In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war.

Introduction

A few months ago, I found myself discussing the current state of 10th Edition 40k with some friends. We lamented how dissatisfied we had become with the game in its current form. We recalled editions gone by and eventually arrived at what originally brought us to the game…

Let me take you back. A young gamer strolls into the local hobby shop and sees a battle going on – futuristic toy soldiers on the table with dice thrown as a battle between the maniacal Orks and the stealthy Raven Guard is unfolding. I was invited to partake in the battle and was instantly hooked. The year was 2011. The game was Warhammer 40,000. Later that year at Christmastime my brother and I unwrapped the famous Assault on Blackreach boxset and we were off to the races!

My friends and I reminisce on the simplicity of 5th Edition and how we built crazy narratives and stories of Marneus Calgar and his valiant Ultramarines battling Abbadon the Despoiler and his mighty Black Legion. I recalled spending hours pouring over old White Dwarf articles detailing the Tale of Four Warlords and the mighty campaigns of building up armies and crafting stories of our generals carving a name out for themselves in a vast universe fraught with danger and enemies lurking around every new star system.

We noticed that our once formidable collections were acquiring dust from their just over a decade parked in a glass display case and got to thinking… let’s take these guys out for a spin to get back into a game we love.

Gamers, hobbyists, and fellow Chicago Dice readers… this is our 5th Edition Warhammer 40,000 Campaign. Each player has chosen an army to restore and we will build, paint, and battle throughout the coming months – and take you along every step of the way.

Campaign Roadmap

The 5th Edition Rulebook is something to behold… not only is the storyline rich with details on each faction, but Games Workshop did a full battle report and laid out missions for a whole campaign series! To relearn the game, we figured it would be good to go back to basics and use what the Rulebook has already laid out.

The Campaign will contain five missions, each escalating in points, requiring different win conditions, and conferring different bonuses for future games depending on the outcome of each battle.

Mission 1 & 2 – 1,000pts

Mission 3 & 4 – 1,500pts

Mission 5 – 2,000pts

Figure 1: Road to Glory Campaign Mission Overview

Players & Factions

Player	Faction	Army
Jackson	Imperium	Space Marines
David	Chaos	Chaos Space Marines
Cole	Imperium	Grey Knights
Ron	Chaos	Daemons
Jason	Chaos	Chaos Space Marines
Evan	Xenos	Necrons

Player Introductions & Army Lists

Cole

I have been playing 40k since the tail end of 6th Edition and Grey Knights were the second army I ever fielded. I wanted to bring them back after I had to sell them during 7th Edition to buy a computer for school. I figured since I already had the 5th Edition Grey Knights Codex, might as well field a force I have been wanting to bring back for a few years. I wanted to try 5th Edition due to hearing plenty of people rave how good it was. Might as well try it out. 

Cole’s Grey Knights

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Grand Master in Terminator Armor	1	175
	Daemonhammer	1	5
	Master Crafted	1	5
Troops	Strike Squad	5	100
	Halberds	4	20
	Psycannon	1	10
	Psybolt Ammo	4	20
Troops	Terminator Squad	5	200
	Power Swords	5	0
	Brotherhood Banner	1	25
Troops	Terminator Squad	5	200
	Halberds	5	0
Heavy Support	Nemesis Dreadknight	1	130
	Gatling P-silencer	1	35
	Nemesis Greatsword	1	25
	Heavy Psycannon	1	40
		Total:	990

Figure 2: Cole’s Grey Knight Terminator Banner Bearer

David

Greetings my fellow Warlords and readers! It is I, David, commanding this mighty force of Chaos known as the Legion Host! The Legion Host (also known as the Lords of the Nine Legions) was a Warband prominent in Aaron Dembski-Bowden’s Black Legion (August 2017) who stood against Abaddon’s ambition to be the true successor to the title of Warmaster. Thagus Daravek, a powerful Death Guard Sorcerer Lord, ruled this force with an iron fist and sent his forces across the Great Eye to hunt down the emergent Black Legion at the climax of the Legion Wars. 

This Legion Host remnant force is led by the Death Guard Daemon Prince Blistarion the Ever-Sore, a mighty disciple of the late Thagus Daravek with a legacy to uphold. He leads the remnants of the Lords of the Nine Legions in raids against the Imperium and the Despoiler’s wayward strongholds. Presented in this force are members belonging predominantly to the Death Guard and World Eaters. It opens the door to eventually making Emperor’s Children, Thousand Sons, and more when I go ahead with restoring more of my old chaotic collection. For these earlier missions, I’ve elected to field Kharn the Betrayer! Let’s see if he can kill more enemies than friends… haha!

