Essen Spiel Exclusives and Upcoming Releases

Strap in: this one’s a long one ;)

The Skirmish Packs are officially launching at Essen Spiel, and that’s just the beginning. We’ve got even more new releases coming your way!

Alongside the Skirmish Packs, the Silver Line, Bloodthorne, and Umbral Veil will each receive exclusive early releases. Models so new they’ve only just rolled off the Gamebreakers’ sculpting table. These limited-run miniatures will be available first at Essen Spiel, giving attendees an early chance to paint them up, before their official launch.

The full release of these models is planned for Q4 2025 and early Q1 2026, but you don’t have to wait to see what’s coming - their unit card sets have already been updated, so you can check out the new rules right now.

Let's take a look at what's coming up!

Essen Spiel Exclusives - Overview

Silver Line - Essence Spiel Exclusives

Essence Weaver - High Warden Elara Steelheart

Unyielding as the bastions she defends, High Warden Elara Steelheart stands as the living embodiment of the Silver Line’s creed: Duty, discipline, and devotion. She has fought on the front lines of every great defense, her armor scarred but her resolve untarnished. To those under her command, she is not merely a commander, but a symbol, the unshakable will of humanity given form. Her voice cuts through the din of battle like a clarion call, steady and sure, reminding all who hear it that the Silver Line does not falter.

Elara’s mastery of Essence is a testament to her faith and restraint. She channels its power not for destruction, but for endurance - turning her body into a bulwark and her will into an unbreakable shield. Her allies find renewed strength in her presence, their courage rekindled beneath her watchful gaze. Where others bend beneath despair, Elara stands firm, her light undimmed even in the shadow of the Shroud.

To the enemies of the Silver Line, she is a wall of radiant defiance; to her comrades, she is hope made manifest. Obedient, unwavered, unbroken - the High Warden does not yield. She endures, as she always has, until the dawn returns.

High Warden Elara Steelheart on the tabletop

On the battlefield, High Waren Elara Steelheart, the 3rd Essence Weaver of the Silver Line, stands as a living bulwark. She shields her allies from both metal and arcane onslaughts, a radiant beacon of light guiding her troops into the fray.

Wielding her Tempest Maul, Elara channels the raw fury of lightning itself, unleashing devastating energy that scatters hordes of lesser foes before they can even close the distance.

At the heart of her power lies her signature Essence ability “Nullify”. This very powerful reactive skill allows her to counter enemy manifestations and essence abilities.

While Elara’s defenses make her incredibly tough to bring down, she is not a melee powerhouse. Her true strength lies in protecting key units and enabling them to strike decisively. Lose your heavy hitters too early, and even Elara’s formidable defenses won’t save your army from being overwhelmed.

Tactical Tip: : Keep Elara at the center of your formation, supporting elite units and timing Nullify to disrupt enemy abilities. She thrives when your offensive core stays intact. Control the field, and she’ll make your army unstoppable.

Magistra Selina Wynford

Among the scholars of the Silver Line, Magistra Selina Wynford is spoken of with a mix of admiration and unease. A prodigy of temporal arcana, she has unraveled the threads of time itself - learning not merely to observe its flow, but to bend it to her command. Her presence on the battlefield is heralded by a faint distortion in the air, a subtle shimmer that turns moments into weapons.

With a flick of her wrist, time itself bends in obedience. Allies surge forward in a blur of motion, striking before the enemy can even raise a shield, while her foes move as though trapped in glass, every heartbeat drawn into an eternity of dread. In Magistra Wynford’s grasp, the flow of time is a blade - and she wields it with cold, unerring mastery.

Magistra Selina Wynford on the tabletop

On the battlefield, Magistra Selina Wynford stands as a support powerhouse for any Silver Line army. As the wielder of the only manifestation currently available to the Silver Line, she brings a unique tactical edge, allowing her forces to control sections of the battlefield and debuff high-defense enemies with precision.

At the heart of her power lies her active Essence ability “Temporal Ignition”. This ability is one of the most potent movement tools in all of Shroudfall. It grants an entire friendly unit an S MOV while also bestowing the passive “Parry” . This flexibility makes Temporal Ignition invaluable, whether you’re extending the threat range of your troops or extracting a key unit from danger, Selina’s command of time ensures your army always stays one step ahead.

