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Hey all

I have a knight model on foot wearing plate armour, that I'd like to paint in that classic hero type of plate armour you see in films. That really shiny polished stuff.

But I can't think of how to do it using metallic paints.

Obviously I could slap on Citadel Stormhost Silver, as that's very bright and silver, but then I can't go anywhere for highlights, just shading, which might as well be like painting pure white!

Anyone here have any tips on this?

Thanks in advance.

So my current Teutonic Knights are getting this treatment:

Basecoat 80:20 Abbadon Black, Vallejo German Grey. I like to go with an off black, because nothing in the world really is true black.

Drybrush/Layer - Leadbelcher. I say Drybrush or LAyer because I find that drybrushing, if you apply it really sparingly and in multiple layers, builds up to a much smoother and more realistic finish - it also allows you to pick the detail out and preshade your armour in a sense (Leave the nice, soft off-black as shading).

Wash - Nuln Oil. The wash takes off the texturing of the drybrush, adds shade, darkens your main coat and adds a filter akin to oiled steel.

Light Drybrush/Highlight - Runefang Steel or Vallejo Model Air Steel. You only want to lightly drybrush this on or highlight sparingly, catching just the most prominent edges. Alternatively, if you're going full 'Paladin', highlight more to give an effect of shiny steel/'white' armour.

I personally prefer a smooth drybrush for metalics where possible. I find layering makes metallics clump more and thinning them alters the characteristics of the paint in a way which reduces their effectiveness. Drybrushing keeps them at the desired density, but allows you to apply them thinner - just make sure to mask off any non-metallic parts, or make it your first step before painting anything else. Hope this helps

If you're going for a really bright, polished silver plate, use pearlescent white for your top highlights. That's what I did for my dwarves in gromil (effectively mithril) armor.

Green stuff world metallic white and a holographic paint. I can’t quite imagine the effect your going for.

mrFickle wrote:
Green stuff world metallic white and a holographic paint. I can’t quite imagine the effect your going for.

This would be the sort of look I'm going for, but without resorting to using something like Molotow Chrome paint pens, or the NMM technique -

That’s one hell of a challenge, maybe the holographic paint then but you’d need to research the different finishes you can get. GSW also do metallic pigments that give a very intense metallic finish but I don’t know if there is a silver or platinum one

I'd settle for something like these from the film Excalbur (1981) -




Just something along those lines. Really shiny silver/metal polished armour.

I would try this:
https://www.humbrol.com/us-en/shop/paints/enamel-paints/27002-polished-aluminium-metalcote-14ml-enamel-paint.html

or wait a little while for Greenstuff World to release their silver pigments. They done the gold range already & here's a video of it in use:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-L9BHOahdw&t=2s

Interesting. Those Green Stuff World gold paints look not too dissimilar to the similar colours in the Vallejo Metal Color range.

But how do you highlight them? There doesn't seem to be any tones you would use for a highlight colour.

Thinking on those lines though, I have Vallejo Metal Color Duraluminium, Aluminium, and Silver (might even have White Aluminium).

I've used Duraluminium on aircraft models for a natural metal finish, and I know it's very shiny and metal looking. So I'm wondering if I can put down a base coat of Duraluminium over gloss black, shade with Citadel Nuln Oil, then highlight with a mix of Duraluminium/Aluminium...

The only other theory that I can come up with to achieve the bright silver metal look I want is to start with a white undercoat, then put down Citadel Ironbreaker, shade with Citadel Nuln Oil, then highlight with a mix of Citadel Ironbreaker and Citadel Runefang Steel, then add a final highlight of Citadel Stormhost Silver.

I don't like the idea of starting from Citadel Leadbelcher, as it always looks darker than what I'm trying to achieve on this knight model.

Judging by this article, applying your Vallejo Metal Color paints over a gloss black undercoat should get the shiny effect you're looking for.

Rob Lee wrote:
Interesting. Those Green Stuff World gold paints look not too dissimilar to the similar colours in the Vallejo Metal Color range.

But how do you highlight them? There doesn't seem to be any tones you would use for a highlight colour.

