Stormcast Eternals are Age of Sigmar's flagship faction - big, heroic, gold-armoured warriors. Like Custodes in 40k, the scheme lives or dies on the gold, but the larger model size and bold forms make them satisfying and quick to get a good result on.
The signature look
The Hammers of Sigmar are bright gold armour with deep blue cloth, silver weapons, and bone/parchment details. The gold should be warm and rich, the blue a strong contrast against it.
Painting the gold
- Basecoat a bright gold over a dark or metallic undercoat.
- Shade heavily with a brown/sepia wash, plus a darker wash in the deepest recesses, to build the depth that makes gold look like gold.
- Edge highlight with a brighter gold, then a silver touch on the sharpest points.
A gold basecoat plus a generous wash gets a Stormcast tabletop-ready fast; the edge highlights are what lift them to display level.
Blue cloth and accents
The royal blue tabards and cloth are the key contrast - a blue contrast or a basecoat-shade-highlight on the cloth. Silver weapons and bone scrolls round out the scheme.
Stormhost variations
Swap the cloth and trim for other stormhosts: Celestial Vindicators (teal), Anvils of the Heldenhammer (black/bone), Astral Templars (purple/fur).
Tips and common mistakes
- Shade the gold deeply. Depth is what separates gold from flat brass.
- Strong blue contrast. The cloth is what stops the model being a gold blob.
- Big models reward highlights. The large surfaces show off edge work - use it.