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I am getting back into the hobby. I am looking to purchase some paints and would like a paint set. Any recommendations on paints? I have heard Citadel paints are not great compared to others such as Vallejo or Army Painter. I am leaning towards Vallejo but wanted to get more information. I also remember having good luck with Citadel primers and plan to use their primer.

Citadel Contrast paints are great compared to Vallejo.

I really love their coverage.

My friend has been painting for years and really dislikes them. What draws you to Citadel? I used to use them years ago when I played but there were not many choices that I was aware of back then.

Oh, if you've been away from the hobby for long, you might want to know that we now have more paint choices than ever before!

I personally stopped buying anything Citadel based a long time ago. These days, my paint collection consists of paints from Vallejo, Army Painter Fanatic (They released an awesome John Blanche paint set last year!), AK Interactive, Ammo by Mig Jimenez, Mr Hobby Aqueous... I also hear Scale 75 and Instar paint brands have their fans.

First off, we need to establish your priorities before specific recommendations can be given. Do you want the cheapest options? Do You use an Airbrush? Is matching color tones to "official" GW paint guides important to you? Do you like to custom mix your paints, or do you want tones straight from the pot? Are you interested in contrast paints and or "slapchop" painting technique? Do you prefere acrylic inks and washes instead? Or do you use Enamels & oils for your washes/panel lines and weathering?

As for paint sets, if you like custom mixing your paint tones, I can recommend AK Interactive's "Basic Paint Set". It contains just the primary and secondary colours and a guide teaching you basic color theory and color mixing. I also like this paint set because its color tones are quite "pure", so they resemble a lot of the "oldhammer" paint set colors of Vintage Citadel Paint sets.

Vallejo's metallic paints seem to be the most highly regarded metallic paint acrylics on the market at the moment. Not sure what is the current top dog brand when it comes to contrast paints, most brands have those by now..

As for primers, I personally use Mr Surfacer and AK Interactive products. I am not aware of Citadel primers offering anything substantial over primers from other brands, unless adherence to GW's official paintt guides is a requirement..

 Cilent wrote:
My friend has been painting for years and really dislikes them. What draws you to Citadel? I used to use them years ago when I played but there were not many choices that I was aware of back then.

I usually stick to dry brushing or Citadel Contrast. I really dislike the Vallejo speed paints. They just don't look right for what I'm trying to accomplish.

But I just like my models to look cool on the tabletop. I'm not out to win awards or show them off.

If you like Citadel then why not stick with them?

Honestly while it is normal to have favoritism for one brand over another, I think all the major brand I've tried (Citadel, Vallejo, Army Painter, Two Thin Coats, AK) are all good enough that I could happily stick to any of them if I could only pick one.