Warhammer 40K 11th Edition Terrain Footprints

A terrain footprint in Warhammer 40,000® 11th edition is the flat marker you place under a piece of scenery to define its terrain area — the footprint where that terrain’s rules apply. The standard set is 16 pieces in 5 sizes: 11.5×7 in, two mirrored 11.5×8 in angled pieces, 6×4 in, 10×2.5 in, and 6×2 in. LITKO cuts the full set to those exact dimensions in see-through clear acrylic or opaque MDF, laser-cut in the USA.

Below: every footprint size, what the terrain area actually does in the rules, why a pre-cut set beats printing your own, and how to choose between the acrylic and MDF sets.

Updated August 26, 2026 — footprint sizes and the 44 × 60 in battlefield match Games Workshop’s published 11th edition terrain specs and mission material; rules figures re-verified against the published Core Rules and the current errata.

The 11th Edition Terrain Footprint Sizes

11th edition standardizes terrain into a fixed set of footprint shapes — 16 pieces across 5 sizes. The two angled pieces are a mirrored left and right that interlock into a roughly square area, so a full set covers the footprint shapes Games Workshop lists for the standard mission layouts. Here’s exactly what’s in a LITKO set:

That’s the same 16-piece layout whether you choose clear acrylic or MDF — identical sizes, just a different material and finish.

What a Terrain Footprint Actually Does

In Warhammer 40,000 11th edition, the terrain area (the flat footprint under the scenery) is what the rules key off. The walls and details on top can be anything; the footprint defines where the terrain’s effects apply. The main ones:

• Benefit of Cover. A unit gains the Benefit of Cover — −1 to the attacker’s Ballistic Skill — when every model in it either is an Infantry, Beast, or Swarm model within a terrain area, or is not fully visible because of intervening terrain. Both halves matter: Infantry only need to be within the area rather than wholly inside it, and vehicles and monsters can still get cover through the visibility condition.
• The Hidden rule. An Infantry/Beast/Swarm unit within a terrain area that contains one or more light or dense terrain features, and that didn’t shoot in the current or previous turn, can become Hidden — enemy models can’t see it beyond their detection range, which is 15 in by default and drops to 12 in if the unit has Gone to Ground. Tucking a unit into a footprint keeps it out of sight of long-range fire until it opens up.
• Blocking line of sight. A terrain area containing light or dense features is obscuring — and that does not depend on how large the footprint is. If every line of sight between two models crosses one or more obscuring areas that neither model is in, those two models cannot see each other, so even big models can hide behind a section of terrain.
• Objectives are terrain. Most objectives in 11th are terrain areas you contest rather than small discs on the table. You can still use objective and control tokens to mark which footprints are the objectives.

Laying Out a Table

Standard matched play in 11th edition uses a 44 × 60 in battlefield — the Strike Force size, 2,000 points a side. The Core Rules themselves only say that your mission tells you what size battlefield to use, so that 44 × 60 figure comes from the mission material, the same place the footprint dimensions come from. One 16-piece set covers one battlefield.

The layouts are published by Games Workshop in its free Event Companion PDFs, which carry three terrain layouts per mission along with the objective positions, keyed to the Force Disposition you and your opponent end up with. Those diagrams are Games Workshop’s copyrighted material, so we don’t reproduce them here — download the current pack from Warhammer Community and set up from that.

What a setup actually looks like:

• Agree the layout before anything touches the table. Pick the mission and layout from the current Event Companion, and check that you’re both reading the same version of it.
• Place the footprints first, the scenery second. The footprint is the terrain area as far as the rules are concerned; the ruin or wood sitting on top is decoration. Laying the areas out first means the boundaries get agreed while the table is still empty and easy to reach across.
• Agree what each area contains. 11th edition sorts terrain features into exposed, light, and dense, and those categories attach to the individual features rather than to the area as a whole — so a single footprint can hold a mix. Whether an area is obscuring, and whether a unit inside it can go Hidden, both follow from that, so it’s worth thirty seconds up front.
• Note which objectives are which. Objectives are labeled Home, Expansion, and Central, and the layout tells you which is which. Marking them with tokens saves re-checking the diagram every turn.
• Decide what touching areas mean. Two footprints pushed edge to edge can be played as one continuous area or as two separate ones, and that changes how far a unit has to move to leave cover. Settle it at setup rather than mid-turn.
• Leave lanes for the big bases. Vehicles and monsters need room between areas; a layout that looks generous from above can be impassable for a Knight.

Why a Pre-Cut Set Beats Printing Your Own

You can print footprint templates at home — but there’s a catch. The largest pieces are 11.5 inches long, which doesn’t fit on standard US Letter paper (11 inches). Games Workshop publishes free printable terrain-area templates of its own, but specifies A3 paper for them — a size most home printers in the US cannot feed at all. So the free route means an A3 printer or a print shop, or taping pages together, then carefully cutting 16 pieces to size and hoping the edges come out true. A pre-cut set skips all of that:

• Exact dimensions, guaranteed. Every piece is laser-cut to the standard size, so your terrain areas match your opponent’s and the tournament layouts — no eyeballing a hand-cut edge.
• They last. Rigid acrylic and MDF survive being packed, dropped, and shuffled around the table for years; paper templates curl and tear.
• Clean, readable edges. A crisp laser-cut edge (with LITKO’s “ruined” styling) reads clearly so both players agree where the area is.
• Set up in seconds. Drop the 16 pieces and go, instead of an evening of printing, taping, and trimming.

