Warhammer 40k tournament at imago: a battle report where Chaos reigned supreme

On Saturday, September 26, 2026, our imago gaming room hosted its first Warhammer 40k tournament at 1000 points. Symbolically, this took place exactly a year and a day after we held our first Warhammer teaching session. A total of 20 players faced off with their 1000-point armies across three rounds, following the full 11th edition rules, including the missions for this period.

Army diversity was high, even though the tournament largely focused on beginners. From elite Custodes through various Space Marine chapters, Orks, Drukhari, T'au, and Tyranids, all the way to the Traitor Legions, who ultimately won the entire tournament. Among the Force Dispositions, Take and Hold prevailed, but all others appeared as well, promising exciting matches. Furthermore, all players chose Tactical secondary missions throughout the tournament, so there was no shortage of randomness. No one bet on Fixed missions, which tend to be less dynamic.

We kicked off the tournament with registration at 8 AM, and everyone was eager to see who they would face in the first round. Among the most clear-cut matches, I would highlight the duel between Khaleel with Custodes and Vojta with Tyranids. The Emperor's Chosen secured maximum points after just an hour and fifteen minutes, establishing themselves at the top of the leaderboard from the start. They were soon joined by another Vojta with Chaos Space Marines, who easily handled the Custodes of one of our four Filips. The fight for first place thus began in the very first round.

After the first round, which everyone handled with honor and no one left with a zero score, we moved to the lunch break. During it, we held a competition for the best-painted miniature from one's own army. Anyone with a painted model could join, and I eventually dropped the requirement for a finished base, as I discovered most people don't enjoy doing those. Everyone present voted, and several models vied for victory. In the end, the Ghostkeel Battlesuit by Filip R., with its beautifully executed base, won the most sympathy. Filip R. plays T'au, and he isn't the only one; two of our Filips have the same army.

Refueled by lunch, we dove into the second round, which offered equally interesting battles. I would especially highlight the duel between two participants under twelve years old; they deserve great respect for how they handled all three games and, moreover, held their own against their opponents and performed well in points. Přemek and Christian faced off with Space Wolves and Tyranids, where in a fierce fight for victory, Christian's monstrous Tyranids eventually shone, winning by just 3 points.

Others gradually joined the two mentioned contenders for overall victory. Adam with Death Guard handled Adeptus Mechanicus from another Vojta quite smoothly. Dalibor with Grey Knights had it much tighter: the result was decided only by the final secondary mission in the last round, and he eventually beat Vašek with Dark Angels by a mere 2 points. Vašek, however, has nothing to be ashamed of, as he had only trained for the tournament for a short time and still delivered a phenomenal performance. The last one to start eyeing first place was Lukáš with Necrons. He handled Radek's Death Guard surprisingly easily, even though he had only four units in his army.

After the second game, there was a short break. The tension was high, so we immediately drew the matches for the third and final round. Pairing was done automatically based on the current standings, so we were in for literal battles for the podium. On the first table, Khaleel with Custodes faced Vojta with Chaos Space Marines. Even though I only watched the duel from a distance, it seemed to me that the tide turned several times. In the end, the Chaos Space Marines emerged as the winners.

The defeat pushed Khaleel just off the podium, but that's how it goes in the most intense matches. On the second table, Dalibor (Grey Knights) faced Lukáš (Necrons). It was a cautious, low-scoring game where neither gave the other anything for free. The Grey Knights eventually emerged as the narrow winners. The last of the undefeated was Adam (Death Guard), and his opponent was Vašek, the highest-ranked player with one loss. Even he eventually succumbed to the Death Guard and their god Nurgle. That decided the top three.

First place with a dominant score went to Vojta with Chaos Space Marines. The mysterious Grey Knights of Dalibor teleported to second place, and third place was taken by Adam with another Chaos legion, his Death Guard led by Typhus.

Ranking and results table

We concluded the tournament by announcing the winners and handing out prizes. Every participant took home a small token of appreciation. From my perspective as an organizer, there is still work to be done, especially on the terrain. However, thanks to the positive feedback, I believe we will launch another tournament at the end of January or the beginning of February, this time at the more popular 2,000 points. Everyone will be able to go all out with their lists there, and the game will be even more balanced.