Getting into wargaming can be pretty daunting for new players, or family and friends of new players who don't know what to buy them as gifts, so most wargaming and card game systems have Starter Sets, dedicated products that make getting into the tabletop hobby easy. Warhammer 40,000, or 40K for short, has just recently had a new and updated version of the rules released, and to help new players get into the hobby, Games Workshop has released a series of products to help start your journey. In this article, we take a look at the contents of each product and talk about who they're ideal for.

We've been covering Warhammer 40K for a while on the site, and you can check out our coverage of the recently released 40K 11th Edition launch box and guide to getting started with Warhammer 40K with Combat Patrol.

Games of Warhammer 40K can be clashes of huge forces, or small skirmishes. Warhammer 40,000

40K is a tabletop wargame where players build and paint miniatures to represent their forces, then using army creation rules, build forces and play against others in tabletop battles. 40K is currently in its 11th edition of the rules, which was released recently, making this an ideal time to start playing. The setting has a vast amount of in-game history, set in an infinite galaxy, with multiple factions to choose armies from, giving players a huge amount of freedom if they're looking to design their own paint schemes and background for their forces. But where should players start?

To make getting into Warhammer 40,000 as easy as possible, there are 3 different boxed sets to help.

The Warhammer 40K Starter Set gives 2 players the complete 40K gaming experience.

Warhammer 40,000 Starter Set

The Warhammer 40,000 Starter Set is the best entry product for 40K. It contains everything 2 players need to pick up and start playing games. The 2 included forces of Space Marines and Orks are all push-fit miniatures, so they just need clipping off the sprues and fitting together, and both are complete forces for games of Combat Patrol. It also includes game boards and terrain to create a battlefield to play on, the full core rules, quick-reference sheets, a starter set handbook to get you playing quickly, and dice and measuring rulers.

From this single purchase, you can easily expand into full games of 40K.

The Warhammer 40K Introductory Set gives a taste of the complete gaming hobby.

Warhammer 40,000 Introductory Set

The Warhammer 40,000 Introductory Set is the best product for giving a taste of the full 40K hobby. It contains 12 miniatures, 6 Space Marines and 6 Orks, to give a sample of what playing 40K feels like, along with a start-playing book to take you through the hobby. It also includes a playing mat, card terrain, dice and a measuring ruler so that you don't need to add anything else to play with the included forces. To give a introduction to the painting side of the hobby, it also has 6 paints and a starter brush.

The 12 miniatures here are all brand new in this box, so even veteran 40K gamers of the 2 factions will want to pick this up to get access to them, and new players can easily expand into the full starter set from here, using this as an initial jumping-in point.

The Warhammer 40K Getting Started With sets contain both full combat patrols and paint starter sets.

Warhammer 40,000 Getting Started With Sets

The Warhammer 40,000 Getting Started With sets work a little differently from the above 2 products in that they only contain 1 faction and no rules, but they are a quick way to start playing a specific faction if you already own some gaming accessories like terrain, dice, and measuring tools. Each box contains a full Combat Patrol for that faction, which is a set force for use in games of Combat Patrol, along with an introductory book for that faction, 11 paints for that faction's miniatures, and a starter paintbrush and texture spreader for putting the included texture paint on the miniatures' bases.

Both forces in the Space Marine and Ork Getting Started With sets are the same as those in the Starter Set box. All you need to add to a Getting Started With set is an opponent with their own Combat Patrol, the 40k rules, a battlefield to play on, dice, and a measuring stick. These sets do include the paints and brushes that the Starter Set doesn't, so if you want to focus on the painting side of the hobby, this set is perfect. There will also be future Getting Started With sets released, so if you want to try out different factions, you can pick up further sets to try out their playstyles before buying further miniatures.

The Warhammer 40K Introductory Set includes new miniatures available in this set first. The Journey Continues

Where you go next depends on which product you started with and what you liked most.

If you started with the Introductory Set and enjoyed the gaming part, then the Starter Set will give you the full experience before expanding into full games of 40K. If you enjoyed gaming, but not with either Space Marines or Orks, then one of the many Combat Patrols for one of the other factions will be the way to go. You can get the rules from the 40K Downloads page and the faction rules for each Combat Patrol from the 40K app. 

If you started with the Introductory Set and liked the painting side of the hobby more, then a Getting Started With set will give you more miniatures and paints, alternatively, just pick up the miniatures you like the look of to paint, and each miniature's box has a guide to which Warhammer Colour paints to use.

The Warhammer 40K Codexes are the next step for getting into a faction beyond the Starter Sets, and Orks are getting theirs first in the new edition of 40K

If you started with the Starter Set and loved the gaming side of it, and want to continue with either Space Marines or Orks, then you're in luck, as the first 2 Codexes to release in 11th Edition will be for them, with the Orks getting their Codex first. A Codex is the full rules for your chosen faction, and contains background and lore, along with all the datasheets for using them. You can just pick the Codex, have a look at the army-building rules and plan what to pick up next to build up the Combat Patrol you already have with the Starter Set.

If you started with the Starter Set and want to continue gaming, but not with either Space Marines or Orks, then as with the Introductory Set, picking up another Combat Patrol to try out different factions will be the way to go until you find one that you enjoy the play style of. 

The same if you picked up a Getting Started With set and didn't like that faction's playstyle, you can pick up another Combat Patrol and see if you like the fit.

If you picked up any of the sets and liked the painting side of the hobby more, then you can simply pick up any miniatures from Games Workshop's range that you like the look of painting. Each miniature's box has a guide to which Warhammer Colour paints to use, and you can pick up more brushes for different techniques to try. Warhammer TV through Warhammer+, along with their YouTube channel, has loads of painting and hobby tutorials to get you started.

The range of Warhamemr 40K Combat Patrols. Warhammer 40K Starter Set Final Thoughts?

The new Starter Sets are a well-designed group of products. The 2-player starter set is the perfect entry point into the hobby, and gives 2 players everything they need to get into Warhammer 40K. The Introductory Set is a great entry point if you're not sure what part of the hobby is for you, giving you a taste of both gaming and painting at a reasonable price point. I like that the Getting Started With sets include paints for new players, but it may put veteran players off who just want the miniatures if the paints don't match the color scheme for their chosen force.

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The copies of Warhammer 40K Starter Sets used to produce this review were provided by Games Workshop.