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July 11, 2018

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How to Paint a Realistic Rust Effect for Miniatures (Tutorial)
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How to Paint a Realistic Rust

E1ect for Miniatures
(Tutorial) I love painting miniatures
and playing Warhammer
! By Thor " Miniature Hobby, Tutorials & Guides # 10 Underworlds and Blood
Comments Bowl. Also, I love teaching,
so you'll find that I write a
Tags: Blending Painting Techniques, Miniature Painting, Steelheart's
lot of tutorials here.
Champions, Stormcast Eternals, Warhammer Underworlds

Shadespire is a great game. It’s also really easy to paint up a Featured Articles
warband for it since some of them are only 3 models, like
these Stormcast Eternals – Steelheart’s Champions. The fun
part with that is it’s a great time to experiment with painting
techniques, to try something different, like this rust effect
technique I decided to use on the miniatures.

I’m not a bit fan of the good guys in games. I prefer those
who walk a grey to black line, not a white one, so when it
came time to paint Steelheart’s Champions, I decided I
wanted to change it up. Instead of the typical gold armor
with Stormcasts, I opted for something gritty, something that
didn’t scream we are humankind’s saviors.

I saw a great tutorial on painting corroded armor and I knew I

had to use that for my Shadespire warband. I didn’t have all
the paints that were used in that tutorial, so I knew I had to
do some minor adaptation, plus put my spin on it.

So, I present to you my tutorial on painting a realistic rust

effect metal/armor.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links,

meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a
commission if you click through and make a purchase. The
commission earned helps maintain this site.

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1. Leadbelcher 5. Abaddon Black day ago
2. Agrax Earthshade 6. Terracotta
3. Typhus Corrosion 7. Ryza Rust Adeptus Titanics - Titans
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Here’s the 6 simple steps to painting rust. Blogroll

1 Apply the Basecoat

The armor is base coated with Leadbelcher (GW).

The shield and shoulders have some really simple

blending on it starting with a base coat of Regal Blue
(GW), blending up to Enchanted Blue (GW), with a little
Electric Blue (V) at the highest point.

The shading was done by mixing in some Abaddon

Black (GW) with Regal Blue.

You could totally skip painting any part of the armor in a

color and just leave it all metal. I did it to see how well I
could weather it to match the rest of the armor. Plus, I
thought it would give a little visual interest in places to
break up the rusted look.

2 Apply the Wash

The easy step, just wash everything with Agrax
 Earthshade (GW).

It’s a pretty heavy wash as well. I’m aiming for dirty and
gritty, so go as heavy as you like here.

The brown wash over the blue does well to dull it down
and give it a dirty feel.

Really, just wash everything with this, well unless it’s not
meant to be rusted.

I also like to use the Citadel Shade Brush for this. It has
a large belly, so it can hold a lot of wash, which saves
you from having to continually load up the brush.

3 Add Some Corrosion

Games Workshop has a great technical paint
called Typhus Corrosion. It has little granules in it, so
when it dries it leaves a gritty texture. It makes it perfect
for weathering.

I take Typhus Corrosion and apply it in the recessed

areas of the armor, anywhere that I feel would retain
moisture and in turn corrode the armor.

I did this in a few layers to build it up in spots and make

it extra gritty.
 At the same time, I also took Rhinox Hide (GW) and
mixed it with Abaddon Black (GW). I then stippled that
onto the shield to create chips in the paint. You could
also use a sponge if you don’t want to stipple.

I apologize about the lack of pictures on this step. I took

less than I intended, but you should be able to see the
Typhus Corrosion around the shield lip and parts of her
armor in these shots.

4 Start the Shading

Now, it’s time to start getting the rust effect look on
there.

For this step I use Terracotta (V), which is a ruddy,

reddish-brown, and thin it out with Lahmian Medium
(GW) – about 50/50.

The medium creates a glaze with the Terracotta so I can

apply it in even thin coats easily. It also gives you a lot of
control over how strong it goes on.

The recesses are where I focus the most as that’s

where armor is more likely to rust.
 I do this in a few layers to blend it. I start further out and
pull the paint into the recesses. The next layer starts
closer and pulls back, then again, etc. This builds it up
to a nice reddish-brown closest to the recesses.

On the shield and shoulders I apply this in the chips I

created earlier. I apply the paint in the middle of the
chips to leave a shadow around it.

5 Time to Get Rusty

Another great technical paint Games Workshop makes
is Ryza Rust. It’s a textured rust paint that’s intended to
be dry brushed onto the model.
However, instead of dry brushing, I put some on my
palette and mix in some water to thin it out – about
50/50. I then apply a very thin coat over most of the
armor to tint it orange.

After that dries, I come back in with the Ryza Rust and
do some stippling with it to intensify the orange. I focus
more on areas away from recesses for this step.

