Warhammer 40,000 is a miniature wargame, a sci-fi universe, and a hands-on hobby, building and painting model kits. There are loads of different sides to Warhammer 40k, and just as many ways to enjoy it, whether you're fighting battles in a game store, listening to audiobooks, playing through videogames like Space Marine 2, or simply painting minis in the comfort of your home.
This guide will introduce total newcomers to all the different sides of Warhammer 40k. If you want to understand the lore of 40k, we have detailed guides to the Warhammer 40k factions. We also have a guide to the best Warhammer 40k games if you'd like to play more videogames set in the same universe.
Getting started with Warhammer 40k
There are four main sides to Warhammer 40k:
- Warhammer 40k, the miniature wargame
- Building and painting miniatures
- The Warhammer 40k lore and universe
- Other games in the 40k universe
The Warhammer 40k universe first appeared in 1987 as a 'Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader", a tabletop game played with armies of model soldiers. It was originally created by Games Workshop as a way to sell sci-fi miniatures for people to build and paint, and that's still an incredibly popular part of the hobby.
The Warhammer 40k setting proved incredibly popular. It has been further explored across hundreds of fiction books, plus many comics, and even a handful of animations. Then there are the licensed videogames created by other companies and set in the 40k universe, and even tabletop Warhammer 40k RPGs.
Although the tabletop game came first, you can be a 40k fan without engaging with it at all
Warhammer 40k lore and universe
Warhammer 40,000 is set some time around the year 40,000 - though no-one is exactly sure when. It's a time known as the 'Dark Millennium' or simply 'the grim darkness of the far future'. The galaxy is dominated by the Imperium of Man, a crumbling and corrupt regime.
The God Emperor of Mankind conquered much of the galaxy long ago, but he was betrayed by his most trusted general, Horus Lupercal. The terrible conflict that followed, called the Horus Heresy, destroyed any hope of a brighter future. It left the Emperor physically shattered. He lives on, in a way, as a mighty psychic entity bound to the Golden Throne of Terra.
The Imperium is at constant war with countless alien species, referred to as the Xenos. The war-loving and innumerable Orks, upstart and technologically advanced T'au Empire, swarming hive fleets of the Tyranids, human-alien hybrids of the Genestealer cults, elfin and capricious Eldar and their sinister Drukhari siblings, and ancient, robotic Necrons, all contest mankind's control over the stars.
Humanity's greatest enemies are the Warhammer 40k Chaos factions. Chaos makes Warhammer 40k totally different from any other sci-fi setting - the 40k universe contains a parallel dimension, called the Warp, made up of psychic energy. The four Gods of Chaos, Nurgle, Tzeentch, Khorne, and Slaanesh, lurk in the Warp, eager to invade reality with their Daemon hordes.
Despite the terrible danger the Warp poses, the Imperium depends on it. The only way to travel between star systems is to jump through the Warp, where the laws of time and distance do not apply. Bold Rogue Traders seek out new worlds onboard ancient vessels the size of cities, every journey fraught with peril. The only way to communicate between worlds is through psychic messages projected by astro-telepaths - but every 40k psyker is a potential conduit to the ruinous powers of the warp.
For ten thousand years, the Imperium has hidden the reality of the Warp from its citizens, with organisations like the Inquisition and Grey Knights brutally suppressing the truth. But recent events have made that deception impossible.
The Imperial traitors who turned from the Emperor during the Horus Heresy fled into a realm where Warp and reality overlap, known as the Eye of Terror. Freed from the natural laws of time, those same Chaos renegades launch Black Crusades into Imperial space. The Imeprium fought back those crusades for thousands of years, but the Thirteenth Black Crusade finally shattered the Imperium's defences on the fortress world Cadia.
The Imperial blockade of the Eye of Terror was shattered, and reality itself was wounded. Devastating Warp storms spilt forth along ancient fault lines in time and space, swallowing whole sectors of the Imperium and separating the galaxy in two. Beyond the Great Rift lies Imperium Nihilus, a region almost impossible to reach or contact, beset by horrors.
