What edition to you start...

[Levitas]

For those of us long of tooth we still have pristine copies of Rogue Trader, and tut at those who know nothing of paying points for suspencers and hover boards. Or squats.

I was there on day one. I played the battle for the farm man, with cardboard marines and orks! i have too many editions rattling around in my head.

What edition did you join 40K?

[N0rdicNinja]

Picked up the game back when the Tau and Necrons were released simultaneously back in 3rd edition... Necrons have been my main ever since.

[ssylyss]

I started collecting back in 88 or so, still have my rogue trader book, the spine has seen better days. I wish I had a mint copy, although my compendium is mint :).
I didnt actually start playing 40k until 2006, back in the day there was no one in my area to play with. I waited 18 years to field my eldar...

[Scoota]

I started playing in 3rd ed, back in 2001. Nids were my first army, and have collected a bit of almost everything except for IG over the years.

You should see the size of my bitz box(es)!

[eldargal]

Second Edition in 1993, when I was six. Though I didn't get my own army until a few years later.

[Kefka]

Back when third just came out. I was...10 then. I had a few friends who played 2nd edition and told me to wait for the third to come out,so I did.
To this day I still play Dark Eldar.

[warpcrafter]

I started in 94, because I was burned out on WFB. Quit because of third edition, then got dragged back in after trying other games that did not satisfy. About to jump ship again, this time for AT-43.

[eagleboy7259]

Third edition right when the tyranid codex of the time was coming out. I played around with every single army, eventually bought the starter set and got my older brother hooked on it. He got sick of me not having a decent sized army to play against and finally bought me a hand me down Black Templars army to go with the start set mini's and I have been hooked on BT's and Asssault Marines ever since.

[Brass Scorpion]

What edition did you join 40K?
Rogue Trader. My first GW purchase was a blister of Chaos Warriors, they just looked so amazing and so different than the Grenadier and Ral Partha miniatures I'd seen at that point. Soon after I bought a blister of Chaos Marines. Both purchases were for use in a roleplay game. As my collection grew, I purchased the Warhammer and 40K rule books too. By then, I was hopelessly addicted.

[Nabterayl]

Late fourth edition, just about the time the ork codex came out. I used to swear up and down that I would never play a vector-based board game, but Dawn of War hooked me during a very stressful period at work and I got to thinking how nice it would be to have a miniature painting hobby again. I talked to a friend who played about the system, and was less derisive than I expected to be. I started thinking about what army was least like my tactical style, and which would stretch me most as a painter. I became fascinated with the problem of crossing open ground in a system that didn't allow for many of the real-world solutions to that problem. I realized, to my great delight, that orks were an essentially Napoleonic army. Couldn't (and still can't) get that idea out of my head.

Then that same friend showed up at my house with an ork battleforce, and I knew there was no going back ...

[Katie Drake]

Third edition right when the tyranid codex of the time was coming out.

About the same here, maybe a couple months earlier. Started with with Chaos Space Marines - my first five models was a box of Nurgle Plague Marines (the funny looking plastic ones!).

[jeffersonian000]

I started at the tail end of 1st edition, and still have near mint copy of the 1990 US release of Rogue Trader. Still have a bunch of lead Imperial Guard troops, too.

SJ

[RocketRollRebel]

I started around the middle of 4th in 2006 as the Medusa V campaign was starting. A roommate of mine played tyranids at the time and got me into it and said I would love IG. Oh how I did! haha My first purchase was the Vostroyan Firstborn platoon box. I've dabbled with DH and have a budding BA army since then but my Vostroyan IG are still my first and most expensive love. :p

[Pi666]

First, I got Space Crusade in 91.

Then in Christmas 93 I got the 2nd ed Starter Box (Oh, the cardboard ruins...) and a death company box.

[Cryl]

I played RT back in the day for a couple of years. I missed 2nd and 3rd eds completely and came back to the game towards the end of 4th ed mostly due to picking up some of the HH books in a train station!

[Old_Paladin]

I got pulled in mid 2nd edition, playing space wolves. I left in late third ed. and missed fourth altogether. I play a little now and again and like the 5th edition rules. But I've mainly been in it for the fluff for many years now.

[ForeverHero]

I started actually when Gorka Morka was released and then when 3rd edition hit the shelves I began working on my Dark Angels. A friend of mine asked me to paint a box of the new Space Marines and I selected the green ones because I like their colors better. Once the display was done, I got to keep the models and that was the beginning of the end for me :)

[Majorcrash]

My first exposure to 40K was thru the then newly released 1st ed space hulk. Soon after I had bought a copy of space crusade, and then the fever took over. I had still have my flying lawn chairs and the old land raider. But my favorite old piece is the egg dreadnaughts. Just comparing it to the newer versions , cant help but make you smile, or burst out laughing.

