Hit the table in 2026! Discover the year’s top Warhammer tournaments and conventions and plan your hobby travel now.
Another Long War Two-Fer is here: Keep those hobby muscles strong with this week’s webcast and the latest exciting podcast of table-top wargaming awesomeness, mostly centered around Warhammer 40k.
The Long War: Episode 503
Article Table of Contents:
Show Summary:
This week, the crew covers the upcoming large events to look forward to in 2026! Here are the key takeaways, section by section:
- (00:02 to 02:20) Crew intros and sets the episode’s focus:
- A 2026 tournaments and conventions rundown, framed by the panel’s long history of attending events.
- (02:20 to 06:34) Quick “Would you rather” icebreaker:
- Spaghetti hair vs sweating maple syrup, with the group mostly landing on “maple syrup is gross but manageable.”
- (07:35 to 14:02) Hobby Corner:
- Kenny’s Chaos Space Marines “Edgelords” army project (synthwave CMYK vibe).
- Key hobby takeaways: sub-assemblies, airbrush pre-shading, white ink to punch highlights, then fluorescent filters to get hot blues/magentas
- Inks vs acrylic fluorescents have different roles, and Liquitex white ink gets a strong endorsement.
- (14:02 to 16:58) GW news:
- Mentions confirmation of a new Ayatra book and highlights the big hook being Apocalypse-style rules for larger 40k games, with hope they carry cleanly into 11th edition and avoid past “card-driven” Apocalypse mistakes.
- (16:58 to 20:59) AMG news:
- Discusses AMG effectively pulling support for Star Wars Shatterpoint, repositioning around stronger sellers like Star Wars Legion and Marvel Crisis Protocol, and critiques their messaging as confusing and rough on retailers who get stuck clearing shelves.
- (21:25 to 26:59) Event and product buzz:
- Adepticon is about three weeks away
- Monument Hobbies announces a painting competition and teases OneStep (their contrast-style paints)
- Side notes include Halo: Flashpoint teasers (Noble Team), and talk about Gundam Assemble timing.
- (26:59 to 33:36) FLG updates:
- Atlantic City Open is June 12 to 14 (explicitly avoiding Father’s Day overlap).
- FLG table restock and redesign to be “sturdier.”
- Also mentions GW’s free mini and monthly coins, plus LOTR made-to-order timing discussed.
- (34:02 to 54:52) Main segment framework:
- Tournaments sit on a triangle of pageantry, value, and competitive integrity, and most events give you “two of three.”
- Adepticon is framed as the king of pageantry and value; GW Warhammer Opens have strong pageantry but weaker competitive structure (pods, judging consistency).
- Competitive integrity shout-outs go to Green Banner events (strong packets, terrain, judging, and judge education push), while FLG majors are treated as more “event-like” with mixed competitive perceptions.
- (54:52 to 1:05:11) Q&A highlights:
- Quantum Froth Dispatches is “hibernating” but not dead
- Food-focused con advice leans toward Vegas (LVO style trips and bar seating trick) and San Diego events
- Painting rubric debate lands on “some rubrics are stylistically biased and you may not change that fast”
- Grand Narrative at Atlanta gets praised for over-the-top narrative pageantry (actors, evolving briefings), and it sounds like at least one listener is now committed to going.
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🔗 Related Reads From the Show:
- 40k tournaments for 2026
- Bourbon & Bolters Retreat
- Monument Hobbies Paints
- Get your Warhammer and hobby supplies from Fabricators Forge
- J15 Games Has Your Game Aids, Tokens & Templates!
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