Warhammer 40,000 – Where To Start With Video Games, Books, And Tabletop

Space Marine 2 is off to a tremendous start. Not only has it reviewed well, but it shattered Warhammer’s franchise record for concurrent players on launch day and became Focus Entertainment’s fastest-selling game. Long-time Warhammer-heads will feel right at home donning the blue armor of the Ultramarines chapter, but given its current popularity, plenty of newcomers are jumping into the series for the first time with Space Marine 2. And if you wind up loving the world of Warhammer, there’s good news: Warhammer 40K has a massive library of video games, books, and tabletop miniatures to explore.

On the other hand, all that content can be intimidating to newcomers–there are hundreds of novels, dozens of games, and nearly four decades of tabletop lore to catch up on. Luckily, there are some clear entry points into the Warhammer 40,000 universe. One of the newest is Warhammer 40,000: The Ultimate Guide. Releasing October 29, the 336-page hardcover tome is the first official Warhammer 40,000 encyclopedia.

Warhammer 40,000 Core Rulebook (free download)

Warhammer 40,000: The Ultimate Guide looks to be a solid entry point for new fans who want a holistic overview of the grimdark universe and its many warring factions, but there’s plenty more 40K content out there for those who want to go deeper. One of the easiest places to start is the Warhammer 40K 10th Edition tabletop core rulebook, which is available as a free digital download. The core rulebook is probably the best way to get into the setting, even if you don’t plan on playing the tabletop game. While the tabletop wargame’s rules take up a considerable chunk of the book, the rest is chock-full of explanations of the various factions, weapons, and planets found in the 40K setting. You can also download the individual indexes and datasheets for each of the playable factions. These digital books contain army-specific rules for the many factions and sub-factions playable in the tabletop game. There are also physical Codex books for each playable army that offer even more lore, rules, and other details.

With the Warhammer 40K 10th Edition core rulebook and army information in hand, you’re poised to dive into other parts of the franchise–namely, the tabletop game and its expansive line of mini-figures and the massive library of Warhammer 40K novels.

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Where to Start with Warhammer 40K Tabletop and Minis

If you’re looking to play the Warhammer 40K tabletop game–or simply collect, build, and paint your own armies–Games Workshop has several starter kits that are worth checking out.

The Warhammer 40,000: Introductory Set is a two-player starter kit that has everything you need to play, including squads of Space Marines and Tyranids, paints, a rules handbook, playmat, dice, and more, for just $55. This is a solid way to start playing and provides a good baseline to build a Space Marine or Tyranid army.

For an even simpler intro to the tabletop gameplay, the official Space Marine board game uses a streamlined version of the rules where one player controls a lone Space Marine against a second player commanding a large ground of Tyranids. All miniatures in the Space Marine board game come unassembled and unpainted, just like other Warhammer minis, and are compatible with the full tabletop game if you decide to expand your collection. You can grab it for $40 at Target.

If you’re looking for an even lower-stakes entry point and just want to try your hand and building and painting the models, the Getting Started with Warhammer 40K pack is just $17 and includes two models–one Primaris Space Marine and one Tyranid Termagant–to build and paint. Most of these kits come with paints, but you may also want to grab the Warhammer 40K: Paints & Tools Set, which features all the paints and brushes you’ll need to paint Space Marines and Tyranids, or the Space Marines Assault Intercessors paint set that includes several colors not included in the other starter bundles.

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Where to Start with Warhammer 40K Books

While you can learn the general lore of Warhammer 40K through the 10th Edition rulebook, army indexes, and the upcoming Ultimate Guide encyclopedia, if you want to read actual stories set in the Warhammer universe, the massive collection of 40K novels has you covered. As mentioned earlier, there are hundreds of Warhammer 40K books in Games Workshop’s official Black Library publishing label, all of which are set at different points in the franchise’s history and follow different factions, characters, and battles. That may sound overwhelming, but we have a few recommendations to get you started. Note that some of these books can be hard to find physical copies of but are readily available in Kindle or audiobook formats.

Warhammer 40,000: Eisenhorn novels and Warhammer 40,000: Ciaphas Cain series

The vast majority of Warhammer 40K material–books or otherwise–focuses on the Space Marines, and most of the popular Space Marine chapters have been featured as the protagonists in many novels, such as the Ultramarines, Space Wolves, Salamanders, and more. However, there are a handful of novels that follow other factions of the Imperium, including The Eisenhorn series by Dan Abnett. The series follows Gregor Eisenhorn, a member of the Imperial Inquisition investigating demonic forces threatening the Empire. Many fans consider the series to be one of the best in the franchise. It’s also just four books, making it one of the shortest sub-series in the 40K canon, and an excellent starting point.

Another well-regarded series is the Ciaphas Cain saga. These books are slightly more humorous in tone, centering on the Imperial Guard commander Ciaphas Cain and the 597th Valhallans unit as they take on deadly missions across the galaxy. It’s a longer series than Eisenhorn, but each novel features the Imperial Guard locked in epic battles against various other Warhammer 40K factions, making them an excellent way to familiarize yourself with the setting’s endless warfare.

