Games Workshop Group (often abbreviated as GW) is a British manufacturer of

miniature wargame Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming in which military units are represented by miniature physical models on a model battlefield. The use of physical models to represent military units is in contrast to other tabletop wargames that use ...

s, based in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

, England. Its best-known products are ''

Warhammer Age of Sigmar ''Warhammer Age of Sigmar'' is a miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop that simulates battles between armies by using miniature figurines. Games are typically played on a relatively flat surface such as a dining table, bespoke gaming ta ...

'' and ''

Warhammer 40,000 ''Warhammer 40,000'' is a miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop. It is the most popular miniature wargame in the world, and is particularly popular in the United Kingdom. The first edition of the rulebook was published in September 1987 ...

''. Founded in 1975 by John Peake,

Ian Livingstone Sir Ian Livingstone (born 29 December 1949) is an English fantasy author and entrepreneur. Along with Steve Jackson, he is the co-founder of a series of role-playing gamebooks, ''Fighting Fantasy'', and the author of many books within that s ...

and Steve Jackson, Games Workshop was originally a manufacturer of wooden boards for games including

backgammon Backgammon is a two-player board game played with counters and dice on tables boards. It is the most widespread Western member of the large family of tables games, whose ancestors date back nearly 5,000 years to the regions of Mesopotamia an ...

mancala The mancala games are a family of two-player turn-based strategy board games played with small stones, beans, or seeds and rows of holes or pits in the earth, a board or other playing surface. The objective is usually to capture all or som ...

nine men's morris Nine men's Morris is a strategy board game for two players dating at least to the Roman Empire. The game is also known as nine-man morris, mill, mills, the mill game, merels, merrills, merelles, marelles, morelles, and ninepenny marl in English. ...

and Go. It later became an importer of the U.S. role-playing game ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (T ...

'', and then a publisher of wargames and role-playing games in its own right, expanding from a bedroom mail-order company in the process. It expanded into Europe, the US, Canada, and Australia in the early 1990s. All UK-based operations were relocated to the current headquarters in

Lenton, Nottingham Lenton is an area of the City of Nottingham, in the county of Nottinghamshire, England. Most of Lenton is situated in the electoral ward of 'Dunkirk and Lenton', with a small part in 'Wollaton East and Lenton Park'. Originally a separate agricu ...

in 1997. It started promoting games associated with ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy in 2001. It also owns Forge World (which makes complementary specialist resin miniatures and conversion kits). It is listed on the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pa ...

and is a constituent of the

FTSE 250 Index The FTSE 250 Index ( "Footsie") is a capitalisation-weighted index consisting of the 101st to the 350th largest companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. Promotions and demotions to and from the index occur quarterly in March, June, Septemb ...

History

Early years

Founded in 1975 at 15 Bolingbroke Road, London by John Peake,

and Steve Jackson (not to be confused with U.S. game designer Steve Jackson), Games Workshop was originally a manufacturer of wooden boards for games including

, and Go. It later became an importer of the U.S. role-playing game ''

'', and then a publisher of wargames and role-playing games in its own right, expanding from a bedroom mail-order company in the process. In order to promote their business and postal games, create a games club, and provide an alternative source for games news, the newsletter ''

Owl and Weasel ''Owl and Weasel'' was a newsletter for board gamers, role-playing gamers and wargamers, published in London, England, by Games Workshop. A total of 25 issues were published from February 1975 until April 1977; it was edited by Steve Jackson a ...

'' was founded in February 1975. This was superseded in June 1977 by ''White Dwarf''. From the outset, there was a clear, stated interest in print regarding "progressive games", including

computer gaming A personal computer game, also known as a PC game or computer game, is a type of video game played on a personal computer (PC) rather than a video game console or arcade machine. Its defining characteristics include: more diverse and user-dete ...

, which led to the departure of John Peake in early 1976, who preferred "traditional games" (such as backgammon). The loss of Peake also meant the loss of the fledgling company's main source of income. However, having successfully obtained official distribution rights to ''

'' and other TSR products in the UK, and maintaining a high profile by running games conventions, the business grew rapidly. It opened its first shop in April 1978. In early 1979 Games Workshop provided the funding to found

Citadel Miniatures Citadel Miniatures Limited is a company which produces metal, resin and plastic miniature figures for tabletop wargames such as ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' and ''Warhammer 40,000''. In the past Citadel Miniatures was a separate company but i ...

Newark-on-Trent Newark-on-Trent or Newark () is a market town and civil parish in the Newark and Sherwood district in Nottinghamshire, England. It is on the River Trent, and was historically a major inland port. The A1 road bypasses the town on the line of t ...

. Citadel would produce the metal miniatures used in its role-playing games and tabletop wargames. The "Citadel" name became synonymous with Games Workshop Miniatures, and continues to be a

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from oth ...

ed brand name used in association with them long after the Citadel company was absorbed into Games Workshop. For a time

Gary Gygax Ernest Gary Gygax ( ; July 27, 1938 – March 4, 2008) was an American game designer and author best known for co-creating the pioneering role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') with Dave Arneson. In the 1960s, Gygax created an ...

promoted the idea of

TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had been ...

merging with Games Workshop, until Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone backed out. The company's publishing arm also released UK reprints of American RPGs such as '' Call of Cthulhu,'' ''

Runequest ''RuneQuest'' (commonly abbreviated as RQ) is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game originally designed by Steve Perrin, Ray Turney, Steve Henderson, and Warren James, and set in Greg Stafford's mythical world of Glorantha. It was first publis ...

,'' ''

Traveller Traveler(s), traveller(s), The Traveler(s), or The Traveller(s) may refer to: People Generic terms *One engaged in travel *Explorer, one who searches for the purpose of discovery of information or resources *Nomad, a member of a community withou ...

'' and ''

Middle-earth Role Playing ''Middle-earth Role Playing'' (MERP) is a 1984 role-playing game based on J. R. R. Tolkien ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Hobbit'' under license from Tolkien Enterprises. Iron Crown Enterprises (I.C.E.) published the game until they lost ...

'', which were expensive to import (having previously done so for ''

'' since 1977). In 1984 Games Workshop ceased distributing its products in the U.S.A. through hobby games distributors and opened its Games Workshop (U.S.) office. Games Workshop (U.S.), and Games Workshop in general, grew significantly in the late 1980s, with over 250 employees on the payroll by 1990. Games Workshop headquarters - geograph

Refocus

Tom Kirby became General Manager in 1986. Following a management buyout by him and

Bryan Ansell Bryan Ansell is a British role-playing and war game designer. In 1985, he became managing director of Games Workshop, and bought Games Workshop from Steve Jackson (UK game designer), Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone.miniature wargames A miniature is a small-scale reproduction, or a small version. It may refer to: * Portrait miniature, a miniature portrait painting * Miniature art, miniature painting, engraving and sculpture * Miniature (chess), a masterful chess game or probl ...

Warhammer Fantasy Battle ''Warhammer'' (formerly ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' or just ''Warhammer Fantasy'') is a tabletop miniature wargame with a medieval fantasy theme. The game was created by Bryan Ansell, Richard Halliwell, and Rick Priestley; it was publishe ...

'' (WFB) and ''

'' (WH40k), their most lucrative lines. The retail chain refocused on a younger, more family-oriented market. The change of direction was a great success and the company enjoyed growing profits, but the more commercial direction of the company made it lose some of its old fan base. A breakaway group of two company employees published ''

Fantasy Warlord ''Fantasy Warlord'' is a fantasy miniatures game released in 1990 by Folio Works. It was written by Ian Bailey (author), Ian Bailey and Gary Chalk (illustrator), Gary Chalk who also did the illustrations. The game was designed and published by tw ...

