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MINIATURES

RAY LAROSE · MINIATURES

Notes from my painting desk

The paints and steps behind each finished model, and the recipes I come back to.

Try

57 painted schemes 288 photos 44 recipes 162 paint matches

Vashtorr The Arkifane, Iron Warriors, painted miniature Vashtorr The Arkifane Flesh Tearers - Terminators, Blood Angels, painted miniature Flesh Tearers - Terminators Orruk Warclans, Orruks, painted miniature Orruk Warclans

Fresh off the bench

The newest finished schemes, each with every paint and step.

All 57 schemes →
Vashtorr The Arkifane, Iron Warriors, painted miniature8 photos

Vashtorr The Arkifane

Iron Warriors · 30k / HHNov 2026Flesh Tearers - Terminators, Blood Angels, painted miniature5 photos

Flesh Tearers - Terminators

Blood Angels · 40kOct 2026Orruk Warclans, Orruks, painted miniature5 photos

Orruk Warclans

Orruks · AoSOct 2026Flesh Tearers Dreadnought, Blood Angels, painted miniature9 photos

Flesh Tearers Dreadnought

Blood Angels · 40kOct 2026

Find your army

Paint schemes for Warhammer 40k, Blood Bowl, Age of Sigmar and Necromunda and more. Pick a game or an army to see how I painted it.

Warhammer 40k30 Blood Bowl6 Age of Sigmar5 Necromunda5 Horus Heresy4 Kill Team2 One Page Rules1 Other4
Blood Angels11 Orks11 Astra Militarum9 Squats4 Iron Warriors3 Orruks3 Gloomspite Gitz2 Free Blade2 Goliath2 Dark Angels1

Learn a part

Miniature painting recipes for one part at a time, like armour, flesh and weapon, each a short list of steps you can follow at the desk.

All 44 recipes →
Armour14 recipes Flesh11 recipes Weapon4 recipes Leather3 recipes Metal3 recipes Cloth2 recipes

Switching paint brands?

162 Citadel colours matched to Vallejo, Pro Acryl and Two Thin Coats, by eye, with how close each match really is. Search any name from any brand.

Open the conversion chart →
Abaddon Black Citadel VallejoBlack (72.051) Pro AcrylCharcoal Black Two Thin CoatsDoom Death Black Mephiston Red Citadel VallejoGory Red (72.011) Pro AcrylRed Two Thin CoatsSanguine Scarlet Retributor Armour Citadel VallejoPolished Gold (72.055) Pro AcrylRich Gold Two Thin CoatsDragon's Gold

New to painting? Start here

Four short recipes, in this order. Each one adds a single new skill.

Gold, metal painting recipe1

Gold

4 stepsThe basecoat, wash, highlight sequence most metal is built on. Ultramarine Armour, armour painting recipe2

Ultramarine Armour

4 stepsThe same idea with an edge highlight, which is what makes armour read as armour. Rust, metal painting recipe3

Rust

3 stepsStippling and drybrushing, and hard to get wrong. Ork Flesh, flesh painting recipe4

Ork Flesh

9 stepsThe whole ladder: a basecoat, two layers, a highlight, then glazes to blend it together.
How I paint a Space Marine, the finished model Start to finish How I paint a Space Marine 10 stages, from the box to the table, with a photo at each step and the paints and recipes for each. How I paint an Ork, the finished model Start to finish How I paint an Ork 11 stages, from the box to the table, with a photo at each step and the paints and recipes for each.
← All schemes
Vashtorr The Arkifane, Iron Warriors, painted miniature, photo 1 of 8

Vashtorr The Arkifane

Iron Warriors30k / HHNovember 2026
FinishSoft purple flesh with bronze and gold armour
PrimaryBruised sickly flesh
ContrastSharp metallics
TechniqueAirbrush body, contrasting metallics

What went where

BASE
PrimeMatte Black
SKIN
BaseRakarth Flesh (through airbrush)
ShadeDruchii Violet Shade with Lahmian Medium (1:4 through airbrush from below)
BLACK HAND
Over SkinCoal Black (through airbrush)
ARMOUR
BaseRetributor Armour
Outside EdgesBronze
WashAgrax Earthshade
HighlightLight Bronze
Gold HighlightRetributor Armour in center sections
WINGS / TAIL
BaseBronze
BaseLeadbelcher
Bronze WashAgrax Earthshade
Leadbelcher WashNuln Oil
Bronze HighlightBronze
Leadbelcher HighlightLeadbelcher
Bronze Dot HighlightLight Bronze
Leadbelcher Dot HighlightStormhurst
WING SKULLS
BaseCoal Black
SkullsMephiston Red
WashNuln Oil
FIRE
BaseMephiston Red
HighlightWild Ryder Red
SpotOrange
BLACK BITS
RecipeBlack Weapons

Recipes used

1 recipe, 7 steps
Black WeaponsWeapon · 7 steps
  1. 1
    basecoatCoal BlackPro Acryl
    Base weapon·Artis Opus Series S 3
  2. 2
    edgeEshin GreyCitadel
    Chunky edge·Artis Opus Series S 1
  3. 3
    edgeMechanicus Standard GreyCitadel
    Edge all panels·Artis Opus Series S 1
  4. 4
    edgeDawnstoneCitadel
    Extreme upper corners·Artis Opus Series S 1
  5. 5
    highlightAdministratum GreyCitadel
    Dot highlights·Artis Opus Series S 1
  6. 6
    basecoatLeadbelcherCitadel
    Barrels, clips·Vallejo Detail 2
  7. 7
    washNuln OilCitadel
    Barrels, clips·Vallejo Detail 2

The recipe on its own pagePrint a bench card

Paints

BronzePro Acryl⇆Light BronzePro Acryl⇆LeadbelcherCitadel⇆Retributor ArmourCitadel⇆Agrax EarthshadeCitadel⇆Nuln OilCitadel⇆Rakarth FleshCitadel⇆Druchii VioletCitadel⇆Mephiston RedCitadel⇆Wild Rider RedCitadel⇆Deep Orange IntenseAK InteractiveExtra Matte VarnishTamiyaCoal BlackPro Acryl⇆Eshin GreyCitadel⇆Mechanicus Standard GreyCitadel⇆Stormhost SilverCitadel⇆DawnstoneCitadel⇆Lahmian MediumCitadel⇆

More like this

All 57 schemes →
Saturnine Praetor, Iron Warriors, painted miniature3 photos

Saturnine Praetor

Iron Warriors · 30k / HHAug 2026Iron Warriors Infantry, Iron Warriors, painted miniature4 photos

Iron Warriors Infantry

Iron Warriors · 30k / HHFeb 2026 · 16 modelsLegions Imperialis, Blood Angels, painted miniature4 photos

Legions Imperialis

Blood Angels · 30k / HHApr 2025 · 72 modelsFlesh Tearers - Terminators, Blood Angels, painted miniature5 photos

Flesh Tearers - Terminators

Blood Angels · 40kOct 2026

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.

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 112 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
4 how many of my recipes and schemes use it - tap one to see them

CitadelVallejoPro AcrylTwo Thin Coats