If you read my first Warhammer post, you’ll remember that my first attempt at painting was a disaster. My 20-year-old dwarfs finally saw the light of day, only for me to realise how badly I messed up. Let’s just say this is what happens when you don’t thin your paints properly.
Those models still sit unfinished, and honestly, I don’t see myself ever painting them.
Choosing My Warhammer 40K Army
When picking an army for my new Warhammer 40K journey, I went through two or three different factions before narrowing it down. In the end, it came down to T’au Empire vs. Necrons.
What ultimately won me over? The clean, straight edges and the overall sleek design of the T’au models.
Since I had no idea where to start, I went for the Combat Patrol, a great entry point that gave me a solid mix of infantry and machines to build upon. It was the perfect first step into painting.
Early Mistakes & Lessons Learned
Since I was new to painting models properly, I made mistakes right away.
My first big error? Fully assembling everything before painting.
This made certain areas almost impossible to reach, and I inevitably ended up accidentally marking already painted sections when trying to get those tight spots. Unfortunately, I only realised this after fully assembling both of my Combat Patrols.
But mistakes are how we learn, right? After assembling my models, I primed them with an undercoat and waited eagerly to begin painting.
Painting My First Squad: Breachers
With everything built, the next big question was: What to paint first?
I decided to hold off on the larger units until I had more confidence with a brush, so I started with my Breachers, a standard infantry squad.
I knew I wanted green as my primary colour. Since I’m still learning the game, I also wanted each squad to have a secondary colour to make them easier to identify on the battlefield. For the Breachers, I picked yellow as their secondary.
First Steps with a Brush
When I started painting, I had no idea where to begin or any techniques to follow, so I just grabbed a brush and started with the largest areas first.
Green being the dominant colour, I applied it to all the armour sections. At least two layers are needed to properly cover the undercoat.
Considering my dexterity is on par with a rock golem, I think I did a solid job keeping things tidy without bleeding colour into areas that needed to stay clean for the next layers.
Adding the Secondary Colour
Applying the second colour wasn’t as bad as I expected. Sure, I had a few mishaps where I accidentally painted over parts that were already finished, but nothing major.
Final Touches: Emblems, Skin & Washes
After finishing the base colours, all that remained were the T’au emblems and skin tones.
These didn’t take long, and I actually made very few mistakes on them.
Once the painting was complete, I decided to apply a wash to the models. Normally, after a wash, you’re supposed to go back over the armour with the main colours again to restore the brightness.
However, I really liked the dull, gritty effect the wash gave my models, it made them feel like battle-hardened soldiers, so I kept them that way instead of repainting.
Squad Complete & Drones Painted
With my first squad done, I painted their accompanying drones, keeping the same colours to match their respective units.
This turned out to be a great way of keeping track of my teams, rather than spending time sorting through units during every game. Being able to quickly recognise squads on the battlefield makes matches smoother and helps me think of strategies mid-combat.
Final Thoughts & Painting Takeaways
For my first serious attempt at painting models, I’m really happy with the result.
The colours are clean, the details aren’t drowned out, and most importantly, I enjoyed the process. If you don’t enjoy painting your models, you’re likely to end up with unfinished miniatures collecting dust, just like my dwarfs from 20 years ago!
Share Your Tips!
If you have any advice, tips, or tricks for painting models, I’d love to hear them! I’ve still got plenty more to paint, so any help is appreciated.
Also, if you’re really into painting Warhammer models, check out my friend on TikTok, he uploads almost daily, showcasing new painted models from a wide range of projects: Resin Rogue 3D.
That’s all for now, Panda out.
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