First up, the one of the biggest hitters on the block; Games Workshop's range of Citadel Paints
Price; £2 for 12ml pots
The foundation range is highly pigmented to offer one coat coverage. Although this statement is slightly boastful, and untrue depending on the underlaying colour, these paints offer excellent coverage with thin coats. A must for low opacity colours like red and yellow if you intend to use a dark undercoat.
The line of washes act as ready made 'juices' (used to subtly change the hue of colour) that leave a slightly satin finish when used. These are of an excellent quality and open up a whole new way of painting miniatures to every level of modeler. It is possible to paint very effective miniatures with a simple, neat basecoat and two to three layers of wash. Painting armies has never been so easy with this line of paints. Try picking up devlan mud to experiment and you'll relaise why this colour is the most popular in most people's collection of paints.
One advantage that I think hasn't been mentioned is the heritage this line of paint has through the 'eavy metal studio. I don't think any other line of paints made for miniature wargaming (niche market as it is) has the depth or breadth of material available to explain what can be done with the product. I've grown up alongside 'eavy metal painting articles, and I owe a lot of my current painting style to messieurs McVey and Blanche.
The biggest drawback of Games Workshop's range is the pot design. I absolutely hate it. Unless you want your paints to dry out within six to eight months of use, you must use this product with a palette; something which the pot design was designed to do away with. The amount of paint exposed to the air when you open the lid means these paints have a low life expectancy (especially in with blood red).
Conclusion
If you are interested in exploring the world of miniature painting (and if you have read this article on a little known niche blog, then i'll assume you are) and you have found out there are other paint brands out there, don't throw away your Citadel paints away quite yet. Games Workshop's paints offer good quality, for a good price, but there are more economical ways to spend your money.
These paints lend themselves well to a clear, direct and bright paint schemes, typical of the well established 'eavy metal style.
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