David’s Chaos Space Marines

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Kharn the Betrayer	1	165
	Gorechild	1	0
	Plasma Pistol	1	0
Troops	Plague Marines	7	161
	Plasma Gun	2	30
Dedicated Transport	Chaos Rhino	1	35
	Havoc Launcher	1	15
	Daemonic Posession	1	20
Troops	Plague Marines	7	161
	Plasma Gun	2	30
Troops	Khorne Bezerkers	8	168
	Skull Champion	1	15
	Power Fist	1	25
Elite	Chaos Dreadnought	1	90
	Extra Melee Arm	1	10
Heavy Support	Obliterator	1	75
		Total:	1000

Figure 3: David’s Chaos Dreadnought in Khornate Colors

Jason

Hi folks. Here are some photos of Abby’s boys of the Black Legion. While I do have models for most of the CSM named characters, I decided not to run any of them. Instead, I’m returning to their origins as one of the shocking number of Space Marine Chapters that turn against the Imperium. Usually by being screwed over one too many times by said Imperium. 

As for their backstory the former Chapter Master, Ceretath, personally oversaw the defense of some no-name hive world against an increasingly massive assault by the Black Legion. He’d even called in the chapter’s remaining battle barge for orbital support just to keep the hordes at bay at the planetary capitol. The Legion’s determined assault had seen well over half of his brothers lost. He was about to call down another orbital strike when he saw the planetary governor’s private yacht trying to fly away and leave him, his brothers, and the world population to the Legion’s tender mercies. He directed the battle barge to instead use its bombardment cannon to send the governor and his closest sycophants directly to the Emperor. This distraction allowed a squad of Chaos Terminators to teleport in and catch Ceretath flat-footed. Between all of this and the lines of battle brothers collapsing he surrendered and chose to join the Black Legion over having him and his Chapter fully destroyed. Any irony to be found in this decision is completely lost on him.

As yet another franchise of the Black Legion, Chaos Lord Ceretath’s main concern outside of doing battle is recruitment. Much as with the Red Corsairs, anyone willing to suit up in power armor and fight to the death is welcome in the Legion. Stealing the vehicles of other Legions and Chapters (including Dreadnoughts) is also seen as perfectly acceptable in their lore. As such, I’ve grown a fairly sizeable force of these guys. The pics don’t show everything, but the models shown are representative of what I can bring to the table for a game of 5th. So no Venomcrawlers, Heldrakes, or the like. I do have several squads worth of the cult marines (Berzerkers, Plague, Rubric, and Noise) to go with the rest of these guys.

Jason’s Chaos Space Marines

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Chaos Lord	1	90
	Terminator Armor	1	30
	Lightning Claw	1	10
	Power Fist	1	10
	Personal Icon	1	5
	Mark of Tzeentch	1	15
Troops	Chaos Space Marines	10	150
	Aspiring Champion	1	15
	Power Weapon	1	15
	Flamer	1	5
	Plasma Gun	1	15
	Chaos Glory Icon	1	10
Dedicated Transport	Chaos Rhino	1	35
	Havoc Launcher	1	15
Troops	Chaos Space Marines	10	150
	Aspiring Champion	1	15
	Power Weapon	1	15
	Flamer	1	5
	Plasma Gun	1	15
	Chaos Glory Icon	1	10
Dedicated Transport	Chaos Rhino	1	35
	Havoc Launcher	1	15
Elites	Chaos Terminator Squad	7	210
	Terminator Champion	1	10
	Heavy Flamer	1	5
	Pair of Lightning Claws	3	30
	Power Fist	3	30
	Mark of Tzeentch	1	35
		Total:	1000

Figure 4: Jason’s Chaos Terminators

Evan

A Phaeron with no nobility rules over a dynasty with no name. The being who would name himself Ammonketh started as the maintenance AI running a fringe Tomb World. After a solar flair wiped out 99% of the personality engrams stored within, a subroutine left by the Silent King activated. “Adapt to Survive.” Over the millennia, the AI would gain more and more sentience as the horrors of the galaxy constantly threatened his prime directive, keeping the Tomb World going. The various vassals that lay dormant in the tomb were filled by fragments of itself or organic minds downloaded into engrams. With the day of awakening quickly approaching, and his world being invaded, by countless factions at once, the AI makes its most desperate gambit. By downloading himself into the body of the Phaeron, he destroyed the nobility of the dynasty and placed himself on top. Now with the full might of the tomb world at his beck and call, he will see off these invaders. I am Ammonketh! Phaeron of the Nameless Dynasty!

