diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme-color.js.es6 b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme-color.js.es6
index a2f1a7b12d6..a3b22d23bc6 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme-color.js.es6
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme-color.js.es6
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import {
   observes,
   on
 } from "ember-addons/ember-computed-decorators";
-import { propertyNotEqual, i18n } from "discourse/lib/computed";
+import { propertyNotEqual } from "discourse/lib/computed";
 
 const ColorSchemeColor = Discourse.Model.extend({
   @on("init")
@@ -42,9 +42,23 @@ const ColorSchemeColor = Discourse.Model.extend({
     }
   },
 
-  translatedName: i18n("name", "admin.customize.colors.%@.name"),
+  @computed("name")
+  translatedName(name) {
+    if (!this.is_advanced) {
+      return I18n.t(`admin.customize.colors.${name}.name`);
+    } else {
+      return name;
+    }
+  },
 
-  description: i18n("name", "admin.customize.colors.%@.description"),
+  @computed("name")
+  description(name) {
+    if (!this.is_advanced) {
+      return I18n.t(`admin.customize.colors.${name}.description`);
+    } else {
+      return "";
+    }
+  },
 
   /**
     brightness returns a number between 0 (darkest) to 255 (brightest).
diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme.js.es6 b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme.js.es6
index 5276ef849d0..26c8ccdc0ed 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme.js.es6
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/models/color-scheme.js.es6
@@ -128,7 +128,8 @@ ColorScheme.reopenClass({
               return ColorSchemeColor.create({
                 name: c.name,
                 hex: c.hex,
-                default_hex: c.default_hex
+                default_hex: c.default_hex,
+                is_advanced: c.is_advanced
               });
             })
           })
diff --git a/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/color_transformations.scss b/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/color_transformations.scss
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..ca6068a774d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/color_transformations.scss
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+// standard color transformations, use these if possible, and add any new dark-light-diffs here
+// any variables defined here can be added in theme color schemes
+// all variables should have the !default flag
+
+//primary
+$primary-very-low: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 97%, -82%) !default;
+$primary-low: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 90%, -78%) !default;
+$primary-low-mid: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 70%, -45%) !default;
+$primary-medium: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 50%, -35%) !default;
+$primary-high: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 30%, -25%) !default;
+$primary-very-high: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 15%, -10%) !default;
+
+//header_primary
+$header_primary-low: dark-light-diff(
+  $header_primary,
+  $header_background,
+  90%,
+  -78%
+) !default;
+$header_primary-low-mid: dark-light-diff(
+  $header_primary,
+  $header_background,
+  70%,
+  -45%
+) !default;
+
+$header_primary-medium: dark-light-diff(
+  $header_primary,
+  $header_background,
+  50%,
+  -35%
+) !default;
+$header_primary-high: dark-light-diff(
+  $header_primary,
+  $header_background,
+  30%,
+  -25%
+) !default;
+$header_primary-very-high: dark-light-diff(
+  $header_primary,
+  $header_background,
+  15%,
+  -10%
+) !default;
+
+//secondary
+$secondary-low: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 70%, -70%) !default;
+$secondary-medium: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 50%, -50%) !default;
+$secondary-high: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 30%, -35%) !default;
+$secondary-very-high: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 7%, -7%) !default;
+
+//tertiary
+$tertiary-low: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 85%, -65%) !default;
+$tertiary-medium: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 50%, -45%) !default;
+$tertiary-high: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 20%, -25%) !default;
+
+//quaternary
+$quaternary-low: dark-light-diff($quaternary, $secondary, 70%, -70%) !default;
+
+//highlight
+$highlight-low: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, 70%, -80%) !default;
+$highlight-medium: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, 50%, -55%) !default;
+$highlight-high: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, -50%, -10%) !default;
+
+//danger
+$danger-low: dark-light-diff($danger, $secondary, 85%, -64%) !default;
+$danger-medium: dark-light-diff($danger, $secondary, 30%, -35%) !default;
+
+//success
+$success-low: dark-light-diff($success, $secondary, 80%, -60%) !default;
+$success-medium: dark-light-diff($success, $secondary, 50%, -40%) !default;
+
+//love
+$love-low: dark-light-diff($love, $secondary, 85%, -60%) !default;
+
+//wiki
+$wiki: green !default;
diff --git a/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/variables.scss b/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/variables.scss
index 71efde7ed1e..644d3ee5995 100644
--- a/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/variables.scss
+++ b/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/variables.scss
@@ -204,78 +204,4 @@ $box-shadow: (
   }
 }
 
