Reddit mentions of The Army Painter Miniatures Paint Set, 10 Model Paints with Free Highlighting Brush, 18ml/Bottle, Miniature Painting Kit, Non Toxic Acrylic Paint Set, Wargames Hobby Starter Paint Set (New Version)

1. If both of you are interested in either army then yes, it's a good value and starting point especially with the rulebook
   
   
2. Yes there are cheaper alternatives like Army Painter that could get you started or even this set just to get you started with some paints. All you need is some cheap brushes to get started tbh
   
   
3. You get a lot of use from them, I started almost 11 months ago and I still have a lot of the paint I first bought and I try to paint daily
   
   
4. Get started and read the rules a bit, ask questions, have fun. It's easier to get in the swing by playing it and asking questions to clarify things for future games

1. https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/08/24/aug23-middle-earth-building-your-force-middle-earthgw-homepage-post-3fw-homepage-post-3/
   That link covers how you build armies to some degree. There are rules for what can go in. Each faction has both allowed units and units of various tiers of alliance. The link also covers army bonuses and alliances. To get the real details, you'll need either Armies of Lord of the Rings or Armies of the Hobbit. There's also a new Gondor at War book that I believe has some additional army information in it, but I haven't picked it up yet.
   
   
2. Battle companies are smaller forces. Instead of the battle of Pellenor Fields scale, more like 8-10 models per side. You can do a campaign with them and "level" the models up, kind of like a RPG, or like Necromunda or Mordheim, if you've played or read about those games. Games of this size are often referred to as "skirmish sized" games, though I don't know if that's a term used in the SBG community.
   
   
3. For rules basics, check out STF Wargaming Studio https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMu95iB_kdWNOypiyJk7ljw
   They have a lot of battle reports out there. If you have an hour, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eUQ9zT4Dd0 is a "how to play video." A shorter video (28 minutes) is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkgHoUIK4l4 which is a few years old, but much of the play sequence is the same. GBHL (Great British Hobbit League, can search GBHL on youtube) and STF both discuss things.
   
   
4. As far as paints go, that's a tough one. A couple browns, some greens, silver (can't go wrong with Citadel Leadbelcher no matter your army imo), gold. Don't go overboard. Something like this might be a good start. https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L As far as brushes, there's no need to go crazy. I order something like this from time to time https://www.amazon.com/Detail-Painting-Brush-Set-Watercolor/dp/B01HKUG45C/ and don't worry too much about the care of those brushes. I also have some Citadel brushes that I do take care of. There are plenty of painting tutorials on youtube, find a youtuber you like and go to town :) This guy is pretty good. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDCx2SP6thl7r42CkTdblLA
   
   
   Best of luck and welcome to the community!

I'm in the USA, so these are more North America-centric, but I'm fairly certain you can find equivalents in Europe or Australia.

If you want to learn techniques before buying expensive minis, but a pack of cheap army men or dinosaurs:
https://www.dollartree.com/kids-military-action-figurines-50ct-packages/279838
https://www.dollartree.com/plastic-dinosaur-figurines-7-in/252377
In the store, these are $1.00 USD. great for learning to paint, and disposable if you mess up.

Primer: Painters Touch 2x - good primer, way less expensive than Citadel. Home Depot Link

Brushes: Painting, especially learning to paint will be rough on brushes. Cheap brushes that aren't garbage will work for you, I suggest these: Walmart Link

Paint: Don't use craft paints. They are super cheap, don't thin well, are well pigmented and are generally crap for actual mini painting. Vallejo has a starter kit that's great: Amazon Link

Army Painter has a very basic starter kit, I'm a fan of their range as well, Amazon Link

$3 USD will get you a ton of minis to learn on
$5 USD for primer
$4 USD for brushes
$30-50 USD for paints

Get a cheap hobby knife or x-acto knife and for less than $75 you're in a hobby that will keep you entertained for life.

If you really don't want to start on non-hobby minis, $10-25 USD will get you an EZ Build pack. Games Workshop Link

You may even want to just drop the $40 and get the basic starter for Warhammer AoS - LINK or WH40k - LINK. Each has 4 Easy Build packs in it, so basically, buy 3, get one free, plus you get the basic rules of the game as well.

Hope this helps.

If you’re planning on painting becoming something you do, I think the best value is this set of 50 paints for $94: https://www.amazon.com/Miniature-Painting-Bonus-Wargamer-Regiment/dp/B01MTXRUUT . The paint quality is similar to GW’s paints but you get a LOT more for your money (the dropper bottles hold almost twice as much paint as a GW paint pot, and cost about 1/3 as much). And it’s half the price of Vallejo’s mega paint set.

