Getting started with Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000 is Games Workshop's science-fiction miniatures wargame. Players build, paint and command armies of plastic miniatures on a tabletop battlefield, rolling six-sided dice to resolve shooting and combat.
The current edition
The 11th edition launched in June 2026 with the Armageddon launch box, Blood Angels against Orks. Games Workshop works in roughly three-year edition cycles. Existing 10th edition codexes stay valid until each faction receives its new book, so older army books are not wasted.
Small ways in
- Combat Patrol - the small-game format. Each Combat Patrol box is a ready-made force, and a game takes about 60 to 90 minutes. A Combat Patrol Companion book came out with the 11th edition.
- Kill Team - a skirmish game with a handful of models per side. The current edition launched in October 2024 with the Hivestorm box, and rules for all factions are free online.
What to buy first
- One Combat Patrol or Kill Team box for the army you like the look of.
- Plastic clippers, a hobby knife and plastic glue.
- Primer and a few paints, or a starter paint set.
- The free Warhammer 40,000 app for rules and army building.
Gritty Goblin Games stocked Games Workshop miniatures such as Warhammer 40,000 Combat Patrol boxes. Many stores run intro games and painting nights; ask before you buy a whole army.
Related products
- WH40K: Combat Patrol: Thousand Sons
- WH40K: Combat Patrol: Deathwatch
- Combat Patrol: Grey Knights
- WH40K: Combat Patrol: Tyranids
