Review: Helsmiths of Hashut army set

In the Hour of Ruin, the Helsmiths of Hashut have set out from their ziggurat fortresses to conquer the peoples of the Mortal Realms. This army set doesn’t just introduce a long-anticipated faction, it reimagines the legacy of the Chaos Dwarfs with a fresh yet recognisably sinister aesthetic. In this review, we’ll take a close look at the sprues and options of all the new models, and also leaf through the very first Helsmiths of Hashut battletome.

The Helsmiths of Hashut army set will be available for pre-order starting Saturday, 13 September 2025. The pre-order period lasts two weeks, with the official release date set for 27 September 2025. Please note that there will be only one production run, so the box is available only until stocks last. The RRP is £120.

Included in the box are:

• 1 War Despot
• 10 Infernal Cohort with Hashutite blades or spears (plus 1 hobgrot gong bearer)
• 1 Dominator Engine with immolation cannons or bane maces
• 1 Tormentor Bombard / Deathshrieker Rocket Battery
• 1 A5 size transfer sheet (with icons for The Forge Anathema, Ur-Zorn, Muspelzharr, Zharr Vyxa)
• 1 special edition Helsmiths of Hashut battletome (96 pages)
• a set of warscroll cards

Helsmiths of Hashut army set review

After years of speculation, teases, and whispers in White Dwarf and lore snippets, the Zharrdron have finally marched out of the shadows of legend and into the Mortal Realms. The Helsmiths of Hashut army set marks the long-awaited arrival of these dark-forged duardin, spiritual heirs to the Chaos Dwarfs of the World-that-Was.

The Helsmiths of Hashut army set contains 14 models that make the Helforged Host Spearhead. For this, you need to build the Cohort with Spears, the Dominator Engine with cannon arms, and the artillery piece as a Tormentor Bombard. Let’s unbox the models.

War Despot model review

The War Despot is a ruthless leader from the royal clans, swollen with dark power and ruling from the Ziggurat fortresses. He comes on a single small sprue and is a monopose model on a 32mm base, with no build options or spare bitz. The “tactical rocks” are sculpted directly onto his feet.

Helsmiths of Hashut Infernal Cohorts unboxing

The Infernal Cohorts are the skilled warriors of the royal clans, clad in finely wrought armour and bearing weapons that blaze with daemonic energy. The kit builds 10 duardin on 28mm bases, plus 1 Hobgrot gong-bearer on a 25mm base. You can equip the Cohort with shields and either Hashutite blades or spears (spears are needed for the Spearhead configuration). Surprisingly, both weapon options have different profiles in the battletome.

Here’s what you can build from the kit:

• Model 1 stands on a rocky base (the rock is separate but the feet are slightly slanted) and can be built as either a Champion or a regular Infernal Cohort. The Champion comes with shield, 1 special male, 1 special female head with gorget, 1 right arm with hammer, or 1 pair of arms wielding a two-handed axe. The Infernal Cohort can be built with either blade or spear and comes with 1 male head.
• Model 2 can be assembled as either a Standard Bearer or a regular Infernal Cohort. The Standard Bearer has 1 right arm with banner, 3 different banner tops, 1 left arm with blade planted in the ground, and 1 optional bare head. The Infernal Cohort can be armed with blade or spear and comes with 1 male and 1 female head.
• Model 3 can be built as either a Musician or a regular Infernal Cohort. The Musician has a bare torso wielding a large mallet in both hands and a unique head. The Infernal Cohort can be given either a blade or a two-handed spear (without shield) and comes with 1 female head.
• The Hobgrot Gong-bearer can be built with a bare head or a capped head.
• Model 4 can be built either with shield and blade, or with a two-handed spear (without shield). Comes with 1 male head.
• Model 5 can be built with shield and either blade or spear. Comes with 1 female head.
• Models 6 to 10 can be built with shield and either blade or spear. Each comes with 1 male head.
• In total there are 10 left shield arms and 11 different shields included, which are freely interchangeable.
• The 8 right spear arms, 2 pairs of two-handed spear arms, 10 right blade arms, 7 male heads, and 3 female heads (plus the special heads for Champion, Standard Bearer, and Musician) are designed for specific bodies, but the connection points are universal. With a bit of experimenting, you can discover even more combinations.

