INTRODUCTION

This set of books provides all the information you need to start your collection, including a history of the 41st Millennium, a glorious miniatures showcase and a set of rules for gaming with your citadel miniatures.

- • A Galaxy of War is an introduction to Warhammer 40,000. It contains photographs of beautifully painted Citadel miniatures and provides inspiration for your own collection.

- • Dark Millennium is a glimpse into the grim darkness of the far future. It details the crumbling Imperium of Man and the many enemies, within and without, who are constantly plotting its downfall.

- • The Rules contains a comprehensive set of rules allowing you to recreate the vicious conflicts of the 41st Millennium on the tabletop. Using your collection of Citadel miniatures, you can command heroes and villains of Warhammer 40,000 in a galaxy where there is only war.

THE WARHAMMER 40,000 HOBBY

At its heart, Warhammer 40,000 is a collecting hobby. Most collections begin slowly at first. A particular Citadel miniature will draw your eye, practically begging to be bought. Others soon follow, sometimes collected with a plan, more often as a result of the same indefinable instinct that inspired your first purchase. As the collection grows, you’ll become increasingly aware of the rich depth that the hobby has to offer. It can seem daunting at first, but don’t worry. What you’re glimpsing is merely a vast array of choice and possibility, to be engaged with (or not) at whatever speed you wish.

STARTING THE JOURNEY

A collection of Citadel miniatures is a very personal possession. Everything, from the order in which the models were added, to the smallest details of the colours that those models have been painted in, speaks to the collector’s character. As a result, no two collections come about in exactly the same way, and every journey through the hobby is unique. That said, as each collection grows, it does so along one or more of three common paths: legends, gaming and painting.

LEGENDS

The Warhammer 40,000 universe is vast, spanning thousands of years and a million worlds. It is a story of selfless heroes and ruthless villains, of desperate deeds and terrible sacrifice.

For many hobbyists, these tales are the inspiration for their collection. Their collections are shaped around every story and fragment of lore within their area of interest, then expanded further when a new battle, a new myth or a new character comes to prominence in the ever-evolving story.

For some, it’s particular characters that provide the spark, doers of righteous or vile deeds whose personalities resonate with the reader. Most hobbyists have a far broader allegiance, identifying not only with specific individuals, but with one or more of Warhammer 40,000’s many armies, or perhaps with a star-spanning campaign. A great many hobbyists don’t even restrict their interest to a single faction, but engage with the full scope of the background. They steep themselves in the characters, armies and events drawn from across the ten thousand year history, delving into everything from the dark depths of the Horus Heresy to the desperate struggles of the Time of Ending.

There’s no right or wrong way to engage with Warhammer 40,000’s rich history. You can go as large or small as you want, explore the most intricate of details one minute, then skim the surface in the next. The path you take – and the speed at which you travel – are yours to decide. You can voraciously absorb everything to do with the infamous Ork Warlord Ghazghkull Thraka one moment, and explore the deeds of the Blood Angels Space Marines the next. Afterwards, you can dive into the sprawling battles of the Damocles Gulf, or immerse yourself in the peculiar madness of the Necron archeovist Trazyn the Infinite.

Journey wherever your fancy takes you – wherever you tread, there’ll be plenty of inspiration along the way.

GAMING

Your collection of Citadel miniatures isn’t just a labour of love and a thing of beauty – it’s also a mighty army, ready for war. Whether you’re looking to recreate a specific battle, or tell new stories set in the warzones of the far future, the Warhammer 40,000 battle game provides the rules you need.

At its most basic level, the Warhammer 40,000 game is an immersive and joyous way of interacting with your collection. It’s a social experience, uniting hobbyists of all ages and backgrounds in the wholesome pursuit of unremitting war. No other aspect of the hobby can be shared so easily with friends, and if there happens to be a touch of competition in the mix, then that’s only natural.

Taken to its full potential, gaming is also a form of storytelling, the narrative revealed by every roll of the dice. Some of Warhammer 40,000’s most famous battles began this way. Narrative battles often use special scenarios, either taken from one of the many Warhammer 40,000 gaming supplements, or created by the players to meet the needs of the story they want to tell. These narrative battles are an exciting, immersive way of recreating the Warhammer 40,000 setting, where every player is a warlord fighting either to preserve the Imperium or destroy it. They use the rules as foundations to build upon, rather than strictures to rigidly observe.

