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I'm just curious as how people got involved in the hobby. I'm sure we've all got unique and interesting stories to describe how we first got interested and exposed to this happy and joyful universe.

Mine:

I originally noticed the "Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels" video game previewed in an old video game magazine. I say "What?! Powered exoskeletons with corridor battling xenomorphs?" My middle school mind went giddy at the idea of Starship Troopers meets Aliens. I was completely unaware of games-workshop and their products, so I thought the Terminator "Storm Bolter" fired lightning bolts.

A couple of months pass and one day during class, the kid in front of me was shifting through a book (which turned out to be the 2nd edition Tyranid codex) and he had stopped on the "genestealer" entry. My mind was blown and said "Hey, are those the same genestealers from space hulk?" Sure enough, it was. I read through the 2nd edition Nid codex and got hooked into the universe.

What's your intro to 40k story?

Somewhere around 1999-2000 my mom's boyfriend and his son bought the starter set with Space Marines and Dark Eldar. I thought that the whole thing seemed cool, so I had my mom buy me some Guardsmen. Unfortunatly though I had no one to play with(they never finished building their armies), so I lost interest, and didn't finish painting mine, nor did I ever play a game. Jump ahead until 2010, one of my friends from highschool, and some buddies from college(our ages ranged from 20 to 29) all expressed interest(some wanting to get back into it, some just starting), and then I decided to start up again. but I started with Orks. A year later, still loving it.

I've been into miniatures wargaming since my dad got me into it around 6-7 years old, and I had been painting sci-fi figures as they've always been my favorites. Over time I started to get 40k figures as gifts from my godfather (one of my dad's gaming buddies) and it snowballed from there until I was about 14 years old and I found the 3rd edition starter set at a gaming convention flea market. $20 for 10 marines, 20 Dark Eldar, one impossible to put together landspeeder and a big, thick rulebook. I didn't start playing 40k until I was about 16, but I was hooked on the models and universe the moment I opened that box.

I know the feeling. I got hooked in long before I had the funds to support the game. Tactical squad for 20 dollars? Those were the good ol days.

It actually started with a random pic I saved for reasons unknown to me at the time. It was a motivational poster of a SM dreadnought that said "Dreadnoughts: Because dying is no excuse to stop fighting". I didn't get it at the time, but I figured I'd find out some day. About a year later, a new friend I had made stumbled on it when he was visiting my place and was checking out my computer. He was excited at the prospect of finally finding someone at our school who knew about 40k. He was a little disappointed when I explained I didn't know anything about it, but was ecstatic when I said I wanted to learn what I could. So he loaned me a 4th gen SM codex and told me to go study it when I could. From there, I started grabbing every novel I could from the local library, then saved up enough for Black Reach, and...well, here I am.

Thanks, Lee
Salamanders represent!

Was playing 1st edition D&D and not really getting into it. Then Rogue Trader (40K 1st ed.) came out and I was hooked.

My brother got me into it, back with the original Rogue Trader.

I had been kicking his butt playing Warhammer before that (my undead vs his orks) and he was sick of the game, so he snapped up a futuristic version

He went Marines,and i went orks (he insisted). We had some awesome games with it, then the git traded the book to a friend for a computer game :(

I kept my models and jacked his I ran into some guys in school who had either tried it or wanted to, and it kind of took off from there.

We played each new game variant as it arrived:

Epic, Necromunda, Tyranid Attack, Space Hulk , Dark Future (anyone remember that one? Not even sure it was GW, as WD wasn't GW exclusive back then... ), Gorkamorka ... Good times

The Dawn of War video games got me interested. Then when I looked it up I thought it might be nice to try one day.

A few years later, I took home the Assault on Black Reach set.

I had a coulpe of friends who had a few models and i'd never really looked at them. Went into GW on day with said friedn so he coudl buy the latest WD adn i saw the models. Had a chat and liked the sound of it.

Got "baddies" (CSM were just re-released at the time) as both the other guys had SM armies.

That was in 2007. Now i have running arguements with the wife when my 40k stuff spills out of their assigned cupboard and make a bid for freedom to the dining room table.

During the ADnD 2nd Ed era, I got into fantasy and I just decided to take the plunge at one point and bought the boxed game shortly after 3rd Ed came out.

My brother played it, he managed to get the Battle for Macragge set (I preferred that to the new AOBR), and persuaded me to join in Now I have over 6k points worth of Necrons and 1000pts of Space Marines! This was just before the release of 5th ed btw.

The first Imperial Guard Omnibus. Than I got the Ultramarines Omnibus and fell in love with the 4th Company.

Dawn of War.

Dawn of War 2 -> Purchased AoBR -> Gaming at a local guy's house -> My obsession

was playing MTG for years, from 1994 to about 2008. the magic players at the LGS where i played started to think they were pro and became a pain in the @$$. I saw the crowd who played fantasy and 40K, they seemed like a civilized lot and i started to ask questions. The owner of the store was good for me, he let me trade in a fair amount of my collection for store credit to get into 40K. Seemed like a good deal and has been fun since.

