Games Workshop | Warhammer 40K Models

Choosing a good beginner faction is dependent on a few different factors, including ease of painting, simple strategy rules, balanced army composition, and starter set availability. For these reasons, we recommend you start with Space Marines, Necrons, or Tyranids.

These beginner sets also come with a wealth of online resources, including a massive community that can help you learn everything you need to know about assembling an army.

Successfully painting your minis comes down to the order in which you layer your paints. Here is a basic guide for priming and painting new pieces:

1. Prime your model to make sure the paint adheres well
2. Apply a base coat to ensure heavy pigmentation
3. Use shading to create depth
4. Add layer paints to build details
5. Make details pop with edge highlights
6. Preserve your design with varnish

We recommend adding any decals you want right before the varnish stage to ensure they’re as pristine as possible.