The Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic: Starter Set, 11 x 18 mL Acrylic Paints, incl. Metallics, Wash, Brush-On Primer, 1 Miniature & 1 Brush Review (2026)

Who this starter set is meant for

This set targets someone picking up a paintbrush for the first time on Warhammer, D&D or other tabletop miniatures and who does not yet own primer, paint or a wash. Because it includes a brush-on primer, ten Warpaints Fanatic colors, a strong tone wash and a practice miniature, a new painter can go from bare plastic to a finished, shaded model without buying anything else first. It also suits painters upgrading from an older Army Painter Warpaints range, since Fanatic is described as a newer, more heavily pigmented formulation than the original Warpaints line. Experienced painters who already own a working color collection will find less value here, since the ten colors are a starting palette rather than a full army-specific range.

What is actually in the box

The set includes ten Warpaints Fanatic acrylic colors covering matt black, matt white, leather brown, ultramarine blue, greenskin, daemonic yellow, pure red, plate mail metal and greedy gold, plus the strong tone wash, all in 18ml bottles. It also ships with a brush-on primer bottle, one practice miniature, a painting guide and a starter brush, for eleven bottles total plus the extra accessories. Two of the ten colors, plate mail metal and greedy gold, are metallics, which lines up with the set being marketed as including metallic paints alongside flat colors and a wash. The Fanatic line is built around color triad families designed to make choosing complementary base, shade and highlight tones easier once a painter buys beyond the starter set.

Using the base, wash and highlight workflow

The included primer means a new painter can prep a miniature straight out of the box rather than sourcing a separate spray primer, which is especially useful for anyone painting indoors without access to aerosol ventilation. After priming, the ten base colors let a painter block in the main areas of a model, and the strong tone wash settles into recesses to add shading and depth in a single step, a technique that gives a reasonably finished look without freehand highlighting skill. The practice miniature is meant to be used before touching a painter's actual army or collection, so early mistakes happen on a throwaway model rather than a display piece. One included brush covers both priming and detail work early on, though it will wear down faster than a painter doing both jobs with two separate brushes.

Where it compares against other starter kits

Against rivals in the site's starter gear and paint set guides, this kit's inclusion of primer, wash and a practice miniature together is its main edge over sets like Vallejo's Basic Colors range or the AK Interactive 3G Acrylics starter, which typically skip primer and a practice model. The Army Painter's own older Speedpaint Starter Set takes a different approach entirely, using one-coat contrast style paints instead of a traditional base and wash workflow, which suits painters who want faster results over building traditional layering skill. Reaper's Learn to Paint Kit is a closer comparison in spirit, since it also bundles instructional material with paint, though Reaper leans more toward classic layering technique than Army Painter's simplified wash-based approach here.

Verdict and who should choose differently

Buy this set if you are starting from zero and want primer, base colors, a wash, a practice model and a brush covered in one purchase, with a clear path into the wider Warpaints Fanatic range afterward. It earns strong marks for fit and value precisely because it removes the guesswork of assembling separate primer and wash purchases as a first buy. Choose something else if you already have primer and a wash, since paying for another set of those items is wasted money, or if you want a faster one-coat method, in which case a Speedpaint starter set fits that workflow better. Painters wanting a specific army's exact color scheme will also need to buy individual Fanatic colors beyond this general starter palette.

Frequently asked questions