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I currently own CSM, Death Guard, Thousand Sons, Chaos Knights/Imperial Knights, Craftworld Eldar, and Blood Angels. I usually end up playing 1 or 2 factions for most of an edition, or until they get nerfed into the ground, then switch to another. Though I have the Knights, I've never put them on the table lol. I'm also always trolling ebay for deals on decent sized armies. How about you guys?

I have Guard and Marines as my main 40k armies; Guard gets played almost exclusively as that's what has stuff painted in any real quantity.

I have enough Chaos stuff for a small force. Don't know what I'll do with them.

I have tiny amounts of Sisters and Admech, but those I'll probably just use exclusively for painting.

I spent what would have been gas and coffee money during the pandemic buying a metric ton of 30k Space Marines stuff. Got enough to make 3-4 armies each 2.5-3k in points.

I used to have some cool armies but then I sold them all.

Currently I've got some Primaris and Necrons that are just kind of shelf sitters until my wife decides to play. Then I've got my Lamenters which is my main one, and I'm working on a Raven Guard HH army.

None of them get played anymore.

Flesh Tearers
Dark Eldar
Imperial Guard/Inquisition
Tau
Tyranids
Death Korp of Krieg
30k Word Bearers

I stopped playing after codexes started coming out for 8th. Probably never coming back.

Ultramarines
Deathwatch
White Scars*
Adeptus Custodes*
Adeptus Mechanicus*
Imperial Guard
Imperial Knights*
Chaos Daemons
Chaos Space Marines
Deathguard
Thousand Sons*
Eldar
Genestealer Cults*
Necrons
Orks
Tau
Tyranids
30k World Eaters*
30k Mechanicum*

I have what could give me a reasonable Dark Eldar army (although I own nothing larger than a Skyboard/Talos - no Venoms or above). I also have a ton of Inquisition stuff, but they're not really an army anymore.

There are various stages of 'armies' in the above. For instance, with my Ultramarines I can field several Companies. With my Guard I can field several full Armoured Companies, an Artillery Company, a Super Heavy Battalion and close to 300 infantry.

With my Tau though, it's an inherited army that contains no tanks, and the most modern models are the plastic Pathfinders (and not the recent KT release either!). And I have a Chaos Daemons army simply by virtue of playing Chaos back when Daemons were still part of our list, so when the divide was made in 4th Ed, I essentially got a Chaos Daemon army out of the 'deal'. Anything with a * means I haven't actually built them yet, like my AdMech army.

As for how often? Not enough is the honest answer. I want to get back into playing, but there have been a lot of obstacles (obviously the pandemic being a big one that prevented games for years).

I’ve got like 20,000+ points of Imperial Guard. Honestly it could be much higher than that. Been playing since 3rd edition, been 20+ years now.

Never played anything else. Though I might now experiment on TTS cause there’s no investment required.

Two. And having more then one was a dramatic increase in quality of fun I get from GW products. Comparing to having one army, it is practically impossible how much better it is to have two armies.

2 40k armies. Not playing much atm as power creep has largely burned me down. Aos way more active with 11 armies and def issue playing evenly that many armies

Two armies, orks and marines. Their last game was late 8th.

I have a pretty large Salamanders force compromised of MKIII/IV/30k units & Primaris.
They get the most play and I haven't played with anything other than FB the whole of 9th.

Metallica are next in line for army size/variety. Spread amongst Knights are large squads of Vanguards. Providing close support are packs of Armigers both Warglaive & Helverin pattern f

Oh, a few....
I've been doing along time so several aren't/might not be valid forces any more. Marked with an *

1) Space Wolves
2) Dark Angels
3) Mentor Legion
4) Doom Eagles
5) Primaris Project - chapter to be determined
6) Ultramarines 9th Co.
7) 1st Co.
8) Dreadnoughts
9) SM Armored Column - 12 predators + 2 HQ Rhinos (obviously a BA successor as 3 of them are Baals )

10) RT era Guard - plastic & metal
11) Cadians (2e models)
12) Mordians
13) Tallarn
14) Valhallens
15) Catachans (2e models)
16) Pretorians
17) Steel Legion
18) Vostroyans
19) Cadians (plastic)
20) Krieg - playable, but nowhere near complete yet
*21) PDF/Conscripts/Penal Legion/Ab-humans
*22) Squats - played as Guard
23) Armoured Co. - tanks
24) Armoured Co. - artillery
25) Imperial Guard super heavies

