Is my painting good enough for the tabletop? What Battle Ready means
Battle Ready is the tabletop standard Games Workshop describes: the main areas of each model are coloured and the base has a simple finish. We add two quick checks of our own: the model looks tidy at arm's length and the face is clean. You can get there with Base paints and a Shade, or with Contrast.
Four checks for one model
The first two rows are Games Workshop's definition. The last two are our own additions.
| Check | It passes when | If it fails |
|---|---|---|
| Main areas | Skin, armour, cloth, weapons and gear each have a colour, with no big patches of bare plastic | Block in the missing area with a Base paint, or one coat of Contrast |
| Base | It has a simple finish: one flat colour or a Technical paint such as Stirland Mud | Add the Technical paint. |
| Arm's length | From normal playing distance there are no pooled marks, thick bumps or bare spots | See fixing a bad paint job |
| Face | The face is tidy and the eyes are either clean or skipped | See eyes and faces |
Depth from a Shade or from Contrast is not part of the definition. It is the quick way to make a flat colour look finished, so it is worth adding.
What Battle Ready means
Warhammer Community, Games Workshop's news site, defined it on 28 June 2022. A Battle Ready model is ready to game with. The same article said it was the minimum for playing events at Warhammer World at the time. It also said you do not have to pass Battle Ready to be allowed into the hobby, and called it an achievable standard. The article is from 2022, so check current event rules before you rely on that detail.
The definition sets no number of colours. Some organisers set their own count of colours and a base finish for their events. We cannot tell you what a given event wants, so ask the organiser.
Two ways to reach it
| Method | Paints | How it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Classic | Base, Shade and Technical | Block in each colour with a Base paint. Shade into the recesses. Put a Technical paint on the base. |
| Contrast | Contrast and Technical | Undercoat with Wraithbone, Grey Seer or White Scar. One coat of Contrast per colour. Technical paint on the base. |
Contrast is quicker. The Warhipster, a YouTube Contrast painter interviewed by Warhammer Community, painted a model to Battle Ready in about 25 minutes with Contrast. Painter Tyler Mengel took two to three hours over a metallic Space Marine for Warhammer Community. The Classic route forgives flat panels. The Contrast page explains where the shortcut bites.
The 11th Edition Paints & Tools set holds Base paints, Agrax Earthshade and Armageddon Dust. It is sold out at the moment. Our 10th Edition set also holds a Shade and a Technical paint, and it is sold out at the moment.
Where to spend your time
Games Workshop's painters say you do not have to highlight everything. Spend your time on faces and bases and keep the rest neat. That is a better use of an evening than a third highlight on a shoulder pad.
The definition does not say which colours to use. For Space Marines, Games Workshop says each Chapter paints its armour however it likes, so any scheme you choose fits the background.
Common questions
Is my painted model Battle Ready?
Games Workshop's description asks for two things: the main areas are coloured and the base has a simple finish. We also check that nothing looks messy at arm's length and that the face is tidy. If the first two are true, it counts, whichever paints you used.
Do bases need painting for Battle Ready?
They need a simple finish. Games Workshop suggests a Technical paint such as Stirland Mud or Astrogranite on the base to make it look as if the model stands on a battlefield.
What is Parade Ready?
It is the next standard after Battle Ready. You add Layer paints, edge highlights and effects such as gore, metal weathering and puddles. A Battle Ready model can be lifted to it without repainting.
Battle Ready and Parade Ready: Warhammer Community, 28 and 29 June 2022. Painting times: Warhammer Community, 11 February 2025 and 2 July 2021. Faces and bases: Warhammer Community, 4 July 2024. Colour schemes: Warhammer Community, 3 October 2023. Contents of the paint sets: this shop's listings. Prices and stock: this shop, read live. What events ask for varies by organiser.