Paint Recipe: How to Paint Nighthaunt Updated

Get ready for a Paint Recipe by Space Dinosaur Minis, where I go in depth with a paint scheme, covering the paints, materials and techniques that I use to achieve my style. Today I revamp an old paint recipe of mine for Nighthaunt, using the Myrmourn Banshees.

In what is one of my most popular posts, I showed my technique for painting Nighthaunt. While it is perfectly serviceable, I have since gained a bit of skill. It was also a bit monotone, and this updated recipe rectifies that in my opinion. So, without further ado, onto the recipe. 

First, a little bit of rationale. The original design, as I mentioned above, felt a bit flat, and lacked some depth in terms of hues. I did like the way Gauss Blaster Green (GW) worked for the robes in the original, so I decided to keep that aspect for the bottom of the robes. Same as before, a nice smooth layer of the green over the Vallejo Grey primer. Then I follow it up with some light drybrushing of Matt White (AP), focusing mostly towards the bottom. 

The upper robe I wanted to be darker, so I started with a heavy layer of Hexwraith Flame (GW). This is a proto contrast paint that came out before the whole line got released, and it has a lot of the same properties. Before it has a chance to dry, keep it from pooling in the recesses as it starts to look pretty bad if you do. Once that layer is completely dry, I coat it with Nighthaunt Gloom (GW), the other proto contrast paint that came out at the same time. Try as much as you can to make this a smooth layer, and don't make it too thick as you still want a bit of the green to show through. Once that layer is dry, I glazed a bit of Nuln Oil (GW) near the head to give a darker transition. Once dry, I drybrushed very lightly some Gauss Blaster Green (GW) to get the skull face to appear, and then heavier towards the base of the robes. 

To complement the green and blues, I went with a warmer, orange tone. This is in contrast to the blue vest that I used on the original banshee. Instead, I used Brass Scorpion (GW) washed with Agrax Earthshade (GW). Try to make this wash as smooth as possible, otherwise it just ends up looking blotchy. 

The arms and jaws are just Matt White (AP). I find that the flat color adds a bit of an unsettling nature to the models, so that's what I go with. For the weapons I used the same Brass Scorpion (GW)/Agrax Earthshade (GW) combo, but the blades use Gunmetal (AP) washed with Nuln Oil (GW). 

From there, paint the bases to match the rest of the army. I use darker tones to contrast from the light, spectral look of the ghost. The vines and roses use the same technique I used when painting Lady Olynder.

And there you have it, my new-ish Nighthaunt paint recipe!

-The Space Dinosaur