In the grim darkness of the far future there is only WAR.  Warhammer 40,000 is a table top game for two or more players where you command miniature armies to recreate upon the tabletop the savage battles of a future age. Set in the 40th millennium, you may command armies of Chaos Marines,  Daemonhunters, Dark Eldar, Eldar, Imperial Guard, Necrons, Sisters of Battle, Space Marines, Space Orks, Tau and Tyranids.

Chaos Marines

The Legions of Chaos are twisted renegades and traitors, sworn to overthrow the Emperor of mankind whom they once served.  Ten thousand years ago the Imperium was racked by a terrible civil war called the Horus Heresy. The rebellion was led by Warmaster Horus, the most trusted of the Emperors Primarchs, who had been led to believe by the Chaos gods that it was he, not the Emperor, who should be the leader of Humanity.  Almost half of the Space Marine Legions of that time sided with Horus, plunging the Imperium into a terrible galaxy-wide war from which it has never fully recovered. With the defeat of Horus, the surviving Space Marines that had followed him fled to the Eye of Terror - the greatest warp storm in the galaxy.  The Chaos Space Marines of the Traitor Legions, as they are now called, lurk there to this day, consumed by their hatred of the Emperor, the Imperium and all Mankind.

Daemonhunters

The greatest threat to the Imperium of Man is, and has always been, the followers of Chaos and the foul daemons of the Warp. The Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus are at war with forces too terrible to comprehend and, together with the holy warriors of the Grey Knights, they must take the light of the Emperor into the darkness. The threat of the daemonic is so great that only these heroic warriors have the necessary skills and knowledge to stand against such diabolical foes.  A Daemonhunters army can take forces from both the Space Marine and Imperial Guard army lists, but also has it’s own unique and very special units.

Dark Eldar

Spawned in the darkest pits of the universe, the piratical Eldar are a curse upon all races of the galaxy. For untold thousands of years they have preyed upon us, stealing forth from the shadows and dark places on their raids of terror and violence; massacring or capturing all whose paths they cross.  That they are utterly evil and inhuman is without question.  The Dark Eldar inhabit a realm called Commorragh, a place as darkly twisted as its rulers, from which they launch piratical raids across the length and breadth of the Warhammer 40,000 galaxy.  The purpose of these raids is not to conquer planets or protect territory, but to cause mayhem, steal and pillage, and - most important of all - capture new victims to be taken back to Commorragh.  What happens to them once they arrive is best not contemplated.

Eldar

The craftworlds of the Eldar are scattered across the stars, massive drifting starships that are home to the last survivors of a race that once ruled the universe.  Then came the hideous times of the Fall, when the Eldar were consumed by their own decadence and fell from power. Now the Eldar battle against the other races of the galaxy, even resorting to piracy in their fight to avoid extinction.  Though the Eldar are few in number, they are one of the most technologically advanced races in the galaxy.  This advantage is combined with the prodigious abilities of their Farseers, who scry the future and guide their kin along the most favourable paths of fate.

Imperial Guard

The vast legions of the Imperial Guard are at the forefront of humanity’s war against countless alien threats. The Imperial Guard is the largest and most diverse military organisation that the galaxy has ever seen. Numbering in the billions and equipped with armoured vehicles, artillery and all the other adjuncts of mechanised warfare, the Imperial Guard forms both the hammer and the anvil of the Imperium’s military might.  An Imperial Guard army consists of troops from thousands of different worlds across the galaxy. Attempting to impose uniformity upon such a massive organisation would be impossible so its troops sport a myriad of different uniforms, decorations and customs based upon the mores of their home planet.