For a cheaper option, https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L is less than $30, but you only get 10 paints. But again, a better deal than GW’s paints - GW has a deal for $40 for 11 small paint pots versus $28 for 10 larger dropper bottles from army painter.

But if you can afford to get the 50 paint set from Army Painter, I’d spring for that - the paints cover a wide variety of colors and options (including washes and metallics) and will last you for years.

This Army Painter starter set is your best bet. It has Black, White, 3 primary colors, green, a flesh tone, a good brown, steel metallic(you can add colors to it of you want the metal to look a different color), and Strong tone wash(actually my favorite wash, period). Even comes with an okay detail brush.

If you want purple and orange. You can pick up any brand you want and it'll work just fine with these paints. Citadel is usually the easiest to find if you have gaming shop nearby. Or if you have a hobby lobby, they sell Vallejo model paints. They're good. Other brands that come to mind. Reaper, P3, Secret Weapon, and Scale 75. All good.

So all you'd need to get is a primer of your choice. And a decent brush, here's a decent brush set. And probably want to get a good matte varnish. Most people recommend Testors dull coat. But if you want brush on. Vallejo matte varnish is a good alternative. All in all you could easily be under $50.

Miniac's video on how to take care of your brushes

I recommend the Army Painter Wargames Starter Paint Set. It has all the basic colors you need anyway plus an excellent metallic and a very nice wash. There's also a brush included that's not complete rubbish. Later you can add more colors to your collection as you need them.

The only basic supplies you will need are paint brushes and acrylic model paints. A starter set like this for you would be perfect, if you're in Taiwan you can probably find something local for much cheaper.


https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1525546731&sr=8-4&keywords=army+painter


If you want more videos on how to get started, the basics are covered very well in my opinion by Games Workshop videos. They sell models for a science fiction miniatures game but the ideas of painting models are universal and this will really help you!


Basic painting of a military vehicle:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_gKQAgBKY


Another basic military vehicle tutorial:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74p9eGwRAog


Adding weathering and battle damage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyuPxJG5kFc


And the great thing about acrylic hobby paints is that they can be easily removed from the model, so if you don't like what you did you can remove it all and start again fresh!


http://www.instructables.com/id/Take-Paint-Off-of-Models/

For example, I'm building Orks and got:


Kings of War Dwarfs: https://www.amazon.com/Warpaints-Kings-War-Dwarfs-Paint/dp/B01MRYAE2C


Kings of War Greenskins: https://www.amazon.com/Army-Painter-Kings-Greenskins-Paint/dp/B01LYRD27V

Starter Kit: https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L

​

Which got me all the metallics, 3 washes, a variety of good Ork paints, and a brush for less than the Mega set.

​

I used the Pathfinder Battles Deep Cuts Female Dwarf Summoner mini because it was the only female dwarf at my FLGS and it was inexpensive. I will say if you've never bought this brand/type, the detail shown in the picture online is far above and beyond the actual mini, and I assume the pic is a computer render. This may already be obvious to y'all, I dunno!

Anyway, I sliced her hands/spell effects off at the wrist with a utility knife and sculpted new hands from Apoxie Sculpt, leaving a hole through one fist to fit the axe I sculpted. I also added a beard, because I love lady dwarfs with beards, and trimmed a little off her head as well so it could fit the dragon skull I sculpted too. Wasn't sure what to put in her other hand but ended up cutting off a generic monster head from one of many cheap baddie minis I had, just so she'd look extra badass, I suppose. (I think I should not have used generic super glue to attach the monster head though, as it left a white film and ended up falling off anyway.) I also trimmed a little away of the base so she could sit on her new mount, a huge polar bear (for the Mammoth Rider Pathfinder prestige class).

I painted everything with this super basic starter set of Army Painter paints. I intended the colors to be pretty neutral and natural, because the character makes a lot of her own gear from animal hides, bones, etc. Didn't really know what I was doing, so tips are appreciated, but be gentle :) I used almost the cheapest mini and paints I could find because I was afraid I would be terrible and end up wasting money on a hobby that I would suck at. It turned out better than I expected though, and inspired me to want to paint my Heroforge mini too. Any suggestion for the next (not too expensive) tool/paint/whatever I should get?

