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.

I'm looking to potentially start 40k when 10th edition drops. Looking to get some advice on an army to start. I played 40k back in like 4-6 editions but have been out of the loop for a while. I enjoyed playing Slaanesh Noise Marines to a degree but not sure about going back to that I just remember the lash of submission combo with blastmasters or whatever it was.

I currently play Age of Sigmar I have Gloomspite Gitz and Fyreslayers.

Things I like
+ Underdogs
+ Interesting or unique mechanics
+ easy to paint as it makes me more likely to finish them and if they are painted more likely to not regret the army ( If I don't paint I usually sell or trade)
+ Themes I am sporadic I usually like Knights but in AOS I don't play anything armored so I'm not sure if that secretly means I dont have to play them lol
+ I own Pink Horrors but do not want to play Daemons, not sure if Thousand Sons can team up with them and be effective or if allies like that are a waste of time.
+ Want to have mixed arms, like having a close combat option and not just pure shooting
+ Want to have some kind of speed aspect or maneuverability like access deep strike, fast unit or teleport

Thanks for any advice

How can anyone give you advice on how an army plays in an edition that not only isn’t out yet, but hasn’t even been announced?

Standard “buy the models you like, the meta changes all the time” advice applies.

I just meant generalities not like based on 10th just in light of 10th coming looking to start again.

If that makes sense

Tyranids?

Xenos, so often the underdog (although in a decent place now)
Easy to get a solid table-top painted army with minimal effort thanks to contrast paints.
They stab, they shoot, they have pyschic tricks and synapse as a special thing.
Free snacks and hugs.

 timofeo wrote:
I just meant generalities not like based on 10th just in light of 10th coming looking to start again.

If that makes sense

Sure.

But it's virtually impossible to give you any advise on who's an underdog or wich faction has interesting/unique mechanics as far as 10e is concerned.
We can tell you about NOW. But whenever 10th arrives? It could be spot on, wildly inaccurate, or anything inbetween....I between.....

If you want an underdog/challenging-to-play force in the here & now?
Try making an all Kroot list.
Or a Rogue Trader force.

Based on your list I think the closest to fitting would be the craftworld Eldar.

-They are the galaxies underdogs at the moment
-Different psychic abilities and special rules
-Simple to paint as many can be done by painting most of the model one color and the helmet another
-Lots of variety in units
-Very fast and maneuverable

Necrons aren't necessarily the underdogs thematically, but a minor dynasty may well be facing certain defeat against the imperial military (I have read a recent book about it, forgot the title).
Additionally, they are quite easy to paint but provide enough details for later touch ups of important models. They have close combat and shooting options and the dynastic codes allow you to create your own necron dynasty which also gives some nice options for list building.

Two years ago you could get a lot of necrons really cheap thanks to the indomitus box set, I'm not sure if this is still applicable.

I will second CW eldar so long as you arent one who instinctively recoils from pointy ears? They can be fiddly to paint if you are going full detail but can quite easily bear a three colour job if that is your level.

Eldar are never a bad choice in w40k. In general, before 10th ed rule changes leaks it is hard to give any advice regarding specific units or army compositions. In arcs a ranger less, no guardians , but 6 elites army is going to be the norm for eldar, but saying it will be the same for 10th is a big stretch.

Im thinking genestealer cults would be a good fit for you. They’re pretty squishy, and mainly rely on basic human weaponry and repurposed industrial tools, and their play style is very reliant on mobility and good positioning

Karol wrote:
Eldar are never a bad choice in w40k. In general, before 10th ed rule changes leaks it is hard to give any advice regarding specific units or army compositions. In arcs a ranger less, no guardians , but 6 elites army is going to be the norm for eldar, but saying it will be the same for 10th is a big stretch.

This is the issue with recommending Eldar. As a faction, they are generally at the top of the pile. But the units that get them there change every edition. Almost without fail. One edition it’s wraithknights and scatbikes, the next it’s warp spiders. Wildly inconsistent internal balance. And it’d been like this all the way back.

If someone wanted to go Eldar on the cusp of a new edition there are a number of “safe” choices (which are still not without risk

Wave Serpents -- Since their introduction they have been one of the best units in the Eldar roster. They do their job and well, which is protecting their cargo and getting it where it needs to be. Oh, and often overshadowing the MBTs of their own an other factions for damage output at the same time. Elves are squishy. WS keeps them alove longer, and lets them get the first shot in. Which is often all they get.

