Dragon Rampant in 1:72

[Mr_White]

The tail end of 2021 came to a halt as family tested positive for Covid-19. Thankfully, symptoms were mild and all are fine. The silver lining is that it seems one can get a lot of hobbying done when their house is quarantining…



Midway through 2021, I got the itch to get back into some fantasy gaming and went back and forth between 28mm or 20mm (1:72). I eventually decided on 1:72 as I’ll be the one providing the sides so needed models that didn’t require much assembly and were quick, easy to paint. Small storage footprint is also a consideration. 1:72 met all of those requirements. Plus, I was still on a high from having fun with my Roswell '98 project in 1:72 (or is it 20mm? Are these two the same? I still don't totally know.)



Expecting to work on this fantasy project in 2022, the quarantine time seemed the perfect opportunity to go ahead and see what painting a Dragon Rampant force would be like at this scale. Using only two boxes from RedBox’s Dark Alliance 1:72 line (Light Warriors of the Dead and Heavy Warriors of the Dead Cavalry) I was able to quickly paint up a more than complete retinue.



I knew when I was going 1:72 that I would incorporate the zombie dragon from the Castle Ravenloft boardgame. I always thought it was a bit undersized for 28mm. Even for 1:72 it could be a little bigger, but it’s very affordable to find online and is an undead dragon that works for this scale as a Warbeast or Single Model Unit.



The leader of the army is the Undead Knight from Elhiem’s recent 20mm fantasy range. Clearly he’s a nod to Lord Soth from Dragonlance fame. Well, I think he is. He’s the first thing I thought of when I saw the model. Either way, a fallen knight leading a host of spectral warriors to new glories appealed. Perhaps they’re not evil, but out to right a terrible wrong? Of course, there’s also the clear nod to the Army of the Dead from the Lord of the Rings. Being a hero model, I placed the knight on a larger base. I figure him for 3HPs and the three support models being 1HP apiece so they can function as a Reduced Model Unit of 6HPs.



Spectral Undead is not a typical army to start off a fantasy project with, but I was able to paint all this up in about two days and all under about $30. Seeing the whole host on display, there are plenty of options from cavalry, foot, missile and even warbeast units to choose from. I think the next Dragon Rampant army is also going to be another “Finish in a weekend” project. It looks like I can get stuck into some fantasy battles a lot quicker than anticipated.

[blacksmith]

Great army! May I ask you what you used as bases?

[Kaiphranos]

I like the ghostly color you've used for these!

[Mr_White]

For the models on foot, I use washers. I have a magnetic storage solution and not only do the washers stick to my magnetic sheep, but they provide good weight to the very light 1:72 plastic minis. For the cavalry, I used Renedra 25mmx50mm bases where I drill in two holes for magnets. Again, so they stick in my storage bin.

[MABO]

Amazing work. Beautiful army of the dead.

[Rich W]

Really effective paint job on these-nice!

[Mr_White]

There is a little flash on some of the figures, but the goal was to do this army in two days or less. See if it could be done. Plus, I’ll just handwave the flash as spectral detritus around them or maybe part of the disfigurement cause by death in battle? Heh, either way it’s more noticeable in the photos, not really seen at all at arms length on the table.

What do y'all think?

[MABO]

Imho removing rhe flash makes the figures look better, but in some cases I leave it as it is because the material makes it impossible to me to achieve a good result. That's why I leave it as it is, so it doesn't look worse than before.

[Peter]

Wonderfull painted figures!

Can you tell what colors you've used and the order you added them on the figures? Thank you!

[Mr_White]

Wonderfull painted figures!

Can you tell what colors you've used and the order you added them on the figures? Thank you!

Thanks!

The ghosts were a pretty straight forward approach:
1) Prime White
2) Wash with Hexwraith Flame
3) Drybrush with Ulthuan Grey (well maybe a little more paint on the brush than a true dry brush)

That's it!

[Peter]

Thanks!

The ghosts were a pretty straight forward approach:
1) Prime White
2) Wash with Hexwraith Flame
3) Drybrush with Ulthuan Grey (well maybe a little more paint on the brush than a true dry brush)

That's it!

Thank you!