Narrative battles are gaming at its most immersive. Where the outcome of a novel is fixed from the very first page, a game of Warhammer 40,000 is seldom decided until the last dice roll is made. Though one side will inevitably emerge victorious, there is no real defeat – it’s hard to consider yourself a loser after taking part in so fulfilling an experience. When the game is done, you’ll have a treasury of tales, each recalling a moment of daring heroism, or a tragedy brought about by the most damnable ill-fortune. These memories transform the game from a contest of skill into a mighty saga that you helped to forge. You’re no longer looking into the world of the far future as an outsider – you’re in amongst it, fighting to determine its destiny.

As with all aspects of the Warhammer 40,000 hobby, gaming is your experience to define. You can recreate skirmishes between warbands or unleash armies capable of reducing entire planets to rubble. You can play sprawling campaigns for weeks (or years) or battles whose outcome is decided over the course of an evening’s play. Challenge your friends to tournaments, or recreate great events from the story of Warhammer 40,000. All these things are yours to decide, not just when you embark upon the path of gaming, but each and every time you marshal your army for war.

The only limit is your imagination!

PAINTING

Painting is an immensely satisfying aspect of the hobby. Indeed, it’s perhaps the most satisfying. It’s an opportunity to lavish attention on your collection, to personalise your models and proudly display your skills. As you progress, you’ll look at painting not as an end in itself. Instead, you’ll view it as a means by which you can bind elements of your collection together into an army, unifying them with colours and heraldry drawn from Warhammer 40,000’s setting, or your own imagination.

With each stroke of the brush, the models in your collection transform from mere plastic and resin. They become a vivid vision of Warhammer 40,000, seen through your eyes. Suddenly each model is no longer one of a million identical Citadel miniatures; it’s a unique expression of your hobby and your personality, and it’ll be yours forever. As the collection grows, more painted models will join the ranks of your armies, each individual a reminder of your journey and of the techniques mastered along the way.

Painting isn’t just about the models. An army never looks better than when displayed on a beautifully crafted battlefield. The Citadel range encompasses plenty of scenery kits, ranging from Moonscape craters and Wall of Martyrs defence lines to the towering Fortress of Redemption and Aquila Strongpoint. These kits are assembled and painted using the same skills honed on the warriors that battle over them. With their inclusion, you’re not just evoking an army, but a bleak and war-torn future.

Many hobbyists spend a lifetime dedicated to the art of painting. Their collections exist solely to feed that passion, and contain only two kinds of models: those that have already been painted, and those they have yet to paint. For such hobbyists, the painter’s art is all, and every model is selected because it offers a new challenge, or the chance to refine a technique.

Of course, nobody starts out as an expert painter. Developing the skills and knowledge to paint Citadel miniatures to a high standard takes time and practice. However, each model you paint will be better than the last.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

The three aspects of the Warhammer 40,000 hobby are so deep that you can spend a lifetime exploring only one, discovering new possibilities at every step. However, the absolute apex is to pursue all three, embracing all the opportunities presented by painting, by gaming and by the far future’s many legends. Gaming is much more satisfying with a fully painted army than with one of bare plastic and resin. Similarly, painting models to evoke famous heroes, armies or campaigns grants them greater coherency. Likewise, games that recreate or build upon Warhammer 40,000’s legends are often the most exciting.

None of this is to say that you should feel you’re not doing things properly if you don’t pursue all three aspects of Warhammer 40,000. In fact, you’ll rarely find that all three hold your attention equally. The interests of most hobbyists shift as time passes, with once-dedicated gamers setting aside their dice in order to refine the more contemplative arts of painting, or painters choosing to delve deeper into the legends than they ever have before.

Ultimately, however, it’s your choice how to proceed. You can pursue one aspect or all three, guided by the most nebulous of whimsies, or the most careful of plans. Tread the bone-strewn dust of distant worlds, become a mighty warlord and crush all before you, or marshal the finest armies the galaxy has ever seen. This is your hobby, and how you pursue it is yours to decide. Whichever path you select, and for however long you choose to walk it, your collection will make the journey with you.