'' in competition with Games Workshop, but the new company met with little success and closed in 1993. Games Workshop expanded in Europe, the US, Canada and Australia, opening new branches and organising events in each new commercial territory. Having been acquired by private equity firm

ECI Partners ECI Partners is a growth focused private equity group based in the UK and the US, first established by the Bank of England in 1976. ECI typically invests up to £100m of equity (as part of an initial transaction) in businesses valued at up to ...

the company was floated on the

in October 1994. In October 1997 all UK-based operations were relocated to the current headquarters in

. The company diversified by acquiring Sabretooth Games (card games), creating the

Black Library The Black Library is a division of Games Workshop (formerly a part of BL Publishing) which is devoted to publishing novels and audiobooks (and has previously produced art books, background books, and graphic novels) set in the '' Warhammer Fanta ...

(literature), and working with

THQ THQ Inc. was an American video game company based in Agoura Hills, California. It was founded in April 1990 by Jack Friedman, originally in Calabasas, and became a public company the following year through a reverse merger takeover. Initia ...

(computer games). In late 2009 Games Workshop issued a succession of ''

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...

'' orders against various Internet sites it accused of violating its ''

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

'' generating anger and disappointment from its fan community. On 16 May 2011, Maelstrom Games announced that Games Workshop had revised the terms and conditions of their trade agreement with independent stockists in the UK. The new terms and conditions restricted the sale of all Games Workshop products to within the

European Economic Area The European Economic Area (EEA) was established via the ''Agreement on the European Economic Area'', an international agreement which enables the extension of the European Union's single market to member states of the European Free Trade Ass ...

. On 16 June 2013, WarGameStore, a UK-based retailer of Games Workshop products since 2003, announced further changes to Games Workshop's trade agreement with UK-based independent stockists. Tom Kirby stepped down in 2017. In July 2021, Games Workshop made changes to their IP guidelines, adopting a "zero tolerance" stance towards fan-made games, videos and animations, drawing criticism from fans. The presence of Games Workshop in the East Midlands has led the region to become the centre of the wargames industry in the UK, known as the

lead belt The Southeast Missouri Lead District, commonly called the Lead Belt, is a lead mining district in the southeastern part of Missouri. Counties in the Lead Belt include Saint Francois, Crawford, Dent, Iron, Madison, Reynolds, and Washi ...

with numerous other companies founded by former employees.

Operations

Licensing

Alongside the UK publishing rights to several American role-playing games in the 1980s (including

The Call of Cthulhu "The Call of Cthulhu" is a short story by American writer H. P. Lovecraft. Written in the summer of 1926, it was first published in the pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in February 1928. Inspiration The first seed of the story's first chapter '' ...

and

,) Games Workshop also secured the rights to produce miniatures or games for several classic British science fiction properties such as '' Doctor Who'' and several characters from 2000 AD including

Rogue Trooper ''Rogue Trooper'' is a science fiction strip in the British comic book, comic ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'', created by Gerry Finley-Day and Dave Gibbons in 1981. It portrays the adventures of a "Supersoldier, Genetic Infantryman" named Rogue ...

and

Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of '' 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology comic. He is the magazine's longest-running c ...

. Alongside the rights to reprint

Iron Crown Enterprises Iron Crown Enterprises (ICE) is a publishing company that has produced role playing, board, miniature, and collectible card games since 1980. Many of ICE's better-known products were related to J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, but the '' ...

, Citadel Miniatures acquired the rights to produce 28 mm miniatures based on ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 c ...

'' and ''

The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ''N ...

''. In conjunction with the promotion of ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy in 2001, Games Workshop acquired the rights to produce a skirmish wargame and miniatures, using the movies' production and publicity art, and information provided by the original novels by

J.R.R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works '' The Hobbit'' and '' The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Ra ...

. A 25 mm scale was used. The rights to produce a role-playing game using the films' art and both the book and the movies' plots and characters were sold to another firm,

Decipher, Inc. Decipher, Inc. is an American gaming company based in Norfolk, Virginia, US. They began with three puzzles called "Decipher" then moved on to party games and '' Pente'' sets, but since 1994 produced collectible card and role-playing games. Thei ...

Games Workshop also produced a ''

Battle of Five Armies ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ''N ...

'' game based on a culminating episode in ''

'', using 10 mm scale. On 10 February 2011 Warner Bros. Consumer Products announced that it had extended its six-year agreement with Games Workshop, continuing its exclusive, worldwide rights to produce tabletop games based on "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings." Games Workshop announced plans to expand their offerings of battle-games and model soldiers, and to continue to develop and increase offerings based on J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy books.

Group divisions

Games Workshop has expanded into several divisions/companies producing products related to the ''Warhammer'' universe. * Forge World makes specialist resin miniatures and conversion kits for Games Workshop's titles as well as its Specialist Games range. Forge World was also responsible for the Warhammer Historical line of historical wargames rules, including ''

Warhammer Ancient Battles ''Warhammer Ancient Battles'' (often referred to as "WAB" and sometimes Warhammer Historical) is a ruleset for miniatures wargames produced by Games Workshop's Warhammer Historical Wargames imprint. It is a rulebook for historical wargames devel ...

'', all of which were previously published by as a component of Black Library. In August 2018, Forge World announced substantial changes to its U.S. pricing model in exchange for faster and less costly shipping services to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. *

BL Publishing BL Publishing was a division of Games Workshop, and was split into three sections: * The Black Library publishes novels, art books, background books and graphic novels set in the Warhammer Fantasy world and the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Black Li ...

was the fiction, board game and roleplaying game publishing arm of Games Workshop. They comprised several separate imprints;

, Black Flame and

Solaris Books Solaris Books is an imprint which focuses on publishing science fiction, fantasy and dark fantasy novels and anthologies. The range includes titles by both established and new authors. The range is owned by Rebellion Developments and distribu ...

. Warp Artefacts used to produce merchandise based on Games Workshop's intellectual property; they are now folded into BLP as BL Merchandise. The company has hard-to-reproduce, unique

, and a good export record. Sales slowed around 1999-2000 due to supply chain issues, but quickly rebounded a few years later.

Miniature games

Games Workshop previously produced miniature figures via an associated, originally independent, company called

while the main company concentrated on retail. The distinction between the two blurred after Games Workshop stores ceased to sell retail products by other manufacturers, and Citadel was effectively merged back into Games Workshop.

Current core games

The following games were in production : * ''

'' (3rd Edition, 2021) * ''

'' (9th Edition, 2020) * '' Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game'' (2018) * ''Warhammer 30,000 - The Horus Heresy'' (2022)

Other games

The following games were in production : * ''Adeptus Titanicus'' - A new version of the

original Originality is the aspect of created or invented works that distinguish them from reproductions, clones, forgeries, or substantially derivative works. The modern idea of originality is according to some scholars tied to Romanticism, by a notion th ...

game (released 2019). * ''

Aeronautica Imperialis ''Aeronautica Imperialis'' is the name of two tabletop miniature wargames set within the '' Warhammer 40,000'' universe. The games depict aerial warfare between different factions in the setting, either as one-off battles or as part of a larger n ...

'' - Aerial combat game, updated from the Forge World version (released 2019). * ''

Blood Bowl ''Blood Bowl'' is a miniatures board game created by Jervis Johnson for the British games company Games Workshop as a parody of American football. The game was first released in 1986 and has been re-released in new editions since. ''Blood ...

'' - an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

style game using fantasy creatures. Originally released in 1986, it was revived in 2016 with a "Second Season Edition" in 2020. * ''

Necromunda ''Necromunda'' is a skirmish tabletop war game produced by Games Workshop since 1995. It has been relaunched as ''Necromunda: Underhive'' in 2017. In ''Necromunda'', players control rival gangs battling each other in the Underhive, a place of ...

