Xpress Plague Green

A plague green for diseased motifs

A pale, yellowish-green color with a clear role in the palette: to look unhealthy. It is reached for on undead skin, on slime and spores, on potions in glass vessels, on mildew in the corners of ruins and on the contents of barrels that are meant to look at first glance as though nothing should be done with them. The thin binder carries the shade into every crack and groove, so the surface looks soaked.

Dust, pigments and what the surface will hold

The matte and slightly grainy character of the dried area has one practical advantage: dry pigments hold on it considerably better than on smooth gloss. For a light dusting or a hint of mildew it is therefore enough to apply the pigment with a soft brush and tap the surplus off. The holding on its own has limits, though, and as soon as a finger or a cloth touches the model the pigment smears.

How to anchor the find for good

The lasting answer is to fix the pigment: either with a fixing fluid dripped at the edge of the application, or with a light pass of matte varnish from a greater distance. The varnish will darken the color by a shade and soften the graininess; count on that and rather apply a little more pigment than is meant to be visible in the end.

Combinations on a figure

On its own this green is more of an addition than a main tone. It comes out in full only next to darker and dirtier colors, among which it works as a highlight: a lit flask, an open wound, a glowing eye in a dark hood.

Safety at work

It is a water-thinnable acrylic paint with no smell, but when passing varnish over it and when working with pigments always ventilate and use respiratory protection.