Wandering Adventures

Warhammer 40K 11th Edition: What's Changing and What It Means for Your Army If you've been anywhere near the Warhammer community over the last few months, you already know that 11th Edition is coming. Games Workshop officially pulled back the curtain at AdeptiCon 2026 and the hobby world has been buzzing ever since. With a June 2026 release date and the Armageddon launch box already revealed, there's a lot to unpack. Here's everything you need to know — what's changing, what's staying the same, and what it means for your collection. This is Not a Hard Reset The first thing to know, and probably the most important for anyone with a fully painted army sitting on their shelf — 11th Edition is not a ground-up rebuild. Games Workshop has been very clear that this is an evolution of 10th Edition rather than a replacement. Think of it less like moving from 8th to 9th, and more like a thorough tune-up of a system that was already working but had some rough edges that needed sanding down. Your existing codexes remain valid. All current 10th Edition faction rules, recent campaign supplements, and upcoming books carry over into 11th. So if you've been investing in your army over the last couple of years, that investment isn't going anywhere. That's genuinely good news and worth emphasising — you don't need to panic buy or rebuild from scratch. The Lore — Armageddon Burns Again The narrative picks up directly after the events of Armageddon: The Return of Yarrick — the final major 10th Edition expansion. Wazdakka Gutsmek, the legendary Kult of Speed Ork warlord who according to lore has never once left the saddle of his enormous warbike Big Revva, has launched a devastating Speedwaaagh! and his vanguard force has already made landfall on Armageddon before the Imperium can properly respond. Commissar Sebastian Yarrick — battered, outnumbered, and somehow still alive — sends a desperate plea for aid out into the stars. The response is Operation Imperator, a coalition of Space Marine Chapters led by the Blood Angels with support from Salamanders, Ultramarines, Space Wolves and more, surging toward the War World for what GW themselves describe as a good old fashioned Space Marine Crusade. Looming over everything is Ghazghkull Thraka. Wazdakka is just the vanguard — Ghazghkull's main Waaagh! is still coming, and all signs point to him becoming a major focus as 11th Edition develops. Classic 40K, and exactly the kind of stakes-driven storytelling that got most of us hooked on this universe in the first place. The Armageddon Launch Box The launch box is called Armageddon and by all accounts it's the biggest starter set in the history of the game. It pits Space Marines against Orks — two of the most iconic factions in 40K — in a narrative set on one of the grimdark universe's most legendary battlefields. The box contains 23 push-fit Space Marines and 38 push-fit Orks across 12 brand new kits. Notably the Space Marine models include build variations that let you use some of the older helmet options alongside the new Primaris true-scale proportions — a small detail that will mean a lot to players who want their new models to feel continuous with their existing collection. On the Ork side there are some seriously exciting new kits including the Big Mek Dakkarig which looks absolutely mental on the table. The box also includes the core rules, datasheets for all included units, and two mission decks — the Dominatus Armageddon Campaign Mission Deck for narrative play and the Chapter Approved 2026-2027 Mission Deck for matched play competitive games. It's a genuinely complete package for new players and a compelling buy for veterans who want the new models and rules in one box. What's Actually Changing in the Rules This is where it gets interesting. GW has been fairly open about the direction of 11th and the theme is clear — clean up the clunk, not reinvent the wheel. Here are the key changes confirmed so far: Stratagem stacking is gone. This was one of the most complained-about aspects of competitive 10th Edition play. The ability to layer multiple stratagems on top of each other created some genuinely unfun interactions and made the game harder to learn for newer players. Removing it should make games flow faster and feel fairer. Combat has been tightened. Disembarking from transports now allows you to get straight into melee — albeit with a battleshock penalty. This is a quality of life change that makes transport vehicles more tactically interesting and removes some of the frustration of getting out of a Rhino only to stand there doing nothing. Objective markers are out, terrain is in. Instead of the standard circular objective markers, 11th Edition moves to actual terrain pieces as objectives. This is a significant shift that makes the battlefield feel more alive and creates more interesting tactical decisions around holding and contesting objectives. Detachments are getting a major overhaul. Over 70 new and updated Detachments are coming at launch, and crucially you'll now be able to combine multiple Detachments to create a more bespoke set of army abilities. Want to run bikes and terminators together in a way that actually makes sense? 11th Edition lets you do that. This is a huge deal for players who felt constrained by the single Detachment system in 10th. Narrative and matched play are being brought closer together. From the start GW has framed 11th as bridging the gap between competitive and narrative gaming — two communities that have sometimes felt at odds. The new mission structure and campaign deck system seem designed with this in mind. What Does This Mean for Your Army? For most players the answer is — not much changes immediately, and that's a good thing. Your models are still valid. Your codex still works. The core of how you play your faction remains intact. Where you'll notice the difference is on the tabletop in how games feel. Cleaner combat, no stratagem stacking, more dynamic objectives — these are changes that should make individual games more enjoyable regardless of what army you play. The new Detachment system is probably the biggest gameplay shift and it opens up army building options that simply didn't exist before. For new players this is actually a fantastic time to get into the hobby. The Armageddon box is the best starting point the game has ever had, the rules are being streamlined, and the community is buzzing with excitement. If you've been on the fence about starting a Warhammer 40K army, June 2026 is the moment to jump in. Getting Ready for 11th Edition If you want to get ahead of the new edition, the best thing you can do right now is get your existing army painted and ready. 11th Edition is going to bring a wave of new players into the hobby and there's no better time to have a fully painted force on the table to welcome them. We stock the full range of Warhammer 40K at Wandering Adventures in Vaughan — from the latest 10th Edition kits that will carry straight into 11th, to paints, brushes, and everything you need to get your army ready. Browse our Warhammer 40K range at wanderingadventures.ca/collections/40k or come into the store and we'll help you figure out the best place to start. 11th Edition is shaping up to be one of the most exciting releases in recent memory. The changes are smart, the models look incredible, and the Armageddon setting is dripping with lore. We can't wait.

