How to Paint Slaves to Darkness — Colour Schemes Guide

Part of our Slaves to Darkness hub: every Slaves to Darkness guide, lore page and painting tutorial in one place.

Learning how to paint Slaves to Darkness starts with one classic look: dark, battered metal armour, brass or gold trim and blood-red cloth. This guide gives you a full Citadel paint list and a step-by-step method for that scheme on Chaos Warriors, Chaos Knights and the rest of the range, then covers bone-white and god-marked alternatives, faster Contrast-based options and how to approach different unit types.

Essential Paints and Tools for Slaves to Darkness

Gather these before you start. The armour in this scheme is dark metal rather than flat black: you drybrush metallic paint over a black undercoat, so the black stays in the recesses and the metal catches the raised plates.

Citadel Paint List

Primer: Chaos Black (spray), with Abaddon Black to touch up any missed spots
Armour: Leadbelcher (drybrushed over the black), Nuln Oil shade, Ironbreaker for edge highlights
Trim and ornaments: Retributor Armour, Reikland Fleshshade, Liberator Gold
Cloaks and cloth: Khorne Red, Nuln Oil or Agrax Earthshade, Evil Sunz Scarlet
Exposed skin (bare-headed champions, Darkoath and other mortal followers): Bugman’s Glow, Reikland Fleshshade, Kislev Flesh
Leather, wood and furs: Mournfang Brown, Agrax Earthshade, Baneblade Brown
Weapons: Leadbelcher, Nuln Oil, Stormhost Silver
Basing: Astrogranite Debris, with a few scattered skulls

Recommended Tools

Brushes: A Size 1 Layer brush for detail work, a Medium Base brush for larger areas, and a Medium Dry brush for drybrushing
Palette: A wet palette keeps your paints workable for longer sessions
Water pot: Two pots, one for rinsing and one with clean water for thinning paints
Hobby knife and clippers: For cleaning mould lines before you prime
Plastic glue or super glue: Depending on whether you are working with push-fit or multi-part kits

Step-by-Step Painting Guide: Classic Slaves to Darkness Scheme

This walkthrough uses Chaos Warriors and Chaos Knights as the reference models, but the same order works for any armoured unit in the range. Each step builds on the last, so follow it in sequence.

Step 1: Preparation and Priming

Assemble your miniatures and clean the mould lines with a hobby knife, paying particular attention to helmets, shields and flat armour plates where lines show most. For Chaos Knights, consider keeping the rider separate from the steed until both are painted; shields can stay off too, which gives you much better access to the armour behind them.

Prime with Chaos Black (spray). Apply it in short bursts from roughly 20 to 30 cm away, rotating the model between passes. Two thin coats are better than one heavy coat. Let it dry fully before handling, and touch up any grey plastic that shows through with Abaddon Black. The black undercoat matters here: it becomes the shadow colour for the armour in the next step.

Step 2: Base Colours

Start with the armour. Load a Medium Dry brush with Leadbelcher, wipe most of it off on a paper towel, then drybrush the armour plates with firm strokes. The raised surfaces turn metallic while the black primer stays in the recesses, giving you a dark, battered steel in one step. Work cleanly around cloaks and faces, as stray drybrushing there is hard to cover.

Next, switch to a regular brush and thinned paint, roughly 2:1 paint to water, for the remaining base colours. Apply Retributor Armour to trim, ornaments and the eight-pointed stars and icons. Paint cloaks and banners Khorne Red. Base any leather, wood or fur in Mournfang Brown, and any bare skin in Bugman’s Glow. Two thin coats beat one thick one for every colour.

Step 3: Washes and Shading

Shade each area with a wash that suits it. Give the armour and weapons Nuln Oil, which dirties the Leadbelcher down and blends it into the black. Use Reikland Fleshshade on the gold trim and on skin, and Agrax Earthshade (or Nuln Oil, for a darker look) on the red cloth and the browns.

For tabletop standard, a generous wash over each area is quick and effective: let the wash flow into the recesses and use the tip of a clean, damp brush to wick away pooling on flat surfaces. Let each wash dry completely before you go on. Painting over a wash that is still wet is one of the most common ways to spoil a model.

Step 4: Layering and Highlighting

Once the washes are dry, bring back the brightness on the edges. Run Ironbreaker along the upper edges of armour plates, helmet crests, spikes and rivets. Hold the side of the brush against the edge and drag it lightly so the paint only catches the ridge. Edge highlight the trim with Liberator Gold, and pick out the folds and hems of the cloth with Evil Sunz Scarlet.

