Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Champions TCG

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Champions TCG is PlayFusion's second attempt at the hybrid physical-and-digital TCG model, this time with Games Workshop's recently rebooted Warhammer fantasy universe as its backing IP.

The game

Released in 2018 by PlayFusion under Games Workshop license, Age of Sigmar: Champions TCG is a two-player duel where each player picks a Grand Alliance (Order, Chaos, Death, Destruction) and supports a Champion character with Units, Blessings and Spells. The AR-enabled card system uses a phone camera to bring cards to animated life, mirroring Lightseekers' technology stack.

The context

Age of Sigmar had launched in 2015 as Games Workshop's reboot of the old Warhammer Fantasy world, and the Champions TCG was pitched at the crossover audience of miniatures wargamers and casual TCG players. PlayFusion had proven the hybrid-format concept with Lightseekers and extended it to the Warhammer IP.

The collector angle

Onslaught, Savagery, and Onslaught 2 are the main expansion waves before PlayFusion wound down the Champions line along with Lightseekers around 2020. Ultra-rare foil Champion cards for each Grand Alliance are the chase pulls, and Games Workshop's Warhammer Fest-exclusive promos are the trophy items. Because the Warhammer collector base is enormous and separate from the CCG space, the Champions cards are often purchased by Warhammer miniatures players rather than CCG players specifically, creating a two-audience market dynamic.