Warhammer 40,000 11th Edition Launches June 2026, Featuring Armageddon Starter Set

Games Workshop dropped a bombshell at Adepticon Preview 2026: Warhammer 40,000 11th Edition is coming in June, anchored by a Blood Angels versus Orks cinematic trailer and a launch box that Games Workshop itself is calling the biggest starter set in the game's history.

The lore picks up after the events of *Armageddon: The Return of Yarrick*, with Imperial forces in dire straits. The Ork vanguard led by Wazdakka Gutsmek has already made landfall, and Ghazghkull's main force isn't far behind. A desperate plea from Commissar Yarrick triggers Operation Imperator, a coalition of Space Marine Chapters surging toward the beleaguered planet. The Blood Angels have a long history of defending Armageddon, and they're back alongside strike forces from the Salamanders, Ultramarines, Space Wolves, and a dozen more.

The cinematic trailer and launch box set were revealed to a packed live audience at Adepticon 2026. If there was any lingering doubt about which factions would headline the box, it was settled the moment GW event staff started handing out green Orks and red Blood Angels t-shirts to attendees at the live preview. The crowd's reaction reportedly included raucous shouts of both "Waaagh!" and "For the Emperor!"

The action centers on a brand new boxed set called Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon, which GW describes as the biggest Warhammer 40,000 launch set yet, packed with new miniatures for the Space Marines and Orks. The full contents haven't been shown yet, but GW said the trailer itself provides hints about what's on the way. Of the confirmed models so far, GW showed off one new Intercessor and one new Ork Boy, establishing a refreshed visual direction for both ranges. On the Orks side, a long-awaited revision of the Ork Boyz kit is included, a set that has needed an update for a considerable amount of time.

The nostalgia hook is deliberate. The box's cover art calls back to 2nd Edition's launch box, which also featured Space Marines and Orks. The Space Marine models in the Armageddon launch box are advertised as Blood Angels, but there won't be anything sculpted onto the models that marks them as sons of Sanguinius. With dozens of Space Marine Chapters engaged on Armageddon, the implication is clear: paint them however you like.

On the rules side, GW was careful to frame 11th Edition as an evolution rather than a reset. The new core rule set is an evolution of the existing rules rather than a complete overhaul, with GW promising the changes will make every battle "more narrative" and "more balanced," aiming to re-unify the two pools of narrative and tournament players. Your current codexes and faction rules will still be valid, and this applies to the rules in recent campaign supplements, including the upcoming *Armageddon: Return of Yarrick*.

The detachment system, however, is getting a significant rework. Detachments are changing to give players more flexibility in army building. You can now sometimes select multiple Detachments for a bespoke set of army abilities, and at the launch of the new edition there will be over 70 new and updated Detachments. Existing Detachments from current codexes will still work too. The AdeptiCon crowd's loudest reaction came when it was confirmed that the much-maligned circular objective markers are being replaced by actual terrain pieces, things like bunkers, relics, and shrines.

GW will be taking sneaky looks inside the box over the next few weeks, culminating in a live unboxing show. There is no big picture lore development attached to the reveal. In January, GW set up the long-awaited meeting of loyalist primarchs Roboute Guilliman and Lion El'Jonson via the *500 Worlds: Titus* campaign book, but neither appears as part of the 11th Edition reveal. For now, Armageddon burns, Yarrick holds the line, and Wazdakka's Speedwaaagh! is just getting warmed up.