The Aeldari community has been clamoring for plastic Aspect Warriors for years. First we got Howling Banshees, then Dark Reapers and Shining Spears, and after the Striking Scorpions, which were released for Kill Team, now finally the rest are following. In this review, we take a look at the high-res sprue images and all the build options of the new Warp Spiders, Fire Dragons, and Swooping Hawks.

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The boxes of plastic Aeldari Fire Dragons, Warp Spiders, and Swooping Hawks, arranged for a review on a dark concrete background with blue lighting
These items were kindly provided by Games Workshop. Thoughts and opinions are our own.

The new Aeldari releases will be available for pre-order starting Saturday, 25 January 2025. The pre-order period lasts two weeks, with the official release date set for 8 February 2025.

Note that there’s no army set for this release. The new Craftworlds Aeldari codex and models will be released separately straight away. The Combat Patrol, which will also include the new Warp Spiders, will be released at a later date to avoid cannibalising sales.

The plastic Warp Spiders unboxed

The Aeldari Warp Spiders, previously cast in Finecast/metal, were alongside the Eldar Phoenix Lords, some of the oldest Warhammer 40,000 models still in the current range. This much-needed update includes 5 models per box on 28mm bases, plus a small Aspect Shrine statue on a 25mm base, spread across 2 medium-sized sprues. The latest Aeldari transfer sheet is also included.

Aeldari / Eldar plastic Warp Spiders sprues on a white background, photographed for a review

Patreon bonus content: Ultra high-res, uncompressed versions of these sprue images (and backsides of the sprues) can be downloaded here.

  • Warp Spider 1 can be built as either an Exarch or a regular Warp Spider. The Exarch receives an extra base topper to give it more height, and a more detailed chestplate. He has a special warp jump generator that can be equipped with either power blades or death weavers, and can have either a pair of arms with a special death spinner, spineret rifle, or two more power blades. There are four neck parts that can be combined with three helmet designs or two different bare heads (one of the neck parts is only compatible with a specific helmet). The regular Warp Spider does not have the extra base piece, has a simple chestplate, and carries a standard death spinner.
  • Warp Spiders 2 to 5 can only be built as regular Warp Spiders with death spinners. Three of the models stand on fragments of ancient Aeldari ruins, which can be swapped between models. The warp jump generators and arm pairs can theoretically be swapped between models, although each arm pair is designed for a specific body.
  • For the heads, there are 5 identical neck collars and helmets, as well as 8 different bare heads plus the two for the Exarch (all with topknots, which seems to be the fashion for Warp Spiders).
  • Additionally, there are three small ruin pieces with warp energy flashes that can be used freely for base decoration.

I realise some people might have wanted more action poses, but for me the Warp Spiders are a successful update of the old models. The unique shapes and details of their armour have been retained, the poses and proportions are well done, and there’s a good amount of options for the Exarch, heads, and base decorations. Interestingly, the death spinners have become significantly heavier and larger than the plastic autarch’s one-armed death spinner. The only thing I can fault is that the Exarch has lost the characteristic spiderwebs around his thighs compared to the old model, and that there are no female models.

Scale comparison of various Aeldari Aspect Warriors, inc. Dire Avengers, Striking Scorpions, and Warp Spiders
Various recently released plastic Aeldari models. The Warp Spider Exarch stands quite tall with his pose and base topper.

Plastic Eldar Fire Dragons review

Just like the Howling Banshees, Dark Reapers, and Striking Scorpions, the 5 models of the new Fire Dragon box are packed onto three small sprues. The base size is also 28mm, with a 25mm base for the Aspect Shrine, and a transfer sheet is included.

Aeldari / Eldar plastic Fire Dragons sprues on a white background, photographed for a review

Patreon bonus content: Ultra high-res, uncompressed versions of these sprue images (and backsides of the sprues) can be downloaded here.

  • Fire Dragon 1 can be built as either an Exarch or a regular Fire Dragon. The Exarch has a unique torso with two possible chest plates. There is a right arm with an axe, an outstretched and angled left arm with a fusion pistol, a right arm with a firepike and an outstretched pointing left arm, as well as an arm pair with a special fusion gun, and an arm pair with a dragon’s breath flamer. Additionally, there are three different Exarch helmets, a half-mask with a bare head, and an optional back banner. The regular Fire Dragon has a plain torso and an alternative ruin piece on which he stands with his right foot.
  • Fire Dragons 2 to 5 can only be built as regular Fire Dragons with fusion guns. A total of five pairs of arms with fusion guns are included, as well as a right arm with shouldered fusion gun and a left arm with grenade. These can be freely interchanged between the models.
  • For the heads, there are 5 identical Fire Dragon helmets, as well 5 very identical bare heads with half masks.