So what are you waiting for?

PAINTING YOUR COLLECTION

This book contains hundreds of models painted to an amazing standard. Fortunately, you don’t need to be a cybernetically enhanced painter-savant to make a fantastic army of your own. Part of the fun and satisfaction that comes from the hobby is developing greater skills as you paint your models. There’s a real sense of pride to be found in every model you paint, and as you improve, that sense of personal satisfaction only increases.

ASSEMBLING MINIATURES

The excitement that comes from tearing the plastic wrap off a new set of miniatures and delving in is hard to beat. But beautiful miniatures don’t assemble themselves – you’re going to have to get your hands dirty! Thankfully, assembling miniatures is the first exciting step towards building up a collection of Citadel miniatures of your own.

PERSONALISING YOUR MINIATURES

Many hobbyists love to experiment with the art of personalising miniatures. Customising the models in your collection is incredibly rewarding, providing you with bespoke characters and squads to act as centrepieces to your army, focal points that inspire both you and your fellow hobbyists.

The most straightforward way to personalise your models is to kit-bash: to mix components from several different kits together in order to achieve a unique effect. Very little (if any) complex modelling work is needed when kit-bashing; normally, gluing components together is all that’s required.

Almost without exception, a plastic Citadel miniatures kit contains a host of spare parts. Rather than throwing away these unused components, store them safely for later use in a small box or bag (most hobbyists call this their Bitz Box). This indispensable resource can be called upon whenever it is required.

If you want to go further, you can take two different kits and extensively mingle the components. The cunning way in which many plastic Citadel miniatures are designed, with common fittings for components such as heads, legs and weapons, makes kit-bashing of this kind very straightforward – all you need is a bit of imagination

Converting is taking the process of personalising miniatures a little further, perhaps by cutting a weapon away from a model to replace it with a new gun, or chopping off a head to include an alternative. Conversions can range from the simple to the incredibly complex, depending on your own skill and willingness to experiment.

This Ultramarines Sergeant has been ‘kit-bashed’ using components from three different kits, resulting in a truly unique model.

CHOOSING A COLOUR SCHEME

With your models assembled, it’s time to break out the paints. But before you get going, you’ll want to have a think about the colour schemes you want to use. You’ll sometimes have a fixed idea right from the start, and be able to dive straight in. On other occasions, you’ll want to seek out inspiration from codexes, novels or other hobbyists’ collections. Think about whether or not you want to use common colours to bind your collection together, or whether you would rather apply contrasting colours to help the models stand out.

Many painters find it useful to paint one miniature as a ‘test model’ – one member of the squad or army they’re about to paint – to ensure that the chosen colour scheme works as well in reality as it does in his or her head. Life as a test model can be tough, as not every set of colours works as imagined on the first go. However, there’s honour in this sacrifice – better to risk one model than to find yourself halfway through painting an army before discovering that the chosen colour scheme isn’t appropriate.

These Blood Angels have been assembled using both the Tactical Squad and Death Company kits. This gives them a richer, more ornate appearance than a Tactical Squad assembled straight out of the box.

THE CITADEL PAINT SYSTEM

Formulated to make painting as straightforward and enjoyable as possible, the Citadel Paint System is a dream come true for hobbyists. It’s a range of paints, washes, glazes and textured paints that contains over 140 different colours for painting your miniatures.

Base Paints are the perfect foundation upon which the rest of your layers can be applied. Layer Paints are formulated to layer over Base Paints (and each other) for the perfect highlighting effect. Dry Paints have a consistency perfectly suited for drybrushing – a fast and effective way of capturing all the raised details on a model, whilst Shades and Glazes deepen the shadows and enrich the colours of the paints already applied. Last of all, Texture Paints are ideal for getting a gravelly finish on a model’s base, helping to ground it strongly on the battlefield.

