Splash! A rainy night…
In a small room of a residential building, a hobbyist who had recently started collecting miniatures was completely focused on painting a game piece in his hand.
His technique was clumsy, and much of the paint was applied crookedly. The dark blue armor of the Ultramarines ended up a bright, garish blue under his brush. The U-shaped insignia… was also painted horrendously. Many joints and seams were painted roughly, with no sense of aesthetics. Even the weapon in the miniature's hand lacked any meaningful detail.
His name was Richard, a new player who had recently entered the world of Warhammer. During his university days, he had learned about Warhammer lore through some novels or a certain "marine arthropod," and that was how he discovered the game. Later, after listening to introductions from Colonel Dutch, he officially joined the hobby.
Compared to the so-called "dog-shit" plotlines, Richard felt that actually playing with the figures was far more interesting. Occasionally, he would play a match with other hobbyists offline… but a single game simply took too long. Eventually, he stopped playing matches often and limited himself to collecting interesting miniatures.
"Sigh… if only playing tabletop was as simple as Auto Chess, that would be amazing!" he muttered."I could just drop the pieces and let them fight automatically!""That would save so much trouble!"
"Ding-dong~"
The apartment doorbell rang, and not long after, his phone started buzzing.
"Mr. Chen, your delivery!"
Richard held the phone between his shoulder and ear, still holding a paintbrush in one hand and painting the miniature in the other.
"Just leave it at the door! I'll get it in a bit!"
He didn't pay much attention, assuming it was the gaming board he had ordered a few days ago. Originally intended as a map for offline play, he now planned to use it as a display base for his miniatures since he went out less often.
After carefully setting aside his painted pieces, Richard looked at his own work and then at miniatures painted by masters, instantly feeling a massive gap. The pieces others painted were exquisite and elegant, full of depth and layering. His own miniatures were worse than someone's Lego toys.
"Sigh… whatever. I'll ask the pros for painting advice later!" he sighed."I really should hire an art graduate to help, but that's too expensive. I'll just buy some paint and do it slowly myself!"
After washing his hands in the bathroom, Richard quickly brought the gaming board in from the door. He hadn't realized how large it would be when he bought it. Its size was twice that of his dining table, and now it filled his entire living room.
"Ah, I think I forgot to check the dimensions. This scale is a bit too large!"
Only then did he look at the product manual—a full 20-square-meter gaming platform. It was indeed massive, though still smaller than those used in clubs.
"Forget it, if it's big, it's big. I don't like dealing with refunds anyway. Let's open it and see what's inside!"
Opening the packaging, the exquisite 3D model inside practically leaped out from the board. It depicted the complex surface of a planet. At the center stood a towering, spire-like Hive City. The spire's interior showcased countless intricate structures, including an incredibly dazzling ecological dome at its topmost layer. This spire vividly represented Warhammer's social hierarchy—the elites at the top enjoyed the best living conditions, complete with natural ecological chambers as food supplies.
The lower Hive City, however, was foul, choked with smog and flowing with sewage. Radiation levels were deadly; a single sip of sewage could be more absurdly toxic than the chemical composition of India's Ganges River. Industrial waste gases were discharged directly into middle-layer residential areas. Humans with pustule-covered skin wandered the streets.
"Interesting!"
As he rotated the board, Richard was astonished by the craftsmanship. Not only was it beautifully made, but the objects inside seemed to move!
Using a magnifying glass, he observed a priest in a monastery presiding over a ceremony to the God-Emperor. Kilometers away on sand dunes, scavengers roamed on scrap-metal motorcycles. Adeptus Mechanicus defenders patrolled near God-Machines with transuranic arquebuses. Orcs in the jungle howled and roared incessantly. Every detail was lifelike; even the tiniest pieces, smaller than ants, contributed to a miniature society within the Hive City that left Richard in awe.
"This is amazing!" he exclaimed.
He had never imagined the board he bought could do this. Clearly, this was no ordinary board—its surface seemed to be an actual Warhammer planet. Observing dials along the edge, he realized the map's scale could be adjusted—a perfect feature for tabletop players, as playing the same map repeatedly often became formulaic and boring.
