As it happens, the Warhammer Kill Team starter set I've spent the last couple of weeks raving about is not this edition's starter set at all – and now I look like an idiot. That's because Games Workshop has just revealed an actual beginner box for the game's current version, and it's a throwback to the 1990s.
Bearing the very catchy name of 'Kill Team Starter Set,' it contains two hard-to-find squads, introductory rules, tokens, dice, and MDF terrain. Yes, that's right; we're partying like it's 1993 with push-fit scenery, just like in second edition Warhammer 40K. This is apparently to make setting up a session as easy as possible.
I respect that. Being able to play over the course of a lunchtime is a luxury normally reserved for the best board games, not wargaming. Similarly, the two factions included here – Angels of Death Space Marines and Plague Marines – aren't easy to get your hands on anymore. Indeed, they were released via the blind-box 'Heroes' range, so getting a full set of either would set you back a fair bit.
I'm psyched at the accessible MDF terrain as well, because lowering barriers to entry is always a good thing. Actually, I'd be keen on Games Workshop making a full range of this stuff.
But if I'm honest, I can't help feeling a mite disappointed.
Don't get me wrong – I love the principle. I appreciate that this makes sense from a cost/outlay perspective for Games Workshop as well, because they haven't had to shell out time or resource on new models. I also suspect it'll be at least a little more affordable thanks to that slimline rulebook and 2D scenery. In other words, it should be the easiest and cheapest way to try what I'd argue is one of Warhammer's best games.
Part of me is left cold, though.
It isn't even that I'm not the target audience. Rather, I'm not sure these groups are the best introduction to the Kill Team theme. Astartes and Chaos Space Marines are always a welcome sight, and the models are rather handsome. Yet this game revolves around the most elite, characterful operatives, not rank-and-file troops you'd find on a 40K battlefield (even if the 'rank-and-file' in this instance are super soldiers), You could tell me this is a 40K starter set and I'd believe you. Actually, I have a starter set from years ago with a very similar setup. Part of me had hoped for a unit like the Tempestus Aquilons from Kill Team: Hivestorm or the new space hobbits revealed for Warhammer Day instead. The last Kill Team Starter Set is another good example, thanks to its heavy metal Death Korps of Krieg and Ork Kommandos.
The recycled Kill Teams and nameless, boilerplate setting ( assume, at least – it doesn't seem to tie in to the latest season) makes it seem less… I don't know, thoughtful? I've come to associate Kill Team with incredibly thematic design where you're stepping into a grand narrative, and I'm not sure this will give newcomers the same experience that made me fall in love with this game.
Hey, maybe I'm wrong – I certainly hope so. But in the meantime, I'd probably point beginners to Hivestorm instead. While it's on the pricier end of the spectrum, splitting it with a pal will get you hugely evocative Kill Teams, the full rules, special scenarios for a new warzone, 3D plastic terrain that can populate your Warhammer 40K games as well, tokens, dice, and accessories to enhance play. The value here is impressive, and you can currently get Hivestorm for less – it's $192.50 at Amazon rather than the full MSRP of $230 right now. Meanwhile, UK fans can pay £123.99 at Zatu instead of £145.
Discounts like this should start to pour in soon as part of 2024's Black Friday board game deals. New to the hobby and want to know what you should look out for? Check in with which Warhammer 40K starter sets are right for you.