[Mr_White]

Another wave of Covid has rippled through the house, so figured it was time to jump on that second Dragon Rampant warband. I expected this one to take two days as well, but it took a little under four hours so went ahead and put paint to an Elheim warlock figure as well.



The Cyclopes are a ~$10 box of 1:72 fantasy figures from Ukrainian manufacture Dark Alliance (I think Red Box is the company, but Dark Alliance the fantasy brand). The box came with 12 Cyclopes in four different poses. Mersey Suggests giants as 6pt Elite Foot Single Model Units in the Dragon Rampant rulebook, so four models is a full 24point warband.



Fielding a full DR army for about $10 (and having models to spare) is an amazing deal in these dark modern times. Gamers of another popular fantasy wargame are buying single Giant figures for $200? Will four of those complete an army?



My table gaming time is currently on the Blood Bowl pitch where I’m helping commish a six session league. Once that runs it’s course, I’m prioritizing some games of Dragon Rampant. To whet my appetite, above and below are photos of what my two current warbands would look like in action.



I’ve got a few other 1:72 armies I’m hoping to complete before that BB league wraps, so I’m hoping to have a few options to field.

[Bluefalchion]

The cyclops crew that you completed in four hours would have taken me several weeks, and mine still may not have looked as good. Bravo!

What paints did you use for the metals?

[Mr_White]

The cyclops crew that you completed in four hours would have taken me several weeks, and mine still may not have looked as good. Bravo!

What paints did you use for the metals?

Thanks!

I'm a simple man and use a simple technique. Base color layer, wash, base color drybrush. For the metal color I only use Citadel's Ironbreaker. I do a base coat of Ironbreaker, then either a wash of agrax earthshade or nuln oil and follow that with a drybrush of Ironbreaker.

[Peter]

Again some excellent painted figures! Like those cyclops!

[Susofrick]

Very nicely painted figures! And are there going to be some living dragons too?

[Mr_White]

Very nicely painted figures! And are there going to be some living dragons too?

You know, as the game is called DRAGON Rampant, I think getting in a few more dragons is a great idea. ha! thanks

[Licaón]

What a nice -and efficient- paintjob! The spectres and the giants look terrific, and those evil magic users have a lot of character.

I would really like to get some of those Dark Alliance and Elheim miniatures, they look quite detailed. I am curious to know if they match well together scalewise, and if Alliance plastic is easy to work with. I know you didn't remove some mould lines, but are they well casted? By the way, thanks a lot for the painting reference!

[Mr_White]

What a nice -and efficient- paintjob! The spectres and the giants look terrific, and those evil magic users have a lot of character.

I would really like to get some of those Dark Alliance and Elheim miniatures, they look quite detailed. I am curious to know if they match well together scalewise, and if Alliance plastic is easy to work with. I know you didn't remove some mould lines, but are they well casted? By the way, thanks a lot for the painting reference!

Thank you!

Dark Alliance and Elheim scale well. In my first post with the spectres, the death knight is Elheim and part of the Elhiem trio packet that included the warlock in the cyclopes post.

Regarding working with Dark Alliance models, I've found the casting pretty good with a lot of great detail. I'd say 80% of what I have has minimal mold lines. a little clean up here or there with a sharp hobby knife as the plastic is soft, but not too much. However, I do have a box of Cimmerians on foot where the mold lines are terrible. they'll need a lot of work to clean up. I also have the second DA Cimmerians on foot and they have no mold lines! so, a bit of a roll of the dice.

That said, cleaning up mold lines on the occasional 1:72 Dark Alliance model is still a lot faster than sniping and gluing together 28mm plastic models I used to work with. I'm so glad to be working in 1:72 now.

[Licaón]

That's quite interesting, I gess that, as you say, it depends on the box set or the particular cast, or maybe even a combination of both of them.

I have very little experience with 1/72 scale, but I found a bit tedious the assembling and cleaning of the 28mm miniatures too. And I did have in my hands some Caesar and Ehmar miniatures, and the plastics are really different! I prefer harder plastic, but Caesar's seemed to me ok, not too soft. In Plastic Soldier Review I've read that many brands use what they call "medium consistency" plastic, including Caesar. If they are more or less like this brand's plastic, that works perfectly fine for me.

I'm eager to see some more of your work!