Get all 60 pages of the new Warhammer 40k 10th Edition core rules in a handy PDF format for free in this download from Games Workshop!
Warhammer Community, just dropped a FREE download for all the core rules you’ll need in 10th Edition.
That’s right, all 62 pages of the core rules can be downloaded today. You can learn the difference between the Movement Phase and the Command Phase in good time for release day later this month.
Players will also have new rules for each faction via their Codex books, but for now, each will get a free index Datacard PDF download as well for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k!
Warhammer 40k 10th Edition Year One Codex Rulebook Roadmap
You won’t even have to wait for your Codex to start playing! Every single faction is getting a complete set of Index Cards with datacards for each unit that’s currently available, as well as their own Detachment rules, Stratagems, and Enhancements. These will be available to download online for free from day one, while they’ll also become available in the app. You’ll be able to buy inexpensive physical copies at the same time.
They also mentioned in the live stream that the factions in the 10th Edition Codex roadmap would each have a new model released with their rules as well!
It’s great to see GW make some promises about so many factions within the next year, and with a good variety covered, many players should be happy!
Perhaps better yet, all 28 Warhammer 40k Factions will get a set of Datacards available for free download and on store shelves for purchase that will feature the rules to start playing your armies in the new edition!
Click the links below for the latest 10th Edition Warhammer 40k rules and the full articles!
- Core Rules: Command Phase & Battle Shock Tests
- Core Rules: Movement & Reinforcements
- Core Rules: Shooting. Lone Operative, Stealth, Big Guns Never Tire
- Core Rules: Charge & Fight Phases
- Core Rules: Weapons & Deployment
- Core Rules: Reserves & Stratagems
- Core Rules: Transports & Aircraft
- Core Rules: Terrain Features & Cover
- Core Rules: Muster Your Army & Missions
Latest Updates & New Rules Articles For Warhammer 40k 10th Edition
- Free GW Warhammer 40k App Army Builder for 10th Edition
- All The 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Munitorum Field Manual Points!
- 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Rules FAQ & Designer’s Commentary
- New 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Starter Set
- What Will Happen To Codex Books in 10th Edition
- New Leviathan 10th Edition 40k Starter Box Set Value Is Hot Fire!
- How to Build Army Lists in 10th Edition Warhammer 40k
- Full 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Core Rules Book
- Free PDF Download for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k USR Rules
- A Mysterious Pattern Emerges For 10th Edition 40k Codex Releases!
You can head over to the link below, save all the new rules to your computer, and start reading away!
FREE Download 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Core Rules PDF
If you’re looking for a chart of the USR rules, a “printer-friendly” version is also posted here. Here are all the latest rules changes from the Free 10th Edition 40k PDF Rules Book download!
10th Edition 40k core Rules: Core Concepts
From the looks of it, this is the table of contents! There are a decent number of pages of rules, but nothing too crazy from the looks of it. Also, the core rules will have different page numbers from the Leviathan box book, meaning no matter the version of the rules you have, they will all reference the same page numbers.
Again, nothing too crazy here, just some good clarification of what all the words mean in terms of your army.
Coherency & Engagement Range
Coherency depends on the size of the unit now. So, if you’re a unit under seven models, you have to be within 2″ horizontally and 5″ vertically, letting you have units go up buildings.
Then, if you’re a unit of seven models or over, you have to be within the coherency of at least two models. If your turn ends and you’re not in coherency, you must remove models until the unit is coherent.
Having to be within two models will probably stop the insane conga lining we have seen in the past.
Engagement Range is still 1″, but also 5″ vertically, meaning you don’t have to go all the way up a terrain feature to count as being in combat. You can still pre-measure distances, and when you do, measure closest to closest.
Visibility
The visibility is pretty simple; if you can see some of the models, you can shoot at them.
10th Edition 40k Core Rules: Muster Your Army & Missions
Nothing too crazy to start, as 1,000 to 3,000-point games is pretty standard, but there will also be a Combat Patrol style game type as well. Just keep in mind when you build your army, you must pick a keyword faction for your entire army.
From there, when you pick a certain detachment, your army gains the additional rules. Then, your characters can have enhancements now instead of Relics. For the rest of your forces, you can basically take anything as long as you don’t have more than three of any one unit (with battleline and dedicated transports having a maximum of six).
You can also include more than one Epic Hero, just not more than one of each. Lastly, you pick who your Warlord is.
10th Edition Warhammer 40k Missions
Well, we knew from the start there would only be one mission, but we expect more to be in the next Chapter Approved book.
Some of the significant differences we noticed from 9th Edition are after determining the attacker and defender, you must then decide which units your characters are going into, which units will be embarked in transports, and which models will be in strategic reserves (before any deployment has happened).
After that, the next main difference is whoever takes the first turn moves their Scouts first, and you roll off for infiltrating units.