My parents used to take my brother and me in to Manchester so I could have a kick around Beaties and my brother could go the GW when it was opposite Beaties.

I used to wander over to see what he was doing when I'd finally finished staring longingly at the GI Joes and watch him play with the old Chaos titans:


I liked the look of it but it looked a too complicated.

Properly got in to it when my parents took me to GW when it moved inside the Arndale and bought me a starter kit with SM and some paints in it. Then got fed up after getting 500 or so points of SM of my own chapter, then got BACK in to it AGAIN last summer when my buddy convinced me to grab an army so he could start playing again.

I saw my mate looking through a White Dwarf back in like, 2000.

I saw a single image: Tigurius being mobbed and surrounded by massive amounts of orks.

I've been an Ork player ever since

S_P

I was about 15 years old at high school and a friend had an undead skeleton army, being a kid who loved toys and models i bought them off him not really knowing what they were for but loved working out how to paint them like I could see them in my own head! he boght them back off me once they were done as i didn't realise they were a game! but through showing them to another mate of mine who had started space marines he got me hooked on the far more excitig (in my mind) 40k universe, and it went from there, I painted my first space marine green, black and gold with red shoulder pad trim and it was ugly! but i loved it and kept collecting and painting on and off ever since! and now i'm older and more worldly *ahem* I can never see myself stopping the hobby as i enjoy the escapism too much!

Paint on!

Nerdfest09

I remember watching my friend's older brother play back in 2003. I quit for about 5 years and then a combination of DoW 2 and discovering a rather strong 40k community locally brought me back in.

My step-brother was visiting around '06 and brought over some Blood Angels he was painting for someone one...instantely hooked

But, I finally started to actually play in late '09 when I finished college and got a decent paying job

Had an interest in all thing sci-fi and fantasy from an early age, but could never get into miniature soldiers (too young and had no money). Having heard of 40k through Dawn of War, I began researching it, learning the fluff. My parents were concerned at the time that I played too many video games (they play too, but I played a LOT), so when I went to them (around the age of 15), saying I wanted to start a hobby, they were ecstatic. Soon enough, I bought AoBR, had a practice game in the GW store, got the Blood Angels Omnibus to get into the stting, and it snowballed from there. I'm actually surprised by how supportive my folks were aout it all, given how they helped finance it enough to know its cost.

I was about 10 or 11 and was with my friend at some birthday party. In his pocket he had an assault space marine. I looked at it as said, "Wow that looks pretty cool, OMG IS THAT SWORD A CHAINSAW",I was hooked and I started collecting soon after but didn't start playing till me and some friends started a gaming club in school when I was about 16.

"Oh, hey, the studio that made Homeworld has a new game out..."

I never stood a chance.

Haha. Sounds like having Relic make the Dawn of War series was a good move on GW's part to increase their customer base.

My Brother got Space Crusade for his Birthday and I can remember fond night of family gaming, even my Mum and Dad would play it! My old man has always been into making model tanks and things as he was in the Royal Engineers.

As I got a bit older I got Space Marine for Christmas and then it went from there really, progressed to 2nd Edition 40k as well as Titan Legions. Stopped playing after 3rd Edition and moved onto Inquisitor for a bit due to the awesome models.

Just got back into it after playing DoW a lot with my Bro Inlaw lol.

I have always been a reader. I love to read-more than any of you could likely imagine. I was at Chapters one day (the largest canadian bookstore) and at the 1/2 off section at the register, there was a Dragonlance book. I got it, and read it, and loved it. I kept going back to the Fantasy/Sci-fi bookcase, and then one day, I noticed Storm of Iron.

I loved that book so much that I started going through 3-5 WH40K novels a week, until I finally decided to look at the back of the book and saw that they had minis. I thought "cool" but didn't really do anything. Two weeks later I found out there was a mall with a GW about 10km from my house, so I went and now I am a wargamer

THAT is why I always defend BL when people bash them

A drunken binge, a dare, a paintbrush and 12 lost hours...

A friend in my old school introduced me. Went on the website, saw the new 4th edition Eldar, got cracking. Unfortunately I never actually got to play a game. Fast forward until start of this year, I just got back into it thanks to finding an LFGS, and I'm still an Eldar player.

My firt exposure was 'Drive me closer, I want to hit them with my sword!' I had no idea what it was, where it came from or anything, bu the massive tanks with the guy in the cupola waving a sword just screamed 'awesome'.

A couple years ago, I was reading a forum about Star Wars vs. Star Trek, and some of the posters began talking about how the 'Warhammer 40k' Imperium of Man could challenge the Empire. OUt of curiosity, I looked iinto what this Imperium of Man thing was. It was then that I discovered that the 'Hit them with my sword guy' was from 40k, and my interest peaked. Digging more into the background, I discovered that I loved the IG. Tanks, artillery, infantry waves? Pure aqwesome.

From there I went into the Dawn of War games...from there I found my local GW, and bought my frist models.

The rest is, as they say, history.

I don't exactly remember when, but I do know its close to 10 years now.

Thing that brought me in the most was the community.