But her utility doesn’t stop there. Magistra Wynford’s support abilities bolster even your low-armor models, improving their chances to endure enemy assaults (though, admittedly, such fragile units are rare among the Silver Line… for now 😉). Additionally, her mastery of Enhanced Essence Senses frontloads your army’s Essence generation, giving you faster access to key essence abilities.

In the right hands, Magistra Selina Wynford transforms the Silver Line into a highly adaptive force. One that manipulates positioning, defense, and Essence flow to dominate the rhythm of battle.

Tactical Tip: Timing is everything with Magistra Selina Wynford. Use Temporal Ignition not just to push your offensive units forward, but to reactively reposition key assets when the battle turns. A well-placed movement can pull a vulnerable ranged unit out of melee or extend the reach of a charging strike force to catch your opponent off guard. Pair her with fast or Essence-hungry units to maximize your advantage, every inch of movement and every Essence counts when she’s on the field.

Bloodthorne - Essence Spiel Exclusives

Essence Weaver - The Autumn Bride

Clad in a once-pristine bridal gown, The Autumn Bride drifts through the Bloodthorne’s domain like a ghost bound to the forest’s will. Her white dress, now faded with age and overgrown with creeping vines, sways as thorned tendrils coil around her limbs - lifting, guiding, sustaining. Her eyes are empty of life yet full of quiet command, her heart long ago claimed by the whispering will of the Bloodthorne.

The Bride’s power is that of renewal twisted into obedience. She calls to the Sporebound with a voice soft as falling leaves, and they answer in unthinking reverence. Under her gaze, the dead rise not in defiance but in devotion, their hollow forms moved by her sorrowful grace. With a single gesture, roots tear through soil, branches twist into shields, and the forest itself bends to her mourning song.

To the Bloodthorne, she is a vessel of will, a living conduit through which the forest speaks and acts. Neither ruler nor servant, she moves in perfect harmony with the hive’s intent, her sorrowful power amplifying its endless hunger. Wherever the Autumn Bride passes, silence follows, and the forest itself seems to breathe with her - patient, watchful, and alive.

The The Autumn Bride on the tabletop

On the battlefield, the Autumn Bride commands the field with relentless waves of SPOREBOUND, overwhelming enemy lines through sheer numbers and unending attrition. Her presence turns the tide of war into a creeping infestation, a living storm of decay and rebirth.

Empowered by her Leadership and her active Essence ability “Sporesurge”, the Autumn Bride grants friendly SPOREBOUND units surprise movement opportunities, extending their threat range and enabling them to flood key objectives with terrifying efficiency. Under her guidance, the battlefield itself becomes a garden of creeping death.

Offensively, she stands among the most potent arcane combatants in Shroudfall. Her devastating spells - “Hollow Spark” and the active Essence ability “Unbound Sorrow” - unleash ruinous blasts and provide the army with the key condition “Poisoned”. Through her Sporebound Sight, she can even extend the range of these abilities - though doing so requires the sacrifice of her own SPOREBOUND minions.

Still, players must use her powers wisely. Burn through your SPOREBOUND too quickly, and you’ll find yourself running out of bodies and Essence when it matters most. Fortunately, the Autumn Bride’s twisted gift ensures that a few of her fallen minions can return with each activation - the cycle of decay and rebirth never truly ends.

Tactical Tip: The Autumn Bride thrives in attrition-focused strategies. Use Sporesurge to pressure objectives early, reserve Unbound Sorrow for devastating counterstrikes, and manage your minions carefully - for every spore burned is both a weapon and a resource lost.

Sporebound Thralls

The Sporebound Thralls are the first stage of the Bloodthorne’s corruption, freshly claimed humans whose bodies still bear the echo of who they once were. Their eyes are glazed, their movements jerky and uncertain, guided not by thought but by the will of the forest’s dark consciousness. Vines coil through their flesh, roots pulse beneath their skin, and faint motes of sporelight drift from every wound.

Individually weak and mindless, the Thralls advance in staggering waves, heedless of pain or fear. They claw and bite with desperate strength, their lives meaningless beyond serving as vessels for the Bloodthorne’s will. Where they fall, new growth takes hold, and from their remains the forest spreads, patient, unending, and hungry.

