Games Workshop

No, they are not the same universe. Age of Sigmar is based in the same universe as the original Warhammer: Fantasy (now called Warhammer: The Old World). While it was rumoured that Games Workshop had intended Warhammer: 40,000 and Warhammer: Fantasy to have a canonically linked universe, this idea was eventually dropped.

There is a lot of overlap in their universes that is evident, such as the gods and factions, but as the lore of the respective universes expanded, they also diverted. It would have been difficult for Games Workshop to link this all into one universe, possibly breaking the immersion of both franchises in the process.

They are almost entirely made in Nottingham, England, the original home of Games Workshop. Games Workshop has always wanted to maintain tight control of its production line, so it has opted to keep its manufacturing in-house ever since it first began producing models.

Much of their printed products, such as rulebooks and magazines, are produced in China, but all models are made in the UK. You can read more about Games Workshop’s history here.

Games Workshop has a busy schedule of new products which are released every Saturday. Equally, new pre-orders open every Saturday at 10am local time. While you can order Games Workshop products directly through their website, you can shop Games Workshop at a discounted price through independent retailers like Gathering Games. Games Workshop states on their website that they typically post pre-order items out after the official launch date. At Gathering Games, we typically post Games Workshop pre-order items so they arrive in time for the official launch on Saturdays. You can browse our Games Workshop pre-orders here.

The release schedule of new editions of Warhammer has varied over the years, though it has been consistent since 2010. Since then, Warhammer 40K has had a new edition every three years, with the new edition launching over the summer (in the northern hemisphere).

In Warhammer: 40K 10th Edition, the first player is determined by the mission being played. Sometimes, it is determined randomly, where each player has a roll-off, and the player with the higher roll goes first.

In Warhammer: Age of Sigmar 3rd Edition, the first player to completely deploy their team will choose which side will go first. After this, players will take a ‘priority roll’ at the beginning of the subsequent battle rounds. The winner of the priority roll chooses the turn order. If it is a draw then the first player of the previous round chooses the turn order.

In Kill Team 2nd Edition, the ‘initiative’ is used to determine the first player. The mission sequence determines the player with the initiative. After the first turning point, the players roll off. The winner of the roll off takes the initiative. The case of a draw, the player that did not have the initiative in the previous round then takes it.

In Warhammer: Warcry, during the ‘initiative phase’, players each roll 6 dice. These are the initiative dice. The player with the most single dice (i.e. dice that you rolled that do not have a pair, triple, etc.)  Has the initiative and hence makes the first activation of the round. A ‘wild dice’ is then given to each player which can be added to the initiative dice as a single, which can then change the player with the initiative.

The typical age of people who play Warhammer is between 25 years and 35 years, though there are definitely people who play older and younger than this. While most of the Warhammer systems are reasonably complex, many younger people will enjoy collecting, building and painting Warhammer.

Warhammer: 40K and The Horus Heresy are both set in the future, whereas Warhammer: Age of Sigmar and The Old World are set in a medieval/high-fantasy setting.