Warhammer 40,000 - The Game The 6th Edition Rulebook Each player assembles an army from one of the

official lists and constructs an a rmy of pewter and plastic miniatures representing the various units in that army . Rules for constructing armies are contained within the Warhammer 40,000 rulebo ok, as well there are army-specific codexes that contain specific information on the units and rules for each army. (certain armies have multiple codexes - for example, many of the major Chapters of the Space Marines army have individual co dexes). Army size is determined ated cost proportionate on how many points for mit. Typical game sizes vary in length of time ze. by "points" (pts); each figure and vehicle has an associ to its potential worth on the battlefield. Players agree the game and each assemble an army up to that maximum li are 500, 1,000, 1,500, 1,750 and 2,000 points. Games can from half an hour to several hours, dependent on game si

Play is divided into turns, with each player choosing specific actions for all o f his units on his turn, and using dice to determine the results of those action s. Each match, at the onset, is assigned a set of additional rules and a goal (c ollectively called a "scenario") specific to it. The simplest of these is a basi c "cleanse" mission, which ends after six turns, the victor being declared based on the control of the four quarters of the board; more complex goals can includ e night fights, take-and-hold missions, and various others. Some players organize a series of scenarios, called a campaign, where two or mor e players fight against each other in a number of battles. These campaigns may f eature their own special rules, and are tied together by a storyline, which migh t alter according to the results of each scenario when it is played. Every few y ears, a global campaign is held in which people record their battle results onli ne. This affects the history of the game and is accounted for in the next rulebo ok. The latest of these global campaigns has been the Medusa V Campaign. Collecting The hobby is widely considered very expensive, even by collectors and enthusiast s (though enthusiasts often wish to point out the reasonableness of the expense compared to other leisure activities). New players wishing to start playing shou ld expect to spend upwards of US$200 to US$300 for a reasonably sized army (1,00 0 to 2,000 points worth of models), including costs for rulebooks and paints. Pl ayers must purchase units, sold individually in blister packs or in squads in bo xed sets. A typical blister pack with one to three models will cost from US$9 to US$25, with the cost of boxed sets varying widely (US$35 to US$200) depending o n the contents. In addition to the current line of units, Games Workshop makes available past mo del lines as a part of their mail-order-only "Classic" series. These are models that have been used for earlier versions of the game. This is the only way to ge t certain factions (for example, Harlequins), which have been discontinued. Modelling Since the models are hand-painted and assembled by the player, players are often encouraged to design their own paint schemes as well as using the pre-designed ones displayed in the various books. They are also encouraged to further modify their figures and vehicles using parts from other kits and models (sometimes kno wn as "bitz" to players), or scratch-made from plasticard, modelling putty, or w hatever the modeller can scrounge up. These conversions are often entered into c ontests at sponsored tournaments and similar gaming events. Terrain is an important part of play. Though Games Workshop makes terrain kits a