Evan’s Necrons

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Nemesor Zahndrek	1	185
Royal Court	Cryptek	1	25
	Harbinger of Despair	1	5
	Veil of Darkness	1	30
HQ	Necron Lord	1	35
	Resurrection Orb	1	30
Troops	Necron Warriors	20	260
	Gauss Flayers	20	0
Troops	Necron Immortals	10	170
	Tesla Cannons	10	0
Fast Attack	Scarabtek Wraiths	3	105
	Whip Coils	3	30
Fast Attack	Scarabtek Swarms	3	45
Heavy Support	Necron Destroyers	2	80
	Heavy Gauss Cannon	2	0
		Total:	1000

Ron

Greetings from my humble home of excess to yours! I wish to introduce you to the Legion of Excess, the brutal but fast, and exceedingly disturbing hosts of Slaanesh. There is no grand theme of my army as of yet. Although I do plan to bring The Masque and Skarbrand into the fold to dish out the great rivals of blood and pleasure together. There is a certain appeal that Slaanesh brings that the other gods do not. In this realm of chaos, however, there is room for everyone. Except Tzeetch… we don’t like him here

Ron’s Chaos Daemons

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Keeper of Secrets	1	230
	Transfixing Gaze	1	0
	Sporific Musk	1	0
Troops	Daemonettes of Slaanesh	10	140
Troops	Daemonettes of Slaanesh	10	140
Troops	Daemonettes of Slaanesh	10	140
Troops	Daemonettes of Slaanesh	10	140
Elites	Fiend of Slaanesh	1	40
	Unholy Might	1	0
Elites	Fiend of Slaanesh	1	40
	Unholy Might	1	0
Elites	Fiend of Slaanesh	1	40
	Unholy Might	1	0
Fast Attack	Seekers of Slaanesh	5	85
		Total:	995

Figure 5: Ron’s Slaanesh Daemons

Jackson

Since I started my adventure into Warhammer, I was instantly drawn to the valor of the Ultramarines. Their escapades detailed in the Codex (thanks Matt Ward 😊) had me up for many nights reading well into the morning. I dove across the many game systems and piloted my own Tech Marine, Octavius, through a perilous Dark Heresy RPG campaign which caused him to emerge wounded but battle-hardened. He survived the worst the galaxy could throw at him and he emerged victorious. I decided to honor this occasion by having this Tech Marine brought to life as my Master of the Forge! I recall actually winning this model at my first tournament as a shy middle-schooler where my immobilized Rhino used its “self-repair” function to stay stationary and try for that almighty 6 and restore its movement. As fate would have it, the dice gods blessed me that day, as I walked home with the Tech-Marine and Servitors box.

My Ultramarines collection has grown over the years and was largely painted by my Grandfather who taught me everything I know about painting. My first models looked atrocious, but he guided me as I honed my skills. Eventually, I earned my first Best Painted Army award at Chicago Dice’s Armored Apocalypse event. I opted to return to the source of my tabletop gaming and in honor of my Grandpa, I’m taking the Ultramarines out for another spin and restoring the models he and I painted all those years ago. This one’s for you Papa!

Jackson’s Ultramarines

Force Org Role	Unit Description	Count	Points
HQ	Master of the Forge	1	100
	Servo Harness	1	0
	Digital Weapons	1	10
	Combi-Plasma	1	10
	Power Weapon	1	15
Troops	Tactical Squad	10	170
	Missile Launcher	1	0
	Flamer	1	0
	Melta Bombs on Sgt	1	5
Troops	Scout Squad	5	75
	Missile Launcher	1	10
	Sniper Rifle	4	0
	Camo Cloaks	5	15
Troops	Scout Squad	5	75
	Missile Launcher	1	10
	Sniper Rifle	4	0
	Camo Cloaks	5	15
Elites	Sternguard Squad	10	250
	Special Issue Ammunition	10	0
	Melta Bombs on Sgt	1	5
Elites	Dreadnought	1	105
	Multi-Melta	1	0
	Dreadnought Close-Combat Weapon	1	0
	Storm Bolter	1	0
Heavy Support	Vindicator	1	115
	Seige Shield	1	10
		Total:	995

Figure 6: Jackson’s Sternguard

Introduction Battle

Leading up to the highly anticipated Campaign, we had a games day to relearn the old edition and get a feel for what lies ahead as we roll dice. We assembled at Griffon’s Lair in Pittsburgh for a day of revelry and woah… everyone was howling as crazed Dreadnoughts attacked friendly forces, daemons spawned out of nowhere, and Necrons just would. Not. Die!

We rolled up book missions and first impressions exceeded expectations. We had to dig out old templates and the all-powerful Scatter Die and it was just so refreshing to take our old forces to battle once again.

Figure 7: Evan and Jason’s forces locked in combat

Figure 8: Ron’s Keeper of Secrets battling a tide of David’s Berzerkers!

Figure 9: Ron’s daemons striking into Evan’s backfield

Concluding Remarks

Diving back into 5th Edition 40k has been a joy to put it plainly, and we are just getting started! We all look forward to taking you on our journey as we play through the Road To Glory Campaign restoring our collections along the way. Stay tuned for Mission 1 – The Spoils of War! Best of luck to all six of our players and let’s have some fun.