If you've been in the hobby for any length of time, you've probably wrestled with metallics. Getting a gold that actually looks like gold, a silver that catches light the right way, or a copper that doesn't just look like brown with glitter — it's harder than it sounds. I've been painting miniatures for 20 years and metallics have always been one of those things that separates a decent paint job from a truly striking one. When Vallejo released their True Metallic Metal range, I paid attention. After putting it through its paces across fantasy models, sci-fi armies, and detailed scenic bases, here's my take.   What is Vallejo TMM? True Metallic Metal — TMM for short — is a painting technique where you use actual metallic paints to simulate the look of metal, as opposed to NMM (Non-Metallic Metal) where you fake the effect using regular colours and careful shading. Vallejo's TMM range is built specifically around this technique, with paints formulated to give you the most realistic metallic finish possible straight from the bottle. The range covers all the bases — silvers, golds, coppers, and a solid selection of coloured metallics that open up a lot of creative options. What makes it stand out from generic metallic paints is the particle size and the consistency. The metallic particles are fine enough that you get a smooth, reflective finish without that chunky glitter look that plagues cheaper metallic paints. Built to Work Together One thing that sets the TMM range apart from just buying random metallic paints is that it's designed as a cohesive system. Each metal colour comes in a base, shade, and light version — so if you pick up Ruby Red, there's a darker shade version for recesses and a lighter highlight version to bring up the brightest points. You don't have to figure out what to mix or which other paint to grab for highlights — the range does the thinking for you. For painters who are newer to metallics especially, this takes a lot of the guesswork out and helps you get results that look intentional and polished rather than accidental. It's the kind of thoughtful design that makes a range genuinely enjoyable to paint with rather than just technically good. The Silvers and Grays Sterling Silver is the workhorse of the range and it earns that title. It's smooth, it covers well, and it has a clean cold tone that works perfectly for blades, armour plating, and anything that needs to look like actual steel. I've used it on everything from Space Marine power swords to fantasy knight armour and it consistently delivers. If you're doing any kind of zenithal highlighting or OSL on metallic surfaces, the grays in the TMM range give you a level of control that's hard to achieve with standard metallics. You can build up subtle gradients that make armour look like it's actually reflecting light rather than just being painted silver. The Golds and Coppers This is where the range really shines for me. Ancient Copper is one of my favourite paints in any range right now — it has a warmth and depth to it that makes it perfect for aged bronze, weathered armour trims, and any kind of antique metal effect. Pair it with a dark wash and some selective highlights and you've got metal that looks like it's been through a hundred battles. The gold options are similarly impressive. Whether you're painting ornate Space Marine shoulder pads, Age of Sigmar Stormcast armour, or intricate fantasy jewellery, the golds in the TMM range have a richness that cheaper metallics just can't match. They layer beautifully too — you can go from a dark base tone up to bright highlight gold without losing that metallic quality. The Coloured Metallics This is the part of the range I wasn't expecting to love as much as I do. Sapphyre Blue, Celestial Violet, Amber Green, Ruby Red — these are coloured metallics that open up options most hobbyists haven't explored. Imagine a deep violet metallic cloak on a chaos sorcerer, or a green-tinged corroded bronze effect on an ancient relic. These paints make effects like that achievable without advanced techniques. The Ruby Red and Forged Red in particular are worth calling out. Getting reds to look metallic is notoriously tricky — they either go too orange under highlighting or lose their vibrancy. The TMM reds nail it, giving you that deep blood-metal look that works brilliantly on World Eaters, Khorne daemons, or any army with a red armour scheme. How Does it Compare to Citadel and AK Metallics? Citadel metallics are fine for tabletop standard but they've always felt a bit thick and gloopy to me. The particle size is larger and you often get uneven coverage if you're not careful. They're convenient and widely available but they're not where I go when I want a showpiece model. AK Interactive's metallic range is excellent — particularly for weathering effects and realistic military finishes. But for clean, rich fantasy and sci-fi metallics with strong colour variety, the Vallejo TMM range has the edge for me. The two complement each other well — I'll often use AK for weathering and base metal effects and then come in with Vallejo TMM for highlights and coloured metallic details. Who is This Range For? Honestly, any painter who wants their metallics to look better than they currently do. The range works for beginners because the paints are well-behaved straight from the dropper bottle — no thinning required for most applications. But it also rewards more experienced painters who want to do proper TMM blending and gradient work. If you paint Warhammer 40K, Age of Sigmar, fantasy models, or really anything with armour, weapons, or ornate details, there's something in this range for you. Where to Get It We stock the full Vallejo TMM range at Wandering Adventures — you can browse everything online at wanderingadventures.ca/collections/vallejo-true-metallic-metal or come into the store in Vaughan and I'm happy to talk you through which colours make sense for your project. If you're not sure where to start, Sterling Silver, Ancient Copper, and one of the coloured metallics like Sapphyre Blue or Ruby Red will give you a solid foundation to work from. Metallics are one of those things that are worth spending a little more on. The difference between a cheap metallic and a good one shows up immediately on the model — and the Vallejo TMM range is genuinely one of the best on the market right now.