Clear Acrylic vs. MDF: Which Set?

LITKO makes the same 16-piece set in two materials. They’re identical in size — the choice is about look, feel, and price:

Shop the Clear Acrylic Set → Shop the MDF Set →

Both sets are laser-cut in Valparaiso, Indiana, and ship as the full 16-piece layout. Going with MDF? It primes and paints up beautifully — see Finally, a Terrain Footprint Worth Painting. Browse the rest of our terrain kits.

Pair Them with Objective & Status Tokens

Because 11th edition ties objectives to terrain areas, a lot of players mark which footprints are objectives — and track wounds, orders, and effects around them — with matching acrylic tokens. If you’re setting up a full table, the Warhammer 40K token guide covers the marker sets that pair with these footprints, from objective and command tokens to wound and status markers.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 11th edition terrain footprint sizes?

A standard set has 16 pieces in 5 sizes: four large 11.5 × 7 in footprints, two mirrored 11.5 × 8 in angled pieces (a left and a right that interlock into a roughly square area), four medium 6 × 4 in footprints, two small 10 × 2.5 in footprints, and four mini 6 × 2 in footprints. LITKO cuts every piece to those exact dimensions.

How many terrain footprints come in a set?

Sixteen pieces across five shapes — the full complement Games Workshop lists for the standard mission layouts, enough to set up one 44 × 60 in battlefield. The two angled pieces are a mirrored left and right that fit together into a roughly square area, so a set gives you the complete range of standard footprint sizes.

Are these the standard tournament sizes?

They’re cut to match the footprint sizes Games Workshop specifies for 11th edition’s standard mission layouts. Because every piece is laser-cut rather than hand-trimmed, the sizes come out exact and consistent from set to set.

Clear acrylic or MDF — which should I get?

Clear acrylic is see-through and ultra-thin (1.5 mm), so your mat and terrain show through and the table stays uncluttered — popular with players and referees who want the cleanest look and an unmistakable edge. MDF is opaque with a natural wood tone, giving bold, easy-to-read areas, a paintable surface, and a lower price. Both are the same 16 sizes.

Can I just print my own terrain footprints?

You can, and Games Workshop publishes free printable terrain-area templates — but they are specified for A3 paper, which most home printers in the US cannot feed, and the largest pieces are 11.5 inches long so they will not fit US Letter either. That means a print shop, or taping pages together and cutting 16 pieces by hand. A pre-cut set guarantees the exact sizes, sets up in seconds, and lasts for years instead of curling and tearing.

What is a terrain “footprint” or terrain area?

It’s the flat marker placed under a piece of scenery that defines its terrain area — the footprint on the table where that terrain’s rules apply, such as the Benefit of Cover and the Hidden rule. The scenery on top can be anything; the footprint is what the rules measure.

Do terrain footprints work with objective and status tokens?

Yes. In 11th edition, objectives are terrain areas, and many players use acrylic tokens to mark which footprints are objectives and to track wounds, orders, and effects around them. LITKO’s token sets are made to pair with these footprints.

What size table does Warhammer 40K 11th edition use?

Standard matched play uses a 44 × 60 in battlefield — the Strike Force size, at 2,000 points a side. The Core Rules say only that your mission tells you what size battlefield to use, so the 44 × 60 figure comes from the mission material rather than the rulebook itself. One 16-piece terrain footprint set covers one battlefield.

Where do I get the official 11th edition terrain layouts?

Games Workshop publishes them free in its Event Companion PDFs on Warhammer Community, with three terrain layouts per mission plus the objective positions. They get revised in the balance updates, so download the current pack rather than reusing an older printout.

Does one terrain footprint set cover a whole table?

Yes. The 16 pieces are the full complement Games Workshop lists for the standard mission layouts, which is enough to set up one 44 × 60 in battlefield. Not every layout puts all 16 pieces on the table at once.

Is there a printable terrain footprint reference?

Yes — we publish a free one-page Terrain Footprint Reference Card as a PDF, with all 16 piece sizes and dimensioned profiles, what a terrain area does in the rules, and a table-setup checklist. It’s a quick-reference card to keep beside the table rather than a set of printable templates: the largest pieces are 11.5 inches long, so they don’t fit US Letter paper at actual size.

Where to Go Next

• Clear Acrylic Terrain Footprint Set — see-through, ultra-thin, 16 pieces
• MDF Terrain Footprint Set — opaque, high-contrast, 16 pieces
• Warhammer 40K Token Guide — objective, command & status markers that pair with your footprints
• Warhammer Base Sizes Guide — base sizes for 40K, Age of Sigmar, The Old World & Kill Team
• LITKO Terrain Kits — the rest of our laser-cut terrain

This product is unofficial and is in no way endorsed by, affiliated with, or sponsored by Games Workshop Limited. Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer 40K are trademarks of Games Workshop Limited, used here for compatibility identification only. No challenge to their status is intended.