I messaged the youtuber & she told me that, when used with the GSW medium, the finish is waterproof so you can use washes to shade. I assume that once the silvers come out you could mix different shades together to generate highlights. But then if you're going for a high shine, natural finish, you shouldn't need highlights as light will do that for you??

 catbarf wrote:
Judging by this article, applying your Vallejo Metal Color paints over a gloss black undercoat should get the shiny effect you're looking for.

Great article. Looks like you need a gloss primer & possibly an airbrush to make them work really well.

 catbarf wrote:
Judging by this article, applying your Vallejo Metal Color paints over a gloss black undercoat should get the shiny effect you're looking for.

Thanks, yes, I know it will. I'm wondering if Metal Color Duraluminium can be highlighted with Metal Color Aluminium though or if the highlights would look "wrong". Or if any of the Metal Color range of "silvers" can be highlighted at all.

 bubber wrote:

I messaged the youtuber & she told me that, when used with the GSW medium, the finish is waterproof so you can use washes to shade. I assume that once the silvers come out you could mix different shades together to generate highlights. But then if you're going for a high shine, natural finish, you shouldn't need highlights as light will do that for you??

Yeah the Vallejo Metal Color range will also take washes.

But that "shouldn't need highlights" is what I'm failing to get my head around. Won't it look odd if parts of the model are "natural metal" whilst other parts (there's chainmail, a scabbard, some kind of tunic and other non-metal parts on the model also) are painted "normally" and thus highlighted?

If not, then I could just use pure Citadel Stormhost Silver and shade it.

Guess I just need to sit down and put paint to model and see what works (or doesn't).

Rob Lee wrote:
Thanks, yes, I know it will. I'm wondering if Metal Color Duraluminium can be highlighted with Metal Color Aluminium though or if the highlights would look "wrong". Or if any of the Metal Color range of "silvers" can be highlighted at all.

Gotcha. Yes, you can definitely highlight the Metal Color range- I typically use a progression of 1:1 Steel/Silver -> Silver -> Chrome, then a black wash. I think Chrome might be a bit lighter than Aluminum (t's shinier, at least), so that might be a better call. In general, if you're painting in very light metallics as a base, I think the armor is going to be defined more by its shading than by highlighting. An oil wash, or acrylic wash over gloss varnish, is probably your best ticket for defining it without dulling the metal.

sounds like you should look into chrome paint.

 FrozenDwarf wrote:
sounds like you should look into chrome paint.

Thanks. I thought about using chrome paint, specifically Molotow. But chrome isn't what I'm looking for. It's too shiny, and you definitely can't highlight it. Also difficult to strip if I need to, and I've yet to see a relatively "safe", i.e. water based, easy to strip, doesn't stink, and is suitable for miniature painting, acrylic chrome that isn't just another silver. Although I may end up buying a bottle of Vallejo Metal Color Chrome, just to see how it looks as a highlight to their Metal Color Silver or Duraluminium.

Anyhow, I did a test early this morning, doing a leg at a time.

I started on one leg with Vallejo Metal Color Duraluminium over a black base, and highlighted it with Vallejo Metal Color Silver. It looked OK, I liked how it looked, nice and shiny, even thought it was a bit on the dark looking side. Didn't help that I put Citadel Nuln Oil, not the gloss version, all over. I actually ended up resorting to black lining using black Vallejo Game Ink, because my Nuln Oil didn't give a strong enough shade, or any shade in places.

I have re-primed and will have a go with just straight Vallejo Metal Color Silver and see if that looks brighter. I'm also considering using Citadel Drakenhof Nightshade or Vallejo Game Ink blue for shading.

I also have Vallejo Metal Color Aluminium, but it looked like it has a blue tint when I put it on my palette next to the Duraluminium and Silver, so not particularly useful, unless I use that as a base colour, which I may also try.

I also tried using Citadel paints. Starting with Celestra Grey as a base, then I applied Ironbreaker (several layers), and Stormhost Silver over that on a bit of knee armour, then I gave up as it really wasn't going the way I had hoped. It was shiny and bright but it actually looked dull next to the Duraluminium on the other leg. I doubt doing it over white (or black) would have made a difference.