Most Chaos Warriors and Knights are fully helmed, so skin is limited to the odd bare-headed champion, mortal followers and some heroes. On those areas, highlight raised muscle, knuckles, cheekbones and the bridge of the nose with Kislev Flesh, building it up gradually. Finish leather and wood with Baneblade Brown on the edges.

Step 5: Special Details and Effects

For weapons, a simple approach works well: base with Leadbelcher, wash with Nuln Oil, and highlight the cutting edges with Stormhost Silver.

Many Slaves to Darkness kits have engraved runes, icons of the Dark Gods and eight-pointed stars. The simplest way to make them stand out is to keep them gold (Retributor Armour, Reikland Fleshshade, Liberator Gold edge) so they contrast with the dark armour. If you want runes that look like they glow, paint the engraving with a mid-tone such as Evil Sunz Scarlet, add a brighter colour such as Troll Slayer Orange in the deepest part of the recess, then glaze a very thin layer of the mid-tone onto the armour immediately around it. Keep the glow to a few focal points, such as a champion’s helmet or a banner icon, rather than every rune on the army.

Step 6: Basing

Apply Astrogranite Debris to the base and press in a few small skulls while it is wet. Once dry, give the skulls a quick bone colour and drybrush the ground lightly with a pale grey. Paint the rim with Abaddon Black or Steel Legion Drab for a clean finish.

Tufts, small rocks or a scrap of spiky foliage add interest without distracting from the model. The base should complement the dark armour rather than compete with it.

Alternative Colour Schemes for Slaves to Darkness

The dark metal scheme suits an army devoted to Chaos Undivided, but the range works in many other palettes. Here are two well-trodden alternatives with actual paint recipes.

Bone-white armour

Pale armour is a striking contrast to the classic look and is often associated with the Varanguard, Archaon’s Knights of the Empty Throne. Prime with Wraithbone or Grey Seer. Apply Skeleton Horde Contrast, or a thinned brown shade, over the armour so it settles into the recesses. Tidy the raised areas with Ushabti Bone and edge highlight with Screaming Skull. Keep metal trim dark, such as Leadbelcher washed with Nuln Oil, so the pale armour has strong contrast. A deep red or black cloak finishes it off.

Marked for a Chaos god

Pick one dominant colour for the god, use it on the armour or cloaks, and keep everything else neutral. Some starting points:

Khorne: Khorne Red armour shaded with Nuln Oil and edged with Evil Sunz Scarlet, brass trim (Balthasar Gold or Retributor Armour), black detailing.
Nurgle: A muted green such as Death Guard Green, shaded with Agrax Earthshade, with bone and rusty metal trim.
Tzeentch: Macragge Blue armour shaded with Nuln Oil and edged with Calgar Blue, with gold trim.
Slaanesh: A purple such as Xereus Purple, or pink, with silver metal and black leather.

Black or dark metal on the remaining areas ties a mixed army together, so units marked for different gods still look like one force.

Stuck on a paint scheme? Roll a colour scheme with Citadel paint suggestions.

Generate a scheme →

Speed Painting Slaves to Darkness for Tabletop Standard

Need your army on the table quickly? Drybrushing and Contrast paints are your best friends, and the classic scheme is already built around a drybrush.

For the dark metal scheme, prime black, drybrush the whole model with Leadbelcher, then wash everything with Nuln Oil. That alone gives you finished-looking armour. Pick out the cloaks with Blood Angels Red Contrast (or Khorne Red and a wash), the trim with Retributor Armour, and the leather with a brown Contrast. For lighter schemes, prime Wraithbone or Grey Seer and use Contrast paints for most areas. Batch paint 5 to 10 models at a time, applying the same colour to every model before moving to the next.

Finish with basic basing and, if you have time, a quick Ironbreaker edge on the most prominent armour plates. You can always come back and add extra detail later. A fully painted army at tabletop standard looks better on the battlefield than a handful of perfect models next to grey plastic.

Painting Slaves to Darkness for Different Unit Types

Different parts of the range need slightly different approaches.

Infantry: Chaos Warriors and other foot troops benefit most from batch painting. Focus on clean base colours and strong washes, and save detailed edge highlighting for champions and characters. A consistent standard across a whole unit looks better than a few highly detailed models next to unfinished ones.

