Golden Demon Returns to AdeptiCon 2026 in Milwaukee This March

The Slayer Sword is being decided today. Golden Demon 2026 closed its entry books Saturday at noon after three days of registration at AdeptiCon's Baird Center in Milwaukee, and the ceremony awarding the competition's highest honor runs 4:00 to 5:00 PM this afternoon in the Baird Ballroom.

The competition ran Thursday March 26 through Saturday March 28, with the registration desk open from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Thursday and Friday, then 9:00 AM to noon on Saturday. That Saturday cutoff was firm: every entry had to be handed in in person by the artist, no proxies accepted. Entrants also needed a valid AdeptiCon ticket with the Golden Demon add-on purchase cleared before anything crossed the judging table.

Nine categories covered the full breadth of Games Workshop's range. Warhammer 40,000 entries competed across three sub-tracks: Single Miniature, Unit/Kill Team, and Large Miniature or Vehicle. Separate category lines ran for Age of Sigmar, Horus Heresy, The Old World, and Blood Bowl, with specialty tracks for Diorama, Open, and Youngbloods rounding out the slate.

The judging ladder climbs from Notable and Commended through Bronze, Silver, and Gold at the category level. Gold winners don't just take home a trophy; they enter consideration for the Slayer Sword, the overall best-in-show that sits at the top of competitive miniature painting.

Entry requirements were unambiguous on two points: only Games Workshop miniatures qualified, though conversions and kitbashes were explicitly permitted, and every piece had to be fully hand-painted with a hard prohibition on AI-assisted work.

For painters whose entry didn't reach the finalist cut, collection opens at 1:00 PM today at the Baird Center, 400 W Wisconsin Ave. Finalists and above pick up at 5:00 PM, after the ceremony ends. Community repositories like The Golden Demon Compendium will be tracking who walks out with the hardware.