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Other faction novels: Chaos, Eldar, T’au, and more

There are also a handful of novels that focus on non-Imperium factions. One of the best is the Night Lords trilogy by Aaron Dembski-Bowden, which is one of the few stories written from the perspective of the Space Marine’s most reviled enemies, the Chaos Space Marines.

If you want to learn more about the mysterious Eldar–basically the 40K version of space elves–the Path of the Eldar series and Rise of the Ynnari duology are great starting points.

There are also several series that follow the T’au empire–which, for those unfamiliar with the setting, are technologically advanced humanoid aliens with cool laser weapons and giant, Gundam-like mechs. Don’t let anyone mislead you; the T’au are rad and are the center of some awesome books like Shadowsun: The Patient Hunter.

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The Horus Heresy

There are hundreds of other Warhammer 40K books out there, but for those who want to understand the history of the Imperium of Man and how the Emperor went from a crusading galactic warlord to an undying corpse hooked up to a giant mechanical throne that requires thousands of daily human sacrifices to power and whom humans worship as a living god, there’s the massive Horus Heresy series. The Horus Heresy series contains a whopping 64 books in total that take place 10,000 years before the current era of the Warhammer 40K universe, so it’s a massive undertaking. It’s not necessary to read all the books to understand the setting, but those who take on the task are in for an epic space opera chronicling the civil war that lead to the creation of the Chaos Space Marines and the “ascension” of the human Emperor to the Golden Throne.

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Where to Start with Warhammer 40K Video Games

Unsurprisingly for a franchise as big–and violent–as Warhammer 40K, there are dozens of video games set in the gothic science-fantasy universe. To be fair, not all are of the highest quality, but there are plenty of gems worth checking out. The video games only offer a limited look into the 40K world–and, like most 40K material, focus primarily on the Space Marines–but since they’re often self-contained stories, you can jump in without needing to read through supplemental materials.

The newest – Space Marine 2 and Boltgun

The newest Warhammer 40K game, Space Marine 2, offers a focused narrative and killer third-person combat where you play as a member of one of the most iconic Space Marine chapters, the Ultramarines. It’s the follow-up to 2011’s Space Marine, which is available in a special Anniversary Edition for cheap at Fanatical. The Anniversary Edition comes with all of Space Marine’s DLC and a bunch of bonus content, including a digital art book, strategy guide, soundtrack, and more.

The Ultramarines are also the playable chapter in another recent release, Warhammer 40K Boltgun. Boltgun is a solid choice for those who want to continue their pious crusade against the forces of Chaos in a fast-paced boomer shooter–though don’t expect too much story here. The game also received a DLC expansion chapter, Forges of Corruption, earlier this year.

The best – Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

Speaking of the tabletop game, there are also numerous Warhammer 40K strategy titles out there for those who want an experience closer to the tabletop wargame, and there’s none better than Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War is widely considered to be the best Warhammer 40K game overall, with highly replayable RTS gameplay. And thanks to its numerous expansions, you can play as almost every 40K faction. The Master Collection edition with all expansions routinely goes on sale at Steam and GameSpot’s sibling site Fanatical, though if you want to pick up a more affordable version, we suggest the standalone Dawn of War: Dark Crusade.

The sequels, Dawn of War 2 and 3, are decent, too, though are considered to be steps down in quality from the first game. Dawn of War 2 strips out base building and focuses more on tactical maneuvers while controlling squads of customizable hero units. Dawn of War 3 is a hybrid that brought back base-building but has a much smaller scope with fewer playable factions and a more narrow strategy focus compared to the first game.

Turn-based tactics – Battlesector, Machanicus, and Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters

Dawn of War is great, but its real-time strategy gameplay is a departure from the turn-based design of the original tabletop game. So, if you’re looking for the most tabletop-accurate Warhammer 40K video game, you’ll want to check out Warhammer 40K: Battlesector. This turn-based tactics game is the most faithful adaptation of the tabletop game’s rules and gameplay flow. Unfortunately, that also extends to the way the game offers its content. The base game only includes the Blood Angels Space Marine faction and the Tyranids as the only playable factions. Other factions and even additional playable units must be purchased via DLC. Luckily, the game and its DLC packs often go on sale.

For alternative turn-based picks, Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters and Mechanicus both offer X-Com-like tactical gameplay where you play as unique subfactions of the Imperium–specifically the Inquisition’s Grey Knights in Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters and the techpriests of the Adeptus Mechanicus in Mechanicus.

For RPG lovers – Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

For those who want a more narrative-driven game, there’s Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader, which also dropped in 2023. This RPG offers turn-based combat, branching narratives, multiple party members to recruit, and even your own ship to customize. The title “Rogue Trader” comes from the subtitle for the Warhammer 40K tabletop game’s first edition, which featured much more traditional roleplaying compared to the wargame focus of later versions.

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These recommendations are just a small selection of the many Warhammer 40,000 video games, books, and tabletop kits out there, but they’re more than enough to get you familiar with one of the biggest, most over-the-top fictional universes ever concocted.

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