What is this?
This is the Goon Approved ™ (r) (lol) recommended list of paints. This isn’t a list of all the paints, or even a list of all the paints you should but (after all you can mix almost anything) but a recommendation of paints, possibly their best purpose/use (see Lupe’s guides for details on specifics) and just generally useful paints/combos.
There’s no bias for one particular brand, if a paint is here it’s because someone recommended it, when a similar alternative is known it can be added alongside it too.
Core Paint Set
These are the paint’s that I personally consider essential to cover most needs when it comes to painting. If I could only ever have the below paints I’d still be a happy nerd.
| Paint | Alternative | Main Purpose | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abaddon Black (Citadel) | Black 70 950 (Vallejo Model Colour), Black (Vallejo Game Colour) | Base coating, shadows etc.. | Everyone needs black paint. |
| White 70 951 (Vallejo Model Colour | Lightening things | Likewise everyone needs white. | |
| Mephiston Red (Citadel) | Base coating. Medium Red | Great coverage over all primer colours. | |
| Averland Sunset (Citadel) | Base coating. Mustard | Great coverage over all primer colours | |
| Flash Gitz Yellow (Citadel) | Yellow 70 915 (Vallejo Model Colour) | Layering (neutral yellow) | Apply over Averland Sunset for a neutral yellow, or use as a highlight for Averland Sunset, or an Orange colour. |
| Macragge Blue (Citadel) | Base coating. Medium Blue | Great coverage over all primers, good medium blue to work up or down from | |
| Intermediate Green 72 891 (Vallejo Model Colour) | Base coating. Medium Green | The most neutral of greens, will require a couple of coats over a dark primer. | |
| Mourning Brown (Citadel) | Saddle Brown 72 940 (Vallejo Model Colour) | Base coating. Medium Brown | Great coverage over all primer colours. Good base colour for oranges and golds. |
| Orange Red 72 910 (Vallejo Model Colour) | Troll Slayer Orange (Citadel) | Layering. Medium Orange, use over brown or red base coat. | |
| Xereus Purple (Citadel) | Base coating. Medium Purple | A great colour when working up to pinks, or down to dark purples. | |
| Ulthuan Grey (Citadel) | Sky Grey | Layering (use for 99% of white things) | Better for lightening colours than using a pure white. Works as a specular highlight on almost any colour if you want something to shine. |
| Ushabti Bone (Citadel) | Pale Sand 70 837 (Vallejo Model Colour) | Layering. Beige. | Works great as a highlight for light browns. Mix with medium for a wash that turns white primer into bone. |
| Retributor Gold (Citadel) | Base coating. Neutral Gold. | Great Coverage over all primer colours. Highlights well with silver, and shades well with Agrax. |
|
| Nuln Oil (Citadel) | Shade | Black wash, useful for many purposes | |
| Leadbelcher (Citadel) | Gun Metal (Vallejo Model Air Metalic) | Base coat. Dark Metal | Great coverage over black. Highlights well with Silver. |
| Silver 71 063 (Vallejo Model Air Metallic) | Stormhost Silver (Citadel) | Base coating. Highlighting metals | VMA Silver is super shiny and covers brilliantly. Brushes on great. Excellent highlight for Leadbelcher/Gun Metal/Gold. |
| Agrax Earthsahde (Citadel) | Shade | Brown wash, useful for many purposes. | |
| Lahmian Medium (Citadel) | Vallejo Glaze Medium | Pure Acrylic Medium | Changes opacity of paint. Use about 3 parts medium to 1 part paint to make a glaze of any colour. Thins down washes. |
Additional Niceties
The following is a list of my favourite paints, and common recipes I use them in. This list will change over time, so keep checking back.
| Paint | Alternative | Main Purpose | Comments/ Other Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thousand Sons Blue (Citadel) | Base coating. Lighter Blue/Teal | Great starting point for Teal or Turquoise with excellent coverage. Highlight with Temple Guard Blue and Baharroth Blue, extreme highlight with Ulthuan Grey |
|
| Temple Guard Blue (Citadel) | Light Turquoise 70 840 (Vallejo Model Color) | Layering. Light Blue | Cerulean blue. Great first highlight for an Ultramarine blue colour. |
| Baharroth Blue (Citadel) | Edge Highlight. Super Light Blue | Great highlight for Temple Guard Blue. Mix with Lahmian Medium as a wash over Ulthuan Grey for instant plasma coils. |
|
| Drakenhoff Nightshade (Citadel) | Shade/Wash | Great shade for all blues. Thins well with Lahmian Medium to lesson the effect. Works nicely over Leadbelcher and Gunmetals as an alternative to Nuln Oil. Use in eye sockets after a dot of bone for the eyes, to tone down the eye ball and darken the sockets. |
|
| Blue Ink (Scale 75) | Ink | Very strong blue ink, useful for making washes. | |
| Death Guard Green (Citadel) | Base coating. Very Pale Green. | Mid tone for Death Guard. Shade's well with Biel Tan Green Wash. Instant Ork Skin: Death Guard, Biel Tan, 4:1:1 Lahmian Medium, Biel-Tan and Intermediate Green Glaze, highlight Intermediate Green + Yellow. |
|
| Biel-Tan Green (Citadel) | Shade/Wash | Use over most greens to get a medium green shadow. Thin with Lahmian if you want to use over lighter greens |
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