Apart from the changes to the formula, the Speedpaint range has been expanded from 24 to a whopping 90 colours. That’s 28 more colours than Contrast has to offer! They also feature metallic one coat paints, which are an industry-first. I’ll share my thoughts on the metallic Speedpaints below, but first, let’s take a look at the colour palette. The Speedpaint 2.0 palette Due to the higher stability, I was also able to glaze several layers of Speedpaint thinned with Speedpaint Medium, without previous layers of paint dissolving and smearing. Let’s take a look at the individual colours. The Speedpaint palette is very similar to the Contrast palette, even though there are only 24 paints (including Speedpaint medium), whereas Contrast has 35.

When applying, I noticed that Speedpaints are a bit thinner and runnier than Contrast, and the medium pushes the paint into the recesses more aggressively, which helps to create a smoother result even on flat areas. On the other hand, I found Contrast paints slightly easier to control because of their lower viscosity. I felt it was easier to put them on smaller details without accidentally spilling into adjacent areas.As a saving grace, I found if you just apply a few thin highlights in a similar colour to the Speedpaint you are painting over, the reactivation isn’t much of an issue. Edge highlights with Wild Rider Red and Jokaero Orange over Blood Red Speedpaint When applying, I noticed that Speedpaints are a bit thinner and runnier than Contrast paints, and the medium pushes the paint into the recesses more aggressively, which helps to create a smoother result even on flat areas. On the other hand, I found Contrast paints slightly easier to control because of their higher viscosity. I felt it was easier to put them on smaller details without accidentally spilling into adjacent areas. Zealot Yellow is a little more orange than Iyanden Yellow, Fire Giant Orange a little more tomato red. Blood Red and Blood Angels Red are almost identical. Slaughter Red is a bit more crimson and produces slightly more prominent highlights, whereas Flesh Tearers Red is a little darker. Purple Alchemy is clearly darker than Volupus Pink and should perhaps be thinned with a little bit of Speedpaint Medium. Hive Dweller Purple is also slightly darker than Shyish Purple, but dries much less patchy. For my The Army Painter Speedpaint review, I painted Contrast, Speedpaints, Instant Colors from Scale 75, and Antithesis paints from Warcolours on a sheet of plasticard that I primed with Corax White primer. I photographed the sheet under 5500K neutral light to reproduce the colours as authentically as possible.

Consistency-wise, they are quite thin, similar to pre-thinned airbrush metallic paints. From left to right: Broadsword Silver, Talos Bronze, and Hoplite Gold from the Speedpaint 2.0 range The first thing to understand is that the latter two paint ranges have a very different formula than Contrast or Speedpaint. They are not based on dye, but on thinned acrylic pigments. Think of Citadel Nihiliakh Oxide or regular acrylic paints thinned with a lot of Contrast Medium.Let’s proceed with some more tests and see how Speedpaints apply on a metallic basecoat. I sprayed an Intercessor with Plate Mail Metal from the Warpaints Air range, though you could also use Plate Mail Metal Colour Primer or Leadbelcher Spray. The Army Painter recommend their Matt White Colour Primer, but for better comparison with Contrast, I used Grey Seer Spray from Games Workshop for both models, which is a light grey primer with a satin finish. The smooth satin finish allows the medium of Speedpaints and Contrast paints to spread more evenly. Nevertheless, the many flat areas of the Intercessors’ power armour will present quite a challenge for either paint. Inside of the box you’ll find a Wargamer: Monster paint brush, a painting guide, and the following ten 18ml Speedpaint colors: They often need multiple coats to achieve a similar level of richness. Also, the pigment-based formula doesn’t really work with zenithal shading, as the opaque pigments will gather in the dark recesses and make them brighter, which is not exactly what you want. Pigment. The formulation of Speedpaint provides a much more opaque coat than Contrast Paint, allowing Army Painter to make good on their promise of single-coat paint application.