'' - a skirmish game set on a hive world which pits gangs of humans against each other, using modified 2nd edition ''Warhammer 40,000'' rules, which are more detailed than newer editions and more suitable for skirmish games. Originally printed in 1995, it was revived at the end of 2017. * ''Warcry'' - A skirmish game set in the Age of Sigmar universe (new edition released 2022). * ''Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team'' - A skirmish version of Warhammer 40,000, using the same factions and units (new edition released 2021). *''Warhammer: Underworlds'' - A game set in the Age of Sigmar setting combining miniature gaming and deck-building (released 2017).

Out of print

''Warhammer Age of Sigmar'' universe

* ''Warhammer Quest: Shadows over Hammerhal'' (released 2017) - dungeon crawl game in the Warhammer: Age of Sigmar universe. Despite sharing the

Warhammer Quest ''Warhammer Quest'' is a fantasy dungeon, role-playing adventure board game released by Games Workshop in 1995 as the successor to ''HeroQuest'' and ''Advanced HeroQuest'', set in its fictional ''Warhammer Fantasy'' world. The game focuses upo ...

brand, rules and setting are completely different from the original game.

''Warhammer Fantasy'' universe

* ''

Advanced HeroQuest ''Advanced HeroQuest'' is a board game published by Games Workshop in 1989, a sequel to ''HeroQuest''. Description The original ''HeroQuest'' was an adventure board game created in 1989 by Milton Bradley in conjunction with the British company G ...

'' * ''Kerrunch'' - a simplified version of Blood Bowl. * ''

Man O' War Man o' War (March 29, 1917 – November 1, 1947) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is widely regarded as the greatest racehorse of all time. Several sports publications, including ''The Blood-Horse'', ''Sports Illustrated'', ESPN, and t ...

'' - a game of naval combat in a fantasy world. Two expansions were also released, ''Sea of Blood'' and ''Plague Fleet''. * ''

Mighty Warriors ''Mighty Warriors'' is an adventure board game created by Games Workshop in 1991 and set in the ''Warhammer Fantasy'' fictional universe. The core rules allowed players to explore dungeons, which were randomly generated, and fight monsters, also ...

'' - a simplified version of Advanced HeroQuest. More of a light Skirmish game using AHQ minis set in a dungeon. ** ''Dragon Masters'' - a board game which played like a simplified version of Mighty Empires, in which players take the role of competing Elven princes in Ulthuan. * ''

Warhammer Fantasy Battles ''Warhammer'' (formerly ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' or just ''Warhammer Fantasy'') is a tabletop miniature wargame with a medieval fantasy theme. The game was created by Bryan Ansell, Richard Halliwell, and Rick Priestley; it was publis ...

'' - a game of mass fantasy battles **''

Terror of the Lichemaster ''Terror of the Lichemaster'' is a board game published by Games Workshop in 1986 as a mini-campaign for ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle''. Games Workshop also offered related metal miniatures that could be purchased for use with the scenarios. Game ...

'', a set of three linked scenarios using ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' setting and rules. * ''

'' - a game of dungeon exploration and questing, effectively an updated version of Advanced HeroQuest * ''Warhammer Quest: Silver Tower'' (released 2016) - dungeon crawl game in the ''

'' universe. Despite sharing the ''Warhammer Quest'' brand, rules and settings are completely different from the original game.

''Warhammer 40,000'' universe

* ''

Adeptus Titanicus ''Adeptus Titanicus'' is a tabletop science fiction mecha game published by Games Workshop (GW) in 1988 for use with the rules of ''Warhammer 40,000''. Several revised and expanded edition were released from 1994 to 2018. Description ''Adeptus T ...

'' (The original game in the Epic series, which dealt solely with combat between Titans.) **''Codex Titanicus'' (Expanded rules for the above, adding rules for Ork and Eldar titans along with expanded rules for Eldar, Orks, Imperial Guard infantry and vehicles.) * ''

Advanced Space Crusade ''Space Crusade'' is an adventure board game produced by Milton Bradley together with Games Workshop and was first made in 1990. It was produced in the UK and available in some other countries including Finland, Ireland, France, Spain, Denmark, ...

'' * ''Assassinorum: Execution Force'' * ''Bommerz over da Sulphur River'' (Board game using Epic miniatures.) * ''Blackstone Fortress'' - a

dungeon crawl A dungeon crawl is a type of scenario in fantasy role-playing games in which heroes navigate a labyrinth environment (a " dungeon"), battling various monsters, avoiding traps, solving puzzles, and looting any treasure they may find. Video games ...

game set in the ''

'' universe. * '' Epic 40,000'' (The precursor to Epic Armageddon, although some people still use the terms interchangeably, alongside Epic.) * ''

Gorkamorka ''Gorkamorka'' is a tabletop skirmish wargame produced by Games Workshop. It is set on the desert world of Angelis in the Warhammer 40,000 setting, and prominently features Orks. The player takes control of a group of warriors with the object ...

'' (A vehicle skirmish game set on a desert world, revolving principally around rival Ork factions.) ** ''Digganob'' (An expansion for Gorkamorka, adding rebel gretchin and feral human factions.) * ''Lost Patrol'' * ''Shadow War: Armageddon'' - an updated version of the

skirmish ruleset, using the current ''Warhammer 40,000'' factions in place of Necromunda's human gangs (released 2017). * ''

Space Fleet ''Space Fleet'' is a board game for 2-4 players, published in 1991 by Games Workshop and designed by Jervis Johnson and Andy Jones. The game is set in the Games Workshop fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe and is centered on combat between sp ...

'' (A simple spaceship combat game, later greatly expanded via White Dwarf magazine with material intended for the aborted 'Battleship Gothic', itself later relaunched as Battlefleet Gothic.) * ''

Space Hulk ''Space Hulk'' is a board game for two players by Games Workshop. It was released in 1989. The game is set in the fictional universe of ''Warhammer 40,000''. In the game, a "space hulk" is a mass of ancient, derelict space ships, asteroids, and ...

'' (Four editions were published; expansions are listed below.) ** '' Deathwing'' (An expansion boxed set adding new Terminator weapons and a new campaign.) ** '' Genestealer'' (An expansion boxed set adding rules for Genestealer hybrids and psychic powers.) ** ''Space Hulk Campaigns'' (An expansion book released in both soft and hard-cover collecting reprinted four campaigns previously printed in White Dwarf.) * ''Space Marine'' (The original Epic-scale game concerning troops and infantry, 1st edition was compatible with Adeptus Titanicus, 2nd with Titan Legions) * '' Titan Legions'' (An update of Adeptus Titanicus, effectively an expansion of Space Marine 2nd edition.) * ''

Tyranid Attack ''Space Crusade'' is an adventure board game produced by Milton Bradley together with Games Workshop and was first made in 1990. It was produced in the UK and available in some other countries including Finland, Ireland, France, Spain, D ...

'' (An introductory game reusing the boards from Advanced Space Crusade.) * ''

Ultra Marines ''Ultra Marines'' is one of a series of 4 "introductory" board games released by Games Workshop in 1991 (The other three being Space Fleet, Kerrunch and Mighty Warriors). Set in the ''Warhammer 40,000 ''Warhammer 40,000'' is a miniature wa ...

'' (An introductory game reusing the boards from Space Hulk.)

Specialist Games

These games are aimed at the "veteran" gamers. These are gamers who are more experienced in the core games produced by Games Workshop. This is because the rules and the complexity of tactics inherent in the systems are often more in-depth than the core games. This also includes games that aren't necessarily more complex, but have a smaller more specialised target audience. *Warhammer Fantasy universe ** ''

Dreadfleet Dread Fleet is a limited edition game from Games Workshop. This cooperative game is playable by at least two players and up to a maximum of 10 players. The game was released on 1 October 2011 and is set within the Warhammer Fantasy universe. One ...

