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Hello! I'm new to mini painting and about to finish my second set of minis for a board game, and I need some advice/guidance. So buckle up for a rant.

Last time I painted I usually painted around 3-6 minis, varnished and moved to the next batch. For varnish I used initially Citadels Purity Seal (spray). Around my fourth batch, however I got a lot of frosting on minis when using spray (not sure why, if it was due to weather or error in usage). I read some guides that suggested to warm minis and use combination of Ardcoat and Stormshield (varnish in a bottle). That did the trick to some extent, but my confidence in Purity Seal was damaged and I used Stormshield for rest of minis as I felt as I could control it better. The downside was of course brush marks that occurred sometimes, especially at base of minis.

For my second boardgame I choose to first paint all minis and then start to worry about varnishing. And here I am, 4 minis away from dreaded decision. Should I use Purity Seal or run with Stormshield?

Initially I thought to use Purity Seal with following strategy:
1) Prime few plastic soldiers with black primer
2) Wait for good weather conditions (as I understand it: low humidity, no wind and temperature around 20C/68F)
3) Varnish one of the soldiers and wait for around 10 min to see if frosting occurs
4) Pray to all gods and demons and spray all of my painted minis
5) Celebrate or cry in anguish

Then I started to get cold feets and thought about Stormshield strategy:
1) Get a cup of coffie
2) Thin Stormshield with water to minimize brushmarks (last time I didn't thin)
3) Apply 2-3 coats for each mini
4) Repeat 1-3 for each mini
5) Probably buy more Stormshield


As far as I can see the advantages of using Purity Seal is speed and consistency (if all goes well then everything looks great and smooth). The disadvantage is that it feels like a risky approach and weather dependent.
On the other hand, if I use Stormshield it will take longer and probably require more bottles. On the plus side, I could vanish minis at my own pace and with more predictable results (I didn't get any frosting using Stormshield).

I would really appreciate some input. If anyone was in a similar situation or have some good tips or experiences to share that could help me decide

This probably isn't what you want to hear, but I think that perhaps what you need is a can of Testors Dullcote, a really good matte varnish. https://www.firestormgames.co.uk/testors-dullcote?gclid=Cj0KCQjwhtT1BRCiARIsAGlY51KFa0V7EoWQGDtzolzoLWY9a6EF6qbeA8VZf1TKS7kmx1FNj78pj48aAmYMEALw_wcB

There's no guarantee that would fix your problem though.

I have a can of Purity Seal (I'm not sure when I bought it, or why) and I haven't had the problems you had, personally. You're not the first I've heard of it from though. I'm wary of using it. I do know that temperature and humidity are apparently what cause problems when spray varnishing, You don't want it really cold, and you don't want it really humid. The brush-on method is probably the safest bet, but as you say, it's time-consuming.

Instead of testing the Purity Seal on a painted mini, why don't you paint a bit of sprue, spray that with the Purity Seal, and wait and see if that goes frosty? Then you'll know if the temperature, humidity, and contents of the can are okay.

Would an airbrush delivery method help to minimize that set of problems? I don't have a clue, I am just asking as one more possible ploy to convince myself to buy an airbrush!

@feltmonkey I could look for Testors Dullcote but I don't see it available in my local stores. As for testing Purity Seal, my idea was to use primed plastic soldiers as I feel that they mimic reality well (with crevices where varnish can build up etc), or is there something wrong with that logic? From your comment about Purity Seal I am even more inclined to use brush-on method. I don't mind process taking an extra week or so.

@Dukeofstuff also interested if it could be viable option

As for using brush-on method, is thining the varnish with water going to prevent brush marks?