Cavalry: Chaos Knights and Varanguard have a lot of armour on both rider and mount. Paint them as sub-assemblies, and treat the steed’s barding with the same drybrush-and-wash method as the rider’s armour so the two match. Exposed horseflesh can be a dark brown or black, highlighted sparingly.

Heroes and Characters: Spend extra time on your heroes. Add extra highlight layers, try glazing or wet blending on cloaks, pay special attention to faces and weapons, and use any glowing runes here. A well-painted general lifts the whole army.

Monsters and Centrepieces: On large models, build up colour over big surfaces using base-wash-drybrush techniques, then refine with targeted layering on the face, chest and other focal details. An airbrush is useful for smooth base coats and gradients on big models, but not essential.

Frequently Asked Questions

What primer should I use for Slaves to Darkness?

Chaos Black (spray) is the right primer for the dark metal scheme in this guide, because the black becomes the shadow under the Leadbelcher drybrush. For bone-white or other light schemes, use Wraithbone or Grey Seer instead. Mechanicus Standard Grey is a neutral middle ground that works with almost any scheme.

How long does it take to paint a Slaves to Darkness army?

It varies a lot with army size and experience. As a rough guide, a 2,000-point army to tabletop standard is a project of dozens of hours, and Contrast paints and batch painting can cut that substantially. A single infantry model might take an hour or two, while a centrepiece hero or monster can take many hours depending on the level of detail you want.

Can I use Contrast paints for the entire Slaves to Darkness army?

Yes, especially for lighter schemes over Wraithbone or Grey Seer, and for cloaks, leather and skin in the dark metal scheme. Contrast paints work best on textured, recessed areas where they can pool and shade naturally. For armour, combine them with a metallic drybrush or traditional metallic paints, which gives you speed without losing the heavy-metal look.

What are the best brushes for painting Slaves to Darkness?

For most Slaves to Darkness models, a Size 1 detail brush handles the majority of work including edge highlighting and most detail painting. A Size 0 or 00 is useful for eyes, gems, and the finest details. A Medium Base brush speeds up large flat areas significantly, and a Medium Dry brush is essential for the armour drybrush. Quality sable brushes such as the Winsor and Newton Series 7 hold a sharp point far longer than synthetic alternatives, which helps with fine detail work.

How do I strip paint from Slaves to Darkness models if I make a mistake?

Soak plastic models in isopropyl alcohol (90 percent or higher) or a dedicated miniature paint stripper for 12 to 24 hours, then scrub gently with an old toothbrush under running water. This removes acrylic paint without damaging the plastic. For resin models, use a gentler solution like Simple Green to avoid damaging the softer material. Always test on a spare part or sprue first if you are unsure.

Should I varnish my painted Slaves to Darkness models?

Varnishing is highly recommended for any models you plan to use in games. Apply Munitorum Varnish spray or a brush-on matte varnish to protect your paintwork from handling and transport. Matte varnish dulls metallics slightly, so some painters apply a gloss varnish first for durability, then matte over the cloth and skin only, leaving the armour with a little more shine.

Ready to explore more about this faction? Check out our Slaves to Darkness army guide for tactics, army lists and lore to go with your newly painted army.

What are the most popular Slaves to Darkness colour schemes?

The classic is black armour with dark metal and gold or brass trim, which suits an Undivided army. Many players instead paint by Chaos god: red and brass for Khorne, blue and gold for Tzeentch, sickly green and bone for Nurgle, and purple or pink with silver for Slaanesh. Bone-white armour, inspired by the Knights of the Empty Throne, is a striking alternative.

How do I paint bone white armour on Slaves to Darkness?

Prime with Wraithbone or Grey Seer, then apply Skeleton Horde Contrast or a thinned brown shade over the armour so it settles into the recesses. Tidy the raised areas with Ushabti Bone and edge highlight with Screaming Skull or a near-white. Keep metal trim dark, such as Leadbelcher washed with Nuln Oil, so the pale armour has strong contrast.

How do I paint Slaves to Darkness for a specific Chaos god?

Pick one dominant colour for the god and keep everything else neutral. For Khorne use Khorne Red armour with brass trim, for Nurgle a muted green such as Death Guard Green with bone and rust, for Tzeentch Macragge Blue with gold, and for Slaanesh a purple like Xereus Purple with silver. Black or dark metal elsewhere ties the army together.