Get festive the grimdark way as we paint Da Red Gobbo’s Tinboy, one of Warhammer’s most characterful seasonal miniatures.
In this tutorial, our studio painter breaks down how to achieve rich metallic finishes, vibrant contrast colours, and worn, oily weathering using a zenithal pre-shade and transparent paints. From enamel-style reds and greens over metal to grimy recess shading and crisp festive details, this guide is all about maximum character with efficient techniques.
What’s covered:
- Zenithal priming for natural light and shadow
- Metallic bases with contrast-style colour layers
- Grimy shading and weathering for a worn, mechanical look
- Festive details, lenses, snow effects, and final highlights
Paints used
Step 1: Base Metallics
The Tinboy model is predominantly mechanical, so we start with the metallic sections.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Silver Metal | Vallejo Chainmail (Silver Metallic) | Apply 2 nice coats for good coverage over all silver areas. |
| Brass/ Gold | Two Thin Coats Top Brass or GW Retributor |
Apply 2 thin coats. Focus on interesting details like the shoulder pads, epaulettes, boots, key, and other Metal Armour / mechanical accents. |
Step 2: Transparent Colours (Contrast/Slapchop)
The video uses transparent colours over the metallic base to give the appearance of painted metal/enamel.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Green Trousers |
GW Warp Lightning (Contrast Paint) | Thin slightly with water or Contrast Medium. Apply 2 coats, or as desired for depth. |
| Red Jacket | AK Interactive Quick Range Pinky Flesh (Contrast/Quick Paint) | Apply a thin coat over the metallic base. This gives a magenta/pink metallic look. |
| Brown Sack |
Two Thin Coats Noble Steed Brown | Apply 2 thin coats to the large sack, which serves as a great base for washes/highlights. |
| Red Overcoat |
GW Blood Angels Red (Contrast Paint) |
Apply a thinned coat over the Pinky Flesh on the jacket to make the colour richer and more red on the jacket. |
Step 3: Shading & Weathering Metallics
Add depth and a worn, oily look to the metallic parts.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Shade Metallics |
GW Agrax Earthshade |
Apply into the recesses and details of the silver and brass sections to give it an "oily worn look." Can also be applied to bolts and dents on the jacket for grime. |
Step 4: Lighter Details (Bone & White Base)
Prepare the areas that require a light base for contrast paints or pure white later.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Lighter Bases (Head, Numbers) |
GW Rakarth Flesh (Base) | Use as a good, warm, light base for sections like the head/face wrap, the numbers on the armour, and other accents. |
| White Detail Base | GW Wraithbone (Base) |
Apply over the Rakarth Flesh for a punchier white/bone colour. |
| Wash Lighter Bases | GW Seraphim Sepia (Wash) |
Wash the head/face wrap with Seraphim Sepia thinned by about 50% with water. |
| Pure White Base |
White Acrylic Paint | Apply 2 thin coats to small details like lights, lenses, eyes, and the snowy section on the foot. |
Step 5: Red Gobbo and Santa Outfit
Paint the actual Red Gobbo and the fluffy white/red Santa attire.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Red Gobbo Skin |
GW Skarsnik Green (Layer) | Apply 2 coats over the exposed skin. |
| Red Gobbo Skin Contrast |
GW Ork Flesh (Contrast) | Thin 50:50 with Contrast Medium and apply a thin coat over the skin for contrast and depth. |
| Santa Outfit Red | GW Mephiston Red (Base) | Apply as a solid base coat for the main Santa outfit (red cloth) and the red bow. |
| White Fur & Details | White Acrylic Paint (or Grey Seer base) | Apply 3 very thin coats of white to the fur trim of the outfit, the smoke, and the candy cane grenade. Optional: Use GW Grey Seer as a base first for efficiency. |
| Shading White Fur | GW Soulblight Grey (Contrast) |
Apply only to the recesses to shade the white fur and snow without staining the raised areas. |
| Shading Red Outfit | GW Carroburg Crimson (Shade) |
Apply only into the deepest recesses of the red ribbon and outfit to define the folds without coating the entire red section. |
Step 6: Final Details
Focus on highlights, small details, and final weathering effects.
| Section | Paint Used | Notes |
| Lighter Edge Highlights | Wraithbone + White | Mix Wraithbone with a tiny bit of white and edge highlight the highest points of the face wrap, the number on the shoulder pad, and minor details. |
| Silver Edge Highlights | Vallejo Chainmail (or similar) | Edge highlight the armour and apply small, fine scratches for a chipped metallic look. |
| Rifle Strap | Black Legion + Incubai Darkness |
Mix and apply a single coat over the rifle strap. |
| Goggles/ Lenses |
Frostheart (Contrast) over White |
Apply the blue contrast over the pure white base for a glowing effect. |
| Star on Hat/ Tree | GW Imperial Fist Yellow (Contrast) | Drybrush the star white, apply Yellow, drybrush white again, and then apply a second coat of Yellow for a vibrant look. |
| Baubles on Base | GW Warp Lightning & Blood Angels Red (Contrast) |
Apply these contrasts over the white-based baubles on the base. |
| Sack Highlights |
Noble Steed Brown + Wraithbone |
Use the mix for rough edge highlights, especially around the opening. Use fine lines to simulate rough stitching where the two halves of the sack join. |
| Red Highlights |
GW Evil Sunz Scarlet (Layer) | Apply a very fine, rough edge highlight to the ribbon and the Santa outfit. |
| Snow Tint/ Stain | Frostheart (Contrast) + Medium (70:30) |
Apply a very thin, diluted coat over the snow to give it a cool, subtle blue tint/stain. |
| Smoke Effect | White Drybrush, Soulblight Contrast, White Drybrush |
Drybrush white, apply a light coat of Soulblight Contrast to the smoke sections, and drybrush white again for wispy smoke. |
| Dynamite Fuse |
White + Yellow/ Orange Contrast | Apply a small touch of white near the end of the fuse, then add a small dot of Yellow or Orange Contrast over the white to simulate a lit fuse. |
