Grimdark Essentials Vol. 1 – Flesh Tones, Weapons, and Weathering

The set

A paint set from the IONIC range, listed as the first part of the basic series for the Grimdark theme. The name marks out the three areas the scale is put together for: skin shades, colors for weapons and shades for soiling and dirtying a surface. It is therefore a starter set for the theme, not the scale of a single color.

Where it is useful

The set covers what practically every figure has. The skin shades serve for the face and hands, the colors for weapons for blades, barrels and fittings, and the last group for soiling, that is for dust, mud and the marks of use on equipment and on the base. The Grimdark theme shifts the whole into a darker key.

• Three areas in one set: skin, weapons, soiling.
• Put together as the first part of the basic series for the theme.
• Suits figures, equipment and bases.
• The shades keep a consistent, darker key.

Painting tips

Shake the bottle before use and apply in thin coats, as a face is easily flooded. On skin, go from the base tone through darkening the eye sockets and folds to light on the nose, cheekbones and backs of the hands. Leave weapons darker than their surroundings and lighten only the cutting edges and the edges. Apply soiling last and from the bottom up, so that the settled dirt sits where the ground would put it. Use the thinner intended for this range; the thinning ratio follows the manufacturer's instructions on the packaging.

Who it is for

For figure painters who are starting with darkly keyed subjects and want one set with which to take a model from skin to soiling. The paints are applied with a brush; for spraying, thinning according to the manufacturer's instructions is needed. The set serves for painting, and figures, brushes and thinner are not supplied with it, unless stated otherwise.