A second Age of Chaos is nearly upon us, as the reinvigorated Slaves to Darkness arrive for pre-order this Saturday. Vincent Knotley* couldn’t decide what colour to use for his Chaos Chosen, so he’s done all 10 differently in a fantastic showcase of how easy they are to paint.
Vincent: Indecision is a bit of a problem for me and on some level we’re all guilty of it – Which brown for this strap and pouch? Should I shade this with Poxwalker or Kroak Green? Pizza or sushi?
I could paint entire armies in the time it takes me to decide precisely which colours I want to use, but while sifting through a dozen ideas for the new Chaos Chosen, an answer crawled into my skull.
Me: What colours should I use?
My brain: Yes.
I found something I’d wanted to do for so very long but never truly realised – paint a unit with no two models the same.
So off I went, Contrast paint on brush, bouncing from scheme to scheme with the fevered glee of a Beast of Nurgle when new friends stumble into view. It’s the most fulfilling niche my hobby has ever found, and grew exponentially when people started asking how I did them.
What follows is a brief summary of each scheme. While the general idea I had was for them to follow Nurgle, they could be something else entirely – Chaos is chaos, and uniformity is such an Order thing.
Basecoat: Grey Seer Spray
Armour: 3:3:1 mix of Apothecary White, Gryph-Charger Grey, and Ratling Grime, highlight Grey Seer and Ulthuan Grey
Trim: Runelord Brass, 2:1 mix of Contrast Medium and Garaghak’s Sewer, highlight Sycorax Bronze
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Basecoat: Grey Seer Spray
Armour: Two coats of Militarum Green, highlight Elysian Green and Ogryn Camo
Trim: Iron Hands Steel, Nuln Oil, highlight Ironbreaker
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Basecoat: Grey Seer Spray
Armour: 2:1 mix of Aggaros Dunes and Militarum Green, highlight Krieg Khaki
Trim: Iron Hands Steel, Nuln Oil, highlight Stormhost Silver
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Basecoat: Zandri Dust Spray
Armour: Two coats of Plaguebearer Flesh, highlight Ogryn Camo and Krieg Khaki
Trim: Runelord Brass, 3:1 mix of Contrast Medium and Cygor Brown, highlight Fulgurite Copper
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Basecoat: Grey Seer Spray
Armour: Mortarion Grime, Seraphim Sepia, Ratling Grime (only in the recesses!), highlight Ionrach Skin and Deepkin Flesh
Trim: Balthasar Gold, 4:1 mix of Contrast Medium and Wyldwood, highlight Hashut Copper and Stormhost Silver
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Basecoat: Wraithbone Spray
Armour: Mantis Warriors Green, highlight Krieg Khaki and 1:1 mix of Krieg Khaki and Dorn Yellow
Trim: Runelord Brass, 2:1 mix of Contrast Medium and Wyldwood, highlight Runelord Brass
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Basecoat: White Scar Spray
Armour: Soulblight Grey, Mortarion Grime, highlight White Scar
Trim: Iron Hands Steel, two coats of Nuln Oil, highlight Iron Hands Steel
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Basecoat: Zandri Dust Spray
Armour: Creed Camo, Poxwalker, highlight Straken Green and Nurgling Green
Trim: Runelord Brass, 2:1 mix of Contrast Medium and Gore-Grunta Fur, highlight Runelord Brass and Stormhost Silver
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Basecoat: Grey Seer Spray
Armour: Creed Camo, Poxwalker, highlight Straken Green and Nurgling Green
Trim: Iron Hands Steel, two coats of Agrax Earthshade, highlight Iron Hands Steel
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Basecoat: White Scar Spray
Armour: Nazdreg Yellow, Fuegan Orange, highlight Flash Gitz Yellow and Dorn Yellow
Trim: Iron Hands Steel, Ratling Grime, highlight Iron Hands Steel
With luck, you found something of use! If there’s one thing I hope others take from this, it’s to not let indecision rule your hobby – experiment, try mixing Contrast Paints together, and you might find something that works for you. On the face they’re an easy way to add colour and tone to a model, but dig a little deeper and there’s plenty of opportunity to take them far beyond that.
Thanks Vincent! Pick up your own band of Chaos Chosen – and their other Slaves to Darkness compatriots – when pre-orders go live on Saturday. Show off your own wild paint schemes on our Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram pages, and you may just find your work showcased on Warhammer-Community.com too.
* The iconic Warhammer TV chat disciplinarian