"This map looks familiar… this ocean must be the Boiling Sea. To the left is the Main Continent, to the right the Sub-continent. There's a vast forest in the middle with Orcs hiding inside… this is Armageddon, the planet scarred by three Wars for Armageddon!"
As a player familiar with the lore, Richard summarized the planet in one word: tragic. Though an important Industrial World for the Imperium, the planet's people received no mercy. During the first demonic invasion, the Grey Knights burned the entire population. Subsequent Orc invasions reduced the surface to scorched earth. Except for parasitic nobles, the population had no human rights, and turnover was extreme.
[Warning: The match is about to begin~][Chaos Fleet is invading…][Your opponent is: Khorne, the God of War][Please arrange your pieces to garrison the Armageddon defense line.][Mission objective: Strike the vanguard of the demonic forces and score 1,000 points… Mission reward: Second Heart, which enhances the host's blood circulation and significantly improves physical fitness.][Skill: Designate… You can designate other objects to forcibly become a specific piece in Warhammer.][It will retain the functions of the piece while adopting the designated identity.]
"Huh?"
Richard stared at the floating window above the board, bewildered. Others transmigrated into the Warhammer world themselves, but he could intervene in the Warhammer universe using this board. So, what was he? A Warp Chaos God? Or a player who could play chess with the Chaos Gods? Right now, he couldn't figure out his role.
The "Designate" skill seemed overpowered. Any experienced tabletop player knew some players loved to "proxy" one piece as another. A Great Unclean One could be claimed as a Slaaneshi demon; a World Eater could be called a Blood Angel. As long as the pieces were similar and everyone agreed, it was fine. Some went further—bringing Touhou figures or adult doujinshi succubi and claiming them as Slaaneshi Daemonettes. Veteran players usually turned a blind eye if the designation wasn't excessive—Richard had done it himself before.
He glanced at a Lion King "bishoujo" figure beside him. Previously, he had used it in matches, making the surrounding hobbyists laugh every time.
[Good buddy: I can't imagine the First Legion going into battle with that!][If the Lion looked like this, the Legion's greatest secret might really be the Lion himself.]
Thinking of GW suing someone for infringement over this, Richard chuckled. His room contained many ridiculous figures. He grabbed the Emperor figure from his throne and placed it next to the board.
"Oh, saving Armageddon and repelling the Chaos army? So simple! Just air-drop the Emperor and win everything!"
Then the calm board shook slightly. The ground cracked; in some areas of the Sub-continent, flames erupted. Magma surged from deep within, infused with Chaos energy, eroding the veil between the material universe and the Warp. The roars of war echoed endlessly from the abyss below.
The Gate of the Red Angel—connecting to the Blood Domain—tainted all nearby humans. The Hive City population instantly became pieces for Khorne Daemon Princes. Sewage was replaced with flowing blood; industrial waste halted. Blood and slaughter spread through the streets as Khornate cultists appeared in large numbers.
At this level, the Hive City was in critical danger, but most units were low-level mortals. Even basic Astartes Intercessors could likely slaughter them all.
[Friendly reminder: Follow the deployment point rules.][Units exceeding deployment points cannot be deployed.][Designated units also cannot exceed deployment points. Complete the mission within the specified points.]
"What?"
Richard wanted to place the Emperor, but his deployment points were insufficient—reasonable, since the Emperor required 10,000 points. His current deployment points: 1,000. Only basic squads or some special units could be deployed.
Richard realized he needed an efficient strategy. Constructing a reasonable lineup based on enemy units was essential to victory.
"However…" he gave a wicked smile. Many tabletop players enjoyed trolling; conventional play was boring.
He abandoned deploying the expensive Emperor. Instead, he chose the custom Lion bishoujo figure. Bringing her to the table, he activated his skill:
"You! Are the Lion!""You are Lion King!""You are the Primarch of the First Legion, the Emperor's truly good son!"
[Deploying the Primarch of the First Legion, Lion King.][Deployment successful. Commencing automatic combat.]
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