Warhammer to Dragon Rampant

[steve_pickstock]

This all began at our little club. There have been a few games of Dragon and Lion Rampant recently which haven't been played in the Holy Scale of 1:72. And someone reminded me that I have a Warhammer Empire army that I can use. So for the last couple of days I have been furkling around sorting it out.
Today I got the figures into the attic for a stock take, see what needed doing and what I needed to do to convert this from a Warhammer Fantasy Battles Army to a Dragon Rampant (and with certain adjustments, a Lion Rampant army).

First thought is blimey! They're so SHINY!
So first job will be to go round with the matt varnish and sort that out.
The next job on the list will be to bring the bases up to standard. I think I have improved a lot in recent years, They aren't bad, but they could be better.
The last thought I had was how flippin' heavy they are! Most of these models are old school metal figures and that Griffon alone weighs a ton!

So a quick trundle through the army. This wasn't a run-of-the-mill Empire army. It was one of mine, it was never going to be 'ordinary'. Intead all of these soldiers are mercenaries under contract to the general to fight for the Emperor (because the Electors/States can't be relied on, so he keeps a ready reaction force on payroll). They aren't aristicratic knights they're just well off mercs.

The General - Iron-Handed Gotz (so I was lazy in the background fluff, sue me!)

I love those old Empire horses solid, and a nice pose, throw in some extra spikes, love it.

The General's standard - simple stuff some transfers, some fine point pens and wallop!

Some spare unit commands - the two on the left are from a unit of Estalian crossbowmen that doesn't seem to have survived, and the guy on the right is for a small unit of knights.


The Ice Queen of Kislev, not strictly part of the army, but she was in the case.


Gandalf wannabe - wizard.


The Emperor Karl-Franz on Buckbeak! Wait! Oh no, that's not right! It's Death Claw.
Big old piece of metal this is, I'm probably going to replace that banner pole but not a lot else.


Another general officer, commander of knights.


So now we get into the infantry element. In the original army there were two foot regiments - the Blauband and the Rottband.
This is the Blauband as they would be for DR - 12 Heavy Foot with 6 scouts - missile troops.

This is the Blauband how they were originally. With a bit of creativity I could probably make two DR regiments out of this lot.

These are very old figures, simple and solid, and I think I got a good deal from a local stockist who wanted shut of them.

The figures for the Rottband were less robust so not so many survived. But there were enough to make a full regiment.


They do not have a shot component - yet - I have an idea for that though.

The knights - shields have fallen off, horses have lost tails, small jobs really



Swordsmen - not sure if these will make it into the DR army, as there aren't that many of them.


Heavily armoured Nut-jobs! These will either be one unit of Beligerent Foot, or a smaller (6 figures) Elite Foot Unit. I can afford to play about with them like that.


Pistoliers, at the moment these wil be one unit of 6 cavalry Light Riders. If I can scare up some more models I make try for two units of 6.


These are some of my favourite figures, then GW got all weird with them, with multiple barrel guns and stuff.


Finalemente! Kislev horse archers. Know I know that I have a lot more of these in a cupboard, but getting to them is a right royal pain in the bum, so these will stay at just one unit.



All told it's a fairly simple job of repairs and tarting up. More pictures as and when.

Thanks for looking in, Pickers.

[Peter]

Real nice work there Steve!

[Emperor]

They look great but the Griffon is number one...

[Peter]

Okay, a few days later, and quite a bit of progress made.

I sorted through the figures and decided which ones I wanted to use in the new version of the army.
These were then matt varnished, and once that was done - which makes quite a bit of difference, though it doesn't show so much in the photos, I started on the bases.
The original bases were done in GW's Goblin green, they then had patches of PVA glue painted on them. Sand was sprinkled onto them and then, when that dried, the patches were over-painted with a sand colour, which was then dry-brushed with white. Finally, they were flocked and the flock fixed with matt varnish.
Bearing in mind that these figures are probably 30 years old (at least), and got used a lot "back in the day", they've held up pretty well, only going down to bare paint on the edges.
To make them look a bit more spiffy, I added some tufts, and some finely crumbled clump foliage. This was applied over matt Mod-Podge, as the adhesive, left for a day, and then I dripped a 50/50 matt medium and water mix onto the clump foliage to fix it in place completely and toughen it up for handling.