'' - a naval combat style board game (limited stock) released on 1 October 2011 ** '' Mighty Empires'' - a hexagonal tile based campaign supplement ** '' Mordheim'' - a

skirmish Skirmishers are light infantry or light cavalry soldiers deployed as a vanguard, flank guard or rearguard to screen a tactical position or a larger body of friendly troops from enemy advances. They are usually deployed in a skirmish line, an ...

game. An expansion called ''Empire in Flames'' was also released ** ''

Warmaster ''Warmaster'' is a ruleset for tabletop wargames written by Rick Priestley, published by Specialist Games (a division of Games Workshop), and set in the ''Warhammer Fantasy'' setting. It is different from ''Warhammer Fantasy Battles'' in bot ...

'' - a game for fighting larger battles with smaller (10 mm) miniatures * Warhammer 40,000 universe ** ''

Battlefleet Gothic ''Battlefleet Gothic'' is a miniature wargame that was produced by Games Workshop from 1999 to 2013. It simulates combat between large spaceships. It was developed primarily by Andy Chambers. Although this miniature wargame is no longer supported ...

'' - a game which depicts battles between fleets of space ships. ** '' Epic'' - a game for fighting larger battles with smaller (6 mm) miniatures (known as ''Epic Armageddon'' in its current edition). ** ''

Inquisitor An inquisitor was an official (usually with judicial or investigative functions) in an inquisition – an organization or program intended to eliminate heresy and other things contrary to the doctrine or teachings of the Catholic faith. Lit ...

'' - a skirmish/role play game using larger (54 mm) more detailed miniatures and intended for older gamers. ** ''

'' - a two-player game of Space Marines versus Tyranids released in 1989. *The Lord of the Rings universe ** '' Great Battles of Middle Earth: The Battle of Five Armies'' - a game for fighting larger battles with smaller (10 mm) miniatures. The game was named after (and initially centred on) the Battle of Five Armies, one of the later scenes in J.R.R. Tolkien's ''

''. ** The Strategy Battle Game was expanded with new supplements. In 2009 an expansion for the game entitled 'War of the Ring' was released, allowing players to recreate large scale battles in Middle-Earth. In December 2012 Games Workshop released the first wave of models based on the movie The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

Forge World

* ''

'' - a game based around Epic scale aircraft combat

Licensed games

These games were not made by Games Workshop but used similar-style models, artwork and concepts. These games were made by mainstream toy companies and were available in toy and department stores. * '' Battle Masters'' (published by

Milton Bradley Milton Bradley (November 8, 1836 – May 30, 1911) was an American business magnate, game pioneer and publisher, credited by many with launching the board game industry, with his eponymous enterprise, which was purchased by Hasbro in 1984, and ...

) * ''

HeroQuest ''HeroQuest'', sometimes written as ''Hero Quest'', is an adventure board game created by Milton Bradley in conjunction with the British company Games Workshop. The game was loosely based around archetypes of fantasy role-playing games: the g ...

'' (published by Milton Bradley) ** ''

Kellar's Keep ''Kellar's Keep'' is an anthology of sequentially linked scenarios jointly published by Milton Bradley and Games Workshop in 1991 for the fantasy adventure board game ''HeroQuest ''. Description In ''HeroQuest: Kellar's Keep'', the players underg ...

'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''Return of the Witch Lord'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''Against the Ogre Horde'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''Wizards of Morcar'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''The Frozen Horror'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''The Magic of the Mirror'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''The Dark Company'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''HeroQuest Adventure Design Kit'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) **''Adventure Design Booklet'' (Expansion for Hero Quest) * ''

Space Crusade ''Space Crusade'' is an adventure board game produced by Milton Bradley together with Games Workshop and was first made in 1990. It was produced in the UK and available in some other countries including Finland, Ireland, France, Spain, Denmark, ...

'' (published by Milton Bradley) ** ''Mission Dreadnought'' (Expansion for Space Crusade) ** ''Eldar Attack'' (Expansion for Space Crusade)

Citadel Paints

Games Workshop produces a line of acrylic paints for painting miniatures, under the Citadel name. At the end of March 2012 the company announced a new range of over 145 colours made in the UK, which has since been expanded and reorganised. These paints are broken down into different types, each with a different intended purpose. This allows painters to follow painting guides produced by Games Workshop and create custom paint schemes more easily as each step in Games Workshop's 'Eavy Metal painting style has a paint type designed to assist in application. The 'Eavy Metal style is named after the 'Eavy Metal Team, Games Workshop's studio painting team, and is characterised by simple highlights and shadows with strong edge-highlights on all edges, creating a look that is clean, easily and quickly reproducible across many models, and defines details well on a gaming table. The current Citadel paint types are: * ''Base'': Pigment dense for high opacity. Intended to offer good coverage over a primer layer for a strong foundation of colour. * ''Layer'': Thinner and less pigment dense than Base paints for slight translucency. Intended to be built up over multiple layers to create smooth transitions of colour or value. * ''Shade'': Acrylic ink based "paints" that are thin and flow easily into recessed details. Intended to be applied as a wash to add depth and shadow. * ''Dry'': Thick, paste-consistency paints with maximum pigment concentration. Intended to aid in drybrushing to achieve easy highlighting of models. * ''Air'': A selection of colours from the Base and Layer lines that are thinned down, as well as some "Clear" paints. Intended to be used through an airbrush. * ''Technical'': A range of non-standard "paints" to achieve additional effects. These include gloss paints for slime or wet blood, semi-transparent glossy paints for gemstone effects, weathering effect paints, spectral effect paints, textured pastes for gaming bases, acrylic mediums, and acrylic varnishes. Intended for adding finishing details to models. * ''Spray'': Spray-can paints that come in black, white, and a small selection of colours from the Base line. Intended as a primer layer and to add a foundation coat of colour quickly. * ''Contrast'': Thinned paint and medium mixtures that flow into recesses similar to Shade paints, but also stain the raised details creating a blended fade from highlight to shadow. Intended to be applied over specialised Spray paints to give an effect similar to using a Base, then Layer, then Shade, but in one coat of paint to speed up the painting process. The line includes both metallic and non-metallic paints in the Base, Layer, Edge, Dry, and Air lines, with non-metallic paints having a matte/light-satin finish. Contrast paints were added to the Games Workshop paint range in 2019, promoted as speeding up the painting process for players. The existing range of paints was also expanded and reorganised when Contrast was released, and branding changed from ''Citadel'' to ''Citadel Colour''. The previously available Glaze line of paints was discontinued, replaced with the introduction of the Air Clear paints, the previously available Edge line of paints were combined into the Layer line, with some colours also being renamed, and the previously separate Texture line of paints was combined into the Technical line. The Citadel line also includes various other hobby supplies, including basing materials such as static grass and tufts, as well as modelling tools, such as paint brushes, glues, and hobby clippers.

Role-playing games

Several of the miniatures games (e.g. Inquisitor) involve a role-playing element; however, Games Workshop has, in the past, published

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

s set within the Warhammer universe. ''

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay ''Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay'' or ''Warhammer Fantasy Role-Play'' (abbreviated to ''WFRP'' or ''WHFRP'') is a role-playing game set in the ''Warhammer Fantasy'' setting, published by Games Workshop or its licensees. The first edition of ''WFR ...

'' was first published in 1986; a second edition appeared in 2005 published by

Black Industries Black Industries was the role-playing game imprint of BL Publishing, the publishing arm of Games Workshop. It was announced on January 28, 2008 that it would cease operations after its products currently scheduled for release are published. Hist ...