I did this with stippling to create a textured look and not

something smooth and consistent. Rust is more
convincing when it appears textured in my opinion.

If you wanted something quicker then you could simply

dry brush the Ryza Rust on for this step. A few layers of
this dry brushed would look good as well.

On the shield and shoulders I add some of the Ryza

Rust into the middle of the paint chip to keep that depth
I created. I also dragged a few lines down from the
chips to add some rust streaks.
6 Add Some Highlights
The final step!

I take Leadbelcher (GW) and do some edge

highlighting. The other thing I do is some stippling with
it in areas that would see more light to brighten it up in
spots.

Doing this with stippling helps keep the textured look

I’ve been working on. You could, however, use dry
brushing instead if you’re more comfortable. Dry
brushing could hit all your edges for you and some flat
surfaces. It would give a more dusted look instead of
the deeper textured look of stippling.
 Here we arrive at the final result of all the work.

Close-ups

Here’s a few close-ups to better show you that textured look

I’m talking about, and the rust in general.
Complete Paint Color List

Again, here’s the complete list of the paints used above.

1. Leadbelcher 5. Abaddon Black

2. Agrax Earthshade 6. Terracotta
3. Typhus Corrosion 7. Ryza Rust
4. Rhinox Hide
 Learn how to paint a
realistic rust effect on
miniatures:
https://ctt.ac/5f3gm+ via
@c_twilight

Click To Tweet

Learn how to paint a

realistic rust effect on
miniatures:
https://ctt.ac/5f3gm+ via
@c_twilight

Click To Tweet

Conclusion

This was my first time doing a rust effect technique like this,
so it may not be a perfect recipe, but I think the results are
pretty convincing. Normally I do a technique a few times
before I do a tutorial on it, but I thought it would be fun to
document my process and write it up.

I do have a tutorial on battle damage and weathering that

covers the concept and technique in a more generalized
sense. Rust is great, but sometimes you just want some
basic weathering.

Also, if you want to see the effect applied to some other

miniatures, or to see this completed model, check out my
Steelheart’s Champions painting showcase.

If you’re a newer painter, then definitely check out my list of

supplies every painter needs, also I have some tips on
becoming a better painter as well.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the tutorial and there’s more you’d like
to see me cover then fire away in the comments.

SpeciLc Painting Techniques & Tutorials

Check out these other tutorials covering specific techniques.

Blood Bowl Ogre Lightning (All Levels)

Energy/Magical Sword Nighthaunts (Hexwraith
Flames (Freehand) Flame)
Gold in 7 Steps Power Sword (40K)
Hive Fleet Kraken Marble in 4 Steps
Konrad Curze Realistic Rust
Lava (Beginner & Skulls & Bones (4 Styles)
Advanced) Worn Leather

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Rory (Stepping Between Games) # %

That is a great tutorial. Thanks for sharing it, I

know a few ways I can take advantage of it.

" Reply # 1 year ago "

Thor # %

Thank you.

I realize it may have more depth

than some want for painting rusted
stuff (making glazes, blending,
stippling, etc), so hopefully the
alternatives I mentioned will help
people out after something quicker
and I in turn help everyone with it.

Reply # 1 year ago "

Rory (Stepping Between Games)

There are some # %
 great tips there for general
rust and for people wanting
to go the extra mile there are
plenty of things as well.

Reply # 1 year ago

Westrider # %

Ana’s tutorial was my jumping-off point for

rust as well. Great to have so many different
variations shown out there, because rust can
be so variable, and this gives all kinds of
different options for people trying to find just
the right rust look for their particular project.

" Reply # 1 year ago "

Thor # %

Yeah, I saw your comment on there

when I stumbled on the article ;)

You’re absolutely right – there’s so

many variations of rust and it’s just
a matter of what suits you. I did a
lot of rust image research (real
rust) and honestly, there’s no
wrong way to do it.

Reply # 1 year ago

NafNaf # %

That looks great! My rust technique is so-so,

so I’m gonna follow this next time I do some

" Reply # 1 year ago "

Thor # %
 My previous technique for rust was
very half-assed. I wouldn’t spend
this much time rusting up squads
for 40K. However, when you’ve
only got 3 models to do, it’s time to
step it up a bit :)

And thanks!

Reply # 1 year ago

Adam # %

Yeah. It’s okay. Could be more detailed

though.

Well done on another great tutorial. These

are not the easiest things to write and you do
a great job of it.

" Reply # 1 year ago "

Thor # %

Thanks.

One of these days I’ll get setup to

shoot video while I paint. That way
I can demonstrate techniques I
discuss. There’s a few tutorials I’d
love to do but they won’t work in
picture form.

Reply # 1 year ago "

Adam # %

Videoo: the final frontier! It is

another level of stuffing
around to do right and easy
to do wrong.
 Reply # 1 year ago

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