vailable, many hobbyists prefer to make their own elaborate set pieces. Common h ousehold items like soda cans, coffee cans, Styrofoam packing pieces, and pill b ottles can be transformed into ruined cathedrals, alien habitats, or the like wi th the addition of plasticard, a bit of putty, and a bit of skill. Setting The Warhammer 40,000 game world, based in the Milky Way Galaxy, is most readily characterized as a Gothic science-fantasy setting. The central and most popular elements of the Warhammer 40K universe are the Space Marines, futuristic version s of fantasy knights and the finest warriors of the Imperium of Mankind, a dysto pian and degenerate galaxy-spanning empire. Since it originally was created as a sci-fi spin-off of the Warhammer Fantasy ba ttle game, the 40K gameworld contains many elements of the fantasy genre, for ex ample the concept of magic and adapted versions of classic fantasy races. The in spirational sources for the 40K universe include classic and contemporary sci-fi , horror, and fantasy movies and television series and the works of renowned gen re authors such as Isaac Asimov, Frank Herbert, H. P. Lovecraft, Michael Moorcoc k, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Robert Heinlein (Heinlein's novel Starship Troopers ins pired many elements such as elite marines in powered armor, and drop pods in whi ch encased Space Marines and equipment are fired from orbiting ships down to the battlefield); medieval, baroque, and surrealist art (especially H. R. Giger), p opular depictions of historical settings, such as the World Wars, Victorian Brit ain, Imperial Rome, The Inquisitions, Nazi Germany, and Soviet Russia. This mix leads to a wholly unique fictional universe, in which every side is to some exte nt evil - though some are slightly less evil than others. The Imperium for examp le, is often presented as the "good side", and while it may be true that thereb are many good people within it, as a whole it is an oppressive, xenophobic, corr upt mess which is only able to keep control of its population through the fact t hat being worked to the bone assembling rifles and worshiping the Emperor is sli ghtly better than being worked to the bone and then brutally killed by Ork warlo rds. Imperium of Man The Imperium of Man is the galactic empire under which the majority of humanity is united. The founder and ruler of the Imperium is the god-like Emperor, the mo st powerful human psychic to date. Founding the Imperium ten thousand years ago, he continues, at least nominally, to lead it. Armies of the Imperium in Warhammer 40,000: Codex: Sisters of Battle (5th Edition) Codex: Imperial Guard (5th Edition) Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition) Codex: Black Templars (4th Edition) Codex: Dark Angels (6th Edition) Codex: Blood Angels (5th Edition) Codex: Space Wolves (5th Edition) Codex: Grey Knights (5th Edition) Xenos Mankind is not the only sentient race in the galaxy. Many other races vie for su rvival and dominance of the galaxy. To the Imperium, all of them are enemies to be destroyed. The name for these are the Xenos. Xenos races in Warhammer 40,000: Codex: Tau Empire (6th Edition) Codex: Necrons (5th Edition)

Codex: Codex: Codex: Codex: Chaos

Dark Eldar (5th Edition) Eldar (4th Edition) Orks (4th Edition) Tyranids (5th Edition)

Ten thousand years ago, the Horus Heresy nearly tore the Imperium apart. The dae monic Gods of Chaos corrupted half the Space Marine legions, and plunged the Imp erium into a cataclysmic civil war. The Imperium defeated the traitors, but at g reat cost. The Forces of Chaos still tear away at the Imperium. The sinister whispers of th e dark gods turn many people away from the Emperor and their own people, and the remnants of the traitor Space Marine Legions still reside in the Eye of Terror, occasionally striking out in what is known as the Black Crusades. The forces of Chaos in Warhammer 40,000: Codex: Chaos Space Marines (6th Edition) Codex: Chaos Daemons (6th Edition) History Rogue Trader (1987) The first edition of the game (Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader) was published in the year 1987. The man responsible for creating the original rules set and the W arhammer 40,000 gameworld was game designer Rick Priestley. This original versio n came as a very detailed rulebook, making it most suitable for fighting small s kirmishes. Much of the composition of units was determined randomly, by rolling dice. A few elements of the setting (bolters, Dreadnought armor) can be seen in a set of wargaming rules called Laserburn written by Bryan Ansell and produced by Tabl etop Games in 1980. The influence of these can also be seen in the prototype Nec romunda game mechanics. Laserburn was turned into the computer game Laser Squad that subsequently evolved into the X-COM computer games. Second Edition (1993) The second edition was published in late 1993, aimed at making it easier to figh t larger battles. This version relied greatly on cards, and came as a boxset inc luding Space Marines and Orks miniatures, scenery, and dice, as well as the main rules. An expansion pack, Dark Millennium, was later released. Third Edition (1998) The third edition was released in 1998, and again concentrated on streamlining t he rules for larger battles. The rulebook was available alone, or as a boxset wi th miniatures (Space Marines and the newly introduced Dark Eldar). Fourth Edition (2004) The fourth edition was released in 2004. It was not such a major change as betwe en previous editions, as it did not break gamers' old army lists or codexes. The rules are available either as a separate hardcover rulebook, or in a truncated but still usable form within the Battle For Macragge boxset, which also includes models for Space Marines and Tyranids, scenery, dice, and templates. Fifth Edition (2008) The Fifth Edition was released in 2008. This, too, comes in a box set (with Spac e Marines and Orks) or as a rulebook. There were many major changes between four th and fifth edition; however, it did not invalidate any codexes or army lists.

Sixth Edition (2012) The Sixth Edition was released in June 2012 and is the current edition of Warham mer 40,000. New editions include a larger emphasis on flying units and hardcover all-color Codices. Over the years, the game has been expanded by many supplements. There has also b een cross-fertilization from other games in the same setting.