Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hey all, i'm looking to start playing AoS from scratch. I had old fantasy battle models in the past but got out of the hobby and sold off all my stuff. I'm interested in getting back into it. Where do I start? What box/book/download is the very first thing I need? I have the free "rules" downloaded but it seems to be very very basic. What i'm asking is what is the very first purchase(s) I need to get things moving on Aos?

thanks!

Most probably you will need this:
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/The-Generals-Compendium-Gamer-Collection-2017-ENG

It's got:
1. Narrative and open play helping points
2. Multitude of battleplans
3. Points, artfacts and battalions (different organisations of units that give you benefits) for all races

Mind you that I manage to do perfectly fine without it, but you'll probably want to get hold of a copy. The new mission cards are a nice addition for generating random missions.

After that you'd want a start collecting box
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Warhammer?N=647457687+219983815&Nr=AND(sku.siteId:GB_gw,product.locale:en_GB_gw)
or a starter set
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Warhammer?N=647457687+2528145041&Nr=AND(sku.siteId:GB_gw,product.locale:en_GB_gw) (a new double box is coming out next week - stormcast vs nurgle)
(or just the models you like). You can branch anywhere from there on. Each unit has free rules on its page and it's really easy to pick a new purchase based on the combination of gameplay and looks.

Skirmish is another mode of play. It uses fewer models (less than 10 usually) and has a separate book to help you out:
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/searchResults?qty=com.gamesworkshop.endeca.EndecaUserContext%4047c62820&sorting=&view=&Ntt=skirmish

Also if you want to run a campaign starting with minimum models and collect an army as you go you can try out Path to glory. It's got random rules for generating an army and then running a mini campaign.
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/AoS-path-to-glory-2017-ENG

Don't forget the handy dandy free Warscrolls builder.

https://www.warhammer-community.com/warscroll-builder/

Won't be necessary once you get the general's handbook but it's still useful to have at times.