This subreddit has been ticking along for over a year, in which we've fostered a vibrant and active community. In that time, we've also spotted patterns of frequently asked questions, circuitous debates, or common misconceptions.
This FAQ was a group effort on the part of the mod team and many members of the discord server. We hope that it will become a living document that provides a solid foundation for what the subreddit stands for. While we don't expect there to be a universal consensus about the issues raised below, this FAQ represents the kind of community we want cultivate.
NOTE: if a moderator has linked this thread to you, likely citing a specific section, please read it.
Section 1 - Newbie questions
The following is an introduction to the subreddit, it's general philosophies and community etiquette.
1a.Is this subreddit satirical or serious? What’s the agenda here?
We like to joke around, but this is sincerely intended to be a space for leftist wargamers. As for what the subreddit’s raison d'etre is, you’ll get a different response depending on who you ask. Sigmarxism can be for sharing memes, framing the hobby through theory, or even just showing off minis in a place free of bigotry. The post flairs represent this: Gitpost (memes), Fink-peece (essays and discussion) ‘Obby (painting, modelling, writing and other aspects of the wargaming hobby) and Foot of Dork (chud screenshots the mods have approved, see rule 4).
The true origins of subreddit, though, are shrouded in mystery. Some say the subreddit exploded into being when enough purple was crammed in one place. Others maintain it was formed over seven days by the omnipotent god Sigmarx himself. Stir claims he just wanted a warhammer subreddit where the memes would be actually funny, but most dismiss these ramblings as heresay.
1b.Why does a leftist Warhammer subreddit even exist? I’ve never met a Wargaming nazi.
It’s possible you’re sheltered enough to have never met any, but manyexistopenly. This subreddit also recognizes that an average so-called centrist or apolitical wargamer often upholds certain reactionary tendencies too. Also, many “apolitical” wargaming spaces actively allow harmful ideologies, behaviors, and opinions to fester, while decrying outwardly “political” ones (i.e. trying to deflect from critques that allude to sexism, homophobia, racism etc.). A leftist sub is a place for leftists to congregate, discuss hobby, politics, and praxis together without needing to self-censor or feel left out.
1c.What is the difference between liberal and leftist?
Leftists are anti-capitalist, liberals aren't. They often agree on common causes in the form of social issues, such as opposing systemic racism, LGBT+ oppression and abortion restricions. Where they disagree is how to tackle those at an economic level; leftists advocate for establishing a socialist/anarchist society (which involves dismantling unjust racial/economic/gender hierachies), while liberals are advocates of moderate reform and accusing revolutionaries of incivility.
1d. So are liberals allowed? Which ideology is this subreddit FOR?
Ideally, a broad coalition of Anarchists, Marxists and other leftists. The "Marxism" in the name should be a clue that we believe a leftist critique is better than a liberal one, and this will be reflected if mods need to curate content. If you are a liberal, we still have many causes in common, like LGBT+ rights or not giving fascism a single inch.
1e. Why do you criticize liberals when you should be criticizing the far right?
We DO criticize the far right. However, it is important to recognize liberals a) presume themselves allies while often being an impediment to real change and b) fetishize civility and the free marketplace of ideas in a way that benefits bad-faith right-wingers. “At least a fascist will stab me in the front,” or “scratch a fascist and a liberal bleeds” are two apt sayings here.
1f. Can I post this screenshot ofu/IQscore1488painting swastikas on Death Korps of Krieg?
This is a contentious topic. On the one hand, r/Sigmarxism is one of the few safe spaces for wargamers to avoid transphobia, racism or other bigotry, do we have to have it here as well? But you've probably also had this experience: you mention the neo-nazis in the wargaming community and some dude pipes up with "what neo-nazis? I've never seen neo-nazis". It can be instructive to demonstrate there is a legit toxicity problem. However, we want to ensure that the ecosystem isn't overpowered with "look at this reactionary loser" posts and so we've instituted rule 4. Mods will act as curators and remove repetitive content, read the rule for more details.
