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Build Guide · beginner

Painting basics

Seven stages every painting guide on this site builds on: priming, base coats, washes, layering, highlighting, basing and varnish. Method and materials follow Army Painter's own technique guides in the sources below; we have not run every step on one model ourselves. Works for plastic kits and miniatures alike.

Level
Beginner, foundation technique

Researched method, not a tested build

  1. Step 1 of 7

    Prime

    Shake the can thoroughly for at least a minute, then test-spray it on a spare surface first. Army Painter's priming guide holds the can about 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 inches) from the model and builds coverage in several controlled passes, rather than trying for full coverage in one go. It recommends priming in a temperature of about 15 to 27 degrees C (60 to 80 degrees F) and 40 to 60 percent humidity, and never in rain or strong wind.

    Bench tip. The same guide's most common mistakes: priming models packed too close together, using too much primer at once, painting before it has fully dried, and priming a dusty model.

  2. Step 2 of 7

    Base coats

    Paint the model's largest colour areas first, using a size 1 or 2 brush. Army Painter's own guidance for applying colour is blunt: the golden rule is "thin to win". That principle is written for their spray colour primers, which prime and base-coat in one step, but it holds just as well with a brush: build the base colour in two or three thin coats rather than one thick one that can obscure detail.

    Bench tip. Thin the paint slightly rather than applying it straight from the pot; a thick coat obscures the detail the primer revealed.

  3. Step 3 of 7

    Wash

    Work one section of the model at a time rather than flooding the whole surface at once. Army Painter's own wash guide always moves the brush in the same direction, pushing the wash towards the areas with the greatest shadow and letting it flow into the recesses naturally, and notes you can lift your brush where you want the wash to pool. Let it dry completely before the next step.

    Bench tip. If the wash pools somewhere it shouldn't, redistribute it with a clean, slightly damp brush while it is still wet; it is better to apply it lightly a few times than to douse the model once and get it wrong.

  4. Step 4 of 7

    Layer

    Build up from the base colour toward a highlight tone in several thinned steps, each covering a slightly smaller area than the last. Army Painter describes this as a four-step method: paint lighter tones onto the raised areas first, then build up even brighter colours on the most prominent features, before adding sharp highlights along the edges and repeating with further, progressively lighter colours.

    Bench tip. Army Painter's own description calls layering an advanced technique that takes time to master; drybrushing (the next step) gets a similar effect faster, at the cost of some control.

  5. Step 5 of 7

    Highlight

    Drybrushing is Army Painter's own three-step method for fast highlights: load the bristles with paint rather than just the tips, wipe the brush on a paper towel until only pigment is left on the bristles, then gently flick or drag it across the model's raised surfaces only, picking out the edge detail.

    Bench tip. Army Painter notes this works especially well on textured surfaces such as fur, chainmail, stone and rubble, compared with smoother areas.

  6. Step 6 of 7

    Base

    Army Painter's basing guide thins basing glue slightly with water and brushes it onto the base, then dips the base fully into the chosen basing material and taps off the excess. Once that has set, base-coat the texture, drybrush a lighter highlight colour over it, and apply a wash for shadow in the low points.

    Bench tip. Add tufts or other static-grass pieces last, glued on with the same basing glue, for a finished look.

  7. Step 7 of 7

    Varnish

    Seal the finished paint job once it is fully dry and cured. Army Painter's spray varnish guide shakes the can in a clockwise and counterclockwise motion for a full minute, sprays only outdoors and never in adverse weather, and holds the can about 25 to 30 cm (10 to 12 inches) away, keeping it moving in multiple thin passes rather than one heavy coat.

    Bench tip. Let the varnish cure fully before handling the model, and empty the nozzle after use by spraying it upside down until it runs clear.

Sources