Necrons

Across the galaxy, something ancient and sinister stirs in the darkness. The Necrons have awakened from their millennia-long sleep for purposes known to none but themselves. All that is known is that their violent raids and grisly biological experiments are a threat to all life in the Imperium! Necrons are cold, inhuman bio-mechanical constructs, whose obviously advanced intellect and totally ruthless raiding parties have caused them to become a terrifying new opponent for the other races of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

Sisters Of Battle

To most of humanity, the Emperor is venerated as a living god. The vast organisation known as the Ecclesiarchy is the official church which controls and regulates the worship of the Imperium’s saviour. The Adepta Sororitas is the fighting arm of the Ecclesiarchy.  Trained to the highest standards and equipped with the finest weapons, these zealous female warriors smite the foes of the Emperor across the length and breadth of the galaxy! The Sisters Of Battle army is very similar to the forces of the Imperial Space Marines in its organisation. Each of the Orders Militant has its own particular traditions and heraldry which they apply to their uniforms and battle gear.  However, the Sisters of Battle are not bio-genetically modified superhumans.  They are raised from birth to believe in the ideals of the Ecclesiarchy and are the finest warriors the Imperium has to offer, second only to the mighty legions of the Adeptus Astartes.

Space Marines

Space Marines are Humanity’s ultimate warriors, dedicated to the defence of the Emperor and the Imperium of Man. They are not human at all but superhuman, having been made superior, in all respects, to a normal man by a harsh regime of genetic modification, psycho-conditioning and rigourous training.  Being few in number compared to the uncounted billions of humanity, Space Marines are organised into small independent armies called Chapters. Each Chapter is responsible for its own recruitment, training, equipment, organisation and strategy.  Their unswerving loyalty is to the Emperor of Mankind and no other. A Space Marines characteristics equal or better those of the elite troops of other forces, combining both excellent hand-to-hand weapon skills and shooting accuracy with high Strength and Toughness values.  They also benefit from a good Initiative value and a zealous determination to never give way before the scum-sucking alien foes of humanity.

Space Orks

The Orks are the most barbaric of alien races, their armies cover the battlefield in vast numbers and overrun their foes in a torrent of bloodshed and mindless violence.  Orks are the most widespread and warlike race of aliens in the bloodstained galaxy of the 41st millennium.  From the depths of the core to the distant ghost stars beyond the galactic rim burgeoning Ork empires rise and fall.  In terms of sheer numbers and planets Orks occupy more of the galaxy than any other single race and were they unified they would soon crush all opposition.  However the Orks’ passion for violence is so unquenchable that they spend most of their time warring amongst themselves and any Ork leader worth his followers’ respect would never dream of voluntarily following another.  But once in a generation an Ork leader will emerge who is powerful enough to defeat his rivals and dominate their tribes. His success will draw others and soon a great Ork Waaagh! is underway, a movement of millions; part migration, part holy jihad as the Orks seek new worlds to conquer and races to enslave.  The violence of Ork Warriors unleashed is truly terrifying and the ferocity of the Ork Waaagh! evokes fear even amidst the holy spires of Terra.

Tau

The Tau believe that now is their time; their race, their empire will bring unity to all. There is no foe their technology cannot over come, no quandary their science cannot resolve.  The very stars themselves will be reforged in the cause of the Greater Good. The Tau inhabit an area of space near the eastern fringe of the galaxy and are a young, dynamic race, with highly advanced weaponry and technology.  Though less than two thousand years old, their fledgling empire is rapidly expanding into space and encountering all the elder races of the galaxy. In galactic terms their empire is small, based around a densely packed globular cluster of stars, which enables the Tau to travel between them without many of the dangers normally associated with warp travel.  The Tau empire also encompasses several alien races who have been subsumed into the empire voluntarily or whose services are bought through trade agreements, most notably the Kroot.

Tyranid

The Tyranids are the most rapidly evolving race in the galaxy. They are super-predators destined to hunt all others to extinction. They have been likened to a galactic locust swarm, remorselessly hungry and too numerous to stop.  They are a nomadic, spece-dwelling race which has migrated from beyond our galaxy in search of new resources to assimilate. These they have discovered in abundance in the Imperium of Man and the assorted alien races now in their path.  Tyranids only descend onto planets to totally strip them of bio-mass before moving on, leaving nothing but a ball of scoured rock in their wake.