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So I will begin painting for the first time soon and after going through a myriad of guides and videos, I’m still left wondering what are the bare minimum brushes I will need to start out? I’m only looking for base coats and washes on my models.

I recently bought a set of very cheap brushes at Walmart for about 4 bucks. They might not be as good as a nice set of Windsor & Newtons, but for a beginner they are all you need. If they wear out, they are cheap to replace too. I got tired of buying new $7+ GW and Army Painter brushes so I decided to go the cheap route, and I think it may have been a good decision. If I was trying to win a Golden Demon award or something, I'd invest in good brushes, but since I'm apparently lousy at keeping brushes in good working order, I'd rather stick with inexpensive ones.

As for what sizes, it really depends on what you are painting. Someone else could probably give you better recommendations for that.

 ZergSmasher wrote:
I recently bought a set of very cheap brushes at Walmart for about 4 bucks. They might not be as good as a nice set of Windsor & Newtons, but for a beginner they are all you need. If they wear out, they are cheap to replace too. I got tired of buying new $7+ GW and Army Painter brushes so I decided to go the cheap route, and I think it may have been a good decision. If I was trying to win a Golden Demon award or something, I'd invest in good brushes, but since I'm apparently lousy at keeping brushes in good working order, I'd rather stick with inexpensive ones.

As for what sizes, it really depends on what you are painting. Someone else could probably give you better recommendations for that.

Thanks for the answer I’m still trying to figure out sizes really. I was looking into GW brushes but that may be a bit more than I need?

I mean yeah starter brushes.....

its hard to beat a 4dollar bag of basic nylon brushes

and i know there are people that do top tier work with it.

bare minimum try and take care of them regardless of what brushes you get

brush soap and make sure the paint doesn't get into the ferrule.

All you need is a base coat brush like a size 5 or 6.
1 brush like a size 0 or 1 for the ink /shade and smaller detail areas and maybe a 2/0 for the fine details.

That would do. The sizes if they mean nothing to you can be compared on any brush seller website.
I use rosemary and co as they cater for pretty much all price ranges, not sure urethra deliver to USA, probably do just more expensive.

good brushes are a major factor in getting a miniature to look good, poor brushes may result in a bad final miniature, i would suggest spending just that little bit more to get the right tools or it might sour your painting experience and put you off.

this army painter starter set might be a good start:
https://www.chaoscards.co.uk/miniature-games-c487/hobby-accessories-paints-c1148/the-army-painter-wargamers-most-wanted-brush-set-p150643/s151958?gclid=Cj0KCQjwv73VBRCdARIsAOnG8u3_DJ-mk15cdkO23bwnikYUEHD5IsaoE1cJwG8pdO76s64tCMjjNzEaAtuBEALw_wcB

Just make sure you give your brushes a good wash with a little soap and warm water and they should last a while.