Farseers -- Probably on a bike. Psychic shenanigans are the lynchpin of the Eldar. Space magic is one of the core elements of the faction, so will always be there in the rules. These guys get it done. Eldar were leveraging buffs/debuffs and specialists long before other factions started doing it with stratagems. and it works.

One unit you like the look of -- This is a bit of a cop-out, but hear me out. Rules come and go, but models last. Unless you are playing in a hyper competitive environment (which some people do, and can disregard this advice) you have some room for slack in your list. If everyone plays like this it all evens out. So take the unit that makes you smile, that you love the imagery of. The joy you get from that is more important than the fact that unit B does some same job for 5% less points. You can build the rest of your list/collection you help support it, and cover its flaws. The reason I say “one unit” is that you don’t want to go all in on a single unit. Skew lists do work, but are often tied to rules interactions. So if you do make one, the odds that you will either win big, or loose big all the time are high. And that’s not a fun game. Especially if they come after your wins big army with a nerf bat, or the core rules shift and make it non-viable.

My general advice for army selection is to first look at all the factions and see what ones appeal to you. Then look at the units that make it up, it’s play style, etc and choose 3 units. This is your hook, the core of the army that you want to play. Now look at the rules, figure out what else you need to add to make it viable on the tabletop. Having an army you love is great, but if you get your teeth kicked in every battle, that gets old fast. So add other units to cover gaps, fill roles, and leverage the strengths of your core. You are not going to end up with a top-table meta list. But it should be a decent TAC you can have fun with at the FLGS, and one you enjoy playing.

Edit:
Forgot to mention magnets. One of the best things to do to future-proof your collection to keep it viable across edition/codex changes.

Lots of great advice, yeah when I say underdog I get that metas shift for sure so maybe just underdog spirit or Lore wise.

Model wise I'm drawn to things like
+ Thousand Sons Rubric and Scarab stuff
+ Black Templar but only the knightly helmets not the open face ones
+ Sanguinary Guard
+ Necrons for the Egyptian vibe ish
+ Kroot (but I don't like thst they don't have many options of Kroot only stuff in the book
+the elite Gaurd Tempestus or whatever
+ Wraithguard
+ Incubi

I know I know too many things I like.
Painting wise I feel like
+ Nurgle Daemons easy to paint and fun to paint
+ Orks easy to paint fun themes
+ Tyranids easy to paint intriguing rules.

The more I think about it I am coming to the realization that while visually I like seeing Knights, Egyptian stuff, heroic stuff etc

But when it comes to my armies I enjoy weird tactics and easy to paint because having a painted Gitz army has made me fall in love with that army.

Do Tyranids have alot of weird tactical options or rules?

Thanks

 timofeo wrote:
I'm looking to potentially start 40k when 10th edition drops. Looking to get some advice on an army to start. I played 40k back in like 4-6 editions but have been out of the loop for a while. I enjoyed playing Slaanesh Noise Marines to a degree but not sure about going back to that I just remember the lash of submission combo with blastmasters or whatever it was.

I currently play Age of Sigmar I have Gloomspite Gitz and Fyreslayers.

Things I like
+ Underdogs
+ Interesting or unique mechanics
+ easy to paint as it makes me more likely to finish them and if they are painted more likely to not regret the army ( If I don't paint I usually sell or trade)
+ Themes I am sporadic I usually like Knights but in AOS I don't play anything armored so I'm not sure if that secretly means I dont have to play them lol
+ I own Pink Horrors but do not want to play Daemons, not sure if Thousand Sons can team up with them and be effective or if allies like that are a waste of time.
+ Want to have mixed arms, like having a close combat option and not just pure shooting
+ Want to have some kind of speed aspect or maneuverability like access deep strike, fast unit or teleport

Thanks for any advice

Get into the fluff. Find the army you like in the fluff, compare its rules across a few editions (if you really want), and pick the one that you get the best vibe from. There's a constant rise and fall in the Flavor Of The Month. Some of the competitive players probably change armies more often than other people change underwear. If the army you pick is the flavor this time it probably will be soon, and the first army is most likely the one you spend the most time on.

 Nevelon wrote:
Tyranids?

Xenos, so often the underdog (although in a decent place now)
Easy to get a solid table-top painted army with minimal effort thanks to contrast paints.
They stab, they shoot, they have pyschic tricks and synapse as a special thing.
Free snacks and hugs.

Aren't Tyranids the strongest xeno army right now? I don't see how they are the underdogs when in the fluff they are a world ending event.
Now if you said "Genestealer Cults" I'd be more inclined to agree with you.

 CthuluIsSpy wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:
Tyranids?