26) Sisters of Battle
27) Ad-Mech - small force, about 1k pts
*28) Adeptus Arbites
29) Imperial Knights
30) Imperial Titans - incomplete as no Warlord class in my collection yet. :(

31) Demons - Khorne -- really just my WHFB/AoS force making a cameo in M41 now & then.
32) Death Guard
33) Iron Warriors (from 4e?)
*34) Fabious Bile , + a bunch of spawn & other "experiments"

35) Eldar - Iyanden
36) Eldar - generic, heavy on the Aspects.
37) Drukhari - 1 HQ elf, 1 Venom, Talos x9, Cronos x9

38) Necrons - lots & lots & lots of Necrons.
39) Tau (circa 2001 launch & slightly after)
40) Gretchin! - the newest addition to this list. Terrorizing the galaxy in tiny tanks!

41) GSC
42) Tyranids - Infestation begins. Concept based on the movie "Alien", spore mine themed.
43) Tyranids - Vintage models #1
44) Tyranids - Vintage models #2
45) Tyranids - modern (circa 2007)
46) Tyranids - all flyers
47) Tyranids - all Forgeworld.
48) Tyranids - all monstrous creatures
*49) Tyranids - all Genestealers

I think I'll stop building new armies once I hit 52.
The final 3 will be:
<50) Orks - an actual honest-to-God Ork army. I've been saying I'd field one for nearly 20 years now. Eventually it'll happen....>
<51) A Rogue Trader/Exploritor force. - Always been a fascinating idea & it's finally slightly viable. So it's on my projects list....>
<52) Leagues of Votann/Nu-Squats - assuming this is a real thing.... If so it'll jump ahead of the Orks, Rogue Traders, & even the Krieg>

How often do I get to play? An average of 2-3 games/week atm. The forces currently in frequent use are the Gretchin & Necrons. The Drukhari & SW are also close at hand.
I think soon the DA will rotate into the mix as a punching bag for our newer players. They struggle against both my Grots & Necrons. And I know they can't take on my Drukhari (not even after the Cronos were nerfed).

Currently two: a large ork army and a mid sized SW one, full firstborn. I mostly play with my main army though. 1-2 games per week typically.

Ultramarines are my main army.
Eldar comes next in size and age. But still a fraction of the size of my marines.
Nids are growing
And a small collection of Deathwatch.

If I go way back, I have scraps of a few other factions. Blood Angels, Imperial Guard, Orks. Maybe enough for a combat patrol, but most never saw the table past 2nd.

I play what I feel like, regardless of how they are doing in the meta. I mostly play more casual, so the power gap is less of an issue. Not like I get a lot of games in, 1-2 a month if I’m lucky these days.

5 different armies. I play about once every other month. Although I have many many guardsmen. I could probably field about 4 armies of 2k each with only guardsmen. Actually I know I can because I did a huge guardsmen only game vs tyranids a few months back.

 Nerak wrote:
5 different armies. I play about once every other month. Although I have many many guardsmen. I could probably field about 4 armies of 2k each with only guardsmen. Actually I know I can because I did a huge guardsmen only game vs tyranids a few months back.

Hm,

On the point about number of armies: I tend to think of that as “factions you play” not “number of lists you can put on the table”

Because I can put down a lot of Ultras.

I own Slaanesh Daemons and Mortals, Eldar, and IG.

Mostly I play my daemons in other games (they feel awkward to play in 40k).

Eldar I am selling because their crusade rules don't interest me.

IG I play mostly 4th with a buddy.

I play twice weekly all-up, but lately 40k has been a "back up" game if I can't find something better. So most of those games lately have been other systems.

I have revised (updated CSM, Characters) Black Legion army. They are always run as Black Legion, no exceptions. Every edition it gets played more than my other army, and 9th is no different. I rarely field Abbadon. I even have an unofficial rule that I have to field Haarken Worldclaimer in a game before I field Abbadon to 'herald' his arrival. It's on the same list of rules such as my CSM always overcharge plasma. Most games I stick to a Council of Traitors (Lord, Apostle and Sorcerer). In 9th, it's been tough going, but with 12pt CSM and DttFE working on everyone, I can win games. It just takes a bit of luck, reading my opponent's plan correctly and not making many mistakes. Oh, and my opponent not having tons of AP-1 and AP-2.