So today I went up to do some work, but have hit a bit of a road block. Pictures of where I am at the moment first.










So these are pretty much good to go, as they are.

The issue I'm facing at the moment is a shortage of supplies.
1. I ran out of Vallejo Matt Varnish. I need that to finish the Blauband
2. I need some Goblin Green paint. GW stopped doing it years ago, but apparently there are equivalent colours in other ranges.
3. I am waiting on some bases to make up two new units (they were actually waiting on the door mat when I came back down stairs from the attic after taking these pictures.
4. I have been making movement trays for the units - the knights, the pistoleers, the Rottband and the armoured nutters, but I cannot do any more of those until I have finshed the units.
Most of the above will be sorted - I hope - at the weekend, as it is our local wargames show - Phalanx at the Sutton Leisure Centre in St Helens. I should be able to source the Matt Varnish and a Goblin Green type paint there. I may also pop into my local r/c model shop for styrene sheet and Evergreen strip to finish making the movement trays.

Still to do then.
a) matt varnish the Blauband figures and select figures to make up a unit of them.
b) add the missile units. A couple of years ago, Warlord Games gave away some sprues of their Landesnechte figures on the cover of Wargames Illustrated magazine. They're quite close to the GW figures in size, and very much the 'Empire' style, so I am using them to create 2 units of "SHOT", each of 12 figures. One will be in predominantly red colours and one in predominantly blue. The figures didn't come with bases - hence the need to order some.
c) make movement trays for the remaining units and paint them and the ones I made this week.

Thanks for looking in and thanks for those that have commented. Cheers all!
Pickers.

[steve_pickstock]

I do apologise for the inadvertent vulgarity. It should be "two units of shot" not what was written.

My deepest apologies to the members of the forum.

[Santi Pérez]

Wonderful painted figures, Steve.

I do apologise for the inadvertent vulgarity. It should be "two units of shot" not what was written...

Undoubtedly, yours are units of shot, not the other word you put in by mistake, hahaha.

Santi.

[Minuteman]

These look great, and I very much like the use of figures which are recognisable as 'Italian Wars German' (circa 1500-1525) as a Dragon Rampant army. There was/is always something fantastical about those landsknecht/Gothic armour types.

[Minuteman]

I do apologise for the inadvertent vulgarity. It should be "two units of shot" not what was written.

My deepest apologies to the members of the forum.

I have to confess to raising my eyebrows just a tad at your use of the word 'furkling' in your first post on this subject, which I took to be a ribald bit of old Anglo-Saxon...but is in fact a completely valid word meaning 'rummaging about and searching'.

I am often to be found 'furkling about' amongst the boxes of my stash. I'll make greater use of this fine word in future; Thanks!

[Susofrick]

Very nice! Have some of them among the orc hords in the cellar and it s very nice to see them painted like this. Actually not in the least tempted to dig them up and repaint them, they sleep so sweet down there.

[steve_pickstock]

I have to confess to raising my eyebrows just a tad at your use of the word 'furkling' in your first post on this subject, which I took to be a ribald bit of old Anglo-Saxon...but is in fact a completely valid word meaning 'rummaging about and searching'.

I am often to be found 'furkling about' amongst the boxes of my stash. I'll make greater use of this fine word in future; Thanks!

If you are aware of the late, great Professor Sir Stanley Unwin, he was a great inspiration to me in my youth, which probably explains a lot.
Plus I have a habit of picking up fragments of language wherever I go - "mooi!" is one of my current favourites.

