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I've got:

Testor's Dullcote spray

Citadel munitorum spray

Citadel Stormshield

Citadel 'Ardcoat

AK Ultra Matte

Vallejo Satin Varnish

I know I want to use varnish on my miniatures to protect them but I sort of accumulated a bunch of them while being indecisive about which one I should use.

I tried Testor's Dullcote on some Sector Mechanicus terrain I build and it didn't seem to change the look too much -- it did dull things down very slightly but I kind of wanted that since the terrain is supposed to be used and grimy.

I've used Stormshield on some of my Space Wolves and it didn't seem to change the paint much but it is a slow process painting it on several layers.

I tried the 'Ardcoat just for some gems/reflective surfaces and it did indeed make them shiny but I wouldn't want to use it on a whole model.

I tried the AK Ultra Matte and, as advertised, was ULTRA matte and really took away from the color more than I like (maybe I applied too much).


Has anyone else used Stormshield and noticed it doesn't change the model's appearance too much (which is what I want)? If I like it, should I just stick with that or is it worth trying the Citadel munitorum spray as it would be much faster? Basically just kind of confused when it comes to all the different varnish options and am looking for something causes little change in the figure's appearance after application.

The best varnish depends on the paints that you used. Matte varnishes tend to "dull" the colors, while gloss varnishes enrich them. Citadel paints tend to be more satin than other brands such as reaper, scale75, and Vallejo. If you have glossy paints, gloss varnish will be the closest. If you have matte paints, matte will be the closest, etc.

I disagree with the above. Matte doesn't dull colours. It will dull the shine, making your colours flatter, but they won't lose any vibrancy. Same with gloss, it won't enrich colours, it just adds a shiny top surface. Colour vibrancy/hue/saturation will not be affected by any good varnish. Varnish only affects the sheen of the surface.

Personally I prefer a flat finish so I go with matte. You just need to go with what you like the look of. Satin is a good middle of the road but some of these can be very shiny.

+1. My models look exactly the same after I varnish them. I use Windsor Newton Artisan Matt Varnish

Gloss varnish changes allmoust nothing, but adds a super reflective surface.

Matt and satin varnish changes the look of colours in that a grey fog layer appears and thus distorts the colours.(satin and matt completely destroys metallics)I have tryed 3 different brands of matt and satin rattlecan varnish and they all do the same thing: apply a fog layer.
So with a little bit of experimenting i found that if you do one solid coat of gloss varnish, then when it has dryed do a super, super light pass of satin or matt to remove the reflective shine from the gloss, i end up with a result that hardly, if any at all, changes the look of the colours.

I'm sorry, matte and satin varnishes don't destroy metallic paint finishes. That's just not true.

The colour tone no, but it kills the flake shine, and the flake shine is the whole reason to why you paint with metallics.

I am interested in seeing the results from this thread.

At the moment I am using Citadel Ardcoat then going over with a layer of Coat d'arms matt varnish to dull the gloss. Coat d'arms has a slight silk sheen to it a bit like Citadel paints. I am in two minds about Aardcoat being protective enough.

What I am after is something that protects whilst the pieces are being used on the gaming table and won't dis-color over the years with age.

It would be interesting to hear of some pros and cons of brands and what other more experienced painters have come across whilst using these brands of varnish.

 FrozenDwarf wrote:
The colour tone no, but it kills the flake shine, and the flake shine is the whole reason to why you paint with metallics.

Again, that's just not the case. It will dull it a little, but it doesn't take away the entire shine. Otherwise nobody would use it. If anything it actually improves the realistic look of metallics, because metals dont sparkle.

Which varnish changes the appearance the least kind of depends what paint you used originally. I like Testors Dullcote, but I really struggle trying to paint at a contrast level that I like and then have it retained after spraying it with a varnish.

A lot of my models I don't bother varnishing because it would change the look too much.

Matte tends to sap away the contrast, satin to gloss paints tend to enhance it.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
I disagree with the above. Matte doesn't dull colours.

Well, matte varnish isn't completely transparent like gloss, but if you're applying so much of it that it dulls the colour you're probably applying too much, lol.

But dulling the shine can be a lot like dulling the colours. If I'm painting with semi-gloss colours and then intend to matte varnish I try and paint with more vibrancy expecting it to be dulled out when it's varnished.

Of course, thickness of your varnish layers is a key factor. A thin layer of matte is all that's required, to remove any shine, which allows the contrast you've created with your colour and shade/highlight transitions to not be distorted by light reflections had it a shiny gloss surface.

Army Painter's anti shine varnish works well, I can't say I've noticed any decline in the model's final appearance.

So I went ahead and hit my whole Sector Mechanicus terrain set with Testor's Dullcote spray. Not more than 2-3 sprays side to side (like how is shown in various tutorial videos). The colors like orange, red, tan all like the same to me. It did tone down some of the colors like brown but not too much and the metals look duller. Overall I like it on the terrain since it's supposed to be kinda dingy/grimy anyway. The only negative is that I had drybrushed on Ryza Rust over Typhus Corossion in various places and in same cases it made the effect basically vanish (the orange part of the rust is gone). I didn't go very heavy handed with the Ryza Rust application since it's really bright and those are the spots that disappeared. The areas i did go heavy handed are still visible.

So, I am happy enough with the Testor's Dullcote for the terrain but I don't think I'd use it on my Space Wolves becuase I fear it would dull certain colors+metallics too much.

Are citadel paints considered semi-glossy? I wonder if the Munitorum spray would be good there since I think it's supposed to be kind of satin. Anyone have experience with it?

I use a satin finish humbrol varnish and it frosts the crap out of my goldwork if I'm not careful. But thats down to overspray and my sloppy work rather than the product.

If i've just hit it with a thin layer it seems okay.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Freya wrote:
+1. My models look exactly the same after I varnish them. I use Windsor Newton Artisan Matt Varnish

Care to link ?
My W&N brushes are top quality.

SuperCow wrote:


Are citadel paints considered semi-glossy? I wonder if the Munitorum spray would be good there since I think it's supposed to be kind of satin. Anyone have experience with it?

It is satin varnish. Removes the paint shine but fogs up dark and metallic colours when used too mutch. The layer has to be so thin that it is basicly no wear and tear protection at all, just a shine remover.