Don’t miss our 100% unofficial review of the Citadel Contrast paints as we put them through their paces and give you our thoughts on the line.
The hype has been real about these new Contrast paints since they were first hinted at Adepticon 2019. Well, today is the day we put these bad boys to the test.
Follow along as we bust out our beakers and Bunsen burners and experiment with the latest paint products from GW.
Contrast paints are not just a new paint, but a new system of painting designed to help you get your minis on the tabletop with less effort. It includes new Primers, Contrast colors and must have a medium that helps you get your paint to the consistency you are looking for.
Today we put them all to the test so you can decide if they are worth your hobby dollars.
Primer:
So out of the gate, we prime two minis to try out this new system. One of our biggest questions was to see if you need to buy the new $20 spray paints to use these new paints. We primed one mini in the new GW Wraithbone and one in the Skeleton Bone color match primer from The Army Painter to see if we can achieve the same effect.
More on that in a minute…
Contrast Brush On Paints:
So after his first initial test mini complete Rob starts out by using some of the new Aggaros Dunes thinned down with some of the Contrast Medium. This paint seems to have some great coverage but as with any thinner paint, you want to make sure it doesn’t pool too heavily in undesirable areas. The one thick coat trick does not work well on minis as detailed as this!
Up next is the darker of the two browns used on this mini Wyldwood. Rob took the time to make a gradient of thick to thinner paint using the new Contrast Medium so he could experiment and control how light or dark the color is on his mini. This seems like a great way to get the effect you are looking for without going too strong with the contrast colors.
After laying down some Warp Lightning green for the skin tone and touching up any mistakes with some Wraithbone brush paint, Rob moves on the hair of the mini. This is where you might run into some trouble if you are not careful. Touching up the skin might be hard to do if you get any other color on it so you have to be careful.
After a few more colors including Flesh Tearers Red for the buds, and Talassar Blue on the sword, we have a finished mini.
The one on the left has been primed with Wraithbone and the one on the right has been primed with the Army Painter Skeleton Bone. As suspected the Skeleton Bone has created a darker effect. But if you would rather save $5 a can Army Painter could be a viable alternative. To be fair though Rob also applied the Contrast a little heavier on the right model as he was getting used to the paints themselves.
Conclusion & Opinion:
Overall we think the new Cont15rast line from Games Workshop has some very practical applications for getting your minis on the tabletop with less work. However, it also has a lot of limitations as far as the effects that you can achieve, as you have to take a higher drying time, and potentially more touch-ups into account.
That being said they are another tool in a hobbyists toolbox and will definitely find a home in the hobby we love.
As always, keep those hobby muscles strong, stay in the trenches, and press play on our 100% unofficial Contrast review video below!
About the Author: Tim Roberts
