
- BGG rank
- BGG #6,059
- BGG rating
- 6.8
Space Marine
- 2–3 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 3.2/5
- 1989

Rules assistance for Warhammer 40,000 Compendium
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Warhammer 40,000 Compendium is an expansion for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader released in 1989 for 2 players and 120 minutes per game. It was designed by Rick Priestley, Jervis Johnson, Bryan Ansell, Andy Warwick, Nigel Stillman, Graeme Davis, John Blanche, Mike Brunton, Sean Masterson, Pete Knifton, and Derrick Norton and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers and Dice Rolling.
This 200-page book is a "best of" White Dwarf. From the publisher: This book is a collection of the best of White Dwarf Warhammer 40,000 articles. It provides you with a complete update on the forces and technologies of the Warhammer Universe. The Warhammer 40,000 Compendium contains the complete army lists for: Space Marines, Imperial Guard, Squats, and Harlequins together with their histories and backgrounds. In addition, it includes the new rules for Dreadnoughts, Robots, and other fighting machines together with all of the revised rules for vehicles. Expands: Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader
Warhammer 40,000 Compendium supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Warhammer 40,000 Compendium is 120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
Warhammer 40,000 Compendium has a complexity rating of 3.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Warhammer 40,000 Compendium belongs to these categories: Miniatures, Science Fiction, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers and Dice Rolling. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Warhammer 40,000 Compendium are: Rick Priestley, Jervis Johnson, Bryan Ansell, Andy Warwick, Nigel Stillman, Graeme Davis, John Blanche, Mike Brunton, Sean Masterson, Pete Knifton, and Derrick Norton. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Warhammer 40,000 Compendium as an expansion for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader to use it. Check that your edition of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.