What paints do I need to paint Orks?
Start with six: Orruk Flesh, Zandri Dust, Leadbelcher, Mournfang Brown, Corax White and Abaddon Black. They are the paints in the Orks: Boyz and Paints set (£18.99, in stock), which Games Workshop built to paint Goff clan Orks. A clan is an Ork tribe with its own colours. The six paints also sit in the 11th Edition Paints & Tools set (sold out at the moment).
The Getting Started with Orks box (£86.11, sold out at the moment) holds a whole Combat Patrol of 33 models, 11 paints, a brush and a texture spreader. Against the first six it drops Corax White and adds six other paints.
The first six paints, then the next six
| Stage | Paints | Where to find them |
|---|---|---|
| First Boyz | Orruk Flesh, Zandri Dust, Leadbelcher, Mournfang Brown, Corax White, Abaddon Black | All six in the Boyz and Paints set, and as single pots here. |
| A full Combat Patrol | Add Agrax Earthshade (a Shade), Runelord Brass, Wraithbone, Mephiston Red (all Base paints), Armageddon Dust (a Technical paint) and Dawnstone | The Getting Started with Orks box holds them with five of the first six. Corax White is the one it leaves out. |
Agrax Earthshade is a Shade, which adds depth to a model, and Armageddon Dust is a Technical paint, which makes textured bases. The Paints & Tools set holds all six first-stage paints. It also has Agrax Earthshade, Mephiston Red and Armageddon Dust from the second stage, but not Runelord Brass, Wraithbone or Dawnstone. The 10th Edition Paints + Tools set is a poor match: it holds three of the six first paints and no Orruk Flesh.
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Ork skin does not have to match
When Games Workshop's painters talked about the Ork skin on the Armageddon box art in June 2026, they said it was slightly less saturated and lighter than before, with more natural variation. They added that your own Orks can be darker or lighter, with more natural skin tones, and that is fine.
Choose the clan before you spend on more pots
Clan colours decide which extra pots you buy. Warhammer Community, Games Workshop's news site, ran three staff paint jobs of Armageddon Orks the same week: one Warboss with a bright orange coat, a Deathskullz Bigboss in blue, and a Warboss with dark green skin and bloody weathering.
Our advice for the first unit is to follow the paint set and paint it as Goff, then decide. After that, paint whichever clan you like, or mix clans in one army. Yellow Bad Moons are widely called hard to paint, and painters get round it by dabbing a pink or magenta underneath the yellow. Do not buy yellow pots until you have finished one unit in an easier colour.
Common questions
What colours are Orks painted?
In the staff paintings of the Armageddon Orks the skin is green, from bright to dark. The clan colours differ: one Warboss is orange, one Bigboss is blue with a checkerboard. The Orks paint set is for the Goff clan.
Which Ork clan should I paint first?
Goff, if you buy the Boyz and Paints set, because its paints were chosen for that clan. After that, paint the one you like or mix clans in one army. Yellow Bad Moons are the hard one.
Can I mix a pink from the Getting Started paints?
Mix Mephiston Red with Wraithbone until you get the pink you want, for details such as Ork lips, or keep them green. Both paints are in the Getting Started with Orks box.
Does the Getting Started with Orks box have all the paints I need?
Not quite. It holds 11 paints, a brush and a texture spreader for 33 models. Compared with the Boyz and Paints set it lacks Corax White, which is £2.25 as a single pot here. A clan colour you choose yourself is the usual extra.
Goff paint set and Getting Started box: Warhammer Community, 5 July 2026, and the product listings on this shop. Ork skin and clan colours: Warhammer Community, 4 and 5 June 2026. Advice on picking a clan and painting yellow: r/orks threads, 2026. Single-pot listings checked 29 October 2026. Prices and stock: this shop, read live.