, part of GW's fiction imprint

. In 2018 a 4th edition was published by

Cubicle 7 Cubicle 7 Entertainment Ltd is an Irish games company that creates and publishes tabletop games. Best known for its ''Doctor Who'' and ''Lord of the Rings'' games, Cubicle 7 offers titles covering a range of licensed and self-developed propertie ...

who will also re-publish the iconic Enemy Within campaign in 2020, adapted for the new edition by the original writers. '' Warhammer 40,000: Dark Heresy'', the first of three proposed role-playing games set in the ''Warhammer 40,000'' universe, was released in late January 2008 and sold out almost immediately. In September 2008 production was transferred to

Fantasy Flight Games Fantasy Flight Games (FFG) is a game company based in Roseville, Minnesota, United States, that creates and publishes role-playing, board, card, and dice games. As of 2014, it is a subsidiary of Asmodée Éditions. History Fantasy Flight Publi ...

.Press release on Games Workshops properties
from Fantasy Flight Games website Fantasy Flight Games subsequently published four other roleplaying games; ''

Rogue Trader A rogue trader is person who makes financial trades in an unauthorised manner. Rogue trader may also refer to: * ''Rogue Trader'' (book), the autobiography of (and later a movie about) Nick Leeson, the man who caused the collapse of Barings Bank * ...

'', '' Deathwatch'', '' Black Crusade'', and '' Only War'', set in the same ''Warhammer 40,000'' universe and employing similar mechanics. In 2009 Fantasy Flight also released a new edition of ''Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay''.

Out of print

* ''

Golden Heroes ''Golden Heroes'' is a superhero role-playing game that was originally written and published on an amateur basis in 1982. Games Workshop then published a more complete version in 1984. It was written by Simon Burley and Peter Haines and was illu ...

'' - a superhero roleplaying game, published in 1984 after initially being published on an amateur basis. * '' Judge Dredd: The Role-Playing Game'' - published under licence in 1985. * ''

Stormbringer Stormbringer is a magic sword featured in a number of fantasy stories by the author Michael Moorcock. It is described as a huge, black sword covered with strange runes, created by the forces of Chaos with its own will. It is wielded by the doo ...

'' - the third edition of the game, published under license from

Chaosium Chaosium Inc. is a publisher of tabletop role-playing games established by Greg Stafford in 1975. Chaosium's major titles include ''Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game), Call of Cthulhu'', based on the horror fiction stories of H. P. Lovecraft'', R ...

in 1987. * ''

RuneQuest ''RuneQuest'' (commonly abbreviated as RQ) is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game originally designed by Steve Perrin, Ray Turney, Steve Henderson, and Warren James, and set in Greg Stafford's mythical world of Glorantha. It was first publis ...

'' - GW published the second edition under license from

, and the third edition under license from

Avalon Hill Avalon Hill Games Inc. is a game company that publishes wargames and strategic board games. It has also published miniature wargaming rules, role-playing games and sports simulations. It is a subsidiary of Hasbro, and operates under the compan ...

in the UK. * '' Call of Cthulhu'' - GW published the second and third edition rules in the UK, along with their own

adventures An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

and

supplements Supplement or Supplemental may refer to: Health and medicine * Bodybuilding supplement * Dietary supplement * Herbal supplement Media * Supplement (publishing), a publication that has a role secondary to that of another preceding or concurre ...

. * ''

'' - GW published ''Classic Traveller'' rules, supplements and adventures under licence from

Game Designers' Workshop Game Designers' Workshop (GDW) was a wargame and role-playing game publisher from 1973 to 1996. Many of their games are now carried by other publishers. History Game Designers' Workshop was originally established June 22, 1973. The founding m ...

from 1979. They published their own

supplement Supplement or Supplemental may refer to: Health and medicine * Bodybuilding supplement * Dietary supplement * Herbal supplement Media * Supplement (publishing), a publication that has a role secondary to that of another preceding or concurre ...

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

and starship sheets in 1981. * ''

In Search of New Gods ''In Search of New Gods'' is an adventure for fantasy role-playing games published by Games Workshop in 1986. Plot summary ''In Search of New Gods'' is an adventure scenario intended for player characters of levels 4-7, in which they must find ...

'' - a roleplaying game adventure, published in 1986

Out of print, republished

The following games are technically out of print in their original editions, but have had new versions (in some cases heavily revised and in some cases with additional game expansions) published by Fantasy Flight Games. * '' Dark Heresy'' - an RPG based in the WH40k Universe where players control one member of an Inquisitor's retinue. * ''

Boxed games

Games Workshop had a strong history in boardgames development, alongside the miniatures and RPGs. Several may have had roleplaying elements, or had miniatures included or produced. ''

Spacefarers ''Spacefarers'' is a 1981 board game published by Games Workshop. Gameplay ''Spacefarers'' is a set of miniature rules designed specifically to be used with the ''Spacefarers'' figures from Citadel Miniatures. Reception William A. Barton rev ...

'' released in 1981 was one of these board games with a set of miniature rules especially designed for use with

' figures. Licensing for an undisclosed proportion of Games Workshop's back catalogue of board games was transferred to Fantasy Flight Games as part of the same transaction which included Black Library's Role Playing Games. Fantasy Flight has republished revised editions of a number of these games. At the time of the announcement, Black Library had only one boardgame in print, the 4th Edition of "

Talisman A talisman is any object ascribed with religious or magical powers intended to protect, heal, or harm individuals for whom they are made. Talismans are often portable objects carried on someone in a variety of ways, but can also be installed perm ...

". Fantasy Flight subsequently released revised editions of Talisman and of other former Games Workshop boardgames. On September 9, 2016, Fantasy Flight Games announced the termination of its licensing agreement with Games Workshop. Games Workshop currently has several standalone board games in production. Being standalone games, they do not depend on the rules or components of the current core game systems of ''Warhammer Age of Sigmar'' or ''Warhammer 40,000''. All of these include miniatures that require some assembly, and those miniatures can be used with the core game systems. * '' Assassinorum: Execution Force'' * ''

''" * ''Deathwatch: Overkill'' * ''Gorechosen'' * ''Lost Patrol'' * ''Stormcloud Attack'' * ''The Horus Heresy: Betrayal at Calth'' * ''The Horus Heresy: Burning of Prospero'' * ''Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team'' * ''Warhammer Quest: Silver Tower''

Out of print

* ''

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...

'' (not to be confused with the expansion Warhammer 40,000 Apocalypse) * ''

Battlecars ''Battlecars'' is a simple wargame based upon the '' Mad Max'' genre of a post-apocalyptic world dominated by aggressive, warring gangs. It was first published by Games Workshop in 1983 and the game designers were Gary Chalk and Ian Livingstone ...

'' * ''

Battle for Armageddon Battle for Armageddon is a strategic boardgame produced by Games Workshop. Unlike the many Games Workshop games that use miniatures, this is a more traditional counter and board game. The game represents the Second War for Armageddon, a war in th ...

'' ** ''Chaos Attack'' (Expansion for ''Battle for Armageddon'') * ''

Block Mania Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of '' 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology comic. He is the magazine's longest-running c ...

'' - 2000AD Judge Dredd setting ** ''

Mega-Mania ''Mega-Mania'' is a board game published by Games Workshop in 1987 as an expansion for ''Block Mania'' based on the ''Judge Dredd'' comics. Gameplay Based on the two-player game ''Block Mania'' set in the ''Judge Dredd'' universe, ''Mega-Mani ...

'' (Expansion for ''Block Mania'') * '' Blood Royale'' (multiplayer, battle and resource game of medieval Europe) * ''

Calamity Calamity may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Calamity'' (album), by The Curtains (2008) * Calamity (board game), board game released by Games Workshop in 1983 * ''Calamity'' (film), 1982 Czechoslovak film * ''Calamity, a Childhood o ...

'' * '' Chainsaw Warrior'' (solo play game) * ''

Cosmic Encounter ''Cosmic Encounter'' is a science fiction–themed strategy board game designed by "Future Pastimes" (collectively, Peter Olotka, Jack Kittredge and Bill Eberle, with Bill Norton) and originally published by Eon Games in 1977. In it, each player ...

