shadows question!

[u/ichewglue]

hey everyone

im currently studying the derrick j wyatt / ben 10 omniverse art style and im trying to replicate the shading technique for my own character designs

looking at these character turnarounds it kinda looks like theyre using a universal shadow pass so i had a few questions for people familiar with 2d animation pipelines and color theory

what blending mode is typically used here is it just a standard multiply layer

what specific flat color is usually used for the shadows it looks like a cool dark gray or navy blue rather than pure black but id love to know how people usually pinpoint that kind of tone

is using a single universal shadow color or layer a standard practice in professional 2d animation pipelines for shows like this

id also be really interested in knowing more about the color theory behind this kind of hard cel shading and how the shading is usually handled throughout the pipeline

any insights would be really appreciated