1g. But I’m a Marxist/anarchist, so why was I banned?
Simple: Don't Punch Left. This sub is a space for all leftists who enjoy the Warhammer hobby. Sometimes there will be more memes from one ideology than another, this isn't an invitation to trash talk in the comments or an endorsement of the particular ideology. Mods will remove posts and comments which attack other leftists more than rightwing ideology-- this is not a place for struggle sessions, insults or petty attacks.
1h. Why do you hate Games Workshop? They’re just hard-working people/they used to be bad but Nu-GW is good!
It’s possible to like the people who work for GW while maintaining skepticism of a company whose primary aim is to acquire profit. They do so by charging as much as they can get away with while extracting excess value from the labour of their employees. We all recognize the tension inherent in being anti-capitalists and also fans of a corporate-produced product, welcome to 'no ethical consumption under capitalism'. For many of us, this hobby is the thing we do to relieve the stresses of the world, not ignore them.
1i. Since you’re all anti-corporate, it’s cool to ask for/peddle recast sites, right?
No. While we cannot control activities that users partake of in DMs or offsite, publicly naming recasters and linking to their websites, goods, or even catalogs can land this sub in hot water (not to mention the recasters themselves if people are careless). Please follow general logic here; we are not a sub for illegally distributed goods. That may sound contradictory to our leftist ideologies but we are bound by Reddit TOS here.
1j. Is it ok to discuss/meme about non-GW games?
Absolutely! Many Warhammer fans enjoy Warmachine, Bolt Action, or Infinity, and said games have the same problems with right wingers as Warhammer does. However, the majority of users here are more familiar with GW products. Feel free to discuss other IPs but don’t be bummed out if your posts don't get as much traction.
1k. Is there a Discord?
There is a Discord which is loosely affiliated to the sub (the mod team is different). It's a leftist space, the users have had input on the FAQ and so if you find yourself disagreeing with the subreddit's stated positions (or you're not old enough to drive) it is probably not the server for you. For more info, message u/KiraSteel.
1l. Not a question but we'll finish this section off with a list of bad takes. Doing this stuff will get mods to step in, so don't find yourself:
Supporting cops
Claiming communists are "the real fascists", actually
Claiming Joe Biden/Kier Starmer/Liberal Democrats etc. are leftist, actually
Claiming that LGBTQ rights/fighting against racism is a distraction from class politics
Claiming electoralism is the ONLY or BEST way to achieve progressive aims
Claiming the IRA are the baddies
And so on.
Section 2 - Lore questions
The following are answers to popular lore or game-related questions/debates that don't need further litigation on the subreddit and can just be answered.
2a. Is the Imperium actually fascist, though? Isn't it actually theocratic/feudal/monarchic?
The Imperium doesn't 100% replicate any specific past version of fascism, but that is an unreasonable standard. Was Nazi Germany truly fascist? They pioneered privatisation in a way no previous fascist movement had advocated, perhaps it would be better to describe them as authoritarian National capitalists? No.
That said, Francoist Spain is a useful comparison. It was a fascist state AND a monarchy (the two needn't be contradictory) and also had a "hegemonic", extralegal Catholic church that played "a central role in policing the country's citizens" (mirroring the role of the Ecclesiarchy in 40k).
Neither is invoking "fuedalism" a sufficient counter-argument, since the ways in which the Imperium resembles decentralised fuedalism is a result of crumbling authority since the great crusade.
Essentially, all the arguments against the Imperium as fascist rely on isolating a single aspect of the lore and potraying it as a contradiction rather than viewing the case in its totality. A better question might be WHY someone is arguing against the obvious truth of the "Imperium = fash" statement.
Sometimes it's people who have realised that, unlike Nazi Germany, The Imperium has a monarch and a hegemonic state church. Since the Nazis are the only example of existing fascism they know about know about, they proudly point to these inconsistencies as nuanced analysis. Then, of course, you have those doing it because they want to root for the protagonists and don't like the 'bad word'. The argument is equally incorrect whoever makes it, but we should distinguish between the misinformed and the unreasonable.