Standing against the forces of Chaos are the innumerable human soldiers of the Astra Militarum; the holy Sisters of Battle; the machine priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus; towering mechs piloted by the noble houses of Imperial Knights; and the mighty Space Marines, physically modified superhumans with genetic augmentations designed by the Emperor himself.
Great though the armies of the Imperium are, they are a thin line against the hordes of Daemons, renegade Chaos Space Marines and traitorous Chaos Knights pouring from Warp rifts throughout the galaxy - for in the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war.
Warhammer 40k game
Warhammer 40k is a tabletop wargame: two or more players take armies of miniatures, some rulebooks, tape measures, and a lot of dice, and fight a battle across a tabletop decorated with scale model scenery.
That's the core of it. Understanding how to play the game is a little more complicated than that, which is why we suggest you start with one of the Warhammer 40k starter sets - these can ease you in gently.
Many clubs of wargamers meet in game shops or in community venues to play Warhammer 40k and other miniature wargames. These are a great way to meet other players, and most clubs will be happy to introduce a newcomer to the rules. Warhammer shops, the official Games Workshop retail outlet, offer demonstration games to newcomers.
Some people play Warhammer 40k competitively at tournaments, optimising their armies to be as effective as possible, and practising hard to ensure they achieve peak performance. But the majority of players are in it to relax, throw dice, and push their cool toy soldiers around a scale battlefield while occasionally saying "pew pew pew!"
Warhammer 40k uses about twenty to fifty models a side, depending on the army you play and the size of battle you want to fight. There are other wargames set in the Warhammer 40k universe. Warhammer 40k Kill Team focuses on close quarters combat between small squads, and uses around ten models a side. Necromunda pits handfuls of individually named characters against one another in detailed campaigns set in a nightmarish mega city.
Some games use a smaller scale of model to represent battles between much larger war-engines. Adeptus Titanicus is set during the Horus Heresy and charts the conflict between Warhammer Titans, walking robots with the armament of battleships. Legions Imperialis uses huge armies of tiny tanks and even tinier infantry to refight the largest massed battles.
In short, there's a game to suit every interest - and gaming tables of any size.
Painting miniatures
To play Warhammer 40k you need to have an army, which usually means building and painting miniatures yourself. For some gamers this is a chore, while for others this is the only part of the hobby they're interested in.
The skill ceiling for painting miniatures is incredibly high. Games Workshop runs an annual competition, called Golden Demon, which attracts eye-popping miniatures from around the world. Even if you think you don't have a creative bone in your body, you may be shocked how easy you find painting miniatures once you give it a try.
Warhammer 40k inspires some people to create their own, customised models, mixing parts from different model kits together to create "conversions", or "scratch-building" new models out of modelling putty. Games Workshop makes scale scenery pieces for your battles, but building terrain from junk is a fun, crafty hobby that puts you in touch with your inner kid.
Cosplayers have a field-day with Warhammer 40k: it turns out that chunky, over-the-top, baroque armour that looks good on an inch-and-a-half tall model soldier looks incredible when a good cosplayer scales it up to human proportions.
Why we love Warhammer 40k
Warhammer 40k is one of the largest sci-fi franchises out there. That might seem daunting - how am I going to get to grips with it all? The truth is, you don't have to. Warhammer 40k has something in it for everyone.
Warhammer 40k has hundreds of novels by dozens of authors starring a huge cast of characters from every faction - and now there are even books for children. You can find self-contained 40k board games, rock up to a game club and play a friendly match of the wargame, or follow the tournament scene and become a competitive 40k master.
Building and painting miniatures is a hobby in itself, whether you do it to unwind, to let your creative juices flow, or because you're chasing a coveted Golden Demon trophy.
Whatever becomes your favourite part of the hobby, the Wargamer team is wild about it too, so check back regularly - and why not introduce yourself in the official Wargamer Discord community?