Hammer and Bolter

Created byGames WorkshopBased onWarhammer 40,000 & Warhammer: Age of SigmarDirected byDylan ShipleyCountry of originUnited KingdomOriginal languageEnglishNo. of seasons1No. of episodes15ProductionAnimatorFarstride FeaturesRunning time15-30 MinutesProduction companyOriginal releaseNetworkWarhammer PlusReleaseAugust 21, 2021 (2021-08-21) –
present (present)

Hammer and Bolter is an animated series based on the games Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer: Age of Sigmar.^[1] 15 episodes were broadcast from August 2021 exclusively on Games Workshop's streaming website Warhammer+^[2]

Plot

Hammer and Bolter is an anthology series, with the first 8 episodes directed by Dylan Shipley. Each 30 minute episode focused on one particular faction from Games Workshop Warhammer 40,000 universe, such as the Imperial Guard, Chaos Space Marines, Orks, Necrons, or Tyranids. Some later episodes would switch to focus on factions from Games Workshop's Age of Sigmar game such as the Orruks, Cities of Sigmar, Slaves to Darkness, Witch Hunters, Skaven, Soulblight Vampires, or Stormcast Eternals.^[3] The animation style is reminiscent of 1980s Japanese anime.^[4]

Episodes

Hammer and Bolter Season 1

Episode	Title	Notes
1	Deaths Hand	An Imperial inquisitor tries to cheat fate and prevent his predicted assassination.[5]
2	Bound For Greatness	A monk in the Imperial library is tempted by the Chaos God Tzeentch to read the forbidden books that he is required to count every day.
3	Old Bale Eye	A veteran Ork tells two younger warriors about his encounter with Imperial commisar Yarrick.[6][7]
4	Fangs	Three new recruits to the Space Wolves prepare themselves for their rite of passage, while the elders place bets on which one will survive, passing to the next trials of becoming a Space Marine.
5	A Question of Faith	Two nuns from the Sisters of Battle defend the tomb of a long-dead saint from Khorne cultists.
6	Garden of Ghosts	An Eldar warlock scours the devastated remains of his childhood craftworld for the spirit stones of fallen warriors to animate combat drones.
7	Kill Protocol	A tech priest and her kastelan robot search for ancient archaeotech on a destroyed planet.
8	Cadia Stands	Imperial guardsmen defend a planet from tyranid invasion.[8]
9	Artefacts	Black Legion Chaos space marines and Dark Eldar race to be the first to acquire a powerful Necron artefact.
10	Plague Song	Death Guard Chaos Space Marines try to infect the Imperium of Man's webway with pestilence.
11	Double or Nothing	Orruks threaten a sigmarite city.
12	Monsters	High in the peaks of Attramor, a horse-tribe of Darkoath warriors face a daily battle for survival. Jorvak Brand, the tribe's chieftain, has ambitions of a better future for his people, but their doom is only ever one night away.
13	A New Life	A family searches for safe passage off a besieged imperial hive city with their new baby.[9] But not all is what it seems as the family's true colors is brought to light in a shocking twist.
14	Undercity	People are going missing on the streets of Hammerhal Aqsha. Can Witch Hunter Hanniver Toll and his reluctant colleague, the former Freeguild Captain, Armand Callis, work out what’s been going on? And just what will they discover in the sewers...[10]
15	Eternal	When a captured Emperor's Children legionnaire is interrogated by the Exorcists Chapter, the vainglorious Lucius the Eternal sets out to silence him before he reveals the secrets of the 3rd Legion.[11]

Reviews

Critics have generally responded favorably to the series due to the quality of the animation, the dialog, and its faithfulness to the source material.^[12] The episode Old Bale Eye received particularly high praise due to the presence of the fan-favorite character Commisar Yarrick.^[13][14]

References