Citadel (Games Workshop) · Base

Retributor Armour Paint Guide

Citadel (Games Workshop) Base #EDC169
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Equivalents by Brand
Brand Colour Delta E Match
Citadel (Games Workshop) Skullcrusher Brass 2.66 Good
Citadel (Games Workshop) Auric Armour Gold 4.62 Good
Citadel (Games Workshop) Liberator Gold 5.61 Acceptable
Citadel (Games Workshop) Golden Griffon 5.61 Acceptable
Citadel (Games Workshop) Relictor Gold 6.51 Acceptable
Vallejo Game Color Polished Gold (72.055) 7.27 Acceptable
AK Interactive True Metal Gold 10.71 Distant
Scale75 Elven Gold 12.98 Distant
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Retributor Armour paint guide

Retributor Armour Paint: Colour, Type & Equivalents

The gold standard for Warhammer gold — Retributor Armour delivers a warm, rich metallic base.
The closest Retributor Armour equivalent is Polished Gold (72.055) (Vallejo Game Color) (ΔE 7.3).

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

Quick Equivalents

  • Closest equivalent: Polished Gold (72.055) (Vallejo Game Color) – ΔE 7.3
  • Vallejo equivalent: Polished Gold (72.055) (Vallejo Game Color) – ΔE 7.3
  • Army Painter equivalent: no close Army Painter equivalent

How to Use Retributor Armour

This paint is typically used for:

  • Base coat
  • Light drybrushing

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: minimal — metallic pigments are fragile — 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 Retributor Armour 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 Retributor Armour 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.

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💡 Tip

Use Retributor Armour as your main base colour and build it up with thin, controlled coats. It has good coverage. It works best over a black or brown primer, with Retributor Armour spray working especially well. Thin it very lightly to protect the metallic pigments. Good companion colours include Agrax Earthshade, Liberator Gold, Nuln Oil and Balthasar Gold.

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

✅ Techniques
Base coat Light drybrushing
Direct answer
How should you use Retributor Armour on miniatures?

Use Retributor Armour as your main base colour and build it up with thin, controlled coats. It has good coverage. It works best over a black or brown primer, with Retributor Armour spray working especially well. Thin it very lightly to protect the metallic pigments. Good companion colours include Agrax Earthshade, Liberator Gold, Nuln Oil and Balthasar Gold.

  • Citadel (Games Workshop) · Base
  • Base · #EDC169
  • Best for Base coat, Light drybrushing
  • Pairs well with Agrax Earthshade, Liberator Gold, Nuln Oil

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.