Legiones Astartes · 32 models · 4 kits
20× MkIV Tactical Legionaries · 10× MkIV Assault Legionaries · 1× Sicaran Battle Tank · 1× Contemptor Dreadnought
Iron Warriors Paint Scheme
IV Legion · The Corpse-Grinders of Olympia · Perturabo ·Traitor
A full Horus Heresy Iron Warriors paint scheme, generated and ready to test: the armour ramp from basecoat to edge highlight plus trim metals, accents, lenses and basing — every step matched to real paints from Citadel, Vallejo, Army Painter and 35+ more ranges, with live prices. The Legion's own painting guides name Citadel pots and stop there; every row below carries the nearest pot from the other ranges too.
Your scheme
Only paints we can link you to a shop for. Pick a brand to build the whole recipe from one range.
Iron Warriors (Horus Heresy) boxes to start with
Compare Legiones Astartes boxesThe Iron Warriors (Horus Heresy) boxes we can price in your market, cheapest first.
Paint sets that cover this scheme
All paint setsOne box of paints instead of 14 pots. Each card says how many of this scheme's colours it holds.
50 paints
Covers 9 of 14 colours in this scheme
16 paints
Covers 7 of 14 colours in this scheme
16 paints
Covers 6 of 14 colours in this scheme
16 paints
Covers 6 of 14 colours in this scheme
10 paints
Covers 6 of 14 colours in this scheme
10 paints
Covers 6 of 14 colours in this scheme
Or cover 79% of this scheme with 2 paint sets, A$409.98 together: Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic Mega Paint Set + Vallejo Game Color - Advanced Set
How the scheme reads on a model
Armour — base to highlight
Tap a colour to change its paint.
- Base coatDunkelgrau GrayScale75 · Warfront RangeView paint
- ShadeDark GreyVallejo · Wash FX 76.517View paint
- LayerDark Sea GreyVallejo · Model Color 70.991View paint
- HighlightLight GreyVallejo · Mecha Color 69.036View paint
- Edge highlightCompany GreyArmy Painter · Warpaints Fanatic WP3005PView paint
Additional details
- TrimBright GoldArmy Painter · WarpaintsView paint
- WeaponsJohn Blanche Masterclass: Heavy MetalArmy Painter · Warpaints FanaticView paint
- LeatherBeasty BrownVallejo · Game Color 72.043View paint
- SkinBestigor FleshCitadel (Warhammer Paints) · Layer 99189951243View paint
- LensesScarletVallejo · Model Color 70.817View paint
- BasingEnglish UniformVallejo · Model Color 70.921View paint
- Hazard stripesJohn Blanche Masterclass: Moonbeam YellowArmy Painter · Warpaints FanaticView paint
- Black insetsCoal BlackMonument · Monument Pro Acrylic Paints MPA002View paint
- Rust & corrosionGolgfag BrownCitadel (Warhammer Paints) · Dry 99189952060View paint
1
Base coat
Lay the foundation colour down over primer, slightly darker than the final tone.
Suggested
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2
Shade
Wash the recesses to add depth and separate the details.
Suggested
Very Close
Black Templar
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Contrast 99189960124
fromA$10.10· compare 5 shops· priced 5 Jul
3
Layer
Rebuild the main colour on the raised areas, leaving the shade in the cracks.
Suggested
★ Our pick for layer
Very CloseDiscontinued
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Warpfiend Grey
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Layer 99189951011
fromA$5.45· compare 4 shops· priced 5 Jul
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4
Highlight
Pick out the upper edges and surfaces that catch the light.
Suggested
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5
Edge highlight
Sharpen only the sharpest edges for a crisp, finished look.
Suggested
★ Our pick for edge highlight
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Details & accent colours
Change scheme ↑Everything else on the model - metals, skin, leather, lenses, basing and this faction's signature accents.
Metal — trim
Aquilas, rims and ornament. Basecoat gold, wash with a brown shade, then edge a brighter gold.
Suggested
Bright Gold
Army Painter · Warpaints
No shop price tracked yet — the paint’s page has every seller we find.
★ Our pick for metal — trim
Very Close
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Balthasar Gold
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Base 99189950310
Metal — weapons
Bolters, blades and casings. Dark gunmetal, washed black, edged with bright steel.
Suggested
★ Our pick for metal — weapons
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Similar
Leather & pouches
Straps, holsters and bare wood. Mid brown, shaded, then drybrushed a lighter tan.