Will these have everything I need? https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01MTXRU2L/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=AU2FNATHSFHNB&psc=1

I just started painting too and opted for this set: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01MTXRU2L


Biggest issue so far is that the red is super watery so takes a lot of layering to get any pigment on to the model. No idea if this is typically an issue for reds or if its this brand.

Your advice was welcomed. I ordered this kit...

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MTXRU2L/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

...along with some primer, brushes, palette, and a head mounted light with magnifier. I'm sure I'll need more paints and washes, but figured I'll see what I can do with that kit before trying to get more so I can see exactly what I need and why. And yes, I plan to watch a lot of Youtube stuff. It's so handy for learning. Thank you. I'll try to remember to post a picture after I complete my first one.

You recommend something like this set?

https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1525713641&sr=8-3&keywords=army+painter+starter+set

Best starter paint set. The brush has lasted me ~3 years of regular use. Vallejo for any other color you might want. I'd stay away from Citadel and P3, it's overpriced and in paint pots that tend to dry out easier than bottles.

I'd get a cheap set of brushes for a few bucks from amazon/walmart, something like this. You can do 80% of painting with them, like your dry brushing and washes. All your details you can do with the brush from the starter set.

If you want to splurge I also used this set for ~3 years before I needed to replace the biggest brush, still use the other two. The smallest brush really comes in hand on minis.

So is this I prefer the latter because I would suggest starting with other than the preset minis in the box. I have both I recommend both but I think starting you should find more stuff yourself. Like pathfinder deep cuts or nolzurs marvelous miniatures. Bones are great don’t get me wrong I have thousands but they paint they come with isn’t the easiest to learn on.

I’ve used cheap paints and they range in usability. The folk art paints at Walmart are not too bad as long as your willing to do 3 or 4 coats. Those ones you’ve got there look like the ultra cheap stuff which I couldn’t even to get to show up on the models.

My recommendation is just buy the good paint, your spending 60+ usd on models. I just buy a few paints at a time as I need them. Go buy 3 colors you want for your army and go from there. Those cheap paints are just going to frustrate you.

Edit: go with something like this

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MTXRU2L/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_2jnBCb8EV962A

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NTMC49G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_rmnBCbM62FJ8M <--- I started with this one

Game Color Intro Set (16) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000PHCTRK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_XnnBCbKRMBSGA <----a little bit pricey, but gives you more paints so....


As I stated, I got the reaper set to start with a few months ago and then just started buying citadel paints as I needed them to fluff up what I didnt have and I still mix my own colors for parchment and skulls, since I dont need that much of it.

Personally, I like citadel paints. I find they thin easily and flow nicely, and the colors are the official colors for the models. But I hate the pots they come in, so I bought empty 15 ml vials to pour them into.

Can't argue with the price. If you're looking to upgrade a little bit, this might be a nice next tier for you. https://www.amazon.com/Army-Painter-Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature/dp/B01MTXRU2L/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=army+painter&qid=1565736973&s=gateway&sr=8-7

and these paint handles are so nice https://www.amazon.com/Games-Workshop-Warhammer-Citadel-Painting/dp/B077DMTJ2V/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=citadel%2Bpaint%2Bhandle&qid=1565737114&s=gateway&sr=8-2&th=1

If you're not into painting - the first bundle is fine if you're willing to put the money into it, the other bundles are too much for a beginner IMO

Something like:
https://www.amazon.com/Miniatures-Highlighting-Miniature-Army-Painter/dp/B01MTXRU2L/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1518146756&sr=8-4&keywords=army+painter+kit

Is a cheaper entry point - look for something in the same category as this, the primary colours + a few extras, a shade and a standard sized paint brush

This way you can try out painting and if you enjoy it, you can add to it from there, while not investing as heavily as the suggested bundles in the link are asking


Another option ~

https://www.amazon.com/Games-Workshop-60-22-Base-Paint/dp/B00KOCXDT4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1518147023&sr=8-2&keywords=citadel+paint+kit

Any paints from Army painter/Citadel/Vallejo are great places to start, just get whatever's got the best deal on at the time.

Only other suggestion would be to get a spray undercoat such as

https://www.amazon.com/Army-Painter-CP3001-Base-Primer/dp/B005WH3LVG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1518147186&sr=8-1&keywords=miniature+undercoat+spray

Undercoat sprays make painting a mini MUCH easier and MUCH quicker, however, if you are only painting the bases and not any detail on the mini, you can get away with no undercoat spray
(You can get cheaper sprays but I find when you're new, picking one model paint brand and sticking to it to start with makes things easier to manage)

I've just grabbed links from Amazon, but you can find these products all over the place