Warhammer 40k is not only alive and well, it’s healthier than it’s ever been, possibly because so many of you just really, really love Tyranids or something. There are more events than ever, more rounds in those events, and more people playing in them. The 40k competitive scene has absolutely exploded, far surpassing anything we’d seen before the pandemic. This time last year there were two GT-sized events hosting a total of 94 players. This week, there are eleven GT+ events to cover with 691 players, and by our count there were 1,873 players playing in events overall.

Last week, we had Nine GT events to cover, and across every tournament app a whopping 1,974 people played in events (704 in GT-sized events). Look, do me a favor: If you ever see someone online, or better yet, in person – telling you that Games Workshop is killing competitive play or that people are losing interest or some other nonsense, you slap them right in the mouth. Supermajor” Wilson filling in and offering expert analysis but this week you get my dumb ass, all hopped up on Dayquil and the hubris of being 655th in the ITC (and falling!). The past couple of weeks saw top ITC competitors James “Boon” Kelling and Innes “Mr. Hello, Dear Reader! Welcome back to our ongoing attempts to fill in for James “One_Wing” Grover as he wanders the fields of Worthingtonshireham or whatever, searching for himself or inner peace or some shit.

Hive warrior or hive defender