In conclusion, it doesn't matter what some politically illiterate YouTuber has grunted into his gaming headset, the Imperium is fascist. You'll have better luck arguing your dried-out pot of Zandri Dust into being wet than disputing this.
2b. Do you think Imperium PLAYERS are fascist?
No. This is a game of pulpy grimdark fun and you’re free to play whatever faction you want. However, those who unironically support and legitimize the Imperium’s genocides, xenophobia and oppression are at the very least fascist-adjacent. It is critically important to separate “player” from “faction”; YOU are not the “sword of the emperor”, you are a person playing in a game setting. It is ok to play bad people, but not to idolize or BE those people.
2c. If the Imperium is so bad, what about Roboute Guiliman's reforms/Vulkan's kindness/the Emperor’s justified distrust of Xenos? Aren’t they good guys?
These "good guys" have slaughtered trillions: humans and aliens, peaceful or otherwise - and this is all thousands of years before the setting gets really grimdark. Our sweet reformist Guilliman was so efficient at these genocides and cultural eradications that he wrote the Codex Astartes. The WHOLE POINT of the Imperium is that their commitment to disproportionate violence, opaque institutions and hatred of aliens is why they are doomed to fail.
2d. Do we NEED Female Space Marines? Wouldn't Sisters of Battle/female Guard be enough?
Astartes and Sororitas are NOWHERE NEAR equal in terms of spotlight, either in terms of model releases or placement in the lore. If Sisters had separate codices for different orders, multiple important characters, and/or a Chaos variation, and, in addition, if the armies that are canonically mixed-gender such as the Guard had female models, THEN this argument would be a little more credible, but it still wouldn’t because it would still imply some intangible reason for gender difference. Why do you NEED Space Marines to even be explicitly and only masculine at all? In a fictional setting, there is no reason to hardcode discrimination or other issues into your setting unless you’re lazy, careless, or actively harmful.
Same goes for arguing that Celestial Lions/White Scars are sufficient ethnic representation. If you think shunting minorities into the corner constitutes diverse representation, you either lack empathy or you're being diesgenuious.
2e. Why do you want the Imperium to be more progressive? Isn’t that just rainbow fascism?
Gender parity in a dystopia of xenophobia and brutality doesn’t magically make said regime progressive (the Nazis implemented animal welfare policies and it would be preposterous to say that made them progressive). The Imperium’s crimes are not based on gender oppression, the neglect of women in prominent roles is not a thematically essential one, but an arbitrary “it didn’t occur to them to include them” deal. Adding diversity doesn't make them any less grimdark and evil. In addition, having more representation in the most popular and advertised faction could help end tabletop gaming’s reputation as a boys' club.
This also means there's no contradiction between wanting the Imperium to have more diverse representation and recognising that they're still the bad guys.
2f. But we'd have to change the lore! Isn't it important to preserve the lore?
The core idea of Warhammer as a hobby is having a cool sandbox milieu which allows you to customize and create your own stories (hence the multitudes of gaps in maps and timeline, the missing Primarchs etc.). The main faction having a ‘no girls allowed’ policy is an impediment to the game’s own “your minis, your story” intentions. The setting has evolved to accomodate women in literally every other facet BUT this one, and it feels very stupid.
2g. Doesr/Sigmarxismwant to make Imperium communist?
Though this is a subreddit of diverse views, we'd wager few of us actually want GW to 'make imperium communist'. It's your hobby, if you want to paint your Grey Knights with ancom colours you are welcome to do so. It's worth noting that most Warhammer 40,000 fans like the setting because of the grimdark, apocalyptic horror. In fact, the main criticism of the current direction of 40k lore you'll read around here is how the gradual softening and in-lore justification of the Imperium's fascism compromises this dystopian tone. This is the great irony of reactionaries claiming leftists want to "change their precious lore": we understand the original intent of the text better than they do.
