Top 10 40K Lists

Top 10 Competitive Warhammer 40K Lists March 2026

Welcome to another Top 10 Warhammer 40K Lists article, the monthly overview from Grimhammer Tactics covering the top performing Warhammer 40K lists for the month.

See all previous versions and the current edition of my Top 10 Warhammer 40K lists here.

March 2026 saw the Q1 2026 Balance Dataslate drop setting the tone (mostly) for the remainder of Warhammer 40K 10th Edition. We had another shake-up in the meta last week with the update to the Munitorum Field Manual, the release of the new and improved Defiler model and datasheet, and some new Detachments for Space Marines, Chaos Knights and Imperial Knights. The impact of those remains to be seen of course and I’ll be closely monitoring event results in the coming weeks. Let’s take a look at the top 10 competitive Warhammer 40K lists for March 2026

Top 10 competitive 40K lists March 2026

1. Gonzalo Peña Manterola – Death Guard – III GT Asturias – 60 Players

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Death Guard have been struggling overall since the Q1 2026 Balance Dataslate. As I predicted in my Post-Q1 2026 Balance Dataslate Faction Tier List early last month, the faction has been posting a pretty steadily low win rate in the 40-45% range overall. That said, like many factions in the game right now, in the right hands, Death Guard is still a faction capable of event wins. Gonzalo takes a Mortarion’s Hammer list with the traditional units we’ve come to expect in Death Guard builds with Deathshroud Terminators, Foetid Bloat-Drones with Heavy Blight Launchers and Myphitic Blight-Haulers. The Detachment rule allowing you to pick 2 units more than 12″ away from any of your units to be Afflicted at the start of the Battle Round, offers some real flexibility to drop those Deathshroud Terminators in early and create some immense pressure without having to sacrifice units by overextending or exposing them. A solid event win for Gonzalo here .

2. Liam Steptoe – Deathwatch – Cornwall Super Bash 2026 – 119 Players

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Deathwatch have seen a massive surge at the top tables since the Q1 2026 Balance Dataslate. The Black Spear Task Force continues to be a winner and although the faction isn’t representing huge numbers at events, they are still having fantastic results. With a toolbox of units with the flexibility to Deep Strike all over the board, Deathwatch continue to prove to be a dominant faction as we close out 10th Edition. Liam takes them all the way to an undefeated finish in this 119 player event.

3. Jonathan Summerfield – Chaos Space Marines – Cornwall Super Bash 2026 – 119 Players

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Staying with the Cornwall Super Major, we see an undefeated Chaos Space Marines list using the Renegade Raiders Detachment. This list features a big brick of Chosen with Fabius, Huron Blackheart and the Masters of the Maelstrom, a big 10 man unit of Red Corsairs Raiders, triple Forgefiends and Vashtorr the Arkifane. Vashtorr is a great choice here boosting those Forgefiends ranged attacks up to Strength 12 and, combined with the Detachment ability, they can become AP -4 when targeting units on objectives giving this list a nice punch with combat units like Chose and Red Corsairs Raiders with Huron and his entourage. Chaos Space Marines really got a nice boost with the new Huron Blackheart and Masters of the Maelstrom and with the addition of the new and improved Defiler on deck, they are poised to close out 10th Edition as one of the strongest factions.

4. David Treadgold – Necrons – Phoenix 40K Spring GT 2026 – 54 Players

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Necrons have proven to be a top tier faction since the updates to the C’tan datasheets, although they took yet another points increase in last weeks Munitorum Field Manual update. While David isn’t spamming C’tan here, it should be noted that the Deceiver did go up to 310 points. The Starshatter lists continue to dominate the Necron meta, however and even with this point increase don’t expect the Deceiver to disappear from lists anytime soon. Necrons are still dominating big events and will likely continue to do so as the edition comes to a sunset.