Over the past little while we've had a lot of new painters walk through our doors at Wandering Adventures, which has been amazing to see. The hobby is growing and it's genuinely exciting to watch people pick up a brush for the first time. But one question comes up almost every single time — "which paints should I buy?" After answering that question more times than I can count, I figured it was time to write it all down. What follows is the same advice I give every new painter who comes into the store: an honest breakdown of the three main brands you'll encounter, based on 20 years of painting everything from grimdark sci-fi to fantasy warbands to detailed scenic bases. No fluff, just what I've actually learned from using all of them. Citadel: The Gateway Drug Most painters start with Citadel, and for good reason. Games Workshop has built an ecosystem around their paints that's hard to beat for beginners — every pot is named after something that sounds cool, the app tells you exactly which colours to use for your Space Marines, and the range is enormous. But after two decades, I've developed some strong opinions. The Contrast paints are genuinely brilliant. If you haven't tried them, they're a game changer for getting fast, striking results on models — one coat over a light primer and you've got shading and basecoat done simultaneously. I reach for them constantly, especially on infantry where I need to batch paint efficiently. The Shades (washes) are equally indispensable — Agrax Earthshade and Nuln Oil live permanently on my desk and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Where Citadel loses me is white. Their white paints have always been inconsistent — chalky, grainy, prone to clogging. I stopped buying them years ago and haven't looked back. If you need white, there are better options elsewhere. Vallejo: The Unsung Hero for Colours Vallejo doesn't get talked about as much as Citadel online, but serious painters know how good they are. The dropper bottles alone make them worth considering — no dried crusty rims, no accidentally knocking a pot over and watching $$/ paint spread across your desk. Where Vallejo truly shines is their greens. I don't know what they put in them but the greens in the Game Color and Model Color ranges are some of the most vibrant, well-pigmented colours I've ever used. Whether I'm painting forest bases, ork skin, or elvish robes, Vallejo green is almost always my starting point. The coverage is excellent and they layer beautifully without becoming muddy. Their flesh tones are also solid, and the Game Air range is fantastic if you work with an airbrush. The consistency across the range is reliable — you know what you're getting pot to pot, which matters when you're mid-project and need to restock. AK Interactive: My Personal Favourite I'll be upfront — AK Interactive is my go-to brand, and has been for a while now. What won me over initially was their approach to realistic, muted tones. Their neutral colours — the browns, the grays, the earthy tones — are simply unmatched for painting realistic textures. Whether I'm painting weathered armour, muddy boots, rocky bases, or aged wood, AK's neutrals give results that just look right in a way that brighter hobby ranges sometimes don't. The brown and gray ranges in particular are incredibly well thought out. There are warm browns, cool browns, desaturated mid-tones that work perfectly as zenithal highlights — the kind of nuance that makes a model look like it actually exists in a physical world rather than a cartoon. But the thing that genuinely surprised me was their red gradient range. Getting smooth, rich reds has always been one of the harder things in miniature painting — they're notoriously hard to highlight without going chalky or orange. AK's reds have a depth and richness that I haven't found anywhere else, and the gradient range makes smooth blending far more approachable. Whether it's blood angels armour, daemon skin, or a dramatic cloak, I reach for AK reds every single time now. The 3rd Generation acrylics also have excellent flow straight out of the bottle, which means less fiddling with medium and more actual painting. So Which Should You Buy? Honestly? All three — but strategically. Here's how I think about it: Citadel for Contrast paints, Shades, and technical paints. Their ecosystem is unbeatable for those specific products. Avoid the whites. Vallejo when you need rich, consistent colours — especially greens and flesh tones. Great all-rounder for traditional layering. AK Interactive for realistic neutrals, browns, grays, and the best reds in the hobby. If you paint gritty, realistic, or heavily weathered models, AK should be your primary range. After 20 years the honest answer is that no single brand does everything perfectly. The painters I respect most all mix and match — and so do I. But if I had to pick one brand to keep if the others disappeared tomorrow, it would be AK Interactive without hesitation. All three brands are available at Wandering Adventures in Vaughan — come in and ask us anything, we're always happy to talk paint.