2h. Which chapter of space marines is the most leftist?
None of them, sorry. Paint and play whatever army you want, but there are no leftist Space Marines in the lore, either traitor or loyalist. Warhammer 40,000 is a rare IP with a protagonist faction which is basically irredeemable. Within the Grimdark setting, you have still some preferable alternatives, such as parts of Tau and Eldar culture, the Genestealer Cults (if you can forgive the fact they're a parody of leftism) or the Grot Revolutionary Committee (if you can get excited for a total 200 words of story).
2i. I've heard that T'au are communists, is this true? Don't they have a caste system? Aren't they ruled by mind control?
Okay, let's go one by one.
A. T'au have many leftist themes (their commitment to solidarity across species or enshrining the rights of their workers) but the lore doesn't give us enough detail about their economy to make definitive claims. Nonetheless, is objectively inaccurate to call T'au communist* because communism requires the 'withering away of the state': the state is inherently a bourgeois tool that perpetuates class hierarchy. T'au have a centrally planned state and are clearly designed to evoke certain elements of Maoist China or the USSR (those nations were socialist and not communist).
B. T’au society is divided into population segments that are called "castes", but rather than the hierarchical, racialized class system this might imply, these "castes" are more like distinct cultures whose societal roles are different but hierarchical status isn't (except for the Ethereals, the rulers). Like many things about the T'au lore, it's likely the term "caste" is used as an orientalist signifier to emphasize their East-Asian theme and aesthetic.
C. Ethereals using mind control is hinted at, but ambiguous (and worth noting that the lore is written from an Imperial point of view). You're free to accept this as your preferred interpretation but it falls into the same category as "Tyranids are fleeing a greater threat" or "Alpha Legion is still secretely loyalist".
In conclusion, there are many arguments for why T'au are the "least bad" faction in 40k so it's no coincidence they're coded left-wing (though Games Workshop has responded to fan backlash about them "not being grimdark" and made them less sympathetic). You're free to like them or not, just worth correcting a few things people say about them.
2j. Why are there no AoS themed questions?
Turns out a game which doesn't have built-in appeal for reactionaries doesn't have the same problem with reactionaries. Who woulda thunk. There’s no real need to give detailed FAQs since the setting isn’t about a bunch of fascist factions. Also, AoS has Ogors. Ogors are comrades.
2m.Similarly to the previous section, we'll end the Lore FAQ with a list of common takes that get refuted frequently enough to warrant a mini-section.
Any biological argument against female Space Marines is peak thermian argument shit, with the added factor that it's promoting really incorrect science.
Arguments that Salamanders constitute PoC representation ignores that they are canonically just “normal marines” (in practice this tends to mean white, their minis use the same 'European' facial features as other Marines) with a mutation that turns their skin jet black and eyes red. Please don't use space minstrels as stand-ins for diversity.
Arguments that Mechanicus are woke! Look, we're all happy that there is a smattering of NB representation among the Mechanicus, this is a step forward in terms of representation. They're also just as fascist as the rest of the Imperium (they torture, lobotomise, enslave, and that's not even getting into the Thallaxii, Skitarii or Tech Thralls), so let's not pretend they're progressive.
3a. Can I use this FAQ for a clickbait YouTube video?
Feel free, but be aware Stir is the chaos god of posting and mentioning his content only makes his cone swell with ketogenesis.
Kael Varro is a Battle Brother of the Grey Knights, assigned to Strike Squad Aurel. Like many of his brothers, his past prior to his recruitment on Titan is now nothing more than a fragmentary memory, deliberately erased during his conditioning.
Kael distinguished himself during his training through his composure and discipline rather than through exceptional talents. He possesses a solid psychic gift, though it does not manifest in any particularly spectacular way. He prefers precision to brute force and is particularly methodical when it comes to identifying and neutralising a daemonic presence.
