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MINIATURES

Paint Schemes

How I painted each model: the exact paints, the order they went on, and the finish they gave.

Before you start, and what the technique words mean
Thin your paint
Almost everything here goes on thinner than it comes out of the pot. Neat paint dries thick and fills in the detail you paid for. Add water a drop at a time on a palette until it runs somewhere between milk and heavy cream, depending on the brand, then build the colour up in two or three coats rather than one.
Start on a primed model
Unless a step says otherwise, every recipe here begins on a model that has already been primed - paint will not sit properly on bare plastic. Black unless the scheme says otherwise, which is what most of these were painted over.
The same words mean two things
Wash, shade and layer are both things you do and names Citadel puts on pots. The badge on a step is the action. The Type column in the paint list is which range the pot came from. A step badged "layer" is often painted with a Base paint, and that is not a mistake.
basecoat
The first solid colour over primer. Two thin coats beat one thick one.
highlight
A lighter colour on the parts that would catch the light.
layer
A slightly lighter colour over part of the coat below, leaving its edges showing.
wash
Thin, watery paint that runs into the recesses and shades the whole area at once.
edge
A highlight along a sharp edge only, painted with the side of the brush.
shade
Darker paint placed deliberately in the shadows rather than left to flow.
glaze
Heavily thinned paint over dry paint, to tint it and soften the join between two colours.
stipple
Dabbed on with the tip of the brush for a broken, rough, mottled surface.
drybrush
Almost-dry paint dragged across raised texture so it catches only the high points.
blend
Two colours worked into each other while both are wet, so there is no visible line.
special
Anything that is not one of the above. The step note says what it is.

Untamed Troll

🔗
OrksBlood BowlDecember 2025
FinishBright, comical
PrimaryMuted brown flesh with vibrant purples
ContrastBlue skirt, red armour
TechniqueSoft layering, no washes
BASE
PrimeBlack
FLESH
EYES
BaseEvil Sunz
HighlightWild Rider
ARMOUR
BaseOrange Red
EdgeDeep Orange
CLOTH
BaseDark Turquoise
HighlightBlend Dark Turquoise with Ice Yellow
LEATHER
NAILS / BONE / TEETH
BaseIvory
HighlightBold White
WashAgrax
GROT
RecipeOrk Flesh
BASE
  1. 1
    basecoatBlackVallejo
    Primer over sand·Harder & Steenbeck Airbrush ULTRA 2024 Medium
  2. 2
    highlightGoblin Green (72.030)Vallejo
    Light touch·Artis Opus Series D Medium
  3. 3
    highlightMoon Yellow (72.005)Vallejo
    Even lighter touch·Artis Opus Series D Medium
  4. 4
    basecoatBold Titanium WhitePro Acryl
    White stripe
  5. 5
    layerSC00 (Matte Black)Scale75
    Rim the base
  1. 1
    basecoatRhinox HideCitadel
    Base all leather·Artis Opus Series S 1
  2. 2
    basecoatAbaddon BlackCitadel + Lahmian MediumCitadel (1:2)
    Shade all leather recesses·Artis Opus Series S 1
  3. 3
    highlightDoombull BrownCitadel
    Chunky·Artis Opus Series S 1
  4. 4
    highlightSkrag BrownCitadel
    Scratchy damage highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
  5. 5
    edgeXV-88 (Deep Ochre)Citadel
    Shakey - edge and scratch·Artis Opus Series S 00
  6. 6
    highlightUshabti BoneCitadel
    Dot highlight sparingly·Artis Opus Series S 00
Dark Wood
  1. 1
    basecoatDryad BarkCitadel
    Base all wood·Artis Opus Series S 3
  2. 2
    edgeDoombull BrownCitadel
    Ragged edge·Artis Opus Series S 1
  3. 3
    shadeAgrax EarthshadeCitadel
    One or two coats depending how you want to age·Vallejo Detail 2
Ork Flesh
  1. 1
    basecoatDark Green (72.028)Vallejo
    Base all skin·Artis Opus Series S 3
  2. 2
    layerCayman Green (72.067)Vallejo
    80% of upward facing flesh·Artis Opus Series S 3
  3. 3
    layerLime Green (70.827)Vallejo
    40% of Cayman layer·Artis Opus Series S 3
  4. 4
    highlightYellow Green (70.954)Vallejo
    10% of Lime layer·Artis Opus Series S 3
  5. 5
    glazeTuskgor FurCitadel
    1 part paint to 4 parts thinner·Artis Opus Series S 3
  6. 6
    basecoatIncubi DarknessCitadel
    Fingernails Base·Artis Opus Series S 00
  7. 7
    highlightWolf GreyTwo Thin Coats + Incubi DarknessCitadel (1:2)
    Fingernail highlights·Artis Opus Series S 00
  8. 8
    highlightWolf GreyTwo Thin Coats + Incubi DarknessCitadel (2:1)
    Fingernail bright highlight·Artis Opus Series S 00
  9. 9
    highlightWolf GreyTwo Thin Coats
    Fingernail dot highlight·Artis Opus Series S 00
  1. 1
    basecoatMephiston RedCitadel
    Base armour·Artis Opus Series S 3
  2. 2
    highlightEvil Sunz ScarletCitadel
    1st chunky highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
  3. 3
    highlightWild Rider RedCitadel
    2nd thin highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
  4. 4
    highlightDeep Orange IntenseAK Interactive
    3rd highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
  5. 5
    highlightIce Yellow (70.858)Vallejo
    Dot highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
  1. 1
    basecoatMatte BlackPro Acryl
    Basic primer
  2. 2
    basecoatWizard's Butt #1Pro Acryl
    Belly / under arms - darkest version·Artis Opus Series S 3
  3. 3
    layerWizard's Butt #2Pro Acryl
    Belly / under arms - brighter·Artis Opus Series S 3
  4. 4
    layerWizard's Butt #3Pro Acryl
    Belly / under arms - brightest version·Artis Opus Series S 3
  5. 5
    layerPale YellowPro Acryl
    Belly / under arms - blend in towards this colour·Artis Opus Series S 3
  6. 6
    highlightPale YellowPro Acryl
    Brightest bits, pure·Artis Opus Series S 3
  7. 7
    basecoatPurplePro Acryl
    Back, legs, top of arms·Artis Opus Series S 3
  8. 8
    layerPale YellowPro Acryl
    Blend with purple for highlights·Artis Opus Series S 3
  9. 9
    highlightSky BluePro Acryl
    Back spike tips, subtle highlight·Artis Opus Series S 1
Orange RedPro Acryl⇆Dark TurquoisePro AcrylIvoryPro Acryl⇆

