Getting into 40k

[Nitewatchman]

That's right. I'm getting into Warhammer 40k. Going with the Chaos Space Marines faction.

Could anyone give me a little advice on this? So far I've picked up about 17 chaos space marines. I understand I need some armor, a commander, and some manner of cavalry. Well, I'm working on a couple rhinos and a terminator lord. I also bought a three-set of space wolf attack bikes, which are barely painted, for fifteen bucks. Think I can repurpose them into chaos space marine attack bikes?


I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ADD that I'm not doing this to get away from Brikwars. In fact, a very knowledgeable gamer fellow I work with said he'd play Brikwars with me and my fellows if I went out and got into 40k so he could pummel me with his blood angels he never uses.

[Silverdream]

You fool. You foolish fool!

[BFenix]

All the poor wallets! I hear them screaming!

Anyways, the Terminator Lord is a good HQ and so are the bikes for Fast Attack, but you should totally check out their Codex and some armies on the web, to see which type satisfies your gaming style. If there's a GW or hobby store that sells and hosts Warhammer games, you should talk to a veteran.

[Keldoclock]

You fool. You foolish fool!

You should try to keep your forces specialized- have one squad for taking down armor, one that is really good at Assault, etc. Look around on 40k forums and tailor your forces to what you have and what you can get, keeping in mind the "counts as" rule, your wallet, and the armies of your opponents- If few people in your area play Tyranid or IG, don't build forces that are good at mowing down tons of cheap units.

[aoffan23]

One thing I find useful is making custom special weapons. By that, I mean converting or scratch-building a weapon that looks like it could fulfil as many special weapon options as possible. That way, if you make changes to your army list to gear it toward different targets. "Counts as" rule FTW.

Something I will always recommend is not to focus on just the game or just the models. Buy units that will fit your army, but don't just do a half-assed job on them to get them ready for games. Having a cohesive, well-painted and interesting force will always result in more tabletop fun, as it's always so much more satisfying to watch your amazing minis destroy your opponent's. That being said, don't do all-out conversions on every single soldier, it will just look like a clusterfuck of nothing.

Lastly, PLAN BEFORE BUYING. I know from experience that it can be tempting to buy the newest Ork box when you don't even play Orks, but that will result in lots of wasted money. The exception to this rule is if you have a good army already built up, and want to do some little side projects just for show.


I wish you lots and lots (and lots) of luck.

[jmatthew]

I never actually played 40k due to the monetary commitment, but I DID read the entire main rule book and the Space Marine codex one time while taking an epic shit.

[enders_shadow]

I wish you lots and lots (and lots) of luck.

Like winning-the-lottery type luck. Cause that's the kind you need for 40k.

[Nitewatchman]

The guy I'll be playing with is pretty.much a vet. He looked at Chaos and said the Thousand Sons would be a good choice to.go with, as they're super hardy.

[jmatthew]

If I could ever afford to get into 40k I'd probably go with Necrons, because--let's be honest--fucking space zombies.

[Ben-Jammin]

I could never decide between the Tau and the Imperial Guard.

[OneEye589]

Imperial Guard always looked the coolest to me. Space Marines and Chaos Marines seems to be what everyone plays.

[BFenix]

Imperial Guard always looked the coolest to me. Space Marines and Chaos Marines seems to be what everyone plays.

True, but the same goes for Guard.

[Keldoclock]

No, everyone plays SPESS MARINEZ.

There aren't too many Eldar, or Tau, but Guard gets about as much love as the 'Nids and Necrons, a little bit less than standard Chaos.


I still think Guard is the best, if only because there are so many different kinds and they all have their own sculpts.

also: tanks tanks lol.

[OneEye589]

Imperial Guard always looked the coolest to me. Space Marines and Chaos Marines seems to be what everyone plays.

True, but the same goes for Guard.

FAR less than Space Marines though. Space Marines are the poster boy for 40k and that makes almost every kid coming in want to be these big awesome terminator things.

Don't get me wrong, Space Marines are awesome, but not my thing.

I'm a fan of the everyday person running around with guns fighting against superhumans and aliens. That's my idea of awesome.

If I ever played, I would probably want an army of Imperial Guard with the look of marines from Starship Troopers. Then I would want to always fight against people with custom Tyranids that looked like the bugs from Starship Troopers.

[jmatthew]

Imperial Guard always looked the coolest to me. Space Marines and Chaos Marines seems to be what everyone plays.

True, but the same goes for Guard.

FAR less than Space Marines though. Space Marines are the poster boy for 40k and that makes almost every kid coming in want to be these big awesome terminator things.

Don't get me wrong, Space Marines are awesome, but not my thing.

I'm a fan of the everyday person running around with guns fighting against superhumans and aliens. That's my idea of awesome.

If I ever played, I would probably want an army of Imperial Guard with the look of marines from Starship Troopers. Then I would want to always fight against people with custom Tyranids that looked like the bugs from Starship Troopers.

Space Marines in any incarnation are almost never appealing to me, whether in 40k or the Terrans or whatever. Tau and Eldar always piqued my interest though, probably because I loved playing Protoss.