HOW TO PAINT CITADEL MINIATURES

How to Paint Citadel Miniatures is the ultimate guide to painting your models, written with advice from a selection of seasoned painters. This book is designed not only to teach you the techniques of painting models, but also to impart the principles of what makes a good paint job! By studying this book you’ll learn techniques such as drybrushing and layering, as well as using washes and glazes. How to Paint Citadel Miniatures also contains valuable advice on assembling models and techniques that lend towards batch painting – the art of producing an army’s worth of models to a consistent standard and appearance. That’s not all, however. The full potential of the Citadel Paint System is explored and explained through a series of demonstrations and guides, taking you through the journey of painting single models, squads and entire armies.

DIGITAL EDITIONS

How to Paint Citadel Miniatures will give you a strong grounding in the techniques and principles of painting, but if you want detailed guides for your army of choice, we also produce an extensive range of additional painting guides as digital editions. These contain detailed step-by-step tutorials for specific kits, or entire armies, as well as alternate colour schemes and top tips to get your miniatures looking their best. The books in this range are the perfect next step on your painting journey, and they will help you amass a fantastic collection of painted Citadel miniatures in no time at all.

WHITE DWARF

White Dwarf is Games Workshop’s weekly hobby magazine; each issue is jam-packed with beautifully painted models and armies. Not only is it the best way to stay informed about all the latest releases and hobby news, it’s also an invaluable source for painting guides, conversion ideas and inspiration for every collector.

When It All Comes Together

Mike Gupton’s collection of Imperial Fists Space Marines really shows off what you can achieve with patience, imagination and plenty of dedication. Mike has modelled a suitably gothic display board from a variety of Citadel terrain kits, and its brooding colours are a beautiful counterpoint to the bold yellows of the Imperial Fists.

INTRODUCTION

It is a dark and desperate age. The Imperium of Mankind stretches out across the stars, a galaxy-spanning realm unlike any other. At its heart sits the Emperor, a crippled god upon a throne of gold whose psychic might has held the shadows at bay for ten thousand years. Yet Humanity is beset by darkness and danger, surrounded by monstrous foes that seek nothing less than the Imperium’s utter and total destruction.

In the face of such uncompromising hatred, Humanity must fight like never before. Armies are raised on an industrial scale, fed into the grinding teeth of wars that never end. The Emperor’s realm encompasses a million worlds yet Humanity can muster barely enough warriors to guard against its foes. From the countless, faceless trillions of the Astra Militarum to the super-human Space Marines, from the vast war engines of the knightly houses to the secretive might of the Inquisition, the Imperium’s armies fight tirelessly. Though these legions wield incalculable might, still they are forced back step by grudging step, day by blood-soaked day.

In this age, Mankind’s many foes are as varied as they are deadly. Brutal Orks swarm across the galaxy, an unstoppable tide of malice whose warlike nature makes them a perpetual and terrible threat. The enigmatic Eldar and their twisted kin strike without warning, leaving ruin and misery in their wake. On the Eastern Fringe, the youthful Tau Empire spreads ever outward, their devastatingly advanced weaponry speaking far louder than the honeyed words of their diplomats. From the darkness of the void come the Tyranid hive fleets, monstrous swarms of bioengineered horrors intent on devouring everything in their path. From beneath the sands of dead worlds, the cold mechanical Necrons rise once more, hungering for conquest and dominance over all.

Yet there is one foe to be feared above all others. At the dawn of the Imperium, upon the very chime of Humanity’s finest hour, the foul gods of Chaos corrupted the Emperor’s greatest warriors and triggered a civil war that was to tear the Imperium in two. Ten thousand years later that war still rages, the foul Traitor Legions and their terrible daemonic allies seeking to plunge the entire galaxy into the hellish pandemonium of the Warp. In the face of these threats, Humanity fights on, taking the war to their enemies on battlefields beyond counting. War rages through looming factories and crumbling cityscapes, across sweeping plains and amid tangled jungles. Though the armies of the Imperium refuse to give in, the darkness is gathering, hope is fading, and the hour grows late…

WHEN PEALS MIDNIGHT

It is said that on Holy Terra there stands the Lost Spire, a majestic bell-tower built in an elder age of wonderment. In a misguided quest to discover the secret of its workings, the Tech Adepts have long since fouled its mechanisms, contaminating its machine-spirit. Its clock face, lost in low-altitude pollution, has moved but irregularly over the millennia and portents say it will chime but once more... as the final signal, the death knell of Mankind.

