Nothing can replace getting reps at the table to improve and hone your competitive Warhammer 40K skills. The fact is, not everyone can dedicate multiple hours a week playing 40K. Chances are, like most people, you’re busy with work and family obligations not to mention the hobby time it takes to actually get an army on the table. While getting reps with your army in deliberate practice sessions is the best way to improve your game, there are things you can do outside of the game to help sharpen you skillset. Let’s get into how to practice for competitive Warhammer 40K outside of the game.
Why Outside Practice Matters
Competitive 40K isn’t simply about pushing your models around and making the right plays in the moment. It’s about using your time outside of the game to evaluate your play, theorycraft lists and strategies and build game winning plans for the missions. Using your time wisely off the table can give you the edge to compete when the clock starts running at an event.
Practicing outside the game sharpens your mental edge and makes your actual games easier. Similar to how athletes review film and evaluate their performance off the field, you can use your time off the table to get better.
Let’s consider some ways you can use your time off the table to practice and improve.
Evaluate Your Previous Games
Whether you keep a battle log, or use some other form of game management like TableTop Battles, it’s important to review your previous games. Take notes on decisions that made a difference in the outcome. Plays you may have missed. Target priority decisions that could have been better. How did you do holding your Primary objectives and how well did you score your Secondaries. What decisions won or lost the game? How was the tempo of the game? Were you playing too aggressively? Too passive? Take notes on how your games went and evaluate them post-game in your down time. It’s important to be objective in your self-evaluation post-game. Often our egos can get the better of us, but step back and review your game logs and identify patterns in your play and how you can improve those.
Study the Mission Packs
This is one of the best things you can do in your down time to improve. Review the mission pack and think about how your units can score Primary and Secondary points in each mission. Which missions benefit going top of turn and which benefit the player going second? How is your army going to approach these missions? Develop a plan for each mission and map ahead of time. Consider how you will deploy your units in each mission to protect them from early game alpha strikes while setting them up for staging and impactful plays as the game continues. Doing this off the table helps you develop a plan ahead of time and saves mental strain when the dice start rolling.
Read Your Codex and the Core Rules
Warhammer 40K is a complex game. There are hundreds of datasheets, rules interactions and more. It is impossible to memorize everything. Take some time to evaluate your codex even after you’ve become very familiar with it. Look over your detachments and datasheets and review them regularly. Don’t simply write-off every unit except those the internet deems “the best.” Think of ways you can utilize certain units and detachments.
Also take the time to go over the Core Rules and the FAQs periodically. Chances are there’s an interaction you missed before or never realized. I do this regularly and often find new things I hadn’t even realized before. Again, this game is complex and there are tons of possible interactions. Keep your mind fresh by revisiting your army Codex and the Core Rules from time to time. Keep an open mind to possibilities you didn’t see before.
Theoryhammer and Team Discussions
I’ve talked before about the importance of joining a competitive 40K team. Having a group of like-minded players to run ideas and theorycraft lists and tactics concepts can go a long way to improving your competitive 40K experience outside of the game. Avoid large random groups or social media platforms for tactical advice such as Reddit. While there can be great competitive advice available in some of these groups, it can be difficult to weed out the white noise and “parroting” you’ll hear in those forums (that unit sucks because the internet said so.) These places are often rife with “salt mine” discussions and cynical sarcastic commenters who provide very little input that matters or is helpful. Use them wisely and avoid wasting time on posts with pointless whining and complaining.
Instead find teammates and people you spar with regularly to help you theorycraft. These people will be familiar with your playstyle and your in-game decision making skills and most of the time are more than happy to help you improve. Learn from more experienced players in your play group. Run list ideas by them and get feedback just be open to the suggestions you may receive or critiques on your army list choices or tactical weaknesses.
Listen to Podcasts and Watch YouTube Battle Reports
There are many great competitive 40K podcasts and YouTube channels out there such as 40K Fireside, Happy Krumping Wargaming and more. These channels often have great insight into game play and strategy that can be very helpful to new players. Wargames Live is a great YouTube channel for watching competitive battle reports from games played at actual events. You may have to tune-out some of the background noise but listen to the players, watch how they make their decisions and how they play their armies. This is especially useful to watch when you see top players running your own faction to analyze how they are playing and how they are making their choices at the table against other top players and factions.
Final Thoughts
Nothing beats actual game time practice when it comes to improving at the table, but there ways you can sharpen your skills when not rolling dice in-game. Use your time outside of the game to practice by developing strategies, theoryhammering ideas and talking with your peers. Use time away from the table to evaluate your games and matches objectively for improvement. Identify play patterns and weaknesses and learn from those more experienced players in your community. Off table practice can be incredibly important in sharpening your skills at the table in games and can reduce the mental strain of decision making during events.
If you’re newer to tournaments or trying to understand how all the competitive pieces fit together, I put together a complete resource guide on getting started in competitive Warhammer 40K that walks through the core rules, missions, tools, and learning resources used at events.
If you’re new to the game or want to improve quickly, then don’t forget to grab my FREE eBook: Forging Your Path to Victory: A Beginner’s Guide to Competitive 40K. A great starting point for those looking to jump into Competitive 40K. Subscribe and get your free copy!
Want personalized help practicing outside the game? My coaching program is designed to help give you the tools and understanding to maximize your results through process oriented training outside the game. I’d love to help you one-on-one.
See you on the tabletop.
