Junior Aflleje’s 6-0 Leagues of Votann won the Lone Star Open 2026 army lists crown as 11th Edition started reshaping the Texas meta.
The Lone Star Open 2026 gave us our first big look at 11th Edition Warhammer 4ok in a field of 328 players over six rounds in Allen, Texas.
Five players finished 6-0, with strength of schedule putting Junior Aflleje’s Votann on top. However, a Dark Angels bike swarm and a huge Ork horde also went undefeated, so there still isn’t one obvious build running away with the edition so far.
Lone Star Open 2026: Top 3 Warhammer 40k Army Lists
- Junior Aflleje’s Leagues of Votann marched to a 6-0 Lone Star Open crown: a Hearthguard Covenant brick with Einhyr Hearthguard and two Hekaton Land Fortresses that stayed alive and kept winning battles.
- Noah Lockard’s Ravenwing Dark Angels bikes raced to a 6-0 runner-up finish: a Company of Hunters swarm built for Reconnaissance, with Lion El’Jonson handling the hardest fights.
- Derek Apsche’s green-tide Orks ground out a 6-0 third-place finish: an Equatorial Hordes list with sixty Boyz and Ghazghkull Thraka covering the middle of every Take and Hold board.
Thanks to Best Coast Pairings, we can dig through the event using the actual pairings and battle point data.
Junior Aflleje’s Hearthguard Covenant Votann Ground the Field Into Dust
Aflleje’s plan was simple: be harder to kill than the other army and win every fight. So, to accomplish this, he brought two Einhyr Hearthguard units, two Hekaton Land Fortresses, and plenty of Ironkin guns. His 11th Edition Leagues of Votann detachments paired Hearthguard Covenant with the Needgaard Oathband, along with Uthar the Destined leading the army.
Hearthguard Covenant Roster Breakdown
This list revolves around one five-model and one ten-model Einhyr Hearthguard unit. Uthar and a Kahl join them, making those squads extremely difficult to destroy once they reach an objective.
Two Hekaton Land Fortresses, three Brokhyr Thunderkyn squads, and Ironkin Steeljacks with heavy volkanite disintegrators supply the shooting. From there, Hernkyn Yaegirs, a Kapricus Carrier, and a Memnyr Strategist handle movement and mission work.
How Hearthguard Covenant Wins the Attrition War
Aflleje never scored fewer than 88 battle points and broke 90 in five of six rounds. Overall, he finished with a 100-point game to secure the top seed, beating the other four undefeated players on strength of schedule.
Noah Lockard’s Company of Hunters Dark Angels Ran the Table on Bikes
Noah Lockard’s Dark Angels took the opposite approach and stayed on the move. His Ravenwing army shares some DNA with the Dark Angels winning at the Iron Cage GT, and it carried him to a 6-0 finish on Reconnaissance.
Company of Hunters Roster Breakdown
This detachment, paired with the Darkflight Pursuit ability, gives the army enough speed to hit, score, and reposition across the board. In his Company of Hunters, three Ravenwing Command Squads with Sammael form the core, backed by Black Knights and two Outrider units.
Lion El’Jonson, Azrael, and a Sternguard squad handle the tougher fights. Three Land Speeder Vengeance and a Storm Speeder Thunderstrike provide long-range shooting, while Scouts and Incursors secure early board control.
How Company of Hunters Wins the Movement Phase
Reconnaissance rewards armies that can reach open parts of the board quickly. That helped Lockard score 75 in round two and still win, while posting at least 95 points in every remaining game.
Derek Apsche’s Equatorial Hordes Orks Buried the Field Under Boyz
Derek Apsche brought bodies, a lot of bodies. His list packed three twenty-Boy mobs, a wall of Gretchin, and Ghazghkull Thraka heading straight for the center. The new Ork detachments for 11th Edition gave the green tide some fresh tools, and Apsche’s Equatorial Hordes build was the strongest one at the event.
Equatorial Hordes Roster Breakdown
The sixty Boyz form the backbone of the army, with each mob backed by a Warboss or Ghazghkull, and they were kept going by a Painboy.
Wazdakka Gutsmek, Warbikers, and a Deffkilla Wartrike pressure the flanks. Then Boss Snikrot and Kommandos provide disruption, while Zodgrod Wortsnagga and another twenty Gretchin add more objective bodies.
How Equatorial Hordes Wins the Board
Take and Hold rewards board control, and ninety-odd Orks take up plenty of space, as we have seen already at the Tacoma Open. And unsurprisingly, Apsche scored 100 points in five of six games by owning the middle from the opening turn.
Final Thoughts on the Lone Star Open 2026 Army Lists & the Warhammer 40k Meta
So, overall, a Votann gunline, a Dark Angels bike army, and an Ork horde all went undefeated at the same event. That’s a solid early sign for the 11th Edition meta, since no single build pushed every other style of army out of contention at this event.
Now we’ll have to see whether Votann can keep winning or whether players find a way through the Hearthguard wall. Either way, you can follow that alongside the best and worst armies in the meta as the early 11th edition season continues.
For now, though, the Kin have the Lone Star Open crown.
🔗 Related Reads:
- How to Play Leagues of Votann
- How to Play Dark Angels
- How to Play Orks
- Top Warhammer 40k Army Lists
- More Top Warhammer 40k Army Lists
- 40k Tournament Guide
- Warhammer 40k Factions Guide
- Latest 40k Balance Dataslate
What do you think of the Lone Star Open 2026 army lists?