[Col.Gravis]

Bit of an odd ball, I started playing about a month after the release of 3rd Edition - but for the first year or so only played 2nd edition. I'd already been playing WFB for a couple of years at that point though.

[Sangre]

2000, pre-necrons, pre-tau 3rd.

[Duke]

I was exposed to RT, but never owned it... After a few years I eventually bought my friends 2nd ed because he was all excited about WHFB. Then Dark millenium came out and I was on crack. I took a break for a few years and then when I was living in Europe started painting red marines for a passing of the time. I couldn't remeber any rules, so just bought more and more to paint. Upon returining to the states 3rd ed was in full swing and I had about 5000 points of painted Blood Angels since then it has been constant.

Duke

[Chris]

Got Adeptus Titanicus, then picked up Rogue trader as an adjunct to my 6mm games and because I loved the boxed games (Space Hulk, Space Crusade, sorta liked Advanced Space Crusade and thought Space Fleet was fun), stuck with it through 2nd edition, dropped it with 3rd edition as it was too much of a change and became somewhat unplayable for me. Though obviously kept up witht he fluff and that as I'm entertained by the setting and still play Epic, BFG, etc.

[oni]

I started back in '93 shortly after 2nd edition was released. Once 3rd edition hit in '98 I took an involuntary hiatus as no one in my area cared to play by the new rules.

[Brother Outs]

I started playing when second edition came out. Space marines & Orks. Remember the cardboard killer-can? Only played a short time. Picked it back up with fifth edition.

[entendre_entendre]

3rd edition. circa 2000. my friend showed me a space marine land speeder and i was hooked. my first rule book was a used copy bought at a GW auction (back when they had those...), still have it on my shelf next to 4th & 5th ed, although minus the cover, which i lost somewhere...

[Cthulhu]

Rogue Trader days. Sold my mint condition Batman: Death in the Family comics to buy both the Realms of Chaos books and enough figures to get my Chaos army rolling. Oh for the days of rolling 1d1000x9 for the chaos mutations of my Tzeentchian forces, overpowered, yes, fun, completely.

[BuFFo]

Rogue Trader.

[darth_papi76]

November 1999. My first purchase was a box of guardians, a warlock, and Codex Eldar.

[Dunadan]

Christmas 2007 I got the Battle for Macragge and started playing Blood Angels (since their codex was free and I am a cheapskate). Then I picked up Rogue Trader off of eBay and have had fun with that, though my FLGS group plays the current edition (I play Marines, either Loyalist, Chaos, or Wolves, depending on what models I want to use, and am building up a DE force).

[RocketRollRebel]

Come to think of it my first ever exposure to GW was playing "Warhammer Curse of the Horned Rat" for PS1 like 9 years ago. Thought the game was neat but gave up on it after a weekend. Didn't really realize that it was related to a miniature game until I started playing in 40k '06.

[Kahoolin]

I started with Rogue Trader. I still have some of the better squat models but I've long sold the rest and lost my rule book. I then stopped playing for years, missed 2nd and 3rd edition, and started again in 4th.

[Nauta Vei]

I bought RT, way way back, loved first edition space hulk, and Adeptus Titanicus. I got out of the hobby after discovering girls and beer. After having kids I found I was stuck in the house a lot more, so I picked up a copy of White Dwarf and was severely rebittin by the hobby bug.

[Psychosplodge]

2nd edition,
I miss displacer fields...

[crazyredpraetorian]

I started with 3RD Ed.

[Dragonstriker]

Rogue Trader, late 1989.
My friend had come back to Australia after living in the UK and brought a few minis and his RT rulebook. I thought the book was pretty cool. Then I started looking at WD in the local bookshop. At WD125. Along comes 126, those Jes Goodwin Eldar sketches, and I was doomed.

[ColCorbane]

I started with RT, although in those days I was far more into the fantasy stuff. I've got a few 40k bits and bobs from those days.

http://corbaniaprime.blogspot.com/2009/06/blast-from-past.html

I've kept up with the rules though as I'm a bit of a rules hound, and I've got all the main rulebooks from RT to present. 40k has changed a lot over the editions.

[UltraPrime]

Rogue Trader. My first minis were the RTB01 Marines!

[pgarfunkle]

Started in 2nd Edition with the 40k starter set, painted the marine red and discovered the Blood Angels who have been my favourite since. Started playing regularly in 3rd edition and added a guard army with the release of the Steel Legion and supplemented them with Catachans, and finally started a Tyranid force when the new codex was released. Stopped playing for a while after 40k playing friends and I ended up at different uni's and have started again this year while eagerly awaiting the new 'nid and potential Angels codexes :)

[Duke]

Forgive me if I missed it, but this thread should have had a poll. it would have been fun.

Duke