Should you wait for the new Battleforce boxes or buy a Combat Patrol now?
Last checked 29 October 2026.
Buy the Combat Patrol now if you want to start. A Battleforce is a box of several units for one army. For Space Marines and Orks it adds different units to a Combat Patrol rather than replacing it, and Games Workshop has given no date or price for the new ones.
Wait only if you are buying a Christmas present for someone who already collects the army.
What is known and what is not
On 19 October 2026 Games Workshop revealed seven Warhammer 40,000 Battleforce boxes, for Space Marines, Chaos Knights, Orks, Space Wolves, Blood Angels, Chaos Space Marines and Necrons. It said pre-orders would open soon, and pitched the boxes for Christmas. It gave no release date and no price. Our new releases guide lists every unit in every box, so this page only compares two of them with the Combat Patrols you can buy today.
What each box adds
| Army | Combat Patrol (Starter Set and Getting Started) | Battleforce (revealed 19 October) | In both |
|---|---|---|---|
| Space Marines | Captain with Relic Shield, Librarian, 5 Intercessors, 5 Vanguard Veterans, Land Speeder | Indomitus Task Force: Captain in Terminator Armour, Chaplain, Redemptor Dreadnought, 5 Terminators, 5 Assault Intercessors with Jump Packs, 10 Intercessors | Intercessors |
| Orks | Warboss, Weirdboy, 20 Boyz, 10 Gretchin, Wartrakk | Armoured Blitzmob: Warboss in Mega Armour, Battlewagon or Gunwagon, Deff Dread, 3 Meganobz, 10 Boyz | Boyz, and a Warboss in different armour |
For these two armies the Battleforce is a second purchase. It brings big models a Combat Patrol lacks: a Dreadnought and Terminators for Marines, a transport and Meganobz for Orks. You can own both with little doubling up.
Which to choose
- To start building now, buy the Combat Patrol. Its rules are free in the Warhammer 40,000 app, and you can add a Battleforce later.
- A present for someone who already collects the army is the one case for waiting. The Battleforce adds units, though it has no release date yet. Check their collection first.
- Waiting to save money does not work yet. There is nothing to compare, and waiting only delays the start.
If your first-choice Combat Patrol is missing
A Combat Patrol you cannot buy today is no reason to wait for a Battleforce, because they are different boxes. These are the boxes to start with.
Common questions
Is a Battleforce a good first Warhammer 40,000 box?
Games Workshop calls the Space Marine Indomitus Task Force a versatile core for a Space Marine army. It holds bigger models than a Combat Patrol, though, so a Combat Patrol is the simpler first box.
Do the new Battleforce boxes replace Combat Patrols?
For Space Marines and Orks they do not. The units differ: the Marine Battleforce shares only Intercessors with the Combat Patrol, and the Ork one shares Boyz. You can own both.
How much do the new Warhammer 40,000 Battleforce boxes cost?
Games Workshop had announced no price when we last checked on 29 October 2026. Until it does, nobody can say whether they cost less than the same models bought separately.
Battleforce boxes and their contents: Warhammer Community, 19 October 2026. Combat Patrol contents: Warhammer Community, 23 July 2026, and our product listings. Prices and stock: this shop, read live.