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Buying your first Warhammer army
The easiest way to waste money starting Warhammer is to buy a box of everything that looks cool. The models don't fit an army, half never get painted, and the bill adds up fast. Here's the sensible order to buy in, and what it realistically costs to begin.
Start with a boxed set, not a shopping list
Games Workshop's starter and introductory boxes exist precisely to solve the beginner's problem: they bundle a coherent first force with the rules, and often the paints and tools, for less than the sum of the parts. Three tiers, roughly:
- Introductory box (~£35 / $60). The cheapest way in. A dozen or so push-fit models, a starter brush and a few paints, and a slim rulebook — the only box that assumes you own nothing at all.
- Starter set (~£65-110 / $110+). Two small opposing forces, the core rules, dice and terrain. More models and a proper game in the box, but usually no paints — budget for those separately.
- A single army — Combat Patrol (40k) or Spearhead (Age of Sigmar) (~£50-110). The best route once you know which faction you want: one curated army in a box, at a better price than buying the units one by one.
Prices are approximate and move with new releases — a new edition of Warhammer 40,000 is arriving in 2026, which reshuffles the boxed sets — so check current pricing and buy for the models you actually want to paint, not the biggest number of them.
Pick a force you'll enjoy painting
The army you finish is the one you enjoy working on. If this is as much a painting hobby as a gaming one, weight the choice toward a forgiving, good-looking-fast army — Necrons, Nighthaunt, Orks — and browse the paint-scheme galleries to see what each looks like finished before you commit.
What the painting really costs
Buying the models is only half the story — the other half is the hundred-plus hours of painting, or the price of having someone do it for you. Our commission price survey lays out real per-model and full-army numbers from dozens of studios. When you're ready, describe your project and we'll match you with vetted painters.
Questions people actually ask
What should I buy first for Warhammer?
A boxed set, not a shopping list. An introductory or starter box bundles models, the rules and often paints and tools into one purchase that's cheaper than buying the parts separately — and it's built around a sensible first force rather than whatever caught your eye.
How much does it cost to start a Warhammer army?
The cheapest official entry points — Games Workshop's introductory boxes — start around £35 / $60 and include a handful of models plus paints and tools. A larger two-army starter set runs roughly £65–110 / $110+, and a single-army box (Spearhead for Age of Sigmar, Combat Patrol for 40k) is usually £50–110 / $150-ish. All prices are approximate and shift with new releases.
Should I buy the biggest starter set?
Usually not, first time out. The largest boxes bundle two full armies and a lot of models — great value per model, but a daunting amount of assembly and painting for a beginner. A smaller intro box or a single Combat Patrol / Spearhead gets you playing and painting without a mountain of grey plastic.
Is it cheaper to buy and paint it myself, or commission it?
Buying and painting yourself is far cheaper in money and far more expensive in time — a 2,000-point army is 100–200 hours of painting for most hobbyists. Commissioning turns that into a finished army for a price; our price survey shows what that actually costs.