Paints › Army Painter › The Darkness › vs NATO BlackThe Darkness vs NATO Black
Brand Army Painter Range John Blanche Vol. 1-4 Code Vol. 1 Type an opaque base/layer paint Swatch #182128 (estimate)
Brand Tamiya Range XF Flat Acrylic Code XF-69 Type an opaque base/layer paint Swatch #231f20 (estimate) How close are they?
ΔE 7.2, close: similar, with a visible difference side by side. NATO Black is more muted than The Darkness.
Can I use NATO Black instead of The Darkness? Usually, if you are not matching paint already on the model. Close match (ΔE 7). NATO Black is more muted than The Darkness.
Can I use The Darkness instead of NATO Black? The same difference applies the other way round: The Darkness is more saturated.
ΔE is the colour difference between our two swatch estimates: under about 6 is close, over about 15 is loose. Real paints also differ in finish, coverage and how they thin, so test before you commit.
See The Darkness on the colour wheel See NATO Black on the colour wheel
Other Tamiya paints close to The Darkness Other Army Painter paints close to NATO Black All matches: The Darkness equivalents · NATO Black equivalents
© 2026 AK Tabletop Studio. Swatch colours are estimates and will differ from the real paints; cross-brand matches are close, never exact.
Chart-listed matches come from the Two Thin Coats Paint Comparison Chart 2024, the Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic conversion chart, the AK 3rd Generation Acrylics equivalence table (2021) and the Herrick Games hobby paint comparison chart; the rest are a nearest-colour calculation.
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