'' (under licence) * '' Curse of the Mummy's Tomb'' * ''

Dark Future ''Dark Future'' is a post-apocalyptic miniatures wargame published by Games Workshop in 1988. Description ''Dark Future'' is a '' Mad Max''-like game of vehicular combat set in an alternate world. Setting The game is set in a fictional alterna ...

'' (similar to

Car Wars ''Car Wars'' is a vehicle combat simulation game developed by Steve Jackson Games. It was first published in 1980. Players control armed vehicles in a post-apocalyptic future. Game play In ''Car Wars'', players assume control of one or more cars ...

) * '' Doctor Who: The Game of Time & Space'' (1980) * ''Doom of the Eldar'' * ''Gobbo's Banquet'' * ''

'' - a fantasy board game published in 1989 in collaboration with

* ''Hungry Troll and the Gobbos'' * ''

'' (see 2000 AD character

for background) * ''Kings and Things'' (under licence) * ''Oi! Dat's My Leg!'' * ''Quirks'' (under licence) * ''

Railway Rivals ''Railway Rivals'' is a railroad-themed board game that was originally published by Rostherne Games in 1973. A German language edition was released by Bütehorn in 1979, and a mass-market edition in the UK by Games Workshop in 1985. The game inv ...

'' (under licence) * ''

'' (see 2000 AD character

for background) * ''Squelch!'' * ''

'' * '' Super Power'' * ''Trolls in the Pantry'' * ''Valley of the Four Winds'' * ''Warlock'' * ''

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain ''The Warlock of Firetop Mountain'' is a single-player adventure gamebook written by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, and illustrated by Russ Nicholson. Originally published by Puffin Books in 1982, the title is the first gamebook in the ...

'' (based on the

Fighting Fantasy ''Fighting Fantasy'' is a series of single-player role-playing gamebooks created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone. The first volume in the series was published in paperback by Puffin in 1982. The series distinguished itself by mixing Choo ...

game book)

Out of print, republished

The following games are technically out of print in their original editions, but have had new versions (in all cases heavily revised and in some cases with additional game expansions) published by Fantasy Flight Games. * '' Chaos Marauders'' - A boardgame of 'orcish mayhem'. * ''

Dungeonquest ''Dungeonquest'' (sometimes known as ''Dungeon Quest'') is a fantasy adventure board game originally published in Sweden in 1985 by Alga AB as ''Drakborgen'', and subsequently published in English by Games Workshop in 1987. Description The o ...

'' * '' Fury of Dracula'' * ''Horus Heresy'' * ''

'' * '' Warrior Knights''

Video games

Games Workshop licensed or produced several

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as the ''ZX81 Colou ...

games in the early years, none of which were based in the usual Warhammer settings: *''

'' (1983) based on the original boardgame *''Argent Warrior'' (1984) Illustrated adventure *''

'' (1984) 2 player racing game written in

BASIC BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...

*''

Chaos Chaos or CHAOS may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional elements * Chaos (''Kinnikuman'') * Chaos (''Sailor Moon'') * Chaos (''Sesame Park'') * Chaos (''Warhammer'') * Chaos, in ''Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy'' * Cha ...

'' (1985) multiplayer turn based "board" game, written by

Julian Gollop Julian Gollop is a British computer game designer and producer specialising in strategy games, who has founded and led Mythos Games, Codo Technologies and Snapshot Games. He is known best as the "man who gave birth to the '' X-COM'' franchise. ...

*'' D-Day'' (1985) based on the Normandy Landings *''

'' (1991) based on the MB board game *''Journey's End'' (1985) text adventure *''Key Of Hope, The'' (1985) text adventure *''Ringworld'' (1984) text adventure *''Runestone'' (1986) text adventure *''Talisman'' (1985) multiplayer turn based "board" game *'' Tower Of Despair'' (1985) text adventure, also released for the Commodore 64. Many

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

s have been produced by third parties based on the Warhammer universes owned by the firm. These include (miniature game they are based on is included in parentheses after the game name): * ''

'' (Space Crusade) and 1 sequel for the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore International, Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and sign ...

. * ''

Dark Omen ''Warhammer: Dark Omen'' is a fantasy real-time tactical wargame based upon the ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' table-top game and figurines, and is the sequel to the 1995 game '' Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat''. Developed by Mindscape, in co ...

'' ( RTT game based on ''Warhammer Fantasy Battles'') * '' Shadow of the Horned Rat'' ( RTT game based on ''Warhammer Fantasy Battles'') * ''

'' (Space Hulk) * '' Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels'' (Space Hulk) * '' Final Liberation'' (Epic 40,000 - Space Marines, Imperial Guard, Orks) * '' Fire Warrior'' (''Warhammer 40,000'' - Tau) * ''

'' (1995), published by MicroLeague * ''

Dawn of War ''Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War'' is a military science fiction real-time strategy video game developed by Relic Entertainment and based on Games Workshop's tabletop wargame ''Warhammer 40,000''. It was released by THQ on September 20, 2004 in No ...

'' (Warhammer 40,000 - Space Marines, Orks, Eldar, Chaos Space Marines) ** '' Winter Assault'' (Add-on) (Armies same as Dawn of War, also: Imperial Guard) ** '' Dark Crusade'' (Stand-Alone) (Same as Winter Assault, also: Necrons and Tau) ** '' Soulstorm'' (Stand-Alone) (Same as Dark Crusade, also: Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar) * '' Chaos Gate'' (Warhammer 40,000 - Space Marines, Forces of Chaos) * ''

Rites of War ''Warhammer 40,000: Rites of War'' is a turn-based strategy game based on the Panzer General 2 engine by SSI. It is set in the fictional ''Warhammer 40,000'' universe. It was produced by Games Workshop in 1999, and concerns the invasion of a Ty ...

'' (Warhammer 40,000 - Eldar, Space Marines, Tyranid) * ''

Mark of Chaos ''Warhammer: Mark of Chaos'' is a real-time tactics game set in the ''Warhammer Fantasy (setting), Warhammer'' universe. It was developed by Black Hole Entertainment and co-published by Namco Bandai Games in the US and Koch Media#Deep Silver, Dee ...

'' (Warhammer - The Empire, High Elves, Hordes of Chaos, Skaven, Orcs and Goblins, Dwarves) ** '' Battle March'' (Add-on) (Armies same as Mark of Chaos, also: Dark Elves) * '' Squad Command'', a turn based strategy game which focuses on a squad of Ultramarines fighting Chaos Space Marines. * '' Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning'', a Warhammer MMORPG by

Mythic Entertainment Mythic Entertainment (formerly BioWare Mythic, EA Mythic, Inc., and Interworld Productions) was a video game developer in Fairfax, Virginia that was most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game '' ...

. * '' Dawn of War II'', a sequel to Dawn of War focusing less on base-building and more on squad tactics. (''Warhammer 40,000'' - Space Marines, Orks, Eldar, Tyranids) ** '' Chaos Rising'' (Stand-Alone) (Armies same as Dawn of War II, also: Chaos Space Marines) ** ''

Retribution Retribution may refer to: * Punishment * Retributive justice, a theory of justice ** Divine retribution, retributive justice in a religious context * Revenge, a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance Film and televis ...

'' (Stand-Alone) (Same as Chaos Rising, also: Imperial Guard) *'' Blood Bowl (2009)''/'' Blood Bowl 2'' (Blood Bowl) *''

Space Marine The space marine, an archetype of military science fiction, is a kind of soldier who operates in outer space or on alien worlds. Historical marines fulfill multiple roles: ship defence, boarding actions, landing parties, and general-purpose hi ...

'', an Action/RPG game featuring the Ultramarines Space Marines. * '' Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes'', a Warhammer

MOBA Multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) is a subgenre of strategy video games in which two teams of players compete against each other on a predefined battlefield. Each player controls a single character with a set of distinctive abilities that im ...

game developed by

BioWare Mythic Mythic Entertainment (formerly BioWare Mythic, EA Mythic, Inc., and Interworld Productions) was a video game developer in Fairfax, Virginia that was most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game ...

