Citadel (Games Workshop) · Base

Celestra Grey Paint Guide

Citadel (Games Workshop) Base #8BA3A3
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Celestra Grey paint guide
Celestra Grey Paint Guide

The closest Celestra Grey equivalent is METALLIC BLUE (AK Interactive) (ΔE 2.4).

Celestra Grey is a base from Citadel (Games Workshop), commonly used for armour plates, cloth, and trim work.

Quick Equivalents

  • Closest equivalent: METALLIC BLUE (AK Interactive) – ΔE 2.4
  • Vallejo equivalent: Light Sea Grey (70.973) (Vallejo Model Color) – ΔE 4.5
  • Army Painter equivalent: Ice Blue (Army Painter) – ΔE 11.3

How to Use Celestra Grey

This paint is typically used for:

  • Base coat
  • Layering

Apply it over a suitable primer and build layers gradually. Coverage sits around good, so two thin coats usually give a more stable finish than one heavy pass, especially over a dark primer.

Paint Behavior and Tips

Consider the following when working with this paint:

  • Coverage: good — affects how many coats are needed over primer
  • Dilution: light thinning — keeping the right ratio maintains flow and prevents brushmarks
  • Interaction with washes and highlights: always run a highlight pass to verify the tone does not shift after drying

A good equivalent should remain stable after shading and highlighting. Test this alternative on the same primer and in the same recipe before switching a whole unit.

Miniature Painting Tips

For best results with Celestra Grey on Warhammer and other miniature projects:

  • Use the same primer across the project to keep tonal consistency
  • Test on a spare part before applying to a full unit
  • Compare after shading and highlights, not just the base coat

Even small differences can become visible on a finished miniature. This match may behave differently on textured surfaces like cloth, fur, and metal trim once the full recipe is applied.

Conclusion

Choosing the right Celestra Grey equivalent ensures consistent results across your painting workflow. Use this page as a paint conversion chart to compare the Vallejo equivalent, the Army Painter equivalent, and other close options before committing to a full army.

A paint guide is most valuable when it connects colour, handling, and recipe context in one place.

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💡 Tip

Use Celestra Grey as your main base colour and build it up with thin, controlled coats. It has good coverage. It works best over a white or light grey primer. Thin it lightly. Good companion colours include Nuln Oil, Ulthuan Grey, Pallid Wych Flesh and Mechanicus Standard Grey.

Do not force the basecoat into an NMM-style finish. It behaves much better in a standard layered workflow.

✅ Techniques
Base coat Layering Zenithal priming
Direct answer
How to use Celestra Grey and where to be careful

Use Celestra Grey as your main base colour and build it up with thin, controlled coats. It has good coverage. It works best over a white or light grey primer. Thin it lightly. Good companion colours include Nuln Oil, Ulthuan Grey, Pallid Wych Flesh and Mechanicus Standard Grey.

  • Citadel (Games Workshop) · Base
  • Base · #8BA3A3
  • Best for Base coat, Layering, Zenithal priming
  • Pairs well with Nuln Oil, Ulthuan Grey, Pallid Wych Flesh

Method

This summary is built from the local usage notes, structured paint detail data, and the same Delta-E matching system used across ChromaStack.

Limits

Do not force the basecoat into an NMM-style finish. It behaves much better in a standard layered workflow.