Warhammer 40k 11th Edition has a lot of changes, but no major overhaul to the overall experience. There are clear pros and cons to this approach. Pro: We don't have to completely relearn the rules. Con: Some major balance gripes may not be addressed. Pro: There is less chance of any big mistakes with the rule change. Con: It doesn't feel good to shell out $295 for a book with minor tweaks to one that already sits on your bookshelf.
As has been the case with the past few editions of Warhammer 40k, you don't need to buy the new Armageddon box to get the 11th edition rules. They are available now, free of charge, on the Warhammer Community website. But the Armageddon box includes a beautiful, physical, softcover version of the rules that is very useful to take along in battles. I've had the box for a few weeks now, so I decided to do just that – take it to some battles and test out the new rules for myself.
What changed in Warhammer 40k 11th edition?
We all want to know what changed in the 11th edition, but let's take a look at some of the big stuff that stays the same. Your codecs (codex?) are all still valid and compatible with the new version. A few bugs and details about individual factions have been revealed since and in between my battles, so I haven't played a 'true' 11th edition yet, but the rules alone are enough to get me excited.
11th edition has tweaked existing capabilities so that, while your datacards are valid, they now play differently. Your Aeldari host who loves nothing more than to emerge from a bark snake, blast something, and dive in? It is now as mobile as Festus the Leechlord in the zimmer frame. Your conga line of guardsmen denying space by bam-bam-bam-bam-bam-eh!-ing across the battlefield? They have to do a lot of hokey cokey work with their lasguns in a very small footprint.
Now that I've got a few dozen mods under my belt, it seems that most of the toxic battle plans have been unfurled in one way or another. However, neither my opponents nor I run particularly meta or things, so there may be some sliver of Stilton that has slipped through the cracks.
There are a few tweaks to the command phase, but the biggest is Battleshock. Failing a Battleshock test now cripples your unit until it passes instead of until the next turn. If you can trigger something per turn, this can turn disruption into a really effective strategy.
In addition to the aforementioned coherence rules (units now need to be perfectly within 9″ of each other), pivoting is now free — my Imperial Knights leaping for joy. Or, squeezing between buildings thanks to the new terrain footprints. Your engagement area is now 2″, which is good for my community arms. Ruststalkers. This combines with a nice buff to Deep Striking (now labeled Ingress Move) resulting in only requiring a 7” charge when you enter the game – very reliable.
During the shooting phase, your ballistic skills can now be modified in several ways (including cover), as can the hit roll. I think this will have the biggest impact of the new version, but since I was facing hordes of Orks it didn't affect my games much. I like the fact that height now affects your shooting roll as well, as it adds some refreshing ludonarrative resonance to the game.
In combat, wound allocation will take some getting used to. I found it a bit hard to wrap my head around, but when attacking a unit with a mixed save, your opponent chooses to save wounds before rolling the dice. It played out a bit at first, but I think it will streamline things in the long run.
There are many more changes than this brief overview—units can only be affected by one stratagem a turn, for example—but overall, 11th Edition seems to be turning towards a story for 40k. This comes as a surprise to more hardcore, competitive players after catering to a few versions, but these changes may be exactly what I needed to dive into the game big time.
Time for the game
I love the 11th edition rules. They feel comfortable and push the story in every battle, which is something I've always loved about 40k. Except, now, my opponent doesn't have to listen to my silly noises and over-the-top death retellings to get a feel for that flavor.
Since the release of the rules, Games Workshop has followed up with more exciting changes. New detachments beg for testing, long overdue for returning point costs to wargear after a lingering hangover from the Power Level days. I also like that taking multiples of the same unit can now incur points-based penalties, punishing those meta-chasers while allowing me to take a single, lovingly-converted unit without it being overcosted or pointless on the table.
But the real reason the 11th edition drew me back is that it reminded me of what a social hobby it is. Over the past year, I've made so many friends at various events — from camping kitbash to fringe — that I'm making a concerted effort to recreate it in my local area.
While I know a few players close to me, most of my tabletop gaming friends are now scattered across Europe. With some story juice and community enthusiasm fueling renewed interest in the game, I promise to replicate these annual event experiences into weekly story events, and 40k is a logical starting point for that.
I'm going to rock up to my local gaming store and have everyone play Turnip28 or Aetherpunk28 because they're my most recent fixations. Trench Crusade is also very niche for this crowd, so I'm committed to joining them where they are. After all, I played a lot of 7th and 8th edition 40k in pubs in Leeds, and had a great time doing so. I hope that, with a more story-focused version rearing its head, I can have as much fun with 40k as I currently have with the independent options. Who knows, maybe I'll even end up in a tournament before 2029. However, I wouldn't hold your breath.
