TLDR; Thermal paste was solid, quick response from CS, sent a new one, also puttyish. Mounted anyway, temp is great and fans are quiet. Well worth the price. I got this for my gf's pc because the AIO pump went dead, her radiator fan was very loud and temps were up to 80°C under little load. Went toward a cheaper one because we plan to buy her a new one. Thermal paste came with a tacky, playdoh like consistency and would roll up into a ball. I assumed it got dried out and conacted the seller. I sent the message on a Friday night and got an automated message that they'd get back to me on the following Monday, but about an hour later I recieved a response saying they typically don't carry extra thermal paste, but that they'd check for me. I sent a follow up message the next week and they found some for me and shipped it. It came dough-like again. I suspect the texture is cery similar to thermal putty, which works better when there is more space between the water block and CPU but it said thermal paste on the tube. I ended up squishing the putty across the water block center and mounting it. Temps were down to below 40°C even under moderate load, only reaching high 40's under consistent load. Works great so far and am very happy for the price. It is also very quiet and comes with a splitter for the fan headers.