The Imperium of Man stretches across the galaxy and encompasses over a million worlds. To a great many of the unnumbered souls of its population, Terra, the fabled cradle of Humanity, the mythical seat of the immortal Emperor and the spiritual heart of the Imperium, is but a legend.

Many crave to see Holy Terra, to walk upon its surface and breathe its sanctified air. These pilgrims leave their home worlds, daring impossible journeys, suffering appalling conditions just to get close. The nearest most can hope for is to share the same sector, peering into the night sky to see its shining glory – a lifetime of travel just to see that distant speck with their naked eyes. A few are even lucky enough to enter Terra’s star system, to bathe in the hallowed light of the same sun. Most pilgrims never achieve such enlightenment, falling short of their goals due to the immensity of the galaxy, the horrific dangers of space travel, or the perfidious nature of their fellow man. They die with their dreams unfulfilled, never knowing if what they sought was real or but a figment of their imagination.

Yet Terra exists – a sprawling hive world, its surface covered in towering spires of iron, fortress monasteries, Gothic cathedrals, and the massive avenue of ten thousand statues, each as colossal in size as they are in memory. To speak of the heroes such statues commemorate is to invoke the greatest achievements of human history. Dorn the Unwavering, Dracos the Conqueror, Malcador the Hero – the list goes on. Fittingly, this avenue leads to the Imperial Palace. There, at the end of a mile-long passage lined with the unfurled banners of the greatest and most valiant armies to have fought for Mankind, stand the vast doors of the Eternity Gate. Beyond those massive portals, deep within the continent-spanning complex of the Imperial Palace, lies the Sanctum Imperialis, the symbolic heart of the Realm of Man, the most sanctified place in the whole of the galaxy.

Here, in serried ranks of unbroken valour, stand the Three Hundred – the elite of the Adeptus Custodes, the Emperor’s bodyguard. Past them are the massive workings of a veritable mountain of mechania, cables, circuitry, marble slabs, shifting cogs, pistons, gaseous vents, arching pillars and, in the centre, rune-encrusted steps that wind majestically up nearly forty feet. There, atop the pulsing machineries, enshrouded by a halo of eldritch powers and enveloped in a nimbus of alchemical fog, is the Golden Throne where sits the Emperor, the Master of Mankind, the Saviour of Humanity.

But what would a pilgrim see, should he ever come to be there, if he had the iron will required to lift his gaze upwards to look upon the greatness that is the Emperor? Some say a lordly man, a king of kings, one crowned with living lightnings. A shining god of light, say others, too bright for man to gaze upon. He is a living idol of righteousness, many preach, his worship an anathema to heretical thought or deed. A carrion lord, whisper the very bold, too terrible to behold, in whose name bloody wars are waged and entire worlds consigned to destruction.

The Emperor is perhaps all these things and perhaps none. He is the figurehead of the galaxy-spanning Imperium, worshipped as a god on nearly all its worlds. Although pilgrims in untold billions journey to Holy Terra, the doors of the Eternity Gate have long been shut and few are given leave to enter. Of those who have basked in his glory, the fortunate few who have stood at the foot of the Golden Throne, no records tell of what they beheld. But who could put into words such an experience? Who indeed could truly understand the nature of that divine being?

Outwardly, the Emperor is but a desiccated corpse, kept alive partly by the cyclopean, mystical machine of gold wrought by his own hand and partly by a will so powerful that it transcends the bounds of the blackened, shrivelled husk of his body. Physically fettered, chained atop mountainous banks of machinery, the Emperor’s mind stretches out through space and time – a light in a vast gulf of blackness. Should that spark of life ever be extinguished – should the Throne fail in its mysterious purpose – then Mankind would surely be lost. But as long as the Emperor sits there, in silent vigil, there yet remains a glimmer of hope...

The Word of the Emperor is the Rule of the Imperium.

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The Will of the Emperor is the Might of the Imperium.

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The Blessing of the Emperor is the Light of the Imperium.

INTRODUCTION

In the nightmare future of the 41st Millennium, Mankind teeters upon the brink of extinction. The galaxy-spanning Imperium of Man, beset on all sides by ravening aliens, foul traitors and Warp-spawned Daemons, looks once more to its greatest heroes to stave off the encroaching darkness. There is no time for peace. No respite. No forgiveness. There is only war.