Suggested
★ Our pick for leather & pouches
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Skin & flesh
Faces and hands. Basecoat, a flesh wash into the recesses, then build the highlights back up.
Suggested
Bestigor Flesh
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Layer 99189951243
fromA$5.45· compare 2 shops· priced 5 Jul
★ Our pick for skin & flesh
Very Close
Barbarian Flesh
Army Painter · Warpaints
No shop price tracked yet — the paint’s page has every seller we find.
Very Close
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CloseDiscontinued
Eyes & lenses
Lenses, eyes and energy. A bright spot colour that pops against the armour - dot it on and add a white glint.
Suggested
★ Our pick for eyes & lenses
Very Close
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Wild Rider Red
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Layer 99189951304
fromA$5.45· compare 4 shops· priced 5 Jul
Basing — earth
Groundwork. Earth basecoat, drybrushed bone, finished with your choice of grass, sand or snow.
Suggested
★ Our pick for basing — earth
Very Close
XV-88
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Base 99189950285
Hazard stripes
Yellow-and-black chevrons on shoulder trim and siege plates - mask them, keep them crisp, then weather them back.
Suggested
★ Our pick for hazard stripes
Exact Match
Moon Yellow
Vallejo · Arte Deco
No shop price tracked yet — the paint’s page has every seller we find.
Very Close
Averland Sunset
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Base 99189950265
fromA$5.40· compare 2 shops· priced 5 Jul
Very Close
Black insets
Recessed panels and inner plates in flat black, so the bare iron reads as raised armour.
Suggested
★ Our pick for black insets
Very Close
Corvus Black
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Base 99189950306
Very Close
Rust & corrosion
Stipple orange-brown around rivets, vents and lower edges. Vary the tone so it reads as organic decay, not a flat colour.
Suggested
★ Our pick for rust & corrosion
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Your paints
Tick off what's already on your shelf — whatever's left is your shopping list.
14 paints in this scheme
Price this recipe
14 paintspostage per seller
- not stocked: Dunkelgrau Gray, John Blanche Masterclass: Heavy Metal, John Blanche Masterclass: Moonbeam Yellow, Coal Black
prices shown on Amazon at checkout
- not stocked: Dunkelgrau Gray, Dark Grey, Dark Sea Grey, Light Grey, Company Grey, John Blanche Masterclass: Heavy Metal, Scarlet, English Uniform, John Blanche Masterclass: Moonbeam Yellow, Golgfag Brown
- not stocked: Dunkelgrau Gray, Dark Grey, Dark Sea Grey, Light Grey, Company Grey, Bright Gold, John Blanche Masterclass: Heavy Metal, Beasty Brown, Bestigor Flesh, Scarlet, English Uniform, John Blanche Masterclass: Moonbeam Yellow, Coal Black
totals excl. delivery · affiliate links
Bright Gold
Army Painter · Warpaints
No shop price tracked yet — the paint’s page has every seller we find.
Bestigor Flesh
Citadel (Warhammer Paints) · Layer 99189951243
fromA$5.45· compare 2 shops· priced 5 Jul
Painting the IV Legion
The armour method is shared across all eighteen Legions — how to paint MkII to MkVI plate — and the rest of the game, from army lists to what a Legion costs to field, sits on the Horus Heresy hub.
On the colour: A neutral mid-grey standing in for bare metal, because the armour is a metallic finish and a flat hex can only approximate one. Treat the ramp below as the shading plan for a metal basecoat rather than as the basecoat itself. This scheme is our reading of the Legion's Heresy livery, not an authorised palette — and the recipe above is matched by colour distance, so treat it as a strong starting point and test in person where it matters.
More The Horus Heresy schemes
Dark Angels Emperor's Children White Scars Space Wolves Imperial Fists Night Lords Blood Angels Iron Hands World Eaters Ultramarines Death Guard Thousand Sons Sons of Horus Word Bearers Salamanders Raven Guard Alpha Legion
Want the recipes written out, with the pots priced? Painting the Heresy Legions.
Is Iron Warriors a big job? See how every faction rates for difficulty — model size, detail and what the scheme demands — or work out what an army costs per point.
Common questions
Is there a full list of Iron Warriors paint schemes?
This page has the generated recipe for the classic Iron Warriors scheme — armour ramp, metals, skin and basing, matched across 35+ paint ranges — plus every other The Horus Heresy faction's paint schemes below, or set your own colour in the full generator.