When I painted my PuzzleLock Dungeon, I simulated torchlight with drybrushed oranges and yellows. In the same way, I wanted to give a “dungeon vibe” to these minis by painting an undercoat to simulate torchlight. This is a variation on zenithal highlighting.

Starting with a black primer over the entire mini, then came back with a blue-gray ambient light which is drybrushed on top. Since the idea is to give it an ambient occlusion, I payed attention to the angle of my brush, leaving the underside and recessed areas black.

Next I used some oranges to start simulating the torchlight. I chose one side/direction for the mini which would be accented with torchlight, and carefully drybrushed the areas that would be hit by this light. Using the handle of the brush as the direction of the light, I was able to see where the light would hit, and where it would falloff.

I started with a pretty deep orange, and then added a little yellow to it as I went back over the areas that would be closest to the light. When I painted the actual torch, I went another shade lighter by adding more yellow, and finally white.

I painted the colors in thin layers, allowing the underneath colors to influence it. The only place the color is almost the pure hue is on the bright side closest to the torchlight. The colors on the far side end up a bit muted and darker.

I used a wash of Army Painter Soft Tone over the paint job, which darkened the colors even more in the recessed areas.

Overall I am happy with the way it turned out. Even the minis not carrying a torch have one side accented with the torchlight, and they all fit together naturally as the under painted lighting ties them all together.

Give this a try on your next group of adventurers! Let me know what you think in the comments.

These minis and figurines are available in my Etsy shop. If you would like to 3Dprint them yourself, the STL files are available at Cults3D.