Xenos, so often the underdog (although in a decent place now)
Easy to get a solid table-top painted army with minimal effort thanks to contrast paints.
They stab, they shoot, they have pyschic tricks and synapse as a special thing.
Free snacks and hugs.

Aren't Tyranids the strongest xeno army right now? I don't see how they are the underdogs when in the fluff they are a world ending event.
Now if you said "Genestealer Cults" I'd be more inclined to agree with you.

Underdogs on the table top or the fluff? How many times have the Nids sacrificed an entire Hive Fleet to get a planet or two before the Imperium and Aeldari join forces?

Breton wrote:

 CthuluIsSpy wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:
Tyranids?

Xenos, so often the underdog (although in a decent place now)
Easy to get a solid table-top painted army with minimal effort thanks to contrast paints.
They stab, they shoot, they have pyschic tricks and synapse as a special thing.
Free snacks and hugs.

Aren't Tyranids the strongest xeno army right now? I don't see how they are the underdogs when in the fluff they are a world ending event.
Now if you said "Genestealer Cults" I'd be more inclined to agree with you.

Underdogs on the table top or the fluff? How many times have the Nids sacrificed an entire Hive Fleet to get a planet or two before the Imperium and Aeldari join forces?

True but for me they seem the most realistic end to all this due to numbers and as far as we know only an urge to destroy not rule

Honestly, I was thinking more game-play, with a perspective tainted by history. While the current codex is strong, for most of 40k’s life they only chance they had to win was skew lists like flyrant spam. Rules come and go, and while the sun is shining now, who knows how long it will last.

From a narrative POV, space marines and the Imperium at large are the protagonists, so all xenos feel like the underdogs. Even when they win, it’s never really a win, as those darn kids snatch the real prize away.

Mechanically, they’ve got a nice mix of special rules. They synapse powers are kinda neat, lots of pychic stuff, and some fun units to play with.

I don’t have a lot of experience with GSC, so can’t speak to recommend them.

 Nevelon wrote:
Honestly, I was thinking more game-play, with a perspective tainted by history. While the current codex is strong, for most of 40k’s life they only chance they had to win was skew lists like flyrant spam. Rules come and go, and while the sun is shining now, who knows how long it will last.

From a narrative POV, space marines and the Imperium at large are the protagonists, so all xenos feel like the underdogs. Even when they win, it’s never really a win, as those darn kids snatch the real prize away.

Mechanically, they’ve got a nice mix of special rules. They synapse powers are kinda neat, lots of pychic stuff, and some fun units to play with.

I don’t have a lot of experience with GSC, so can’t speak to recommend them.

Fair enough. Personally I always found them to be pretty strong, but then again my chosen army, Necrons, tends to have to have issues against monsters.

i'm sure a lot of people have mentioned orks and votann by now.

if you like underdogs, guard are the ultimate underdogs in 40k. their color schemes can be as simple or as complicated as you want. armor and fatigues can be the same color, or different colors, and can have any patter of camo you could want.
currently guard has a lot of interesting rules between selecting 2 army traits, to stratagems,to orders, to datasheet rules,
the army is flexible enough now to build strong lists of nearly any sort, pure infantry? go for it. Armored? go for it. mechanized? go for it. the artillery nerf kinda killed artillery focused armies, and the flier restriction makes air cav armies hard to really represent but both are technically possible.

Underdog? Grey Knights. Ultimate bad asses in the fluff, on the tabletop they're an unfunny joke.

As someone who's went through several edition changes of 40K, I have to ask you, why wait? When 10th edition drops, things will be a mess, as all codexes will need to be redone for each faction YET AGAIN.

10th ed rumours are hinting at the possibility of another batch of Index-type books which will get all factions up to speed quickly, but there is no guarantee at this point.

I suggest you pick a faction and dive straight in now. 9th edition is almost completed, at least most factions have 9th edition codexes, no need to wait for stuff.

Take HH 2.0 as an example. I bought into it as soon as it launched, and am still waiting for models to get released, some factions are still waiting for their books, it's comical, I haven't played a single game..

With the rumours of MASSIVE changes- a rebooted edition rather than a 9.5, we really can't even be sure which armies will get support.

GSC were unceremoniously dumped without warning before, and it could easily happen again.

We know there will be Marines, but we have no idea whether the Firstborn/ Primaris divide will continue, change form or disappear altogether.

We don't know whether detachments/ allied forces will continue to exist.

We don't know whether there will continue to be support for games that aren't 2k points, or for narrative play, nor do we no what form those supports will take if in fact GW decides to continue them.