Testing, with what I have already, continues, but if anyone has any additional tips/ideas for this they'd be much appreciated.

Yea but at some point you simply have to accept that metallic paint aint going to be highlighted, the shine from the metal particles dust IS the highlight, and all you can do is pin wash or black line for contrast.
personly i have never ever highlighted gold or silver or any other metallic paint, just pin washed it.

Have you tought about Polishing Compound on top of silver?
The compound creats a very shiney and glossy effect.

OK, so I went back this afternoon and did a further test with the paints I've got.

Turns out that Vallejo Metal Color Silver is darker than Vallejo Metal Color Aluminium!

On the left we have Vallejo Metal Color Aluminium. On the right Vallejo Metal Color Silver. Both over a Vallejo Metal Color gloss black undercoat. Both were given an as precise as I could get wash with black Vallejo Game Ink (watered down 1:1) and then I over-brushed the small areas on each leg where it had stained where I didn't want it to with the original base colour. The VMC Silver on the right was then given some VMC Aluminium highlights. Can't highlight the Aluminium, as I don't have anything brighter, but I guess VMC Chrome could do the job, although even then I guess the highlights would be extremely subtle.



Although it's not quite what I was originally looking for, I'm leaning towards the VMC Silver with VMC Aluminium highlights as what I'll go with when I come to paint the model properly. Because it looks a little bit better than the leg painted VMC Aluminium. The VMC Silver I've got also seems to go down better, the VMC Aluminium I've got seems far too watery, despite a darn good shake.

I will buy a bottle of VMC Chrome though and see if that adds to the highlights on the leg painted VMC Silver with VMC Aluminium highlights, maybe use it as a spot highlight.


Thanks guys, especially Bubber who pointed me in the direction of Green Stuff World's metallics, which reminded me I have Vallejo Metal Colors!

 FrozenDwarf wrote:
Yea but at some point you simply have to accept that metallic paint aint going to be highlighted, the shine from the metal particles dust IS the highlight, and all you can do is pin wash or black line for contrast.
personly i have never ever highlighted gold or silver or any other metallic paint, just pin washed it.

Have you tought about Polishing Compound on top of silver?
The compound creats a very shiney and glossy effect.

Is it fair to say you can’t highlight metallic paint? There are darker paints and lighter ones and stormhost silver can be used to highlight most. I agree highlighting stomrhost silver is hard but I have a metallic white paint that I am going to try this with. I do really just mean a bit of edge highlighting.

As you say the light itself will do most of the work for you which I think is why I use metallics so much cos it’s a bit of a cheat haha

mrFickle wrote:

 FrozenDwarf wrote:
Yea but at some point you simply have to accept that metallic paint aint going to be highlighted, the shine from the metal particles dust IS the highlight, and all you can do is pin wash or black line for contrast.
personly i have never ever highlighted gold or silver or any other metallic paint, just pin washed it.

Have you tought about Polishing Compound on top of silver?
The compound creats a very shiney and glossy effect.

Is it fair to say you can’t highlight metallic paint? There are darker paints and lighter ones and stormhost silver can be used to highlight most. I agree highlighting stomrhost silver is hard but I have a metallic white paint that I am going to try this with. I do really just mean a bit of edge highlighting.

As you say the light itself will do most of the work for you which I think is why I use metallics so much cos it’s a bit of a cheat haha

Depends on the eye that sees it. Some like the cartoony GW style highlighted metallics, others dont.
However, drybrushing is allso a layering painting style.
I once as a test drybrushed a grey knight from black, dark metal, medium metal, silver, and it had a very different look to it then what pinwashed flat silver metallic has.

I think that the small scale and the big fokus on contrast in order to showcase details realy dont favor using general metallic paints, unless the models are big and the need for contrast becomes smaller.

Have you considered doing either Non-Metallic metals or True-metallic metals? Generally the concept is to deconstruct what you see as metal and put that into colors rather than metal paints if you're trying non-metallic metal and if you want to try with metallic paints, true metallic painting is achieved with inks, metallics and a general understanding of lights and shadows.