To start Age of Sigmar, choose a Grand Alliance, pick a faction you love the look of, buy a Spearhead box, grab a starter paint set, play your first game using free core rules, then expand to 1,000 points. This guide walks you through every step from zero to your first full game.
Starting a new wargaming hobby can feel overwhelming. There are hundreds of models to choose from, rulebooks to read, paints to buy, and techniques to learn — and it is easy to spend money on the wrong things or get paralysed by too many choices. This guide eliminates that confusion by giving you a clear, step-by-step path from “I know nothing about Age of Sigmar” to “I am playing regular games with a painted army.”
Age of Sigmar is an excellent first wargame. Its rules are more accessible than most competitors, its model range is stunning, and the community is generally welcoming to newcomers. The key is to start small, take it one step at a time, and resist the urge to buy everything at once. Follow this guide and you will have a playable, painted army on the table faster than you think.
Step 1 — Choose Your Grand Alliance
Age of Sigmar divides its factions into four Grand Alliances: Order (the forces of civilisation and the gods of light), Chaos (the corrupting forces of the Dark Gods), Death (the undead legions of Nagash), and Destruction (the primal forces of mayhem and destruction). Before choosing a specific faction, decide which Grand Alliance appeals to you thematically.
If you want to play the heroes defending civilisation, Order has factions ranging from the golden Stormcast Eternals to the technological Kharadron Overlords. If you love dark, corrupted aesthetics, Chaos offers everything from daemon hordes to plague-ridden warriors. If undead armies appeal to you — vampires, ghosts, skeletons — Death is your Grand Alliance. And if you want to play massive monsters and brutal warriors who fight for the sheer joy of it, Destruction features Orks, Ogors, and giant Sons of Behemat.
Explore the full range of factions in our all Age of Sigmar factions guide to see every option available.
Step 2 — Pick a Faction You Love
This is the most important decision you will make, so take your time. Browse the Games Workshop website, look at painted armies online, watch battle reports on YouTube, and read about each faction’s lore and playstyle. The golden rule is: choose the faction whose models you love the look of. Rules change every edition, but you will be looking at these models for years.
Do not choose a faction purely because it is “strong” in the current meta. Competitive balance shifts regularly, and today’s top-tier army might be average next season. An army you love painting and playing will always bring more enjoyment than a meta-chaser army you feel lukewarm about.
If you genuinely cannot decide, read our intro to Age of Sigmar for broader context, and consider starting with Stormcast Eternals. They are the poster faction of the game, have the widest model range, appear in most starter sets (making them the cheapest entry point), and play in a straightforward style that teaches the game’s core mechanics without overwhelming complexity.
Step 3 — Buy a Spearhead Box
Your first purchase should be a Spearhead box for your chosen faction. Spearhead is Age of Sigmar’s introductory game format — a smaller, faster version of the full game that uses pre-built army lists so you do not need to worry about list building yet. Each Spearhead box contains a balanced, playable force of around 15-25 models (depending on the faction) and costs significantly less than building a full army from individual kits.
Spearhead boxes are designed specifically to be the entry point for new players. The models are push-fit (meaning they can be assembled without glue, though glue gives better results), and the included units form a balanced force that showcases your faction’s key mechanics and aesthetic. You do not need to buy anything else to start playing Spearhead games.
If you want even better value, look for one of the Age of Sigmar starter sets, which include two Spearhead-sized forces, dice, a ruler, a game board, scenery, and a simplified rulebook. These are the absolute best value way to start the hobby, especially if you can split the cost with a friend who takes the other army.
Step 4 — Get Your Paints and Brushes
You will need basic painting supplies to prepare your models. At minimum, you need:
Spray primer: Chaos Black or Grey Seer spray primer from Citadel (or equivalent from another brand). Primer gives paint something to grip onto and is essential — never paint bare plastic.
A starter paint set: Citadel’s starter paint sets are designed for beginners and include the basic colours you need plus a brush. Alternatively, buy individual pots in the colours for your chosen faction’s paint scheme. The Warhammer app and Games Workshop website have recommended paint lists for every faction.
Brushes: One medium-sized brush (size 1 or 2) for general painting and one small brush (size 0 or 00) for details. You do not need expensive brushes to start — a basic starter set is fine.
A wash: Nuln Oil (black wash) or Agrax Earthshade (brown wash) — these are liquid shading paints that flow into recesses and instantly add depth and definition to your models. A wash applied over a basecoat can make even a simply-painted model look dramatically better.
Resist the urge to buy every paint, brush, and tool available. Start with the basics and expand as you learn what you need. You can paint a great-looking army with fewer than 10 paints if you choose wisely.
Step 5 — Assemble and Paint Your First Models
Start by assembling all the models in your Spearhead box. Follow the instructions carefully, and do not rush — poorly assembled models are harder to paint and less satisfying to play with. If the models are push-fit, plastic glue will strengthen the joins. For multi-part resin or metal models, use super glue.
Once assembled, prime all your models with spray primer. Shake the can thoroughly, spray in short bursts from about 12 inches away, and let the models dry completely before painting. Priming in a well-ventilated area (ideally outdoors) is important for both safety and finish quality.
