40 Years of Warhammer: Miniature Retrospective – Nagash Supreme Lord of the Undead
Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead helped to usher in a new era for Warhammer and showcased modern miniature design.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of Warhammer and Games Workshop is taking some time to look back at miniatures that had a big impact on their work. Today it’s time to behold one of the most impressive glow-ups in the history of Warhammer Miniatures. Nagash is under the spotlight with his truly impressive all plastic model.
“The End Times brought many changes, not least the complete collapse of all reality as Archaon and the Chaos Gods finally got what they wanted. Before that calamity struck, there were many begrudging alliances and convoluted plans forged across the World-that-Was, one of which involved resurrecting the Great Necromancer Nagash – in the process turning him into a god-like figure.
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So as Warhammer Fantasy Battles came to an end, the Supreme Lord of the Dead finally earned a miniature that lived up to his legend as the father of Necromancy. This incarnation of the pettiest and most vindictive character ever to have lived, died, and lived again was a show-stopper perched atop a swirling mass of spirits employing the latest advancements in miniatures design and production. “
Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead
The new Nagash model was (and still is) one of the tallest plastic kits in Games Workshop’s range. The design really pushed modern production techniques and pushed the boundaries of what was possible for miniature design. On top of just being an awesome model Nagash also has a few different options when it comes to weapons, too. But what I really like about this model is that it still has callbacks to the previous design.
The old metal Nagash model was a fixture in Warhammer Fantasy Battles for years. Some say it was beloved but I do remember quite a few snickers and mocking of the greatest necromancer ever. But when the new plastic model for Nagash arrived there was a lot less mocking and a whole lot more “oohs” and “ahhs” with some “wows” mixed in for good measure.
Nagash wasn’t the only model getting upgrades at the time either. His generals, now called Mortarchs, also got some love with a kit that’s also multipart plastic kit and quite impressive. They mimicked his design cues with some swirling spirits and armor plating of their own.
Most recently Nagash lost a battle against the forces of Teclis and his Lumineth Realm-lords. They burst on the scene and really sent the Undead reeling. Nagash’s body is currently “convalescing in a necropolis” and the great Necromancer is probably stewing on his loss and making more plans for the Mortal Realms. What new constructs will he conjure up? Only time will tell!
We salute the latest and greatest Nagash model! It’s one heck of an improvement and still looks awesome on the tabletop.