My second army is a custom chapter of Primaris only (and a Storm Raven which has only seen the table as terrain so far). They are played as an unknown successor. So I don't use a supplement (no super doctrine or anything) when playing them. For 9th, I had to create a d10 founding chapter table, since evidently all space marine chapters have to declare now. Honestly, if it weren't for Primaris looking and playing slightly different, I would have never started a loyalist space marine army since I already have a CSM that often plays like a loyalist one with the Aquila filled off. They are my second most played army. Often to help show a new player how they can use their marines.

My last full army is Genestealer Cults. I liked how they looked and painted, as well as how fun they were to play in Kill Team 2018. However, I only played them a few times, since blip deployment and being a horde army add more time to already long games. I play a lot of new/infrequent/casual opponents and even marine vs. marine can take in excess of 4 hours as my opponent thinks things through, and I slow down my rolls to explain what is happening a little more. It doesn't help that GSC is full of gotchas that can put even a seasoned player into analysis paralysis. Finally, for all the hard work it could take (I didn't get the new codex) to win games, they always felt sour as GSC seemed to NPE their way to a win.

I also have a Necron army from Indomitus that kinda stalled out. There are tons of new Necron players and the longer 9th goes on, the less I want to play it.

***

I generally play every 2-3 weeks. I certainly could play more, I just find myself less and less interested to bother. The fact that I feel like I have to ask permission to make use of a full 6'x4' table wasn't something I ever thought I have to do. I'm also not a fan of how matched play missions work. Doubly so with splat books adding/updating secondaries. I have never bought a Chapter Approved (or anything more than BRB and codex), and I don't plan on starting. I pretty much only want to play Open War or Tempest of War (if I'm not the one that has to spend $30 for the deck). Otherwise, 40k has been categorized as bad gaming for me. And no gaming is better than bad gaming.

It's a testament to my opponents that can infuse the game enough fun that I play as much as I currently do. All it'd take is a couple of tedious or pound your Richard in the dirt type games, and I'd be out of the playing side of 40k.

Large armies of Orks, Eldar, Dark Eldar, harlequins, Marines (3 main ones), Sisters, Knights, Tau, Guard, Necrons, Ad Mech, Tyranids, and various others - not played since Covid

Imperial/Chaos Knights, Death Guard, Ultramarines, and a smattering of Admech and Daemons.

Sold my CSM a while ago, and boxed up an Ork army I'm looking to sell.

Too many, and that's only 40k.

40k I have:
Dark Angels,
Death Guard,
Chaos Knights,
Tyranids,
Genestealer Cults,
Necrons,
Aeldari,
Drukhari
Sisters of Battle
orks

These are ones I have large enough forces to field properly. I also have smaller forces of CSM and Chaos Daemons.

In 9th I have mainly played Death Guard(until the nerfs started hitting hard) and after that I am playing Aeldari and Sisters of Battle, with Chaos Knights upcoming.

The problem with 40k is that it rewards those with many armies and punishes those focusing on a single army due to how the balancing is always off. F.ex. I can shelf my Death Guard army until a new edition comes and still play with something else.

 Eldarsif wrote:


The problem with 40k is that it rewards those with many armies and punishes those focusing on a single army due to how the balancing is always off.

That's not a 40k specific problem. It's just how minis games work in general.
Though you could make the case that the balance extremes are more pronounced in GWs games than in others.

ccs wrote:

 Eldarsif wrote:


The problem with 40k is that it rewards those with many armies and punishes those focusing on a single army due to how the balancing is always off.

That's not a 40k specific problem. It's just how minis games work in general.
Though you could make the case that the balance extremes are more pronounced in GWs games than in others.

From 2nd edition through 5th/6th(?) I played Word Bearers Chaos Space Marines regardless. I never felt underpowered, never felt overpowered, and mostly ran with the same lists as well. I was definitely not buying the new shinies every new edition and the game worked perfectly well. In my local basement group, and in the GTs I attended way back when.

The game feels like it swings harder now, though, so in that respect, you're probably right, but I gave up keeping track of it all.

Marines - Built them up over the course of around 10 years, was a nice project while I was at uni as well. Haven't used them since mid-8th.

Guard - Went all-in on these guys, they all have Hostile Environment packs and the force includes 7 Russes, 2 Baneblades, a Stormhammer and an Octoblade. Same here, haven't used them in years mainly due to the impracticality of storing/transporting so much armour.

