Wonder why all the pros seem to be taking Marines at SoCal Open? Here are the key takeaways for the top 40k factions that you need to know!
A real hobby hero named IronMan42 on Reddit went out of their way to bring us an incredible look at the factions spotted at the SoCal Open.
Why All The Pros Are Taking Marines: SoCal Open!
But it doesn’t stop there, we’ve also got a deeper look at how well each performed. Check out this list of statistics and tell us what you think of the 40k meta currently.
With just over two-hundred players at the event, Codex Space Marines made up a whopping (close to) 25% of all the armies. It’s really no surprise after Space Marines overall have been getting supplement after supplement in the recent months. However, before we jump into the nitty-gritty of Space Marines, there are some key takeaways here.
- Grey Knights: They had a higher average win rate overall, but that’s because one person took the army and somehow managed to go positive. (Incredible Job, Sir).
- Imperial Knights: Imperial Knights are without a doubt a less-popular option being eclipsed by the Space Marine meta. However, of the players that still run the list, they do very well. The age of Knights certainly isn’t over.
- Necrons: Being regarded as one of the weaker armies in 8th, true Necron fans have stuck to their guns and managed to make some lists perform very well. For Necrons at the SoCal Open, they had a decent player base and struck the middle of the board. Ultimately, these guys, along with plenty of other factions really just need an update.
Breaking Codex Marines Down By Faction
With an expanded view of Codex Space Marines by Chapter in this list, we can see what Chapters players brought. Here are the highlights.
- Minotaurs: In the same boat as Grey Knights, one dude took Minotaurs and wrecked house.
- Adeptus Astartes: The Adeptus Astartes selection is filled with the people who chose the Mc Pick two route, cherry-picking Chapter Tactics. Because of the player base and the percentage of wins, it might be the more competitive option to use Stratagems from a book, but just pick your own to Chapter Tactics that you want to roll with. Early favorites look to be Master Artisans, Hungry For Battle, Long Range Marksmen, and Stealthy.
- Raven Guard: Raven Guard had half the number of players as Iron Hands, however, managed to have a higher win percentage over the Iron Hands. Could that be from skill?
- Iron hands: Iron Hands had a total of 13 players play the faction with only a 54% win average. Don’t get us wrong, that’s pretty good. However, with as powerful as everyone was making them out to be, you’d think the results would be higher. Perhaps they are now “punching at their own weight class”.
In reality, it probably comes down to players chasing the meta and jumping right into a new faction of Space Marines when they may really be an Eldar player at heart, for example. As new players jump on the latest meta bandwagon, they aren’t experts at the army by any means and will drive the play numbers way up and the percentage down. Just because they haven’t learned all the ins-and-outs of an army yet.
But with 25% of the field playing Marines of some sort, that is a statistic to take note of for sure.
Still Waiting on Salamanders & Imperial Fists
As for the Salamanders and Imperial Fists, they didn’t get their rules in time to play in the SoCal open. With that said, given a few tourneys after their release, we are sure to see some better insights comparetively across the board for all Astartes soon!
Overall, do you think 8th edition’s meta is healthy? Will Salamanders or Imperial Fists be the next top Chapter?
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group, and sign up to get your free hobby updates newsletter (with discount coupon codes) each morning as well!
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About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials: @RealmbrushPainting
About Wesley Floyd: Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He is known for his satirist takes on trending topics and imaginative yet amazingly affordable hobby solutions to painting Warhammer miniatures.
Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4. If you like what he writes and want to contact him or have your tabletop minatures painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