Objective markers are very different now as you cannot be on top of them (i.e., ending your move on top of them.) However, you can control them within 3″, and they recommend using a 40mm base (or something about that size.)
Now that we have new OC rules keep in mind that if you have a higher combined OC, you control the objective.
Boards are staying the same size, and you start getting VP for controlling objectives from turn two onwards. You still roll off for the first turn (as well as attacker and defender) and say which models will be in what units, transports, and reserves.
Secondaries can also be random or fixed, and each player can decide which they will go with. Lastly, placing objective markers still goes from one person to the next with similar rules for where they can be placed.
The mission still goes for five rounds; the victor is whoever destroys the other army or scores more points at the end.
This is a pretty classic battlefield, so nothing too crazy to kick off the new edition unless we see a Chapter Approved book drop at the same time as well.
These New 10th Edition 40k Terrain Features & Cover Rules Are Clutch Now
Now if you are in cover, you can only get +1 to your save; however, if you have a 3+ save, you cannot improve it to 2+ against 0 AP attacks.
This is interesting as you can move over terrain as if it were not there. However, for anything over 2″, you must use movement to go up it. It also seems like most terrain does not impede movement.
For these, you gain a pretty big range of cover, and you can fight through them if you are within 2″ of the enemy.
Unfortunately, you can’t stand on top of the statue, but you get cover if you are obscured by it. It makes sense that hills can also give cover if you’re behind them.
Woods give cover all the time, and it also makes sense aircraft and towering models still draw line of sight normally, meaning less cover for both parties. Again though, it doesn’t seem like there are any negatives for moving through the terrain.
Last but not least, we have ruins! If you are above the enemy by 6″ or more, you get +1 AP to your attacks with plunging fire. Then, infantry and beasts can move through the terrain as if it were not there, but you do have to use movement to go up.
The big difference here, and something that might force you to remodel some terrain, is you cannot have your base hanging off the end, meaning you have to be entirely on the higher levels.
10th Edition 40k Core Rules: Transports & Aircraft
To start, we’ve seen Firing Deck ‘X’ a lot, but simply, you can shoot with x number of models in the unit embarked in the transport. Then transport capacity is just how many models it can carry, and if you’re starting the game in the transport, you have to declare what unit is in what.
You can embark on a transport whether you are moving, advancing, or falling back, but the whole unit has to be within 3″ of the vehicle. For disembarking, you can either get out before the vehicle moves to charge, or you can get out after the transport moves, but you cannot charge.
Lastly, you cannot disembark if the vehicle advanced or fell back, and you cannot disembark if you cannot fit all models with 3″ as well.
Now, you only suffer one mortal wound for each one rolled, not instantly killing a whole model. This makes transports far better right off the bat.
However, while you don’t take as many auto-deaths, you will be battle-shocked until the start of the next command phase. Lastly, the unit cannot declare a charge if you somehow get your tank destroyed in your movement phase.
If you are surrounded and cannot disembark within 3″, you can make a move up to 6″, but you suffer mortals on a roll of 1-3 instead.
New 10th Edition Core Rules: Aircraft
Maybe the biggest change off the bat, you have to start aircraft in Reserves; they then come on as Strategic Reserves.
Aircraft can move any amount of distance now and must make a minimum move of 20″ (but cannot advance, fall back, or charge), so fly them wherever you want! However, you do have to make a straight line move and can rotate 90″ at the end.
You can also hover your models, which means they don’t have those other aircraft rules but can start the battle on the board. But you have to declare this at the beginning of the game.
Aircraft obviously don’t hinder troops on the ground for movement, and only units that can fly can charge them. However, even in combat, they cannot pile in or consolidate.
They also don’t count as being the closest model for other units.
Just a quick picture of how you can fly aircraft now.
10th Edition 40k Core Rules: Movement & Reinforcements
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
The turn structure is still the same: one player still takes the first turn, to manoeuvre and fight with all the forces at their disposal, and then the second player does the same. This is still called the Battle Round, but seven phases have now become five – and both players will now contest each one to the fullest.
While there have been some significant changes to the phases, the movement phase still takes place simultaneously, and you now have a specific reserves step.
You move units first now, and it looks pretty similar, with advances, regular moves, or falling back. Monsters and vehicles must move around units of the same type, and it still looks like you measure to the hull for flying units without a base.
Advance moves still add a d6 to the movement, and you cannot charge or shoot (unless you have a special rule).
Falling back stays pretty similar, with no shooting or charging allowed, and you can’t fall back into engagement range. However, you can now fall back over enemy models (think if you’re surrounded but want to get out of combat). Now on a roll of a 1 or 2, a model dies, so you have to want to fall back to do it!
This is a great example: the Space Marines are surrounded and want to get out. When you make a desperate escape roll, full models are destroyed, no matter the wounds!