As a by-the-way, a friend of mine called one of her ferrets Furkle, seemed to fit perfectly.

[steve_pickstock]

Quick update! Friday, 17/6/22 -took the bases that arrived yesterday up to the attic. I remembered that I had some old paints in a drawer, and voila! Goblin Green!

It's sludgy, but still useable (with some airbrush thinner), so that is one thing off the list for tomorrow.

I used some of it on one of the movement trays I was working on yesterday ...

The end nearest to the camera was the bit that was painted, and it matches really well.

Lastly I based up the two shot blocks

They are slightly bigger than the original figures but they'll do.

[Minuteman]

These shot chaps will look fine once painted. What make are they?

Re: Goblin green...the things that you find stashed away, purchased long ago 'just in case'

[steve_pickstock]

These shot chaps will look fine once painted. What make are they?

Warlord Games
https://store.warlordgames.com/collections/landsknecht

Re: Goblin green...the things that you find stashed away, purchased long ago 'just in case'

Precisely! The thing is I often have an idea that I have such and such a thing, but can't remember where I left it.
I have a box - a clear plastic take-away tray, and it's fullof spare heads and arms and weapons from the various Games Workshop Empire sets, can I find it? Nope. I've seen it recently and out it back down, close to where I actually work.
My life has always been a constant struggle to stay (sort of) organised.

[PaulRPetri]

Steve that is an inspiring display of early 90's wonderness!!

[steve_pickstock]

Steve that is an inspiring display of early 90's wonderness!!

Thank you.

Alas it appears to be a triumph of style over substance at the moment, but more on that in a moment.

First the army as it stands as a whole, with the new shot units and some Tilean Crossbowmen that I re-discovered and some Empire Foresters.








Next the army as I decided to use it in a game of Dragon Rampant.


Set up on the base line


The cavalry on the right wing getting smashed by a wizard who apparently could activate as and when he needed it.


The Rottband move to cover the hole that has appeared on my right ...


... while the Blauband try to decide what they are going to do about the other wizard, who was just about the destroy their shot block.


The General - last man standing in his unit - getting smashed, fortunately the army survived the trauma of his removal.


What was left at the end of the game of that once glorious army.


It was not the army at fault, neither was it my strategy or tactics - or so I am telling myself. I could not role to activate any of my units, while my opponent had no problems what so ever.

Still there is always next time.

[Minuteman]

This is a splendid army, great work! And it's not their fault at all that an opposing wizard happened to be 'hyper-active' on the day...not a problem that the 'real' armies of Francois I and Charles V might have faced during the Italian Wars, but hey.....

[steve_pickstock]

This is a splendid army, great work! And it's not their fault at all that an opposing wizard happened to be 'hyper-active' on the day...not a problem that the 'real' armies of Francois I and Charles V might have faced during the Italian Wars, but hey.....

TWO! count them - two wizards! Both of whom seem to have been inspired by Ukraini mortar units!

I probably could have dealt with them if I had gotten in range, but noooo!

As for the Italian Wars wizards, ask the Spanish, who refused to use wizardry on religious grounds, how well did it work for them?!

[Peter]

You have been busy while we had a break with the forum! Real nice work Steve!

PS: about the paint. Why thinner? I solved that problem with some water and a wooden stick.

[steve_pickstock]

You have been busy while we had a break with the forum! Real nice work Steve!

Thanks.

PS: about the paint. Why thinner? I solved that problem with some water and a wooden stick.

Funnily enough I was looking at a video by Midwinter Minis while I was thinking about the Goblin Green situation.
https://www.youtube.com/c/MidwinterMinis
He had exactly the same situation, after I watched his video I went up to the attic and searched out the old painrs. So as it all happened in minutes and the thinner was to hand, that was the solution at the time.
In hindsight, your solution would work just as well, it was just what I had right in front of me.

[Peter]

In hindsight, your solution would work just as well, it was just what I had right in front of me.

Mh, could that be another word for lazy?