Custodes - One of my main 8th armies, now bolsted with an Orion. Haven't used that in a while as I'm rather uninterested in the new book.

Knights - Started these when I got a good deal on a couple of Questoris Knights. Haven't used them in ages for the same reason as the Guard but may finish them off when the new book is released. May have to give in and sell them however as we have a kid on the way.

Tau - Started these a couple of years back, glad the book is pretty decent, they're my main go-to force at the moment.

Thousand Sons/Tzeench Daemons - Really happy with how some of these turned out, haven't played a single game with them yet due to the Daemons desperately needing a new book, and a bit of overall burnout when it comes to finishing off the last few Rubrics.

As per my signature:

[1,100] Ultramarines
[1,800] Chaos Knights
[1,100] Thousand Sons
[1,100] Grey Knights

I've played them all in 9th edition (a total of 17 games so far). I play a couple of times a month at my FLGS now things are back to normal. Most games have been Chaos Knights, but my last six games have been with either TSons or GK (my two new armies).

I'll probably not play Chaos Knights again now until the new codex comes out to focus on my two new armies. My Ultramarines army is a nostalgic Rogue Trader-esqe force (not competitive) so I might even retire them to focus on Chaos Knights, TSons and GK. Don't get me wrong, I'll always own the latest SM codex - can't not have one of those

Tournament Ready

Chaos Space Marines
Chaos Daemons
Thousand Sons
Death Guard (thank you Warhammer Conquest magazine)
Necrons (thank you Warhammer Imperium magazine)
Tau

Not ready
Chaos Knights

I've decided to never buy Imperium/Elves to ensure I have living space. Not buying Elves seems to have been a competitive tournament misstep for the last few years. Chaos has turned out to be the worst super faction to back for most of 8th (very specific build when it was on top) and nearly all of 9th.

Out of the 6 tournament ready armies, 3 have been used in 9th, going to 4 this month. When the last two codexes drop for CSM/CD which are by the largest collections, I am absolutely ready to be a part of the 80% first week win rate for those factions. If the power creep continues I believe I will be able to field a top tier army and lend out a second top tier army to a friend.

1) Classic Sisters 100PL Painted
2) Daemons of Slaanesh 75PL Partially Painted
3) Druhkari 75PL
4) New Sisters 100PL
5) Deathwatch 50PL
6) CSM 75PL
7) Eldar 25PL
8) GSC 75PL

Various odds and ends- most of the Inquisitors, Krieg and Kommandos from KT launch, GK and Ksons from Hexfire.

I only play small games, and I'm lucky to get one in every two months. Mostly Sisters or Deathwatch vs. GSC or Daemons of Slaanesh.

Marines, sob, eldar incl harlequin as I don’t consider harlequin a stand alone faction, inquisition with imp guard, orks, some unfinished csm. Ranging from 1k to 4 or so…

Play? Last times in ninth Ed only orks

Marines, Tyranids, CSM

Marines is the main one. Tyranids are the fun side army. Chaos is mostly a collection, but can see play.

I have a bunch of unpainted Eldar that will someday get painted, and might see play someday, but it's more of a collection.

Personally, I have:

Imperial Guard (Cadian Offshoot)
Admech (Mars)
Custodes (Custom)
Necrons (Nihilakh Dynasty offshoot)
Tyranid (Behemoth)
Space Marine (Dark Angels Offshoot) Firstborn
Space Marine (Dark Angels Offshoot) Primaris (I run the two separate)
Grey Knights (13th company, assigned to Space Marine army as 1st company)
Genestealer Cults (Bladed Cog)
Tau (Sa'cea Offshoot - Battle Academy)
Eldar (Saim-Hann)

Last time I played 40K was 2019, and then usually no more than once about every 3 months - I'm mostly a D&D roleplayer.

 Nevelon wrote:

 Nerak wrote:
5 different armies. I play about once every other month. Although I have many many guardsmen. I could probably field about 4 armies of 2k each with only guardsmen. Actually I know I can because I did a huge guardsmen only game vs tyranids a few months back.

Hm,

On the point about number of armies: I tend to think of that as “factions you play” not “number of lists you can put on the table”

Because I can put down a lot of Ultras.

That’s a nice looking ultramarines army. And you certainly can field a lot of them. Then allow me to clarify. I currently have space marines, imperial guard, grey knights, Inquisition and orks. I honestly havn’t kept up with the rules for inquisition so not sure if it’s viable anymore.