The first part in an Age of Sigmar mini-series entitled The Black Rift of Klaxus, Josh Reynolds’ Assault on the Mandrake Bastion plays out amidst a grim realm built into the sides of a vast crater, under assault by numerous warrior hosts of the Stormcast Eternals. Lord Celestant Orius Adamantine leads his warriors against the titular Mandrake Bastion and the Khornate forces occupying it, but all the while the chaos warlord known as The Scarlet Lord works to enact a mysterious (and probably fiendish) plan.
It’s a mixed bag, this story. On the one hand the need to constantly reference and explain the new Age of Sigmar troop types lends it a workmanlike, laboured feel, while on the other hand there are hints to some interesting ideas in there, and when Reynolds gets to stretch his imagination out a little there are some enjoyable moments. It’s a shame then that it doesn’t quite fit together to become a cohesive story; what it feels like is the opening scenes of a book, as opposed to a complete short story with a start, middle and end. That’s perhaps to be expected as the first episode in a mini-series, and it’s still perfectly enjoyable on a basic level, but it doesn’t quite satisfy as a story in its own right.
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