Sorry it took me so long to get back to you on this one. Darn RL...
Over the years I have seen the meta change, from the uber "must have to win" units, that changed with every new codex release, to armored columns, and now air power. Yes at my local, air power is the newest meta. Seems everyone has multiple flying things, and the guns to shoot down the other players flying things (except orks, unless you use IA8).
We have one guy whose army is only a few guys and 9 planes. Off the top of my head he has an IG army of one big HQ, one little HQ, four units of vets, six valkyries and three vendettas. (I think that is right, maybe the vendetta is the troop carrier, so switch the numbers if so) And other armies, even space marines have gone flyer heavy. It is rare to face an opponent that has less than three flyers.
I tried to go super heavy with my Skullhamma tank, but air power seems to trump even super heavies. Now, I find that I must go with as much anti air as I can, or be picked off the board by strafing runs. It seems the new multi FoC/unbound list has many power players still drooling at all the uber stuff that can be squeezed in. At my local though, you have to have permission from your opponent to play an unbound list, but, I haven't seen too many cases where a game was refused (only one, where he has all wraith knights).
While I still enjoy playing, (it is better than working) the overall fun seems to go away when there is nothing you can do about your opponents army, as it is flying all around you, and you can't even declare a waaagh as there is nothing to charge. It seems that GW went on an anti ork binge, and to me the game has suffered. The result of this last codex has seen my local go from four or five ork players to only one. Yes, I admit, I have been sorely tempted to dust off my eldar and leave the orks till next edition. ( I Still own about 3k of Saim Hann models)
So, maybe a "reversion" to a new (??) younger time might be a good thing. Where umies haven't got all those new gizmos and know whats. That space marines are just hard shell umies that put up a better fight than the regular squishy ones. Sure, I would be happy to give up the current crop of named characters, most of which appeared at Armageddon, for a new batch of characters. Or, maybe, no named characters at all as the orks haven't yet started their own legends because they too are just starting their expansion. Where the idea of a stompa hasn't yet occurred to the orks as they haven't yet seen big killy things yet. Where interstellar waaagh hasn't yet dawned on the orks tribes. Then, only krumping matters, the biggest is the meanest and the leader, so umies are not so big and need to be taught by the orks the propa way to run a civilization. Sounds fun to me.
My favorite game (a few years back) was GorkaMorka (and Mordenheim). Maybe a version of that style gaming where you have warbands rather than armies. Where your own warband can increase in ability and skill and numbers as well as decrease all that as you suffer casualties. Where the game is more about the telling of a story than simply the actually winning of an one off fight. That sounds like an excellent way to go.
Now, you did it. I am going to be chomping at the bit waiting for 30K to show up. Hope I am not disappointed. I will end my rambling here as I might go over the edge and start telling you all about how GW used to have world wide campaigns...
My two teef.