Warhammer 40K: Three Armies For Beginners
Just getting started in Warhammer 40,000 and looking for an army to start with? Here are three armies for completely new beginners.
Warhammer 40k can be a pretty intimidating game to start. There are LOTS of armies and LOTS of models and a couple of books worth of rules to learn – at least at first glance. One of the biggest steps you can take is choosing an army to play. Fortunately, we’ve got some advice to help get you pointed it the right direction for getting started. If you’re a beginner to Warhammer, these are the armies we’d recommend for getting you started on your road to tabletop fun.
Space Marines
Hands down, this is the best starter army for anyone to learn and play the game with. It shouldn’t surprise folks that Space Marines are the most popular army – and with good reason. First starters they are the literal posterboys for Warhammer 40,000. They also get the most updates per edition (typically at least two codexes per edition – not counting supplements). Plus, the come in lots of different flavors so you can try new armies relatively easy. They also have the largest model range out of any army in the game. They are pretty easy to collect, build, and paint – relatively speaking, too.
Pick a flavor
On top of all those factors Space Marines are also a good army in general. They have great stats, a good mix of mobility/durability/firepower, and are fairly forgiving tactically. Space Marines can be built to play pretty much whatever army type interests you as well. Want a bunch of large robots smashing around? Go dreadnought heavy. Want a scary gunline? Load-up on Intercessors. Want to get in close and punch stuff? you’ve got Bladeguard, Terminators, and Assault Intercessors. Plus they have tons of support vehicles and cool characters as well – you can’t go wrong with a Space Marine army as your first army.
Necrons
The Necrons are another great army to pick-up as your first army. Why? Well, not only did they recently get a refresh and a boat-load of new options, they are ALSO really tough and forgiving to play as well. Plus, they are super easy to collect, paint and play. They have a wide array of army types thanks to their different dynasties and can support lots of different play styles in the current edition.
Much like Space Marines, they have solid stats and a great model range across the board. They have been a top tier army in the past and are currently more than capable of holding their own in the current edition. Their ability to take hits and get back up is a great mechanic for that extra durability a new player might want as they are learning the game and how to deal with other armies. Overall, they are great option for beginners and an army that will stay relevant for editions to come.
Adeptus Custodes
If the Space Marines are the posterboys of the edition, the Adeptus Custodes are the literally Golden Boys of the game. Space Marines are an elite army of super human soldiers ready for anything. Adeptus Custodes are their big brothers. Why would a player who is just beginning them want to start this army? Because it’s going to be easy to collect, paint, and get on the tabletop. Being an elite army you don’t have a lot of models. Folks like to say they are a “small” army – I prefer to call them compact. They don’t pull punches and can down anything in the game so calling them small is misleading. They might not have a large footprint on the tabletop, but they will hit just as hard as anything else with 1/2 the numbers.
Each model has a elite level of stats making them tough and durable. Their armory is scary good so their firepower is quite deadly. Dawneagle Jetbikes are pretty impressive in the game still and a unit or two can devastate a gunline on the charge. Plus, Superman plays them – so you know they gotta be good, right?
While they don’t have the model count as other armies or model kits for that matter, they are a tough army to beat! They have the staying power to last the game and will always be a threat in shooting or close combat. Don’t underestimate this army! If you’re new and looking for an easy army to collect and travel with, it doesn’t much easier than the Adeptus Custodes.
Those are our three army recommendations for beginners to Warhammer 40,000. We know there are lots more good armies for beginners so let us know which ones you like in the comments and why!
