On Tuesday, pre-orders started for a special Special Edition from the universe of Warhammer 40,000. Scalpers were also after it, but Games Workshop was determined to ruin their plans and took drastic measures.
What kind of edition is this? It is a special edition of the anthology Era of Ruin (The Horus Heresy: Siege of Terra) from the Warhammer 40,000 universe. It comes with a stylish leather binding and is strictly limited. The pre-orders were supposed to go live on June 10, 2025, at 11 AM our time (that’s 4 AM CST).
But if the words “limited edition” set off alarm bells for you, you’re exactly right, as they are calling scalpers back into play. To protect against them and their bot armies, Games Workshop set up a digital queue – but that wasn’t enough.
Games Workshop takes its own website offline
How did the launch go? Not well at all. Games Workshop took Warhammer.com offline temporarily that same day. As they later revealed on Facebook, scalpers attempted to circumvent security measures using bots, an “abominable intelligence, if there ever was one” (via PC Gamer).
Anyone who is a big enough Warhammer fan to pre-order the Special Edition surely understands the reference to Silica Animus, also known as “Abominable Intelligence.” It is therefore easy to see how Games Workshop feels about the methods of the scalpers.
What’s next: The launch of Era of Ruin has been postponed for now, and the edition has disappeared from the website for the time being. The authorities state that they are determined to allow real fans access.
Anyone who is such a fan and is flesh and blood can be informed about the re-launch via email from Games Workshop.
Scalpers, people who buy up large stocks of coveted products to sell them for profit, are a significant problem in more and more hobbies. However, retailers are continually finding ways to thwart their plans: With a simple trick, sellers of Pokémon trading cards are taking action against scalpers