(cancelled). * '' Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade'', a

massively multiplayer online A massively multiplayer online game (MMOG or more commonly MMO) is an online video game with a large number of players, often hundreds or thousands, on the same server. MMOs usually feature a huge, persistent open world, although there are ...

third-person shooter Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot ...

game developed by

Behaviour Interactive Behaviour Interactive Inc. is a Canadian video game development studio specializing in the production of 2D and 3D action/adventure games for home video game consoles, handheld game consoles, PCs and mobile. Based in Montreal, Canada, the comp ...

. * '' Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide'', a

co-op A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

-focused

first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the pl ...

action video game An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform g ...

developed by

Fatshark Fatshark is a Swedish video game development studio based in Stockholm, Sweden. The studio is located in Stockholm. Fatshark acted as a subcontractor for several AAA titles for PC and consoles, and the studio also develops its own games. In Ja ...

. Set in the End Times, players can team up with three other players to fight against the Skaven, a race of rodent-like monstrous creatures, in the city of Ubersreik * '' Warhammer: Vermintide 2'', a first-person

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

developed by

. Set in the

Warhammer Fantasy Warhammer Fantasy can mean: * ''Warhammer Fantasy'' (setting), the fictional setting of the various games and media * ''Warhammer'' (game), a table-top fantasy miniature wargame, and origin of the franchise *''Warhammer Age of Sigmar'', the success ...

fictional universe, players battle

cooperatively Cooperation (written as co-operation in British English) is the process of groups of organisms working or acting together for common, mutual, or some underlying benefit, as opposed to working in competition for selfish benefit. Many ani ...

against a Chaos army of nurgle called Rotbloods and the Skaven of Clan Fester. This alliance is called the Pactsworn and they function as the main enemy in the game. * '' Total War: Warhammer'', a

Real-time Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...

and

Turn-based Strategy A turn-based strategy (TBS) game is a strategy game (usually some type of wargame, especially a strategic-level wargame) where players take turns when playing. This is distinguished from real-time strategy (RTS), in which all players play si ...

game, part of SEGA and Creative Assembly's

Total War Series ''Total War'' is a series of strategy games developed by British developer Creative Assembly for personal computers. They combine turn-based strategy and resource management with real-time tactical control of battles. Rather uniquely for real-t ...

(Warhammer Fantasy - Empire, Vampire Counts, Dwarves, Orcs and Chaos playable) * '' Total War: Warhammer II'' is a turn-based strategy and real-time tactics video game developed by

Creative Assembly The Creative Assembly Limited (trade name: Creative Assembly) is a British video game developer based in Horsham, founded in 1987 by Tim Ansell. In its early years, the company worked on porting games to MS-DOS from Amiga and ZX Spectrum platfor ...

and published by Sega. It is part of the Total War series and the sequel to 2016's Total War: Warhammer. (Warhammer Fantasy - High Elves, Skaven, Dark Elves, Lizardmen playable in the core game. All factions from the first game and the second are playable in a combined super-map for free if one bought the first game and any of the DLC races and content bought from either game is added as well.) * '' Total War: Warhammer III'', capstone game in the triology. (Warhammer Fantasy - Monogods of Chaos, Cathay, Ogre Kingdoms, Daemons of Chaos, Kislev playable in core game. Owners of previous two games can play a combined map of all 3 games including all previously playable factions) * '' Space Hulk: Deathwing'', a First-Person Shooter game, developed by Streum On Studio and published by Focus Home Interactive. * '' Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III'' (2017) a real-time strategy video game with

influences released by Relic Entertainment and Sega, in partnership with Games Workshop. * '' Warhammer 40,000: Darktide'' (2022) a first-person

action-adventure The action-adventure genre is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Typically, pure adventure games have situational problems for the player to solve to complete a story ...

under development by

Tactical Card Games (TCGs)

Games Workshop released a Trading Card Game in 2017 based on the Age of Sigmar universe, Age of Sigmar: Champions. Champions featured several unique features, such as a companion online version of the game with collections being synced across both paper and digital versions. Compared to other, more traditional TCGs (Such as Magic: The Gathering) Champions also included a rotation system as a resource management and lanes for play - similar to MOBA style games such as League of Legends.

Events

There were yearly

Games Day Games Day is a yearly run gaming convention sponsored by Games Workshop. It was started in 1975, after another games convention scheduled for August that year cancelled. Games Workshop decided to fill the resulting gap by running a gaming day of ...

events held by Games Workshop which included the

Golden Demon The Golden Demon competition is the miniature painting and modelling competition run by Games Workshop, and is held during the Games Day Event in the UK, United States and other countries. History The Golden Demon competition is a miniatures pa ...

painting competition, news stands, sales stands, and tables to play on. In 2014 it was replaced by 'Warhammer Fest', similar but with additions such as demonstration pods and seminars.

Worldwide campaigns

Games Workshop has run numerous ''Worldwide Campaigns'' for its three core game systems. In each campaign, players are invited to submit the results of games played within a certain time period.

Battle Games in Middle-earth ''Battle Games in Middle-earth'' (BGiME) was a fortnightly magazine published by De Agostini in conjunction with British games manufacturer Games Workshop. Unlike ''White Dwarf'', which generally features content regarding Games Workshop's flagshi ...

, Issue 56 The collation of these results provides a result to the campaign's scenario, and sometime leads to modifications in the games. Each Warhammer campaign has had a new codex published with the rules for special characters or "incomplete" army lists. Below are listed the Games Workshop Worldwide Campaigns (with the campaign's fictional universe setting in parentheses): * 1995 - The Battle of Ichar IV (''Warhammer 40,000'') * 2000 - Third War for Armageddon (''Warhammer 40,000'') * 2001 - Dark Shadows (Warhammer) * 2003 - Eye of Terror (Warhammer 40,000) * 2004 - Storm of Chaos (Warhammer) * 2005 - The War of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game) * 2006 - The Fall of Medusa V (Warhammer 40,000) * 2007 - The Nemesis Crown (Warhammer) * 2011 - Scourge of the Storm (Warhammer) These Campaigns were run to promote its miniature wargames, and attracted interest in the hobby, particularly at gaming clubs, Hobby Centres and independent stockists. Forums for the community were created for each campaign (in addition to those on the main site), as a place to "swap tactics, plan where to post your results, or just chat about how the campaign is going." In some cases special miniatures were released to coincide with the campaigns; the promotional " Gimli on Dead

Uruk-hai An Orc (or Ork) is a fictional humanoid monster like a goblin. Orcs were brought into modern usage by the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien, especially ''The Lord of the Rings''. In Tolkien's works, Orcs are a brutish, aggressive, ugly, a ...

" miniature, for example, was available only through the campaign roadshows or ordering online. As a whole these events have been successful; one, for example, was deemed "a fantastic rollercoaster", with thousands of registered participants.

Magazines

Games Workshop's has published the

White Dwarf A white dwarf is a stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very dense: its mass is comparable to the Sun's, while its volume is comparable to the Earth's. A white dwarf's faint luminosity comes ...

magazine since 1977 and has over 400 issues. Games Workshop also published Fanatic Magazine in support of their Specialist Games range. After the cancellation of Fanatic Magazine, an electronic version, known as "Fanatic Online" was published from Games Workshop's Specialist Games website. For a brief period in the mid-1980s GW took over publication of the

magazine

Warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver" and was given special applicat ...

from

Puffin Books Puffin Books is a longstanding children's imprint of the British publishers Penguin Books. Since the 1960s, it has been among the largest publishers of children's books in the UK and much of the English-speaking world. The imprint now belongs ...

who had produced the first 5 issues. The magazine turned into a general introductory gaming magazine but was discontinued after issue 13. There was also a fortnightly series called "

Battle Games in Middle Earth ''Battle Games in Middle-earth'' (BGiME) was a fortnightly magazine published by De Agostini in conjunction with British games manufacturer Games Workshop. Unlike '' White Dwarf'', which generally features content regarding Games Workshop's flagsh ...

