Why Do Collectors Value Rare Ravenwing Models Highly?

The Ravenwing's origin in the game line has a bit of a gradual emergence rather than a single lightning-strike debut. The Dark Angels as a chapter show up way back in 'Rogue Trader' era lore, and the concept of a fast, raven-themed wing of riders and flyers grew out of that background through the late '80s and early '90s. You won't find a crisp, one-line rulebook moment in the very first 40k boxed set; instead it was layered into the fiction and supported by magazine write-ups and codex expansions over a few years. If you want a practical milestone, the Ravenwing became a clearly named, playable part of the Dark Angels identity in the mid-1990s when official codex material and model support started using the term regularly. 'Codex: Dark Angels' and articles in 'White Dwarf' from that era are where the Ravenwing were given distinct rules and roles (fast attack, bikers, Landspeeders and the like) rather than being just background flavour. After that, the 2000s and 2010s brought rule revisions and new miniature sculpts that polished their look and gameplay, but that mid-'90s codex-era formalization is when they shifted from lore piece to proper tabletop force. Personally, tracing that slow crystallisation in old magazines and dusty codex pages is one of my favorite rabbit holes — there's something satisfying about watching a concept become an army on the table.

Honestly, when I think about how the Ravenwing shows up in 'Warhammer 40k' skirmishes my brain immediately goes to speed and hit-and-run play—so I end up listing units by role rather than by strict codex names. In small-scale games you're almost always using fast movers: Ravenwing Bike Squads (regular bikes), Ravenwing Black Knights (those jetbike-style troops that punch above their weight), and the various Land Speeder variants. In practice that means a core of bikers to seize objectives and screen, a handful of Black Knights to deliver heavier weapons or objective denial, and a Land Speeder or two to act as a fast gun platform or harassment piece. Tactically, I kit them out for mobility and alpha strikes: scout the map with a couple of outriders, use the bikers to cap and contest, then peel off with the Black Knights to hit vulnerable enemy backlines. Weapons I tend to favor in skirmish are hit-and-run friendly: grav or plasma talons on Black Knights for high value targets, hurricane or heavy bolters on Land Speeders for suppression, and melta or combi-weapons on bikers for versatility. If the ruleset allows special Ravenwing characters (like a Ravenwing Master), they’re worth slotting in because their command abilities keep a fast force coherent. I also like pairing a Ravenwing skirmish force with objective-focused tactics rather than pure kill lists—a small group that can dash between objectives and force opponents into bad trades usually wins more casual games than a slower elite strike force. All of this keeps the game lively, and I always leave the table feeling like I barely blinked between turns—which, honestly, is the point of riding with the Ravenwing.

If you're hunting for authentic Ravenwing miniatures online, here's what I do when I'm trying to avoid fakes and get the real Citadel goodness. First stop is always the official 'Warhammer 40,000' webstore and the local Games Workshop shop locator — they stock the latest kits, boxed sets, and spare parts. Buying direct from Games Workshop guarantees genuine plastic models, proper sprues, and official basing bits, and it’s the safest route if you want brand-new, unmodified pieces. I also check Forge World for specialty resin bits and rarer Ravenwing-specific upgrades; their sculpts are gorgeous, but resin needs more care and sometimes stronger glue and undercoat methods. For honest secondary sellers, I favor established hobby retailers: Miniature Market (US), Element Games and Wayland Games (UK/EU), and Noble Knight Games for out-of-print boxes. These stores are authorized resellers and often run sales or bundle discounts that make grabbing a Ravenwing bike squad or upgrade pack easier on the wallet. On these sites I look for clear return policies, good shipping protection, and customer reviews. If I ever go private-market, I take photos seriously: ask for clear sprue shots, close-ups of any paint or conversion work, and the listing of part numbers. Recasts can look tempting price-wise but watch for excess flash, soft detail, or odd resin smells — genuine Citadel plastic has crisp detail and consistent sprue connectors. I always use tracked shipping and a card or PayPal for buyer protection. Happy hunting — nothing beats the snap of a fresh sprue and the smell of new plastic under the hobby lamp.

I love how just a couple of tweaks to a Ravenwing bike squad can flip the whole flow of a game. Upgrades are less about making a unit strictly "better" and more about redefining what that unit forces the opponent to do. Put simply: you can turn Ravenwing from fast objective-runners into surgical anti-tank teams, area-denial harassers, or brutal close-combat interceptors depending on what you bolt on. Each choice nudges your tactical options and the opponent’s responses in predictable — and often exploitable — directions. Weapon choices are the headline: short-range, high-damage tools (think 'melta'-type options) give you scary alpha-strike potential against vehicles and priority targets, while rapid-fire or multi-shot options let you chew through screens and infantry blobs. Then there are medium-range, reliable guns that let the bikes contribute to mid-game skirmishes without having to dive into point-blank firefights. Utility upgrades — things that boost mobility, survivability, or provide special ammo/abilities — change how you position and engage. A squad kitted for speed and stealth will try to cap objectives and harass flankers, while a squad carrying anti-armor punch will aim to hunt transports and high-value models. Tactically, upgrades force trade-offs and create purpose. A Ravenwing unit with big anti-tank weapons becomes a threat that an opponent must neutralize quickly: they might waste shots, overcommit a walker, or deny deep strikes to avoid losing a transport. Conversely, a purely anti-infantry Ravenwing can zone entire lanes, making it painful for enemy troops to advance or hold ground. Positioning, line-of-sight management, and timing are crucial: bikes with short-range heavy hitters need to be shepherded into the strike window without getting whittled down, while long-range bikes can bully territory and apply pressure from safer arcs. Synergies with characters and stratagems amplify these roles — a buffed bike unit can be the spear tip of an alpha strike or the shield that keeps your main force flexible. In practice, I usually pick loadouts with a clear goal: disrupt and force my opponent’s mistakes, or surgically remove their key counters. If I want board control early, I pick mobility and anti-infantry; if I need to threaten a heavy piece, I bring short-range punch and bait them into bad trades. The fun part is adapting mid-game: switching between hit-and-run harassment and committed strikes depending on how the enemy reacts. Upgrades don’t just change stat lines — they rewrite the script of the match, and that’s why tinkering with them is one of my favorite parts of list-building.