release coincided with a marked upturn of interest with the game, due in no small part to the launch of Warmaster Podcast in 2016. With a growing FB community, YouTube videos and more tournaments globally, Warmaster is experiencing a renaissance with an expanding base of new converts and returning players. The new ruleset incorporates many of the 2009 supplement army lists but has a working committee that looks to refine the lists to make them balanced and playable as well as tweak current army lists. Battle of Five Armies In 2005 Games Workshop released a boxed game called Great Battles of Middle Earth: The Battle of Five Armies based on the battle from the book "The Hobbit". The rules are heavily based on Warmaster, and it uses the same miniature scale. The boxed set contains rules, 10 mm plastic miniatures, and scenery (plastic hills, ruins and a cardboard river). Additional miniatures for this game were cast in white metal. While detailed in the box set rule book, these extra miniatures were sold separately. They were discontinued shortly after being released. The box set remained in print for a longer while. It was removed before the launch of the 28 mm line based on the movie "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey". Warmaster Ancients Also in 2005 Warhammer Historical published Warmaster Ancients, a modified version of the Fantasy rules suitable for battles covering a period from early Biblical times to 1066. The rules are different from the original 'fantasy' version to better represent historical battles and units. Cavalry, for example, was made weaker in relation to infantry in favour of armies such as the Romans and the Norse. October 2006 saw the release of Warmaster Ancient Armies, which includes 20 new army lists (all of which are set prior to 1000 AD), along with rules for campaign play and a number of new rule clarifications and unit modifications. The campaign rules have been described as a good way of linking battles, but are not suitable for historical campaigns. A new supplement for a later period, Warmaster Medieval Armies was released in December 2008. This supplemental book contains 30 new army lists and a number of significant rule changes from the Fantasy and Ancients version. Knights are introduced as a powerful unit shifting the game balance back towards cavalry, like in the original, Fantasy version. Special rules are provided for sieges, period equipment,