"“Best” version of 40K (or alternative) for light SF battles?" Topic

I'm sure this has been covered before, but I couldn't find it.

I have some 1997 2nd Ed. Space Hulk{/i] figures that just cry out for a wider bit of battling. But I have no desire to delve into Codexes or factions or whatever fluff stuff GW offers for these. Maybe an older version of 40K would work, or possibly an alternative home-brew set. But what I want is to be able to grab whatever I have or can find super-cheap, slap it on a table, and start shootin'.

So, what would you recommend? (Keep in mind I'm NEVER gonna do a tournament, and creating the Kewlest Awesomest Killer Army is not gonna be my thing, either, and I'm not buying any of GW's current product, either.)

OPR: One Page Rules. It was designed specifically to cater to the 40K crowd without the 40K prices.

And best part: the basic rules and army lists (all you really need to play) are free. And, the rules really do fit on one page (the special rules add another).

Sorry about the italics, all. I failed to properly proofread, alas.

If you don't need vehicles, the original Rogue Trader. Lots of scenarios in the back, too… ;-)

Xenos Rampant works well for me. It's figure agnostic and doesn't have a fixed number of models or set base sizes for a unit. Units are extremely customisable, so you can fit pretty much any version of the fluff you choose. The scenarios included are varied and surprisingly well-balanced (though of course it's _always_ possible to break any system).

Another vote for the Grimdark One Page Rules

link

As noted, it has the advantage of free – also plays very well; we use them all the time