How to Paint Kuo-Toa and the Kuo-Toa Whip Miniature

Quick answer

Paint Kuo-Toa in six steps: check the pre-primed surface, base coat the skin in a cool blue-green, block in the belly and fins, wash the whole figure, layer highlights back up, then finish the eyes and seal. The Kuo-Toa Whip uses the same scheme with a brighter head and a darker handle, so the two figures read as one unit on the table.

What you need before the first brushstroke

You do not need a large paint collection for a Kuo-Toa paint scheme. A cool blue-green, a pale belly tone, a dark wash, a bone or off-white, a muted purple or grey for the Whip's accessories, and a black or dark brown for the eyes will cover both figures. Add a small brush for eyes and a medium brush for base coating.

Work on a wet palette if you have one, because the thin layers this scheme relies on stay usable longer. Keep a cup of clean water and a paper towel within reach, and plan to rinse the brush between every color change so the pale belly tone does not pick up dark wash.

Prep the pre-primed surface without stripping it

Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures arrive primed and ready to paint out of the box, so a full re-prime is usually unnecessary. Check the figure under a bright lamp for mold lines, flash, or a glossy patch where the primer looks uneven, and scrape only those spots with the back of a hobby knife. If you cut through the primer, brush a thin layer of primer over the exposed area and let it cure before painting.

The deep cuts molded into these figures are there to make painting easier, and they reward a light touch. Do not fill them with thick paint, because the recesses are what will hold your wash and separate the skin from the fins.

Base coat the skin in thin layers

Thin your blue-green to about the consistency of milk and apply two or three coats, letting each dry before the next. On a small figure like the Kuo-Toa, two thin coats usually cover without burying detail. Keep the brush moving toward the edges of the fins so paint does not pool in the deepest cuts.

The Kuo-Toa Whip is a larger, more prominent silhouette, so it can take a slightly stronger version of the same skin tone. Mixing a little more of the base color into the second coat on the Whip helps it stand out without breaking the unit look.

Block in the belly, fins, and Whip details

Paint the belly and the underside of the jaw in a pale flesh or off-white, and carry that tone onto the fin membranes. This contrast is what makes a fish folk miniature read as aquatic rather than as a generic humanoid. Keep the transition rough at this stage; the wash will blend it.

On the Kuo-Toa Whip, block the handle in a dark brown or muted purple and the lash in a bone tone so the weapon separates from the body. Leave the eyes untouched for now, and do not worry if the belly line is not perfectly clean, because the next step hides small wobbles.

Wash the whole figure, then bring back the highlights

Apply a dark blue or black wash over the skin, belly, and fins, and let it settle in the deep cuts. Do not flood the figure; a controlled wash in the recesses gives you the definition without staining the raised areas. Let it dry completely before you touch the surface again.

Re-layer the original blue-green on the raised muscle and the tops of the fins, then add a lighter blue-green or pale grey-green to the highest points. On the Whip, brighten the head and the raised arm slightly more than the rest of the body so the eye is drawn to the leader. If the highlight looks chalky, thin it and build up in two passes.

Finish the eyes, teeth, and base

Kuo-Toa eyes are large and bulbous, which makes them the easiest place to ruin a good paint job. Paint the eye black or dark brown first, then add a small off-white dot or a tiny highlight on one side, and stop there. A single well-placed dot looks better than a fully white eye with a mismatched pupil.

Add a thin bone line for teeth if the sculpt shows a mouth, and paint the base in a wet sand or dark stone tone that matches the rest of your collection. Let everything cure overnight before you seal it, and use a matte varnish so the fins do not look wet and plastic.

Kuo-Toa painting steps at a glance

1. Step 1: Inspect and touch up the primer: Look for mold lines, flash, and glossy patches under a bright lamp. Scrape only what needs it and spot-prime any exposed metal or plastic. Checkpoint: the surface should be matte and even before you add color.
2. Step 2: Base coat the skin in thin layers: Apply two or three thinned coats of cool blue-green, letting each dry. Keep paint out of the deep cuts so they stay dark. Common mistake: one thick coat that fills the recesses and kills the sculpted detail.
3. Step 3: Block in belly, fins, and Whip details: Use a pale flesh or off-white on the belly and fin membranes, and a dark brown or muted purple on the Whip handle with a bone lash. Checkpoint: the figure should already read as aquatic before any wash goes on.
4. Step 4: Wash and re-highlight: Run a dark blue or black wash into the recesses, then re-layer the base blue-green and add a lighter tone to the raised muscle and fin tops. Common mistake: flooding the whole figure so the wash stains the raised areas and dulls the contrast.
5. Step 5: Paint the eyes and teeth: Paint the large Kuo-Toa eyes dark first, then add a small off-white dot or highlight. Add a thin bone line for teeth if the mouth is visible. Checkpoint: one clean dot per eye beats a fully painted white eye.
6. Step 6: Base, cure, and seal: Paint the base in a wet sand or dark stone tone, let the figure cure overnight, then apply a matte varnish. Next step: repeat the same scheme on the Kuo-Toa Whip with a brighter head so the leader stands out.

Products used in this guide

• D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Kuo-Toa & Kuo-Toa Whip: D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Kuo-Toa & Kuo-Toa Whip comes primed and ready to paint out of the box, with deep cuts for easier painting. You can skip a full priming session and start base coating, and the molded recesses are designed to hold the wash that defines the skin.
• D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Froghemoth: D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Froghemoth is a highly detailed figure, primed and ready to paint, with deep cuts for easier painting. If your Kuo-Toa are part of a swamp or aquatic encounter, the Froghemoth gives you a larger centerpiece to paint with the same cool blue-green palette.
• D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Female Halfling Fighter: D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures: Female Halfling Fighter is a highly detailed figure, primed and ready to paint, with deep cuts for easier painting. A small humanoid like this is useful for testing your skin and wash ratios before you commit them to the larger Kuo-Toa Whip.