For painting, start with the “battle ready” standard — basecoat (block in the main colours), wash (apply a shade paint to add depth), and simple highlights or drybrushing if you feel confident. Do not aim for perfection on your first models. A fully painted army at tabletop standard looks infinitely better than a few perfectly painted models surrounded by bare plastic. You can always go back and improve models later as your skills develop.
Step 6 — Play Your First Game
Download the free Age of Sigmar core rules from the Games Workshop website or app. The Spearhead rules are even simpler than the full game — they use pre-built army lists with simplified warscrolls, making them perfect for learning. Find an opponent (a friend, a local game store, or a club) and play your first game.
Do not worry about getting every rule right in your first game. Focus on understanding the basic turn structure (Hero Phase, Movement, Shooting, Charge, Combat, End of Turn), the hit-wound-save sequence for attacks, and the objective scoring system. Everything else will come with practice.
Most local game stores (known as “FLGS” — Friendly Local Game Store) run introductory games and beginner nights for Age of Sigmar. These are excellent resources — experienced players are usually happy to teach newcomers and will be patient with rules mistakes. Do not be intimidated; everyone was a beginner once.
Step 7 — Expand to 1,000 Points
Once you have played a few Spearhead games and are comfortable with the rules, it is time to expand your army to 1,000 points — a common casual game size that uses the full matched play rules. Your Spearhead box gives you a solid core to build on, typically worth 500-700 points depending on the faction.
To reach 1,000 points, you will need to add 1-3 additional units. Good choices for your first expansion include:
A second hero: Having two heroes lets you take a second regiment and gives you more flexibility on the battlefield. Choose a hero that complements your existing force — a wizard if you lack magic, a combat character if you need a melee threat, or a support hero that buffs your core units.
More Battleline: Adding another unit of core troops gives you more board presence and objective-holding capability. Battleline units are the workhorse of most armies and you can rarely have too many.
A specialist unit: Add a unit that fills a gap in your Spearhead force. If your army lacks shooting, add a ranged unit. If you need a fast unit for objective grabbing, add cavalry or flyers.
Step 8 — Join the Community
Warhammer is at its best as a social hobby. Join your local gaming club, find AoS groups on Facebook, Reddit (r/ageofsigmar), or Discord, and engage with the community. Other players are your best resource for learning — they can offer painting tips, list-building advice, rules clarifications, and opponents for regular games.
Many communities run escalation leagues — events where all players start with small armies and gradually expand over several weeks. These are perfect for new players because everyone is building and learning together, and the gradual points increase gives you time to paint new models between each game.
The Age of Sigmar community also has excellent online resources — YouTube channels for battle reports and painting tutorials, podcasts for competitive analysis and lore discussion, and blogs and forums for everything in between. Engaging with this content will accelerate your learning and deepen your enjoyment of the hobby.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to start Age of Sigmar?
A Spearhead box costs approximately £50-65 / $80-100, and a basic paint set plus primer will run another £20-30 / $30-50. So you can start playing for under £100 / $150. Expanding to a full 2,000-point army will cost £200-400+ depending on the faction and how you source your models (new, second-hand, or a mix).
Can I play Age of Sigmar solo?
While AoS is designed as a two-player game, solo play is possible using community-created AI opponent rules or by playing both sides yourself to learn the mechanics. However, the game is most enjoyable with an opponent, so we recommend finding a local gaming group or club.
Do I have to paint my models?
For casual games, no — unpainted models are fine and most opponents will not mind. However, many tournaments require models to be painted to a minimum standard (typically “battle ready” — basecoat, wash, and based). More importantly, painted models look dramatically better on the table and playing with a fully painted army is one of the most satisfying experiences in the hobby.
What if I chose the wrong faction?
It happens, and it is not a disaster. You can sell or trade your existing models through online marketplaces or local gaming groups, often recovering a significant portion of your investment. Many players eventually collect multiple factions. The key is to start with one army, learn the game, and only expand once you are confident in your choice.
Is Age of Sigmar hard to learn?
The core rules are straightforward and can be learned in a single session. The complexity comes from faction-specific abilities, spell interactions, and strategic depth — but these are things you pick up gradually through play. Compared to many tabletop wargames, AoS is one of the more accessible options, especially with the Spearhead format as a stepping stone.
What are the army building rules in Age of Sigmar 4th Edition?
In 4th Edition you build your army around regiments: each Hero leads a regiment of up to three other units, and your general’s regiment can include up to four. You also pick a battle formation for your faction, a spell lore and a manifestation lore if you have wizards, plus enhancements such as a heroic trait and an artefact. Spearhead skips all of this by using a fixed army list.
How many points is a standard game of Age of Sigmar?
2,000 points is the standard size for matched play and tournaments. 1,000 points is a popular smaller game for learning the full rules, which is why this guide suggests expanding your Spearhead force to that size first. Spearhead itself does not use points at all, because each faction’s Spearhead army is a fixed, pre-built list.
What does Strike-first mean in Age of Sigmar?
A unit with Strike-first fights before units without it in the combat phase. Players pick all their Strike-first units to fight before anything else, then the remaining units fight in the normal alternating order, and units with Strike-last fight at the very end. If a unit has both Strike-first and Strike-last, the two cancel out.