Sporebound Thralls on the tabletop

The Sporebound Thralls are currently the cheapest unit in Shroudfall and about as far from an elite fighting force as you can imagine. With the lowest offensive and defensive stats in the game, a single Thrall won’t be bringing down anything of note. But what about a horde of them?

Despite their humble profile, underestimating the Sporebound Thralls is a mistake. Their sheer numbers allow them to clog up enemy lines, hold objectives, and stall powerful units in critical areas of the battlefield. In control-based scenarios, a wall of Thralls can be worth far more than their meager cost might suggest.

And when properly supported, whether through Essence abilities, buffs from allied models, or when attacking INFESTED targets, they can suddenly become surprisingly deadly. A few well-timed infusions can turn these fragile minions into a writhing wave of corruption capable of threatening even hardened foes.

For any Bloodthorne player, Sporebound Thralls are a must-have backbone unit. Your opponent will be forced to deal with them eventually, and every attack spent on a Thrall is an attack not hitting one of your key models. In a game of attrition and positioning, that trade is always in your favor.

Tactical Tip: Use Sporebound Thralls to absorb pressure early, screen your valuable units, and lock down objectives. With clever positioning and timely Essence support, this “weakest” unit can easily become the most annoying problem your opponent faces all game.

Umbral Veil - Essence Spiel Exclusives

Mindwracked Abberations

Born from the deranged experiments of Dr. Horatio Ashcroft, the Mindwracked Aberrations are what remain of those who once served as his “volunteers.” Their minds, shattered and reforged through uncontrolled exposure to Essence Dust, have awakened powers no mortal body was meant to bear. Their skulls have swollen grotesquely, eyes glowing with a pale, unfocused light as they drift inches above the ground - caught forever between thought and agony.

In battle, they move without sound, their presence bending the air around them. With a single psychic pulse, they hurl enemies through the air like ragdolls or form shimmering barriers of mental force to shield their allies. Though their voices are lost, faint whispers still echo from within their minds, pleas for release, drowned beneath the relentless hum of the Veil’s will.

The Mindwracked Abberations on the tabletop

On the battlefield, the Mindwracked excel at one thing: disrupting your opponent’s plans. These warped creations twist the flow of combat, turning enemy coordination into chaos and shielding your army from counterstrikes.

Their signature active Essence ability, “Mental Meltdown”, allows them to stun key enemy units, halting charges, shutting down activations, and protecting your core forces from retaliation. Used at the right moment, this ability can completely unravel your opponent’s momentum.

Defensively, they bolster your army through “Force Shield,” an invaluable buff that reduces the impact of aracne and ranged attacks. Against opponents who rely on volleys of shots or arcane blasts, this ability can significantly extend your army’s staying power.

Offensively, their arcane attacks might not boast the highest raw damage, but their displacement effects make them invaluable. With the right support and faction buffs, they can manipulate positioning, disrupt formations, and throw enemy models around like puppets, often creating openings for devastating follow-up attacks.

And if that weren’t enough, the Mindwracked bring a unique passive aura to the field: any push or placement effect that occurs nearby gains enhanced range. Ever wanted your Hans to leap that extra 1”? With the Mindwracked Aberrations, you absolutely can.

Tactical Tip: Use the Mindwracked as control anchors. Position them near the center to amplify displacement effects and chain control abilities across your army. Time Mental Meltdown to stall key enemy activations, then use your movement tricks to seize objectives or isolate targets. Their strength lies not in brute force, but in absolute battlefield disruption.

Essen Exclusives - Scenarios

In Essen we are also releasing for the physical scenario models for "Apparition Ambush Adventure" and "Monumental Mine Mountain"

Achievement unlocked: You made it to the end of this wall of text

If you’re still reading after this wall of text, congratulations, you’ve earned yourself a little bonus reveal. 👀

Those who’ve made it this far will be the first to know: at Essen Spiel, you’ll also get a sneak peek at the very first models of Shroudfall’s upcoming fifth faction - The Kazyr.

They’re coming in 2026 and trust us, these guys are literally burning with anticipation ...

As always ... break the game!