceptions, as Lords of Change possess iron-hard skin and blindingly fast reflexes, as well as sharp claws and a beak. Their interest in wisdom also endows them with the ability to draw on the knowledge of all known fighting techniques and battle strategies. Essentially impossible creatures, few who gaze on these prisms of warplight emerge with their sanity intact.
The Current Version (introduced 2017)
It’s just shocking how good the 2017 model is. From the sheer scale, up there with the Bloodthirster, Great Unclean One, and Keeper of Secrets – to the jewelry, to the disturbing faces, to the wildly gyrating feathers – the current plastic model is everything we’ve come to expect from GW’s digital sculpting department. The intricacies of the model on a second look are just as good, from the serpentine curves of its staff, to the scrollwork on the thigh armor, to the teensy Tzeentch symbols throughout. It’s a knockout. Plus, on top of it all, you get the Kairos Fateweaver optional build bits as well!
Before we move on, you can paint one up with GW-era Duncan here.
The Lanky Metal Version
The previous version had been with us a long time. Introduced in the CSM 3rd Edition codex from 1999, the old bird has been turning people into Spawn, and hurling magic around the tabletop for almost 20 years! Let’s not forget he’s been magically improving hobbyists’ pinning skills around the globe.
Several build options and the model was significantly larger than the original 1990s one (see below)
Fateweaver
Also from this generation came Fateweaver. The model is very much in the artistic style of the 1999 Lord of Change, Fateweaver added a pile of do-dads, and of course that 2nd head and that extra-scrawny neck. The quasi-Egyptian theme is clear.
Why oh why did I travel the universe with that fish up there?
The “Big Bird” – Aetaos’Rau’Keres
We’ll take a quick stop with Forge World’s giant 999pt Lord of Change Aetaos’Rau’Keres, aka Tzeentch’s Mad Satrap. Introduced around 2012, the closed parrot-style wings were a surprise, as was the impressive sculpting of the horrors being summoned. It is also GIANT with a Forge World price to match.
Meet the “Little Bird” – EPIC’s LoC!
In the early 1990s EPIC hit the scene, and with it came Chaos forces, including all the Major Daemons. Meet the impossibly cute “Mini-me” Lord of Change from EPIC. Just look at him – he’s so happy! What a good boy!
He would make a great dude to throw into a Tzaangor unit if you can dig one up – just to be cool.
The “Old Bird” – Rogue Trader
Finally, we are headed all the way back to the original. In 1989 the first Greater Daemon of Tzeentch mini came out. He wasn’t even called a Lord of Change which came much later. He was the “Changer of the Ways” This guy showed up in Rogue Trader and in the 1994 Warhammer Fantasy Chaos Codex. He’s fairly small for his power, was shipped on that old monster square base, and actually had a bit of variety in construction options.
Buzzard neck, raging arms, and a teensy bejeweled belt.
Not too shabby, with multiple body and head options, including the inspiration for Fateweaver, the two-headed bit! There was a fairly heavy pteradactyl sub-theme back in the day that didn’t quite make it to the 21st century.
The Lord of Change’s first Fluff appearance was in Realm of Chaos, Lost and the Damned
~Which one is your favorite model?