WARHAMMER 40,000

Welcome to the grim darkness of the far future, to a galaxy of unending war, incredible heroism and bitter betrayal. In this time of turmoil and conflict, the ultimate fate of Mankind depends on you.

Warhammer 40,000 is a tabletop game for two or more players, where you command an army of Citadel miniatures representing the Imperium of Man or one of its many enemies. This book provides you with all the rules, diagrams and examples you need to recreate and fight battles in this nightmarish future.

As you read through the rules, you will notice some of the text is bold, like this. This highlights the most important elements of the rule in question and helps bring it to your eyes when skimming a page. This should not be mistaken for representing the whole rule though, as the surrounding text often confers context and relevant exceptions. Instead, it should be used as a quick solution to finding the essence of a particular rule. If a rule is short and concise, or is in bullet points, there will rarely be any bold text as the rule is already easy to find.

This book is, however, only the start of your journey into games set in the 41st Millennium. Warhammer 40,000 is a vast and ever-growing hobby, and there are a host of Games Workshop publications that supplement and expand upon the rules in this book. These provide you with extra material you can incorporate into your games – detailing additional units you can deploy and missions you can play – and alternate ways to experience the war-torn 41st Millennium, exploring the depth and excitement of different battle zones and play styles in Warhammer 40,000.

Forging a Narrative

Throughout this book, you will see boxed out text entitled ‘Forging a Narrative’. These boxes contain advice on how to make your gaming experience even more enjoyable, and revolve around evoking the imagery and feel of the 41st Millennium. At its heart, a game of Warhammer 40,000 is a shared experience between fellow hobbyists – and it should be as enjoyable and fulfilling for all players as possible. If you stick to the advice offered in these boxes, you can’t really go far wrong!

WHAT’S IN THE BOOK?

This book contains the following sections:

Core Rules

This section explains how to fight battles with your army of Citadel miniatures in the grim darkness of the 41st Millennium. The core rules cover all of the basic principles of playing a game of Warhammer 40,000, from moving your models across the battlefield to blasting your enemies with a hail of firepower, slaying your foes in brutal melees, and obliterating your victims with mystical psychic powers.

Unit Types

This section explores all the different unit types that describe your models. From footslogging infantry and rampaging monstrous creatures to armoured battle tanks and supersonic flyers, this section lists all the special rules that apply to these models. This section also includes rules to field the largest and most destructive units waging war on the battlefields of the 41st Millennium – super-heavy vehicles and gargantuan creatures – as well as detailing how heroic characters lead your troops to victory.

Battlefield Terrain

The Battlefield Terrain section describes how to incorporate Citadel terrain into your games of Warhammer 40,000 in order to recreate the battlefields of a war-ravaged galaxy. In addition to the rules describing the different terrain types, such as ruins, buildings and battlefield debris, this section also enables you to use fortifications in your games – towering edifices whose armoured battlements bristle with heavy weaponry.

Preparing for Battle

The Preparing for Battle section brings all the rules you have read so far together and takes you through the steps of preparing a Warhammer 40,000 battle, starting with a guide to forging a battle-ready army from your collection of Citadel miniatures. It also explains how to play a Warhammer 40,000 mission; from setting up the battlefield and deploying your forces to defining how long the game will last and determining the victor at the battle’s end. All the special rules and tactical objectives that are used in games of Warhammer 40,000 are also described in this section, including twelve different missions that you can use to unleash war.

Appendix

The appendix contains a compendium of special rules, weapon profiles and psychic powers that are frequently referred to throughout this book, as well as in numerous other Games Workshop publications, such as codexes. This section also contains a number of Battlefield Terrain datasheets that describe some of the Citadel Terrain sets that your forces are likely to battle over in your games of Warhammer 40,000.

Reference

The final section of this book contains helpful quick-reference material, such as a summary of the turn sequence and copies of various tables from throughout the book, as well as a comprehensive index for the book itself. This section enables you to find the rule(s) you need during your games of Warhammer 40,000 quickly and simply, meaning you can get back to defending (or destroying) the Imperium without delay.