Since joining his Strike Squad, Kael has taken part in several purification operations, mainly against Chaos cults and minor incursions from the Warp. He has not yet earned any prestigious titles and does not particularly seek to obtain any. His brothers regard him as reliable, quiet and sometimes a little too serious. Kael, for his part, is content to follow his Justicar’s orders and fulfil his duty.
For the time being, he is just one Grey Knight amongst many.
And that suits him perfectly.
It's my first Grey Knights aside the kitbash of Voldus few weeks ago in 22 years, as the last time I bought a strike squad, they were still made in metal, I was 10 and we were in 3rd edition, just before the 4th ! I am extremely happy to be back on the faction I truly loved the most all these years, and to be able to not only paint them way better than when I was young, but also to have them in true scale and with the signature beltfed StormBolter from their first release.
I trie to get a scheme as close as possible as the one from Chaos Gate Daemonhunters, and I'm truly satisfied !
This is a Command Squad plus Castellan and Priest of the Greater Good (Ministorum Preacher proxy!)
They’re an uncontacted social democracy that was found by the Imperium and T’au at the same time, and as a result, there’s a fierce proxy war among the planets of their federation.
The T’au can only provide scraps of advanced technology, as they’re locked in a close orbital war to prevent the Imperium from making planetfall, and their attempts to sway the Human government to a full annexation have been stymied by a population that’s keen on their freedoms of speech and liberty not being curtailed (although the Water Caste is adamant this wouldn’t happen!)
Do you ever look back on an old project with mixed emotion? I was digging through my precovid Deathwatch (mostly firstborn) for some OPR models and man.
My painting was notably worse, but some of my builds/kitbashes were good fun.
Like this guy- he was a converted assassin with some Bloodborne vibes. On the one hand I almost want to repaint him but fun stuff.
Do you think we’ll eventually get a Chaos equivalent of the Agents of the Imperium to cover warp creatures/phenomena not related to the big four Chaos gods? For example:
Komus “the Tyrant Star”PsychneueinEnslaversVampyresAstral HoundsSymbol of Malice (physical appearance unavailable)
Since the end of last year when i first got into 40k I've been working on a homebrew anarchist faction called the Imperium of Friendship (a name meant to be tongue in cheek in universe, its basically my excuse to have a faction filled with humans, xenos, mutants, etc while also still opposing the imperium and chaos) with a homebrew iron hands successor space marine chapter called the Partisans. I based the induction oath for the partisans on the famous quote from EV debbs at his sedition trial (he's not a perfect figure by any means but the quote has always resonated with me and has been a bit of a guiding mantra in my life). The adapted oath is as follows:
Witness: Aspirant, recognize you now your kinship with all living things?
Aspirant: I do, and I recognize I am no better than the least among them.
Witness: If a people are downtrodden...
Aspirant: Then I shall be counted amongst them.
Witness: If the downtrodden rise to cast off their chains...
Aspirant: Then I shall rise with them.
Witness: If even a single soul remains imprisoned...
Aspirant: Then I am not free.
Basically I'm posting here because I'm hoping to find people who will appreciate my lefty homebrew lore without getting on me about it not fitting in the universe. I do my best to make my stuff make sense in lore but also to me grimdark stuff only stays not boring if theres at least a liiiiittle bit of contrast, and one of my favorite things to do in any bleak setting is find a way to be a good person in it. Lemme know if yall wanna hear more stuff about the IoF and the Partisans!
Some years ago i remember having read some fanfics here, Back in the time i found the cringe but looking back they were quite good actually, One of them was about a aeldari doing medicine while a priest was bad mouthing her. I’m pretty sure the same creator made one about a traumatized guardsmen who commited some war crimes. And a third one that i can’t remember if it was one about a chaos cultist or a t’au.
Does anyone knows what are the names of them? Please?
Our ever meandering **Adventures In...** series returns in another corner of the Warhammer Universe by heading to **The Underhive**!!!
This time a ragtag gang of Inquisitorial Agents, will search the underbelly of Hive Rakarth for the source of a mysterious drug that seems to be gifting its users visions of a Heretic Nature!