Moving Over Terrain
You can move freely over most tubes, barrels, etc. However, you have to use movement to climb anything higher. You can also move through walls still, but not over them.
Flying units now measure diagonally for getting up on terrain (the path through the air.) Keep in mind it’s not a straight line, so this could make some measuring a little annoying, but it shouldn’t be too bad.
While they can move over units as if they were not there, the path will end up, in most cases, being a longer distance than the horizontal measurement “on the ground.”
10th Edition 40k Core Rules Reinforcements
This “sub-phase” takes place after movement, and once you have set up your reinforcements, the movement phase is over. You can still deploy reserves, shoot with them, and charge.
Command Phase & Battle Shock Tests
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
The turn structure is still the same: one player still takes the first turn, to manoeuvre and fight with all the forces at their disposal, and then the second player does the same. This is still called the Battle Round, but seven phases have now become five – and both players will now contest each one to the fullest.
Here’s the headline: the phase structure is broadly the same. You perform admin for the turn ahead in the Command phase. Then you manoeuvre in the Movement phase, take aim in the Shooting phase, charge into melee in the Charge phase, and get biffing in the Fight phase.
So what’s changed? The Psychic phase and the Morale Phase are now no more – but this doesn’t mean that psychic powers and morale are gone. The effects are still very much present, but they’ve been smartly compressed into the other phases. Let’s break it down.
Starting with the phases of the game, GW cut out two phases, and now you take your battle-shock tests at the beginning of your turn.
Both players still gain a CP at the start of every command phase, and there will still be scoring, stratagems, and abilities that take place in the command phase. However, the most significant change is that all battle-shock tests occur in the game’s first phase.
Now, you have to take a test every time a unit is below half-strength.
Morale is even simpler – that all gets sorted in your Command Phase, when you take Battle-shock tests for any units that have taken enough losses.
Battle-shock tests are super simple. Roll a 2D6 for every unit that’s Below Half-strength – that means they’re a squad with less than half of their starting models, or a single model with less than half of their starting Wounds. You’ll need to roll equal to or above your new Leadership characteristic – if you fail, that unit suffers some nasty penalties until your next turn.
This means models don’t just run away; they are not nearly as effective and cannot control objectives, etc. This is pretty huge, as you can’t even use stratagems on the unit.
Then, a Desperate Escape (rules below) needs to be taken if you attempt to fall back, meaning you can lose models.
Nothing too crazy here; if you put a leader in a unit, they add to the starting strength. Such as a unit of 11 (combined) would need to get to five models to take tests. However, killing the unit and the character can give VP.
When you fall back while Battle-Shocked, on a 1 or 2, a model must be removed. This is a huge change and probably a good one, as it forces players to actually make a choice to stay in combat or risk losing models.
10th Edition 40k Core Rules: Weapons & Deployment
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
Up until now, your guns were divided into several categories: Heavy, Rapid Fire, Assault, and so on. In the new edition, these classifications become weapon abilities.
This change allows weapons to behave in more varied ways than before, without increasing the number of rules you need to learn. A bolt rifle has both the Assault and Heavy abilities, for instance – meaning it can be fired on the move or braced for extra accuracy, as needed.
Interestingly, Heavy has no minuses for moving, but a lot of the heavy weapons start off with a worse BS, meaning they go to their “normal” BS when standing still. Next, pistols can be shot into combat, and rapid fire doesn’t just double the attacks; it can be whatever number GW wants it to be.
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
Melee weapons can also have abilities, including a blast from the past – Twin-linked is back! This classic rule is now found on ranged and melee weapons alike, and confers a re-roll to wound. In recent editions, many weapons that used to be twin-linked were instead treated like two guns taped together, which had a serious impact on balance. This change makes them more reliable, rather than twice as killy.
Twin-linked now lets you re-roll the wound roll instead of more attacks, torrent is basically the same thing as a flamer, and Lethal Hits means rolls of 6 to hit automatically wound the target.
Blast can basically have unlimited extra dice, but generally, it will add one or two extra hit rolls, but you cannot use this in melee.
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
The melta rifle, for example, gains a bump in Strength and the Melta rule to boost its Damage at short range, while the Hammerhead’s infamous railgun soars to Strength 20.
Precision allows you to attack character models as long as it’s visible. Then, melta will increase the damage, and even on a melta rifle, it will be D6+2.
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
The shuriken cannon picks up Sustained Hits, common among weapons that throw massive amounts of firepower down range – and on swarming Tyranid Invasion Fleets. This one simply adds the listed number of extra hits when a Critical Hit is scored – that’s an unmodified Hit roll of 6. Easy to remember.
Sustained Hits can add up to a huge amount of extra hits, and hazardous is different now, as you just roll a single die at the end instead of on the hit rolls. So, if you roll a one on that test, it’s just bad luck.