", which came with a single or several free Lord of the Rings SBG miniatures. Though the miniatures were made by Games Workshop, the magazine itself was written by SGS (part of Games Workshop) and published by

De Agostini De Agostini S.p.A. is an Italian holding company that coordinates the strategic operating companies De Agostini Editore, De Agostini Communications, IGT, and DeA Capital, and makes financial investments, among which the main investment is a ...

''Spots the Space Marine'' trademark complaint

Games Workshop issued a trademark complaint against retailer

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...

, specifically relating to the novel ''Spots the Space Marine'', claiming it violated their European 'space marine' trademark. Commentators such as

Cory Doctorow Cory Efram Doctorow (; born July 17, 1971) is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who served as co-editor of the blog '' Boing Boing''. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent o ...

and digital rights group the

Electronic Frontier Foundation The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is an international non-profit digital rights group based in San Francisco, California. The foundation was formed on 10 July 1990 by John Gilmore, John Perry Barlow and Mitch Kapor to promote Internet ...

, questioned the right of Games Workshop to trademark the term. On 8 February 2013, Spots the Space Marine reappeared on Amazon. Games Workshop has issued no further legal action.

Other media

Games Workshop illustrators also published artbooks covering parts of their commissioned work for the company. These include

Adrian Smith Adrian Frederick "H" Smith (born 27 February 1957) is an English guitarist best known as a member of heavy metal band Iron Maiden, for whom he also writes songs and performs backing vocals both live and in the studio. Smith grew up in London ...

, Ian Miller and

John Blanche John Blanche is a British fantasy and science fiction illustrator and modeler who worked on Games Workshop's ''White Dwarf'' magazine, ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'', ''Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay'' and ''Warhammer 40,000'' games and was the art d ...

Short fiction

From 1997 to 2005 Black Library published ''

INFERNO! ''Inferno!'' (originally ''Carnage'') was a bi-monthly magazine published from 1997 to 2004 by Games Workshop's publishing division, Black Library, which was initially just the name of the team brought together to work on ''Inferno!''.

'', a magazine of short stories, artwork, and other features set in the various fictional universes of Games Workshop, and regularly featuring that of Warhammer 40,000. Since 2010 Black Library has produced a monthly eBook called "Hammer and Bolter" with the focus on short stories set in the different Games Workshop universes.

Novels

Comics and graphic novels

Music

In November 1987 the English thrash metal band

Sabbat The Wheel of the Year is an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by many modern pagans, consisting of the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them. While names for each festival vary among dive ...

released "Blood for the Blood God" as a free flexi-disc with the issue #95 of White Dwarf, Games Workshop's in-house publication. In the late 1980s the death metal band

Bolt Thrower Bolt Thrower were an English death metal band from Coventry. They formed in 1986 and released their first album with Vinyl Solution in 1988. The band then shifted to a new record label, Earache Records, soon becoming one of the best selling ba ...

wrote lyrics dedicated to the Warhammer 40,000 universe and used 40k artwork on the cover of their second album, '' Realm of Chaos''. In the early 1990s Games Workshop created its own short-lived record company, Warhammer Records. The only band under this label was

D-Rok D-Rok was a British hard rock band notable for its Warhammer 40,000-influenced lyrics. At the beginning of the 1990s, Games Workshop began to diversify its activity, including combining its game world with music. As well as collaborating with ...

(who published one album, ''Oblivion'', in 1991). A fragment of D-Rok's song "Get Out of My Way" was used in the computer game "Space Hulk", published by

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted th ...

in 1992. In the early 2000s the German label Art of Perception produced a 12 part soundtrack vinyl series followed by three CD compilations. The task for the artists involved in this project was to conduct a theme for a species from the Warhammer 40.000 universe. In 2009 the Singaporean

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...

band,

Deus Ex Machina ''Deus ex machina'' ( , ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; English "god out of the machine") is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function ...

released

I, Human ''I, Human'' is the second full-length album by Singaporean death metal band, Deus Ex Machina, and the first to feature a permanent vocalist, giving it more uniformity in contrast to '' The War Inside'', which had a different singer for each tra ...

, which makes numerous references to the Warhammer 40,000 universe, particularly the Adeptus Mechanicus faction. In 2007 and 2015 the German death metal band

Debauchery Debauchery may refer to: *Corruption *Libertinism *Lust *Binge drinking * Currency debasement *Debauchery (band), a German death metal band See also *''Sodom, or the Quintessence of Debauchery'', a 1684 closet drama. *LGBT rights in Kuwait, whic ...

released several songs about the Chaos God Khorne, "Praise the Blood God", "True To The Skull Throne (And Bound To Kill)", and "Blood For The Blood God".

Film

Games Workshop announced that Exile Studios would produce a CGI movie based upon the ''Bloodquest'' graphic novel; a trailer was released, but the project was discontinued and Exile Studios disbanded. For the 25th Anniversary Games Day, Games Workshop released in 1996 (for limited sale) a short movie entitled ''Inquisitor'', using clips and footage that was created as a pitch to G.W. for a film deal. There were also trailers for two other films, "Hive Infestation" and "Blood for the Blood God". "Hive Infestation" pitted Space Wolf terminators against a genestealer cult infestation of a hive world. "Blood for the Blood God" was the second trailer released, and portrayed orks and Dark Angel marines fighting along with an inquisitor, much in the style of the Epic 40,000 video game cut scenes, but little information was given on this short film aside from a shot of a berserker of Khorne (available in YouTube but flagged by Games Workshop, removing the movie). Another one was Damnatus, a German fan film developed over four years. Games Workshop announced in July 2007 that they would not give permission for the film to be released because of issues between Anglo-American

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...

and Continental European

Droit d'auteur "Author's rights" is a term frequently used in connection with laws about intellectual property. The term is considered as a direct translation of the French term ''droit d’auteur'' (also German ''Urheberrecht''). It was first (1777) promoted ...

. In 2010 Games Workshop with

Codex Pictures Codex Pictures Limited was a British film production company. Codex Pictures was a private limited company founded in 2008 and dissolved in 2013. Codex Pictures produced '' Ultramarines'' under licence from Games Workshop, working in association ...

released a 70-minute downloadable film called '' Ultramarines''. The screenplay was written by

author

Dan Abnett Dan Abnett (born 12 October 1965) is an English comic book writer and novelist. He has been a frequent collaborator with fellow writer Andy Lanning, and is known for his work on books for both Marvel Comics, and their UK imprint, Marvel UK, sinc ...

Terence Stamp Terence Henry Stamp (born 22 July 1938) is an English actor. Stamp is known for his sophisticated villain roles. He was named by '' Empire Magazine'' as one of the 100 Sexiest Film Stars of All Time in 1995. He has received various accolades in ...

Sean Pertwee Sean Carl Roland Pertwee''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' (born 4 June 1964) is an English actor, narrator and producer with an extensive career since the 1980s in television and cinema productions. He is known ...

and

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in ...

head the cast of voice actors. On 5 August 2021, Games Workshop launched Warhammer Plus, a subscription service that provides access to exclusive Warhammer-themed shows and animations, as well as other content such as classic issues of the ''White Dwarf'' magazine and exclusive miniatures.

References

External links

Official Games Workshop website
{{Authority control Board game publishing companies Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange Role-playing game publishing companies British companies established in 1975 Gaming miniatures companies Companies based in Nottingham Publishing companies established in 1975 Artists' acrylic paint brands 1975 establishments in England 1994 initial public offerings