I really like the Infernal Cohort. The kit takes the concept of the old Chaos Dwarfs and translates it with plenty of character into the Age of Sigmar aesthetic. There are several weapon options, a few cosmetic bitz, and even female heads (the bodies are all identical, so no secondary sexual characteristics are visible). What I particularly appreciate is how the Design Studio managed to strike a balance – the models have a strong silhouette, but aren’t overloaded with fiddly detail. That’s something I find especially important for a core infantry choice.

In terms of size and scale, the new Helsmith models fit well within the Age of Sigmar range. The Infernal Cohort models are definitely a lot bigger than the old Dwarf Warriors I had from the old Warhammer Fantasy Island of Blood starter set. But they should go well with modern Dwarf and Duardin sets like the Ironbreakers or Fyreslayers. The only thing I can perhaps fault is that the models under their coats of arms have no sculpted legs or bodies and are essentially hollow.

Helsmiths of Hashut Dominator Engine review

Dominator Engines are metal-forged effigies of the Bullfather, powered by ground daemon matter. The model comes on two medium-sized sprues and, with its 80mm base, makes quite an impact on the battlefield. You can build the Engine with either immolation cannons or bane maces.

• You start with building the legs and torso, which are fixed in a set pose. The shoulder joints are ball joints – if you trim away the pegs you can freely adjust the angle. The upper arms and shoulders are identical for both Dominator Engine variants.
• Included are a left and right forearm with hands wielding bane maces, as well as two infernal cannons as alternative forearms. The elbows are articulated, provided you take care not to let glue seep into the joints.
• The head is on a ball joint and can be turned slightly. You can choose between 2 pairs of horns and 2 bull-like faces.
• In addition, there is a choice of 2 different belly plates/loincloths.

The Dominator Engine is my favourite model from the box – perhaps even from the entire Zharrdon range. At last we’ve got our “Duardin Dreadnought”. Chunky and bullish, with brutal edges, infernal inscriptions, and some very cool sculpted fire and smoke effects, it’s a real centrepiece. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a few of these turn up in the large model category at the next Golden Demon.

Tormentor Bombard / Deathshrieker Rocket Battery unboxing

This artillery piece is another a reimagining of a classic and iconic Chaos Dwarfs unit. The kit builds either a Tormentor Bombard or a Deathshrieker Rocket Battery, and comes on one medium-sized and one small sprue, with a 100mm base.

• First you assemble the platform and its three artillerists (two Duardin and one Hobgrot). Sadly, there are no options for the crew, with only one Duardin having a separate head, which you could swap for a spare head from the Infernal Cohort sprue.
• Next, you add either the mortar-like Tormentor Bombard or the Deathshrieker Rocket Battery to the platform. Unfortunately, neither the mortar nor the rockets are movable.

Both artillery pieces are fine models with striking details, particularly the daemon matter forge of the Tormentor Bombard. It is, however, a real shame that there are no alternative parts for the crew. Since you’ll likely want several of these weapons in a Helsmiths of Hashut army, the crews will all end up looking identical.

A look inside the Helsmiths of Hashut battletome

The edition of the Helsmiths of Hashut battletome exclusive to the army set comes in a soft-touch matte hardback with copper foil for the Age of Sigmar logo and title, copper-edged pages, and a ribbon bookmark. At 96 pages it’s on the slimmer side, but that’s usually the case for newcomer factions.

We start with 42 pages of lore, including a double fold-out spread. We learn of the sinister origins of the Zharrdron. How the once-proud duardin of the Khazalid Empire sealed their gates during the Age of Chaos and, starved of resources, turned to harnessing the trapped daemons in their halls as a source of power. We gain insights into their society, their relationship with Hashut and the Great Horned Rat, how they were able to expand their dominion in the Mortal Realms almost unnoticed by other factions, and how they brought down the Fyreslayers’ Grimnir’s Firefold. And there is an introduction to the the various troop types.

As is standard for 4th Edition Age of Sigmar battletomes, the lore section is illustrated with a mix of artwork and miniature photography – with a heavier emphasis on the latter. All of the artwork is new, as befits a new faction, but much of it feels a little rushed: backgrounds are blurry and indistinct, and rough digital brushstrokes are often still visible.

The second half of the book covers the rules. Here you’ll find the faction rules and traits, the warscrolls, and Spearhead rules for the Hellforge Host, which correspond precisely to the models from the army set. In addition, there’s a Path to Glory campaign, two Armies of Renown, as well as two Regiments of Renown that can serve as allies for other factions.

Where to get

You can find the latest GW releases at our 🇬🇧/🇪🇺 partner stores Wayland Games, Element 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!

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