This picture comes from Warhammer Community.
The core rules include a variety of other weapon abilities, which tie together similar effects found across factions. Weapons that shredded through armour on lucky rolls can now share the Devastating Wounds ability instead. This allows them to dish out mortal wounds on a Critical Wound – that’s an unmodified Wound roll of 6.
Almost all weapons have had their core statistics changed to help pull their weight in this new, more durable edition – especially those designed to tackle vehicles. You’ll generally find that most guns have not increased in strength, and have often lost a pip of AP.
This could add up to a huge amount of mortals; it really just depends on the number put in the profile.
10th Edition 40k Deployment Abilities
Deep Strike remains pretty similar, with units declaring they are in deep strike and then can come in anywhere more than 9″ away. Infiltrators allow units to be set up anywhere more than 9″ away from units as the game beings, so if you can get lucky on that first roll, you can have a unit ready to charge on turn one!
Scouts allow you to move a dedicated transport as long as they are inside, so pretty interesting. Then, you can put almost all your characters into bodyguard units, and characters can’t be targeted or take wounds from attacks unless you have special abilities.
Stratagems & Reserves Rules
The new Warhammer 40k 10th Edition rules were spotted on Imgur, but we have them all here.
Strategic reserves are limited again, just like they were in previous editions. This is mostly language to make it as clear as possible, like including the points of models in transports that are in reserves. As the game size increases, so do the reserve limits in increments of 250.
The rule of thumb is that no more than 25% of the list can be in reserves!
Reserves can arrive during the reinforcements step of YOUR movement phase, starting from the second round onwards. Anything that doesn’t make it to the battlefield by the end of the game is counted as destroyed. You can still deploy reserves, shoot with them, and charge.
If they come in on the second round, it has to be within 6″ of the edge of the board and not in the enemy deployment zone; on and after the third round, it can be in the enemy deployment, and of course, they can never be within 9″ of enemy models.
The details for stratagems are mostly the same, but the layout for rules in the book is entirely new, making it more straightforward than ever! Of the first three, Command Re-roll makes an iconic return, as the #1 stratagem that we all probably use every game.
Grenades return in tenth as a stratagem, now costing 1 CP to perform. This will be an exciting change, and hopefully, factions that loved particular grenades will see some healthy changes to keep them afloat.
And the last two feature the return of the all-powerful, all-present Heroic Intervention (costing two cp… OOF)!
We also included the other upcoming previewed stratagems for factions and one for using tactical missions that GW previously showed off below!
Also worth noting Games Workshop said there are 12 core stratagems in their previews, but the book seems only to have 11 by our count, omitting the tactical missions strat that should, in theory, be in the blank space shown on the first page.
Even Stratagems are brought into consideration – each Combat Patrol has just three bespoke Stratagems, with one that’s designed to be reactive. These are also part of the balancing in Combat Patrol – the Vardenghast Swarm gets to top up its squishy Termagant swarms with Teeming Broods, bringing back destroyed models or even recycling a whole unit as Strategic Reserves. Maybe shooting them off the board isn’t such a good idea…
With only three stratagems per faction, you should be able to learn the rules quickly and not get too bogged down.
It won’t have escaped your attention that certain Combat Patrols contain big, tough MONSTERS and formidable VEHICLES, while others are somewhat lacking in the heavy weapons you’d normally use to take such targets down. Stratagems like Veteran Instincts will even the score, by granting your Terminators the ability to re-roll Wound rolls when swinging their power fists against giant-sized targets.
Considering some of the boxes have no big guns or units, something like this is nice to help take out those giant vehicles and monsters.
Meanwhile, players using Tactical Missions will discard each card the moment they achieve that Secondary Mission, and only replace discarded cards in their next Command phase – meaning you can’t cycle through your whole deck and hit 40VP in one extremely lucky turn. There are other ways to discard unfavourable Secondary Missions, but they’re limited and have their own cost – if you can, it’s better to play the hand you’re dealt…
This is good because you can’t score everything in a single turn. So if you do want to discard a card, make sure it’s one you can basically never achieve, as you can only pitch one the entire game (well, with this Stratagem at least)!
No Detachment will contain more than six Stratagems. Add that to a robust universal menu of 12 Core Stratagems, and there’s now simply less to keep track of. Armour of Contempt returns as a Stratagem for the Gladius Task Force, the first Space Marine Detachment.
Well, at most, you can have 18 Stratagems, which is still a decent amount, but considering most are generic, it should be pretty straightforward. This is like a NERFed form of AoC as it only affects one unit but could still be super useful for only 1 CP.
As you can see, the Stratagems look a lot different than before. They seem pretty easy to read, with everything in a few sentences. They mention Deep Strike is back, which is a little different, as you can place the token on the battlefield and teleport the Terminators there.
FREE Download 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Core Rules PDF
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About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
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About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
