Formatting the top level of bulleted paragraphs?

[New Daddy]

I still don't have a firm grasp of how bullets work.

When you apply bullets through the Paragraph - Bullets command, the style doesn't change.
But bulleted paragraphs do acquire some characteristics that are different from the non-bulleted, ordinary paragraphs of the same style. For example, you can change the indent with tab/shift-tab, which changes the shape of the bullet too.
Along these lines, I'm wondering if you can change the formatting of the top level (or any other level for that matter) in the bulleted paragraphs.
For example, I'd like to change the color of the font in the top-level to make them stand out in the document.

I understand that you can probably achieve this effect through a style.
But at this time, I'm looking for a quick-and-dirty way of doing it without having to modify a style.

[HansV]

I don't think that is possible. You do need to use styles to consistently format list levels.

[Charles Kenyon]

I would always do it through a multilevel list attached to styles.
How to Control Bullets by Shauna Kelly, MVP