5. Joe Loke – Space Marines – Sydney GT: Autumn – 68 Players

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Down under at the Sydney GT: Autumn edition, Joe Loke takes a familiar Ultramarines Blade of Ultramar list to the top of this 68 player event. Joe’s list features the usual suspects with Guilliman, Calgar, double Repulsor Executioners, Victrix Honour Guard, and the maligned Wardens of Ultramar. We’ve seen this list become pretty standard at large events with plenty of tools and fantastic units to make it a nightmare to deal with. Space Marines continue their dominance in the competitive 40K scene.

6. Tom Maher – Chaos Space Marines – Broadsword Wargaming 40K ITC Seasonal Major IX – 98 Players

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We’ve already highlighted one powerful Chaos Space Marines list, and now we switch over to what is quickly becoming the strongest build the faction may have access to at the moment. Unlike the Renegade Raiders list above, this list is just going all in on infantry surrounding Abaddon the Despoiler for that sweet 4+ invulnerable save aura bubble. It’s just tons of elite infantry with 3 wounds that can Advance and Charge and really ruin your day all while spreading out and staying within range of the Despoiler’s invulnerable save aura. Nothing flashy just durable hard hitting units that grind check you until they make contact with devastating force. This is the Chaos Space Marines build for 2026.

7. Eoin Browne – Thousand Sons – Broadsword Wargaming 40K ITC Seasonal Major IX – 98 Players

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While this Thousand Sons list did not win the Broadsword Wargaming event, Eoin did still manage to go undefeated with this build. This Rubricae Phalanx loads the board down with Rubric Marines, Scarab Occult Terminators, Predator tanks, and Magnus the Red. It’s a durable build with enough deadly firepower to crack the enemy open. Magnus in the list means you can reliably get 2 Rituals off in key moments which is super important when you’re trying to get that extra AP buff and re-rolls to hit. A strong showing for the dusty bois.

8. Logan Antonation – Chaos Daemons – Wheat City Open 2026: 40k – 65 Players

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Chaos Daemons and the Scintillating Legion take down the Wheat City GT with this build centered around Be’lakor, Kairos Fateweaver and double Lords of Change. This build has proven to be a winner and continues to threaten top tables everywhere. The uncertainty of the faction’s future is up in the air however. Chaos Daemons never received a codex in 10th Edition and there are rumblings that the faction may disappear altogether in 40K when 11th Edition drops this summer. The legitimacy of that remains to be seen, but for now, The Daemons look to be in a good spot as the edition comes to a close.

9. Mani Cheema – Chaos Space Marines – The Sheffield GT – 243 Players

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Mani Cheema makes his return to the competitive 40K scene with a Chaos Cult list featuring tons of Cultists, Traitor Guardsmen and Accursed Cultists led by Dark Communes backed up with Predator Destructor firepower. This list is all about flooding with board control and making surge moves to slingshot onto objectives. Mani did not win the event, but he did go undefeated and came in 2nd. A strong return to the tabletop for Mani.

10. Folger Pyles – Imperial Agents – AdeptiCon 2026 40K Championships – 400 Players

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Imperial Agents is objectively the worst faction in Warhammer 40K and has been across the entire edition. Folger Pyles is a former Warhammer World Champion and, on a dare, took Imperial Agents to one of the largest events in the United States with AdeptiCon. While Folger did not win the event, he did make it into the semi-finals. Folger’s finish is a testament to his player skill and a legendary feat. He managed to squeeze every drop of efficiency possible to take the Imperial Agents as far as he could.

Final Thoughts

We are getting close to the end of 10th Edition now with all faction codexes released. There are still some new units that are going to have a major impact in the coming weeks, such as the Defiler in Emperor’s Children and in regular Chaos Space Marines builds. The game is in an overall decent state, although Space Marines continue to be a little too good along with Necrons. March was a great month though and the faction variance for event winners is still pretty wide, which is nice.

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Robert Chandler is a competitive Warhammer 40,000 player with over 15 years of tournament experience, including tournament wins and Best Overall finishes. Through Grimhammer Tactics, he helps players sharpen their fundamentals, build smarter lists, and approach the game with a competitive mindset. His focus is simple: play better, prepare smarter, and get real results at the table.