Page 1 : Editorial : Gotrek (only) is mentioned as this issue features his history.
Page 2 : Contents : Saga of the Slayer article (Gotrek only is mentioned).
Page 30 : Planet Warhammer – Latest News article (an article about new releases from Black Library) : Realmslayer half page presentation/advertisement.
Pages 40-43 : Saga Of A Slayer article: A celebration article about the duo taking the opportunity of the new release of Realmslayer.
One of the best ever articles considering Gotrek & Felix! A must!
All 3 of the ‘basic’ 3 writers share their thoughts and we also learn much valuable information about the duo!
Page 40 :
As it is mentioned many times before, the 1st appearance of Gotrek & Felix was in 1989.
Battlefield Heroes ‘window’ : Gotrek & Felix were included as Special Characters in Warhammer Armies: Dwarfs (released in June 1993). William King worked in the design studio, writing background for many army books that were being released for Warhammer. The first models sculpted by Michael Perry, were released alongside the Warhammer Armies: Dwarfs book. Felix miniature: has his sword Karagul and wears his iconic red cape. Gotrek’s miniature: His runic axe is chained in his wrist so he cannot lose it. Also Gotrek & Felix painting by Mark Gibbons.
Trollslayer window:This novels explores the origins of the Gotrek & Felix including Felix’s bloodoath to the Slayer, how Gotrek lost his eye fighting goblins and how Felix found his sword.
William King talks about Gotrek & Felix : ‘About 30 years ago, I was asked to write a short story for Games Workshop. As an avid player of Warhammer Fantasy RolePlay, I knew it had to be about a Trollslayer – they were the most interesting character type to me. Come on, punk rock Dwarfs with death wishes and big axes – what’s not to love? Looking around for a Warhammer-ish Dwarf name, I stumbled on one in the old supplement Shadows over Bogenhafen. That’s where Gurnisson bit come from. I wasn’t sure about showing the world through the eyes of a non-human, so I decided to give my doomed hero a sidekick – someone who would survive the inevitable death I planned to end that first story and return to tell the tale. That was Felix. Only his name wasn’t Felix. In my original, it was Eric! Obviously Gotrek didn’t die at the end of the first story as I planned. He’s clearly not taking his Slayer oath very seriously!”.
Page 41 :
Ulrika the Vampire ‘window’ : Some general information about Ulrica.
Bite – Sized Battles ‘window’ : It is written that Gotrek & Felix have been in many novels, more short stories, audio dramas, in White Dwarf – Inferno! pages and even in computer game. Many of their tales are still available for download as eBook from the Black Library website.
Page 42 :
Nathan Long says : ”It was a terrifying honour taking over the Slayer series. Everyone loved William King’s novels so I felt a great responsibility to get it right – I went back and re-read all of Bill’s books twice before I got started! The biggest challenge was coming up with scenarios the readers believed Gotrek & Felix could never get out of them. My favorites in my run are Elfslayer andShamanslayer – I felt i got the mix of action, character, pathos, and comedy just right and I got to bring back some of my favorite characters from Bill’s books like Thanquol and Max Schreiber.
Josh Raynolds says : ”For me, King’s writing hits that sweet spot between black comedy and pulp action that I love. I learned a lot about the mechanics of writing by pulling his Gotrek & Felix stories apart, line by line, and trying to figure out why they worked so well. Skavenslayer is a masterclass in serialized fiction, each entry building on the least. It has everything a good Warhammer novel ought to have – the grit and grime of the streets, the decadence and depersonalisation of the aristocracy, and of course, Thanquol. Thanquol is the best character to come out of Warhammer – that’s my hill, and I’ll die on it.”
Page 43 :
City of the Damned ‘window’ : David Guymer’s 1st foray into Gotrek & Felix series and it’s arguably one of the darkest and creepiest tales in the saga. Curiously, though, one of the stars of the book is Modheim itself – this is the first time the city has been explored in depth since tha game of the same name came out way back in 1999.
David Guymer says : ”Writing a pair of Gotrek & Felix novels set during End Times allowed me to go to places that no author had been before. I got to reveal the shame that lead Gotrek (and Snorri) to take the Slayer Oath and, of course, I got to finally give Gotrek Gurnisson his doom. This was a tremendous responsibility, but I was helped no end by how evocative and yet unconstraining the earlier book were. Much is mentioned or suggested, but little is ever actually spelled out for you. Getting those scattered jigsaw pieces to fit together to make Kinslayer was probably one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done.I shed a few tears over the last two books. A world I loved was ending around me. I…killed people. Looking back with a few years of hindsight, through, I’m enormously fond of them, and proud of my contribution to the series.”
Realmslayer ‘window’ : David Guymer for Realmslayer : ”One of the greatest things about Gotrek Gurnisson is that he never really changes. The world around him has changed, but he’s still this grumpy, taciturn character that we have know and love. One of the big challenges was getting across his character without Felix – the stories were told through his eyes and now he’s not there. Gotrek latches on to characters that remind him of his remembrancer….”
Realmslayer ‘window’ : Brain Blessed for Realmslayer : ”Gotrek has an enormously powerful personality that dominated everything. I’ve never come across a character with such courage, who can go through such pain. I love a good fighter. I’d say Gotrek is the most demanding part I’ve come across – he’s a primitive character, but with such immense subtlety. I played King Lear a few years ago and Gotrek was at least six-and-a-half times harder.”
Pages 41 – 42 – 43 : The release (month and year) of every book in the series. Also all their covers.
Page 68 : Novella Series 1 advertisement. All 10 books, so The Bone Desert, also.
