Historia Squataticus Supplement: Squats Summary from 1994 to 2004

A Comparison Squats material and game-design decision-making from 1994-2004 in White Dwarf and The Citadel Journal (Historia Squataticus Appendix 1)

This table provides a year-by-year summary of the treatment of the Squats from the release of Warhammer 40K 2nd Edition in 1994 to the final reference in 2004. Both 40K and Epic are included in this comparison of White Dwarf and Citadel Journal information.

Living Ancestors Never Forget

Year	White Dwarf	The Citadel Journal
1994	Frequent Epic, not much 40K.	Same as White Dwarf
1995	Continued Epic without new minis, not much 40K.	Continued Epic, including 40K/Epic crossover rules
1996	Incidental Squats 40K & Epic but no really bad news until end of year's report that the new Epic 40,000 would not have the Squats included at the start.	Frequent 40K and Epic material
1997	Only incidental pictures and references, reported as a former army when Epic 40,000 appears in Spring.	Squats Army List for Epic 40,000 published, reports that Squats left out because they could not get them right in time (same with Epic Knights) but high level of response from Squats generals demanded an “unofficial” list until an official army list was developed. Squats rules included in 40K and Necromunda articles.
1998	Febuary issue (217) notes that greatest concern from Warhammer players is “What's happening to the Squats?” but does not address the issue. Later in the year, 40K 3rd edition is announced without any mention of the Squats, but it also massive underestimates of the impact on usability of older models and units, Squats or nots.	Squats featured in several articles for Warhammer 40K, but a Convention Report from late March states that the decision to exclude the Squats from Warhammer 40K 3rd edition has been made, but that they are planning to revive them for 4th edition. So it seems likely that the decision to keep the Squats out of 40K 3rd edition was made in late 1997 or sometime in 1998. We can speculate that the decision evolved from trying to reintroduce the Squats to Epic 40,000, but cannot be certain, and there are no known prototypes or unreleased Epic Squats items from the late 1990s. There are also no known 40K Squats from the time either, the 8 Warhammer 40K 2nd edition Squats were done in 1993 or 1994. But it also clear that GW did not plan on totally eliminating the Squats in 1998, and instead hoped to bring them back to Warhammer 40K (eventually) and Epic 40,000 (hopefully sooner).
1999	Nothing	Discussion of how to use Squat miniatures in Warhammer 40K by Jervis Johnson, Warwick Kinrade, and others. Squats are mentioned in all but one of the 1999 issues. Johnson reports that Squats have been left out of 40K 3rd Edition because the designers have failed to come up with enough good ideas about how to make them into a distinct and coherent army. The general recommendation is to use Squats as Imperial Guard stand-ins or as units within human-dominant IG armies.
2000	January issue (240) features the “Eaten by Nids” customer-service fail by whoever was responsible for the Letters page.	Mostly comments in letters from readers.   However, the final issue from the year reports that Epic Squats infantry sprues are available again; the metal vehicles have likely been continuously available as well.
2001	Nothing	Just one comment in a reader letter.
2002	Nothing	The last year for the Citadel Journal, with Warwick Kinrade mentioning the Squats “Counts As” article from Issue 33 (Late Summer 1999) as a favorite.
2003	Nothing	Citadel Journal no longer published.
2004	Increasingly jittery denials of Space Skaven fail to fully assuage guilt over treatment of Squats, leading to an editorial error in the February issue (289) leaving a reference to the Squats of the Forge World Golgotha being conquered by Ork Warlord Ghazghkull Thraka due to insufficient support from alleged Imperial allies. Warhammer 40K 4th edition is released in the fall with no revitalized Squats.	Citadel Journal no longer published.

The Grudge Master Remembers.

Space Skaven Sergeant Squeek "Squeek" Squeek

As we know, Jervis Johnson once declared that there would "never, never, never be Space Skaven". Well, explain this, then. Here we have Space Skaven Sergeant Squeek "Squeek" Squeek. Sgt Squeek has been inducted into the Hungry Ghosts army to serve as a Bodyguard for General Stalkarlik. Not that someone as Mighty as General Stalkarlik needs a Bodyguard, but Skaven with Guns are Fun.

Space Skaven Squeek is one of the 1986 C47 Chaos Ratmen designed by Jes Goodwin. He appeared first in the Autumn 1986 Citadel Journal under the name of Carver. Early releases of this miniature had spikes so sharp they made your fingers bleed if handled unwarily; later editions had the spikes shortened and dulled down. Sgt Squeek is a fingers-bleeding version that is from the first blister pack of Skaven I bought. Plans to make a Skaven army for 3rd Edition Warhammer Fantasy Battle were dashed by the ridiculous numbers of mandatory troops required in the Warhammer Armies book, and by all the exciting Eldar that came out in the early days of Warhammer 40K. And by my short attention span.

http://solegends.com/citjour86a/cj86ap21c47skaven-01.htm


So Squeek first got his gun as a Tech Weapon Chaos Reward as a member of a Chaos Warband from the Realm of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness system. The old Chaos rules let a young lad cram many a different race of critter into one army. Now, we must settle for "counts-as" troopers and corpse minis to satisfy our attention deficits. Sgt Squeek has had his paint refreshed for his new role in the Hungry Ghosts.

Ah, the good old days. Things always seem better in the hazy glow of times gone. But that hazy glow is poisonous gas from use of our rivers as toilets and industrial waste receptacles. Even the delicate lighting of those fancy Monet paintings were produced by streets and streams full of sewage...