Citadel Skulls Painting Guide for Warhammer
By Over the Brick | Published: 2026-10-29
Category: Product Reviews
Learn how to paint Citadel Skulls with a step-by-step guide covering base coats, washes, dry brushing, and weathering to add grim character to your Warhammer miniatures.
Quick Answer
To paint Citadel Skulls quickly and effectively, use a bone base coat, a brown wash for depth, and a dry brush of bone or off-white for highlights. This method works for both basing and terrain.
Why a Simple Method Works Best
Citadel Skulls are ideal for adding grim details to bases, terrain, or objective markers. Because they are small and often numerous, a streamlined painting process saves time while still delivering strong visual impact.
The kit includes a wide variety of skulls—human, beast, and alien—which can be painted uniformly or with subtle variations to suggest different origins. A consistent base-wash-drybrush approach keeps the batch manageable.
Considerations for Different Skull Types
Larger skulls, like the giants’ skull or the Morghast skull, benefit from additional shading and edge highlights to define their size. Smaller skulls, such as the bird or horned variants, may only need a quick wash and dry brush to pop on the tabletop.
If you want to differentiate alien or beast skulls, consider a slightly different base color, like a pale green or grey, but keep the same overall technique to maintain speed.
Step-by-Step Painting Process
- Base Coat: Apply a base coat of a bone-colored paint (e.g., Zandri Dust or Morghast Bone) to all skulls. Use a spray primer or brush-on base to save time. Ensure the base coat is fully dry before moving to the wash to avoid streaking.
- Wash: Apply a brown or sepia wash (e.g., Agrax Earthshade) generously over the skulls. Let it pool in the eye sockets and crevices to create natural shadows. Don't let the wash pool excessively on flat surfaces; wick away excess with a clean brush to avoid blotches.
- Dry Brush: Once the wash is dry, dry brush the skulls with a lighter bone or off-white (e.g., Ushabti Bone or Screaming Skull). Focus on the raised areas to bring out detail. Use a soft, dry brush and remove most of the paint on a paper towel before applying to avoid chalky streaks.
- Optional Weathering: For a grimier look, add weathering with a dark brown or black pigment powder or a diluted wash in select areas. This is especially effective on larger skulls. Seal the skulls with a matte varnish after weathering to protect the finish and prevent rubbing off.
Product Spotlight
- Citadel Skulls: The Citadel Skulls kit contains over 200 skulls, including human, beast, and alien varieties, plus jawbones and horned skulls. This variety lets you create diverse basing and terrain features without needing multiple kits, making it a versatile addition to your hobby supplies.
Citadel Skulls