The Fire Dragons kit offers slightly fewer options than the Warp Spiders, but it’s still a faithful rendition of the previous Finecast/metal models. The Exarch’s pose is heavily inspired by the previous version, but now includes all the weapon options and every helmet design from Jes Goodwin’s Aeldari Sketchbook. So good, so… unexciting. The only slightly wasted potential lies in the bare heads, intended for the followers of Ynnead. They all have almost identical brush-cut hairstyles and look like clones. Apparently, the culture of all Aspect Shrines now includes a specified haircut. And unfortunately there are no female models included here either.

A look at the plastic Swooping Hawks

The new plastic Swooping Hawks come on two medium-sized sprues. The box contains 5 models on 32mm bases, a 25mm Aspect Shrine token, and a transfer sheet.

Aeldari / Eldar plastic Swooping Hawks sprues on a white background, photographed for a review

Patreon bonus content: Ultra high-res, uncompressed versions of these sprue images (and backsides of the sprues) can be downloaded here.

  • Model 1 can be built as either an Exarch or a regular Swooping Hawk. The Exarch receives a highly detailed body with an alternative piece of ruin at his feet, and a larger wing pair identical to those of an Autarch. He can choose between a right arm with a sunpistol, lasblaster, or hawk’s talon. For the left arm, there is a power sword, or one of three gesturing arms. Alternatively, there is an arm pair holding a scatter laser. Additionally, there are four Exarch helmets and a bare head with a half-mask. The regular Swooping Hawk has a plain body and different ruin piece, smaller wings, and a choice of two arm pairs: a lasblaster in both hands, or a lasblaster in the right hand and a free left hand.
  • Swooping Hawks 2 and 3 have a choice of two arm pairs each: a lasblaster in both hands, or a lasblaster in the right hand and a free left hand.
  • Swooping Hawk 4 has a choice of two arm pairs, both with a lasblaster in both hands, one with the barrel pointing up and the other pointing down.
  • Swooping Hawk 5 has only one pose for the arms.
  • Additionally, there are 5 identical helmets and 5 bare heads with half-masks.

For me, the new Swooping Hawks are probably the weakest of the Aspect Warrior kits in plastic. They have the typical GW jumping poses, which you might like or not. I’m more disappointed that they didn’t take the opportunity to make the Swooping Hawks’ armour more distinct; it’s almost identical to Guardian Defender armour. They’ve moved the grenade dispensers from being integrated into the upper thighs to the lower ends of the wings, where they are barely visible. For some reason, they also added additional grenade belts, so I guess they use them to refill the dispensers, reaching towards their backs in mid-battle? And the hairstyles of the bald heads are really strange. I can’t tell if they’re going for a backcombed look or if they’re trying to give the impression of long hair blowing in the wind. The latter just doesn’t work with their poses.

Plastic Swooping Hawks moulding problem
Some legs have casting problems, the gap between the shin armour is missing

On the plus side, there are plenty of options for the Exarch and a wide variety of arm poses. However, not all of them work equally well in my opinion. The two-handed lasblaster poses are fine, but the one-handed grips and gesturing arms don’t follow any sense of direction in my opinion. This is especially true for the Exarch, whose weapons are adorned with banners that stick out in all directions. With a little experimentation (and bending of banners) you might be able to find better poses than those in the manual.

Value

As mentioned above, unfortunately there won’t be a discounted army set for the new Eldar models. The Combat Patrol with the new Warp Spiders is also still a long time coming. This is annoying, because the prices for the 5-model Aspect Warrior boxes are beyond good and evil.

You can find the latest GW releases at our 🇬🇧/🇪🇺 partner stores Wayland GamesElement Games, and Firestorm Games, at 🇩🇪 Taschengelddieb and PK-Pro, and at 🇺🇸 Noble Knight Games with a welcome discount of up to 20% over RRP. Using our links helps to support Tale of Painters at no additional cost to you, so thank you very much for using them!

I hope you found this review helpful, feel free to leave a reaction or comment below, or post your questions here or discuss on our Discord channel.

7.5
Score

Pros

  • Faithful adapations of Jes Goodwin's vision
  • Plenty of weapon and cosmetic options for the Exarchs
  • Aspect Shrine tokens

Cons

  • Exorbitant price tag for 5 small model boxes
  • No female models in any of the kits
  • Swooping Hawks seem a bit stiff, and some arms seem to lack a sense of direction
Warp Spiders
8.5
Fire Dragons
7.5
Swooping Hawks
6.5

Final Verdict

The new Aeldari models don't reinvent the wheel, but are faithful recreations of the previous models and sketches by Jes Goodwin. The visual language of the Aeldari is so strong that there's no need for reinvention just for the sake of it. The kits are solid, with many options for the Exarchs. Otherwise, there's little that's new.