The London Grand Tournament: Faction Breakdown

The biggest Warhammer singles tournament in the world is almost here. The London Grand Tournament will see hundreds of players battle it out under one roof, and the competitive field is already taking shape. We’ve looked through the registered armies and Force Dispositions to see what the LGT meta could look like when the dice start rolling.

Faction Choices

The faction breakdown for the London Grand Tournament gives us a fascinating look at the armies making up the world’s biggest Warhammer singles tournament. At the top of the field, Adeptus Custodes lead with 79 players, making them the most represented faction at the LGT. They are closely followed by Orks with 72, while Space Marines (Astartes) round out the top three with 68 players.

The competition remains incredibly tight just behind them. Dark Angels have 64 players, followed by Necrons with 63 and Emperor’s Children with 58. Chaos Space Marines and Tyranids also break the 50-player mark with 54 and 53 players respectively. With seven factions already reaching 50 or more players, the LGT is set to showcase some serious depth across the most popular armies in the current meta.

Further down the field, T’au Empire and Leagues of Votann make a strong showing with 42 and 40 players respectively. World Eaters and Death Guard both bring 34 players, while Aeldari and Chaos Daemons follow with 32 and 31. Blood Angels also reach 31 players, with Imperial Knights and Grey Knights sitting just behind on 30 each.

The middle of the field continues to offer plenty of variety. Astra Militarum, Space Wolves, Drukhari and Adeptus Mechanicus all have 26–27 players, while Thousand Sons have 25. Adepta Sororitas bring 20 players, with Chaos Knights and Black Templars following on 18 and 14 respectively.

And then there is the long tail. Genestealer Cult, Imperial Agents and Deathwatch may have smaller numbers, but all three will still have representatives competing on the biggest stage of the weekend. With 28 different factions represented across the event, almost every corner of the 40K roster will have a presence at the LGT.

The faction numbers give us more than just a picture of what players are bringing to the LGT: they give us a snapshot of 11th Edition at a particularly interesting point in its development. With the world’s biggest Warhammer singles tournament taking place just before the launch of the new Space Marines Codex, the LGT will give us a valuable opportunity to look back at how the 11th Edition meta performed at the highest level, before the next major shift begins.

Five Factions, Five Different Stories

At the top of the table, Adeptus Custodes lead the way with 79 players, marking a notable rise in popularity for an army that has been making an impression with fast, powerful lists. Their numbers make the LGT a particularly interesting test of whether that growing interest can translate into results across the biggest singles field of the year.

Orks remain one of the most consistent choices in the competitive scene, with 72 players bringing them to the LGT. Their Codex is now firmly in the hands of players, making this tournament an excellent opportunity to see how the current Ork builds are performing when put through the pressure of a huge competitive field.

Just behind them, 68 Space Marines (Astartes) players will be taking their current rules to the LGT, with the new Codex still on the horizon. For these players, this could be one of the last major opportunities to test the current version of the army in a tournament environment before the next chapter of Space Marines begins.

Dark Angels are another faction worth keeping an eye on. With strong performances and impressive win rates across recent tournaments, their player numbers have continued to grow, reaching 64 at the LGT. The jump in representation makes them one of the clearest factions to watch when assessing whether recent competitive success is translating into wider player adoption.

Finally, Necrons arrive with 63 players following a particularly interesting showing at the Manchester Summer. With a strong Necron presence at that event and one player finishing inside the Top 5, the faction has already given competitive players plenty of reasons to pay attention. The LGT now provides a much larger stage to see whether that momentum continues.

Together, these five factions account for a significant portion of the LGT field, but each arrives with a different story. Custodes are building momentum, Orks are putting their new Codex to the test, Space Marines are looking towards their upcoming release, Dark Angels are growing off the back of recent results, and Necrons are looking to build on their Manchester performance. With all of them represented in numbers, the LGT should give us plenty of data to see which of these trends carries through to the results.

Force Disposition

The Force Disposition numbers at the London Grand Tournament show a clear preference at the top of the table, with Take and Hold selected by 317 players. Its continued popularity across recent UKTC events is once again reflected at the LGT, where it remains the most common choice by a noticeable margin.

Just behind it, Priority Assets has been selected by 303 players, putting the two most popular dispositions remarkably close together. Together, they account for the vast majority of the field and will give us plenty of opportunities to compare how these two approaches perform across such a large and varied tournament.

Further down the list, Purge the Foe has 185 players, while Reconnaissance appears in 154 lists. Both remain significant parts of the LGT field, but the gap between them and the two leading dispositions is substantial. At the other end, Disruption has just 46 players, making it by far the least selected option at the tournament.

The numbers around Take and Hold are particularly interesting. Its continued presence at the top of the Force Disposition table suggests that players are increasingly comfortable relying on a game plan they have had plenty of opportunities to test throughout the edition. The LGT's huge field will provide an especially useful sample for seeing how that familiarity translates into results.

With Take and Hold and Priority Assets accounting for more than 50% of the players in the field, the two dispositions will be central to the LGT meta. The question is not simply which one is more popular, but how each performs across hundreds of games... and whether the trends we’ve seen throughout 11th Edition continue on the biggest singles stage in the world.

The Countdown begins!

2 MASSIVE events are launching this week! 🔥

More tournaments, more competition and more chances to test yourself in 11th Edition. Keep your eyes peeled and be ready when tickets go live!

The North East Super-Major - March 6-7, 2027 The Surrey Super-Major - March 20-21, 2027

Save the Date for Friday 25th September at 2PM when Tickets will go live!