-// standard color transformations, use these if possible, and add any new dark-light-diffs here
-
-//primary
-$primary-very-low: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 97%, -82%);
-$primary-low: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 90%, -78%);
-$primary-low-mid: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 70%, -45%);
-$primary-medium: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 50%, -35%);
-$primary-high: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 30%, -25%);
-$primary-very-high: dark-light-diff($primary, $secondary, 15%, -10%);
-
-//header_primary
-$header_primary-low: dark-light-diff(
-  $header_primary,
-  $header_background,
-  90%,
-  -78%
-);
-$header_primary-low-mid: dark-light-diff(
-  $header_primary,
-  $header_background,
-  70%,
-  -45%
-);
-
-$header_primary-medium: dark-light-diff(
-  $header_primary,
-  $header_background,
-  50%,
-  -35%
-);
-$header_primary-high: dark-light-diff(
-  $header_primary,
-  $header_background,
-  30%,
-  -25%
-);
-$header_primary-very-high: dark-light-diff(
-  $header_primary,
-  $header_background,
-  15%,
-  -10%
-);
-
-//secondary
-$secondary-low: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 70%, -70%);
-$secondary-medium: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 50%, -50%);
-$secondary-high: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 30%, -35%);
-$secondary-very-high: dark-light-diff($secondary, $primary, 7%, -7%);
-
-//tertiary
-$tertiary-low: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 85%, -65%);
-$tertiary-medium: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 50%, -45%);
-$tertiary-high: dark-light-diff($tertiary, $secondary, 20%, -25%);
-
-//quaternary
-$quaternary-low: dark-light-diff($quaternary, $secondary, 70%, -70%);
-
-//highlight
-$highlight-low: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, 70%, -80%);
-$highlight-medium: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, 50%, -55%);
-$highlight-high: dark-light-diff($highlight, $secondary, -50%, -10%);
-
-//danger
-$danger-low: dark-light-diff($danger, $secondary, 85%, -64%);
-$danger-medium: dark-light-diff($danger, $secondary, 30%, -35%);
-
-//success
-$success-low: dark-light-diff($success, $secondary, 80%, -60%);
-$success-medium: dark-light-diff($success, $secondary, 50%, -40%);
-
-//love
-$love-low: dark-light-diff($love, $secondary, 85%, -60%);
-
-//wiki
-$wiki: green;
+@import "color_transformations";
diff --git a/app/models/color_scheme.rb b/app/models/color_scheme.rb
index 151f8c353f8..c242b634428 100644
--- a/app/models/color_scheme.rb
+++ b/app/models/color_scheme.rb
@@ -140,6 +140,7 @@ class ColorScheme < ActiveRecord::Base
   validates_associated :color_scheme_colors
 
   BASE_COLORS_FILE = "#{Rails.root}/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/colors.scss"
+  COLOR_TRANSFORMATION_FILE = "#{Rails.root}/app/assets/stylesheets/common/foundation/color_transformations.scss"
 
   @mutex = Mutex.new
 
@@ -157,6 +158,20 @@ class ColorScheme < ActiveRecord::Base
     @base_colors
   end
 
+  def self.color_transformation_variables
+    return @transformation_variables if @transformation_variables
+    @mutex.synchronize do
+      return @transformation_variables if @transformation_variables
+      transformation_variables = []
+      File.readlines(COLOR_TRANSFORMATION_FILE).each do |line|
+        matches = /\$([\w\-_]+):.*/.match(line.strip)
+        transformation_variables.append(matches[1]) if matches
+      end
+      @transformation_variables = transformation_variables
+    end
+    @transformation_variables
+  end
+
   def self.base_color_schemes
     base_color_scheme_colors.map do |hash|
       scheme = new(name: I18n.t("color_schemes.#{hash[:id].downcase.gsub(' ', '_')}"), base_scheme_id: hash[:id])
diff --git a/app/models/remote_theme.rb b/app/models/remote_theme.rb
index 86d78030d2e..4949f3b0366 100644
--- a/app/models/remote_theme.rb
+++ b/app/models/remote_theme.rb
@@ -203,24 +203,32 @@ class RemoteTheme < ActiveRecord::Base
 
     schemes&.each do |name, colors|
       missing_scheme_names.delete(name)
-      existing = theme.color_schemes.find_by(name: name)
-      if existing
-        existing.colors.each do |c|
-          override = normalize_override(colors[c.name])
-          if override && c.hex != override
-            c.hex = override
-            theme.notify_color_change(c)
-          end
-        end
-        ordered_schemes << existing
-      else
-        scheme = theme.color_schemes.build(name: name)
-        ColorScheme.base.colors_hashes.each do |color|
-          override = normalize_override(colors[color[:name]])
-          scheme.color_scheme_colors << ColorSchemeColor.new(name: color[:name], hex: override || color[:hex])
-        end
-        ordered_schemes << scheme
+      scheme = theme.color_schemes.find_by(name: name) || theme.color_schemes.build(name: name)
+
+      # Update main colors
+      ColorScheme.base.colors_hashes.each do |color|
+        override = normalize_override(colors[color[:name]])
+        color_scheme_color = scheme.color_scheme_colors.to_a.find { |c| c.name == color[:name] } ||
+                  scheme.color_scheme_colors.build(name: color[:name])
+        color_scheme_color.hex = override || color[:hex]
+        theme.notify_color_change(color_scheme_color)
       end
+
+      # Update advanced colors
+      ColorScheme.color_transformation_variables.each do |variable_name|
+        override = normalize_override(colors[variable_name])
+        color_scheme_color = scheme.color_scheme_colors.to_a.find { |c| c.name == variable_name }
+        if override
+          color_scheme_color ||= scheme.color_scheme_colors.build(name: variable_name)
+          color_scheme_color.hex = override
+          theme.notify_color_change(color_scheme_color)
+        elsif color_scheme_color # No longer specified in about.json, delete record
+          scheme.color_scheme_colors.delete(color_scheme_color)
+          theme.notify_color_change(nil, scheme: scheme)
+        end
+      end
+
+      ordered_schemes << scheme
     end
 
