My impressions:
Some "enhancements" going 8th to AoS
The combat and shooting system is cleaned up. To hit is about the attacker. To save is about the defender. No tables (this is the main thing I would have changed if I was simplifying eighth ed combat. Also, initiative is about the general (scope for game winning or losing choices if you are not on the ball.)
Square bases are never coming back. Even if there is a proper tactical 9th Edition we are going to have this pile-in-to-fight mechanic forever, and round bases allow more models to nest together for combat.
Cannons use a to hit roll! Organ guns are more likely to fail if they do multiple shots! Warmachines are less efficient if you kill some crew!
About Gamesworkshop: They were a lot gentler than they could have been, even considering that they shat all over everything game wise.
- If we forget Chaos Dwarfs, all factions still "exist" even if we are actually "the Seraphon". They even put "Lizardmen" on the cover, so we wouldn't get confused. Expect the LM name to disappear in future updates.
- They supported all current models (even weird ones like Great Taurus and Lammasu from Storm of Magic) Even unloved special characters play the rules of a generic equivalent. It would have been so easy for them to add rules for Chaos Dwarfs into the WoC book, but hey, the CD community will have already amended that.
- The door is open to a properly conceived / balanced 9th edition in future - but I bet that doesn't happen anytime soon unless this is a sales flop.
- It will probably be a flop initially because everyone is going to proxy the Mahrlect out of everything because it is not realistic for people to own every possible model or buy to buy a unit "because it might work". Even beginners will borrow models from friends rather than buy until they settle on a themed army they like (this is the disadvantage of giving people too many choices)
- GW will put out some narrative campaigns soon which will stipulate which warscrolls can be used. These will be "balanced" (but not with any insight into the formula they use)
Now the important stuff: Fluff
The fluff landscape in 8th was a desert because there was this mandatory bloody-equilibrium which prevented any world redefining outcome from a story or battle.
The End of Times fluff was so awful, I never even finished Nagash.
Is there official fluff about these new realms? It is such a disaster at the moment that I can't even find a frame of reference to do a cartoon about, let alone write a story.
I'll be writing into the 8th ed universe for a long time to come.
But what are we going to call the BRB now? The FFPP (Flimsy Four Page Printout)?