Painting

Ivory ox skull with dark horns

Warm ivory bone and dark brown horns define the ox skull. Deep socket shadows and selective forehead highlights preserve the fragile openings and curved horn roots.

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Colours on the model

Painting stages

All stages

Stage 1 of 5

Prepare the model

Where to paintWhole model

For this stage

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Detailed instructions · 1

Prepare the fragile skull
Inspect the thin nasal bridge and horn tips before cleaning support marks. Brush dust out of the sockets; wash off grease if needed, rinse and dry fully. Apply Vallejo Grey Surface Primer sparingly, reaching the socket walls without filling their openings.
Expected result
Primer covers the skull evenly and both nasal openings remain clear.
Points to watch
Never use a nasal strut as a handle.

Read the complete guide · 5

1. Prepare the model

Prepare the fragile skull
Where to paint: Whole model
Greyvallejo · 70.601
Inspect the thin nasal bridge and horn tips before cleaning support marks. Brush dust out of the sockets; wash off grease if needed, rinse and dry fully. Apply Vallejo Grey Surface Primer sparingly, reaching the socket walls without filling their openings.
Expected result
Primer covers the skull evenly and both nasal openings remain clear.
Points to watch
Never use a nasal strut as a handle.

2. Apply the base colours

Establish warm bone
Where to paint: Ivory skull
Wraithbonecitadel · 21-53
Cover the skull with Wraithbone, including the inside socket walls and the raised rings next to the horns. Work around the nasal openings with the brush point and keep the long horns clear.
Expected result
Warm ivory covers every visible bone plane while all holes stay open.
Points to watch
Do not join the two nasal struts with thick paint.
Lay in the dark horns
Where to paint: Dark horns
Dryad Barkcitadel · 21-23
Apply Dryad Bark around each horn from just beyond the ivory root ring to the pointed tip. Rotate the skull rather than twisting the brush around a hidden curve.
Expected result
Both horns are dark brown all the way around, with the ivory rings distinct.
Points to watch
Do not leave a primer stripe on the lower horn curve.

3. Build the shadows

Give the openings depth
Where to paint: Ivory skull
Agrax Earthshadecitadel · 24-15
Guide Agrax Earthshade into the socket interiors, beneath the nasal bridge and along the ring grooves. Pull any overflow away from the forehead so the deepest brown remains inside the cavities.
Expected result
The openings look deep while the broad forehead stays ivory.
Points to watch
Do not stain the whole skull brown.

4. Build the highlights

Light the forehead and nose
Where to paint: Ivory skull
Pallid Wych Fleshcitadel · 22-58
Build thin Pallid Wych Flesh on the centre of the forehead, feathering it towards the beige sides. Add a narrow light along the upper nasal edges and the raised root rings, keeping the socket interiors shaded.
Expected result
The pale forehead leads the eye down the nose, with readable ivory-to-beige transitions.
Points to watch
Do not paint over the dark inner socket walls.
Reveal the horn curves
Where to paint: Dark horns
Gorthor Browncitadel · 22-47
Lay thin Gorthor Brown along the upper curves nearest the root rings. Extend the strokes along the horn and taper them before the upturned ends, leaving the tips and underside dark.
Expected result
Warm brown reveals the horn curvature against the ivory skull.
Points to watch
Do not draw evenly spaced stripes or invented cracks.
Define the dark tips
Where to paint: Dark horns
Eshin Greycitadel · 22-51
Trace a short Eshin Grey accent along the outward edge of each raised tip. Keep it within the dark end and narrower than the earlier brown light so the horns remain dark.
Expected result
The pointed ends are visible without becoming pale horns.
Points to watch
Do not outline both sides of every horn.

5. Finish the model

Clean the bone boundaries
Where to paint: Ivory skull
Wraithbonecitadel · 21-53
Use Wraithbone to remove stray dark marks from the bone around the horn roots and socket rims. Inspect the reverse and nasal struts, correcting any missed bone with the same thin coat.
Expected result
Bone and horn remain cleanly separated and the reverse is fully painted.
Points to watch
Do not cover the intended brown recess inside a socket.

All paints and materials (7)

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Wraithbonecitadel · 21-53

Agrax Earthshadecitadel · 24-15

Pallid Wych Fleshcitadel · 22-58

Dryad Barkcitadel · 21-23

Gorthor Browncitadel · 22-47

Eshin Greycitadel · 22-51

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Painting stages

All stages

Stage 1 of 5

Prepare the model

Where to paintWhole model

For this stage

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Detailed instructions · 1

Prepare the fragile skull
Inspect the thin nasal bridge and horn tips before cleaning support marks. Brush dust out of the sockets; wash off grease if needed, rinse and dry fully. Apply Vallejo Grey Surface Primer sparingly, reaching the socket walls without filling their openings.
Expected result
Primer covers the skull evenly and both nasal openings remain clear.
Points to watch
Never use a nasal strut as a handle.

Ivory ox skull with dark horns

Colours on the model

Painting stages

Prepare the model

For this stage

Prepare the fragile skull

Expected result

Points to watch

1. Prepare the model

Prepare the fragile skull

Expected result

Points to watch

2. Apply the base colours

Establish warm bone

Expected result

Points to watch

Lay in the dark horns

Expected result

Points to watch

3. Build the shadows

Give the openings depth

Expected result

Points to watch

4. Build the highlights

Light the forehead and nose

Expected result

Points to watch

Reveal the horn curves

Expected result

Points to watch

Define the dark tips

Expected result

Points to watch

5. Finish the model

Clean the bone boundaries

Expected result

Points to watch

Comments …

Ivory ox skull with dark horns

Colours on the model

Painting stages

Prepare the model

For this stage

Prepare the fragile skull

Expected result

Points to watch

1. Prepare the model

Prepare the fragile skull

Expected result

Points to watch

2. Apply the base colours

Establish warm bone

Expected result

Points to watch

Lay in the dark horns

Expected result

Points to watch

3. Build the shadows

Give the openings depth

Expected result

Points to watch

4. Build the highlights

Light the forehead and nose

Expected result

Points to watch

Reveal the horn curves

Expected result

Points to watch

Define the dark tips

Expected result

Points to watch

5. Finish the model

Clean the bone boundaries

Expected result

Points to watch

Comments …