Games Workshop New Paint Line

As many of you probably know by now, our friends at Games Workshop released their newest products, which contains 145 separate paints, making it one of the largest and most comprehensive paint lines on the gaming/hobby market today. These are hardly your "run of the mill" paints though...In fact they seem to not only be a higher quality than GW's previous paints, but are also created with a step-by-step painting process in mind. This makes them great for beginners and enthusiasts alike, especially considering their price hasn't changed at all!

Today, I'm going to show you every one of the different types of paints, a short description of the uses for the different groups AND a link to a nice conversion list for the old vs new colors they kept.

First up are the Bases. As you might expect, these 34 colors are made for base coating your miniatures. They contain a higher than normal amount of pigment, making the first layer a very nice solid color. As any painter knows, in addition to having a clean, smooth prime coat, one of the most important steps to painting your miniatures is to have a even and colorful base coat.

 

Next up, we have the Shades. There are 12 of these, and they are made for going over the base coats. Very similar to the previous Washes, they help to add detail and definition to the primary color, while also making a darker hue wherever you decide to apply it.
Beginners: remember to use sparingly until you get the hang of it, as this medium is made to pool into any spots or recesses that your miniature has.

Now comes the Layers, which are by far the most expansive of the line, and the core of what the other paints were designed around. Consisting of no fewer than 70 paints, these are different than either inks or washes as they are typically used for making very nice mid-tones and transitions. Although they overlay other colors, there is enough pigment that by watering them down slightly, they could be used directly onto your miniature.
Beginners: Due to the huge amount of color spectrum available as Layers, you shouldn't have to mix paints nearly as much as you previously had to.

The Dry paints are new to the line, never having been made before. There are 15 of these, and they are sure to help overcome any of your dry brushing problems. Using an entirely novel formulation, they are very thick (almost paste-like) in consistency. Thus, Dry paints will bond to your miniature's raised surface, making it much easier to create large-area highlights.

For the Glaze, Texture and Technical paints, I took a single picture, as there are fewer of them.
The 6 Texture paints (top) are essentially for basing your miniatures. No longer will you have to mix glue or sand into your paints, as these have both coarse and fine grit in them. They also dry very quickly, so you can add many colors if you so choose.
We now have 4 Glaze paints (right) which can be used for more even blending of colors, or adding that much more depth to a small area. They are extremely watery, but the color goes a long way.
Lastly, there are 4 Technical items (left). These are different than the others, in that they are used during miniature preparation or completion rather than during painting. Thus, they are not really "paints" per se, but are still part of the new line.
Beginners: After applying Texture to your bases, try using a light Dry coat to really bring out the detail. Careful use of the proper Glaze can help decrease the sharpness of highlights, and a good way to get rid of the gloss leftover from some Technical paints is to use a quick spray of Matte.

 

Now, the rumors of certain paints being re-used under different names is true. The chart for this can be found on page 128 of White Dwarf #387, which also has various painting techniques, upcoming miniatures, a look at the Citadel painting guide, and other cool articles and pictures.

But...if you don't have a hobby store near you and want to know the conversions, simply follow this link to the official GW chart;
http://www.games-workshop.com/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m2320032a_Citadel_Conversion_Chart

That's all for today, everyone. I am getting in some Reaper miniatures on Monday though, so I will try to do a follow-up post showing the various steps I followed for using these new paints. Be sure to check on Twitter and Facebook for new posts!