Recipes

Methods I reuse across models - skin, metal, armour, cloth and the rest. Each step is one named paint, one technique and a note. Unless a step says otherwise, every recipe here starts on a primed model - the scheme that uses it usually says which colour.

Before you start, and what the technique words mean
Thin your paint
Almost everything here goes on thinner than it comes out of the pot. Neat paint dries thick and fills in the detail you paid for. Add water a drop at a time on a palette until it runs somewhere between milk and heavy cream, depending on the brand, then build the colour up in two or three coats rather than one.
Start on a primed model
Unless a step says otherwise, every recipe here begins on a model that has already been primed - paint will not sit properly on bare plastic. Black unless the scheme says otherwise, which is what most of these were painted over.
The same words mean two things
Wash, shade and layer are both things you do and names Citadel puts on pots. The badge on a step is the action. The Type column in the paint list is which range the pot came from. A step badged "layer" is often painted with a Base paint, and that is not a mistake.
basecoat
The first solid colour over primer. Two thin coats beat one thick one.
highlight
A lighter colour on the parts that would catch the light.
layer
A slightly lighter colour over part of the coat below, leaving its edges showing.
wash
Thin, watery paint that runs into the recesses and shades the whole area at once.
edge
A highlight along a sharp edge only, painted with the side of the brush.
shade
Darker paint placed deliberately in the shadows rather than left to flow.
glaze
Heavily thinned paint over dry paint, to tint it and soften the join between two colours.
stipple
Dabbed on with the tip of the brush for a broken, rough, mottled surface.
drybrush
Almost-dry paint dragged across raised texture so it catches only the high points.
blend
Two colours worked into each other while both are wet, so there is no visible line.
special
Anything that is not one of the above. The step note says what it is.

Paint Inventory

The paints I actually own - every pot on my shelf, not a catalogue of what exists. This is what the schemes and recipes are painted with.

PaintBrandTypeHueUsed in

Paint Conversion Chart

Citadel colours matched to their closest Vallejo, Pro Acryl and Two Thin Coats equivalents, by eye, over time. Nothing here is a measured colour match - the dots say how close each one really is.

Still filling this in: 8 of the 108 colours used in the recipes here have no row yet. Mostly Vallejo. A blank means not mapped, not that no equivalent exists.

How close the match is: near identical usable avoid

CitadelVallejoPro AcrylTwo Thin Coats