How to Paint Chaos Space Marines

Chaos Space Marines sit in a comfortable middle ground: the models are as straightforward as loyalist marines, but the aesthetic rewards mess. Armour that has been worn for ten thousand years is meant to be scratched, tarnished and mismatched, so weathering covers the same sins that would show on a clean chapter. Most legion schemes are one armour colour, one metal and one trim.

The signature look

Heavy, over-decorated power armour with more trim than a loyalist marine, spikes and chains everywhere, and a metal that has gone dull. The trim is the character of the model - gold, brass or bronze catching the light against a dark plate.

Black Legion armour

The default legion is also the fastest. Undercoat black, basecoat Abaddon Black, then edge-highlight sparingly with Eshin Grey and a final catch of Dawnstone on corners. Over a light undercoat, Black Legion contrast does the same job in one coat with softer transitions.

Trim is where the time goes. Base Balthasar Gold, shade Agrax Earthshade, layer Gehenna's Gold and pick out the very edges with Auric Armour Gold. For a more corroded look, swap to Warplock Bronze shaded Agrax Earthshade with Nihilakh Oxide stippled into the recesses.

Bare metal on weapons and joints goes Leadbelcher, Nuln Oil, then a light Ironbreaker drybrush. Keep it dull - a mirror-bright bolter looks freshly issued, which is the opposite of the point.

Weathering and corruption

• Stipple Typhus Corrosion around vents, joints and the bottoms of greaves.
• Add Ryza Rust on top, then a few Leadbelcher chips with a torn sponge.
• Run thinned Rhinox Hide into the deepest recesses of the trim for grime.
• Where the model has mutated flesh, Bugman's Glow shaded Carroburg Crimson and highlighted Kislev Flesh keeps it looking raw against the armour.

Horns and claws in Rhinox Hide into Screaming Skull finish most mutations, and a wash of Reikland Fleshshade over bone details ties them to the flesh.

Legion colour schemes

• Iron Warriors - Leadbelcher shaded Nuln Oil and drybrushed Ironbreaker, with Averland Sunset and Abaddon Black hazard stripes. Genuinely the quickest army here, because the armour is one metal and a wash.
• Night Lords - Kantor Blue into Night Lords Blue, with lightning bolts painted in Ulthuan Grey and White Scar from the trailing edge upwards.
• Word Bearers - Khorne Red shaded Agrax Earthshade, layered Word Bearers Red, with dense gold script on every plate. Slow, but stunning.
• Alpha Legion - Caliban Green with Sotek Green highlights and a green-blue iridescent tint on the plates.
• Red Corsairs - Mephiston Red plate with Abaddon Black shoulders, a mismatched raider look that lets you use up leftover legion parts.

Tips and common mistakes

• Do not over-highlight black. Two thin edge catches beat a heavy grey line every time.
• Trim first, then tidy. Paint the gold over the armour and cut back in with the armour colour rather than trying to keep a perfect edge.
• Vary the squad. Mismatched pauldrons and different degrees of rust are lore-correct and make ten identical bodies look like a warband.
• Keep the metals dull. Ten thousand years in the warp does not polish anything.