Start Warmachine with a Friend: Two Armies, One Shared Shopping List

Toy Snowman · Warmachine guide

Bring a friend to the battlefield.

Choose two starting forces, count shared supplies once, and plan your first game together. Each player gets models they want to build and play.

Try the tool

Choose two starting forces, count shared supplies once, and plan your first game together. Each player gets models they want to build and play. Explore the Warmachine collection at Toy Snowman, your Montreal-based Canadian hobby store.

What do two people need to start Warmachine?

Each player needs a force they can use in the agreed game format. You can share dice, a tape measure, terrain and many hobby supplies while learning. The planner therefore counts the selected starting boxes separately and common playing supplies once.

Choose armies you each want to build and paint. Different armies create interesting contrasts; a mirror match can also be useful because both players learn the same models. In a mirror match, two people still need separate miniatures. The calculator counts two copies of the starter unless one player marks theirs as already owned.

Which two armies make a good learning pair?

If both choices use the same main resource system, you can learn its fundamentals together. Cygnar Gravediggers and Khador Winter Korps, for example, are both warcaster armies. Two warlock armies let both players learn fury management. Mixing resource systems is also possible; allow time to learn each side.

The selected boxes are starting points, not a promise of equal competitive power. Confirm current model points, permissions and the chosen Command or other game format in the app. Buying two similarly priced boxes does not automatically produce an even matchup.

Your first-game checklist

1. Prepare both forces: assemble the models and agree which current rules and game format you are using.
2. Check the lists together: use the Warmachine app, the same points limit and legal options for each army.
3. Set up the table: follow the format’s table and terrain guidance. Have dice, an inch-marked tape and required markers ready.
4. Read the key models: identify each leader, the main attacks and the resource system before the first turn.
5. Play openly: explain intentions, look up rules together and allow time to learn. Discuss any teaching simplifications before starting.
6. Review one thing each: talk about a positioning decision or rule you want to practise next time before buying more models.

What costs are outside the shared estimate?

Tax, shipping, painting supplies, terrain, a playing surface and scenario accessories are excluded. Enter your own assembly-supply budget if you need adhesive or preparation tools. Sharing a kit can reduce duplication, but the planner does not apply a bundle discount or reserve stock.

When you are ready for another box, use the expansion adviser to explore a new role for each army. There is no need to buy a full collection before you have played your first games.

Your next step

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Editorial guide checked 8 November 2026. Product prices and availability are requested when you use the tool. Sources: official army guides, Warmachine app and rules, Command Starter naming update, and the linked Toy Snowman product listings. Photos are real catalogue images; models may be shown assembled and painted.