     if missing_scheme_names.length > 0
diff --git a/app/models/theme.rb b/app/models/theme.rb
index 72e9471fb4e..d5d855434be 100644
--- a/app/models/theme.rb
+++ b/app/models/theme.rb
@@ -34,20 +34,18 @@ class Theme < ActiveRecord::Base
     where('user_selectable OR id = ?', SiteSetting.default_theme_id)
   }
 
-  def notify_color_change(color)
-    changed_colors << color
+  def notify_color_change(color, scheme: nil)
+    scheme ||= color.color_scheme
+    changed_colors << color if color
+    changed_schemes << scheme if scheme
   end
 
   after_save do
-    color_schemes = {}
-    changed_colors.each do |color|
-      color.save!
-      color_schemes[color.color_scheme_id] ||= color.color_scheme
-    end
-
-    color_schemes.values.each(&:save!)
+    changed_colors.each(&:save!)
+    changed_schemes.each(&:save!)
 
     changed_colors.clear
+    changed_schemes.clear
 
     changed_fields.each(&:save!)
     changed_fields.clear
@@ -343,6 +341,10 @@ class Theme < ActiveRecord::Base
     @changed_colors ||= []
   end
 
+  def changed_schemes
+    @changed_schemes ||= Set.new
+  end
+
   def set_field(target:, name:, value: nil, type: nil, type_id: nil, upload_id: nil)
     name = name.to_s
 
diff --git a/app/serializers/color_scheme_color_serializer.rb b/app/serializers/color_scheme_color_serializer.rb
index fdc0e796ad3..a4bb2073fb7 100644
--- a/app/serializers/color_scheme_color_serializer.rb
+++ b/app/serializers/color_scheme_color_serializer.rb
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 # frozen_string_literal: true
 
 class ColorSchemeColorSerializer < ApplicationSerializer
-  attributes :name, :hex, :default_hex
+  attributes :name, :hex, :default_hex, :is_advanced
 
   def hex
     object.hex # otherwise something crazy is returned
@@ -15,4 +15,8 @@ class ColorSchemeColorSerializer < ApplicationSerializer
       object.hex
     end
   end
+
+  def is_advanced
+    !ColorScheme.base_colors.keys.include?(object.name)
+  end
 end
diff --git a/spec/models/remote_theme_spec.rb b/spec/models/remote_theme_spec.rb
index 83d5a3f2b06..f27c73242d3 100644
--- a/spec/models/remote_theme_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/models/remote_theme_spec.rb
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ describe RemoteTheme do
       repo_dir
     end
 
-    def about_json(love_color: "FAFAFA", color_scheme_name: "Amazing", about_url: "https://www.site.com/about")
+    def about_json(love_color: "FAFAFA", tertiary_low_color: "FFFFFF", color_scheme_name: "Amazing", about_url: "https://www.site.com/about")
       <<~JSON
         {
           "name": "awesome theme",
@@ -33,7 +33,8 @@ describe RemoteTheme do
           },
           "color_schemes": {
             "#{color_scheme_name}": {
-              "love": "#{love_color}"
+              "love": "#{love_color}",
+              "tertiary-low": "#{tertiary_low_color}"
             }
           }
         }
@@ -105,6 +106,7 @@ describe RemoteTheme do
       scheme = ColorScheme.find_by(theme_id: @theme.id)
       expect(scheme.name).to eq("Amazing")
       expect(scheme.colors.find_by(name: 'love').hex).to eq('fafafa')
+      expect(scheme.colors.find_by(name: 'tertiary-low').hex).to eq('ffffff')
 
       expect(@theme.color_scheme_id).to eq(scheme.id)
       @theme.update(color_scheme_id: nil)
@@ -150,7 +152,7 @@ describe RemoteTheme do
       expect(remote.about_url).to eq("https://newsite.com/about")
 
       # It should be able to remove old colors as well
-      File.write("#{initial_repo}/about.json", about_json(love_color: "BABABA", color_scheme_name: "Amazing 2"))
+      File.write("#{initial_repo}/about.json", about_json(love_color: "BABABA", tertiary_low_color: "", color_scheme_name: "Amazing 2"))
       `cd #{initial_repo} && git commit -am "update"`
 
       remote.update_from_remote
@@ -160,6 +162,9 @@ describe RemoteTheme do
       scheme_count = ColorScheme.where(theme_id: @theme.id).count
       expect(scheme_count).to eq(1)
 
+      scheme = ColorScheme.find_by(theme_id: @theme.id)
+      expect(scheme.colors.find_by(name: 'tertiary_low_color')).to eq(nil)
+
       # It should detect local changes
       @theme.set_field(target: :common, name: :scss, value: 'body {background-color: blue};')
       @theme.save