Games Workshop has released a new series for Warhammer and is enticing viewers with the trailer for the first episode. However, what you might be accustomed to from the animations is missing this time: Instead of luring with spaceships and Space Marines, Sigmar’s Toll focuses on Skaven and demigods.
What kind of series is this?
- Sigmar’s Toll takes place in Age of Sigmar, one of the three settings of Warhammer and is technically the successor to Warhammer Fantasy after that world was destroyed.
- The animation style features realistic images and resembles the 40k series Pariah Nexus, which follows various members of the imperial forces.
- The first episode of Sigmar’s Toll has been exclusively available on Warhammer TV since September 10, if you have subscribed to Warhammer+. More episodes will follow in the coming weeks.
This is what Sigmar’s Toll is about: After the Old World has been destroyed and some of its inhabitants have managed to flee into the realms of mortals, war has also broken out in the new universe.
Powers of Order are fighting against the forces of Chaos, Death, and Destruction. Sigmar’s Toll specifically takes place in the city of Embergard, which is currently being besieged by the vile Skaven, ratmen with vile warp technology.
As the last human bastion in an otherwise devastated land, the defenders must now hold against the Skaven – until godlike “Stormforged Eternals” come to aid. Or perhaps not: in the trailer for the first episode, Sigmar’s angels do not appear to be friendly.
You don’t need any prior knowledge for Sigmar’s Toll, by the way. The official website summarizes the important details as: “Ratmen want to take the city, great silver knights want to keep it.”
Wacky Fantasy instead of Dark Science Fiction
Normally, Games Workshop places strong emphasis on Warhammer 40,000 as its big flagship. The dark future entices with many different contents, especially the beefed-up Space Marines. This is evident not only in video games like Space Marine 2 but also in other media:
- The Horus Heresy, the precursor to 40k, is currently the newest set for the tabletop and has recently received even larger units than Warhammer already fields.
- With Astartes 2, a new animation series is coming, preceded by a popular fan film. But even here, the Space Marines are in the spotlight.
- Even in series that do not directly deal with Space Marines, at least the future and the Imperium are in focus, as seen in the latest series Kill Lupercal, where a towering Titan is supposed to eliminate the vile antagonist.
Sigmar’s Toll is only the second complete series that foregoes Warhammer 40,000 as a setting. Previously, Blacktalon was released in 2023, which revolves around Naeve Blacktalon and her unit of elite hunters.
The community is particularly excited that the Skaven have a significant role in Sigmar’s Toll. The ratmen already play an important role as antagonists in Age of Sigmar and are currently being built up as villains. They even have a fifth Chaos God in Age of Sigmar.
The setting itself was long deemed rather unpopular because it consists of elements from Fantasy and 40k and was seen by many fans as a poor successor to Warhammer Fantasy – which, so the impression went, was stifled in favor of Age of Sigmar. However, the world has significantly gained popularity: Age of Sigmar was long considered the least popular Warhammer, now it delights fans: “High Fantasy meets Heavy Metal”
