Let’s start a Warhammer 40k Glossary . . . and keep it going

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Greetings fellow wargamers!

As a veteran player of almost twenty years of 40k, I can tell you that times have changed! One thing that continues to evolve is terminology!  You hear popular terms passed around in gaming circles like ‘meta’ and ‘deathstar’ that can be confusing the first few times you hear them.  At least, they were for me.

In the spirit of community, I thought it might behoove us all to start an online directory, where people could comment and leave their own definitions to common terms/words/phrases that I cam not familiar with.  Seen below are just a sampling or popular terms that I will continue to update over time.

This list will also be featured on our website.

 So have at it!  Leave a comment and we’ll evaluate them periodically and add some of these to our ever expanding list.

Til then . . .  put you minis where your mouth is!  Caleb, WMG

 # + + :  An Invulnerable save.  For example 3++, 2++, etc.

All Comer’s:  A list designed to be balanced and play well against any list presented against it. 

Bomb:  A unit that suddenly arrives on the table, usually by means of deep strike, and that unleashes great amounts of damage upon arrival.  IE, A ‘Farsight Bomb’ with commander Farsight and his retinue of Crisis suits, or an ‘Eldrad Bomb’ with Farseer Eldrad and a retinue, etc. 

Cheesy: To exploit an oversight in the rules, usually to the detriment of your opponent. See Spam
Deathstar: A unit with incredible power, often far above that of a typical unit.
Flying Circus:  A large numbers of flyers or flying monstrous creatures

Forge the Narrative/Forging the Narrative:  To focus on the narrative aspect of gaming, ie, to play a game that is centered around narrative storytelling as opposed to competitive play.  


GT: Grand Tournament
Harleystar: A Harlequin Deathstar, usually with farseer support and dark eldar archon ally.

Highlighting, Zenithal:  In painting, spraying the model with darker colours underneath and in the recesses, and lighter colours on the raised areas and topsides. This gives the appearance of natural light highlighting the model from above and creates natural shadows where the light wouldn’t reach.

Leafblower army:  An highly mechanized IG army that relies on extensive artillery and pie plates to ‘blow’ their opponent off the board quickly, or force them to break and run through multiple pinning/morale tests.  

JSJ:  Jump Shoot Jump.  Common tactic with jet pack units to take advantage of cover after shooting.  

Mekdar:  An Eldar battleforce that relies heavily on vehicles.  
Meta:   What’s trending in wargaming, either in a particular area or the community as a whole.

 Nerf:  To make worse or weaken, usually in the context of weakening something in order to balance out a game.

Nidzilla:  A tyranid army that relies heavily on monstrous creatures.

Pie Plate:  Large blast template

PITA:  Pain in the Ass, esp. as it pertains to a unit that is difficult to defeat/overcome/deal with

Razormarines ie, Razorwolves, Razorangels, etc:  A Space Marine army that uses a high number of Razorback transports, typically to take advantage of the las/plas combo weapon.  

Shennanigans: Unusual combinations of rules/units/combos that result in unusually powerful in game situations

SMS:  Shoot Move Shoot.

Spam: Taking multiple versions of an identical or seemingly identical unit. See Cheesy.
Lightning Rod: A unit that draws a considerable amount of the enemies firepower or attention
TO: Tournament organizer
WAAC:  Win at All Costs, specifically as it pertains to lists or players.  Often portrayed in a negative context.

 Zenithal highlighting:  In painting, spraying the model with darker colours underneath and in the recesses, and lighter colours on the raised areas and topsides. This gives the appearance of natural light highlighting the model from above and creates natural shadows where the light wouldn’t reach.