warhammer dragons...thoughts?

[agumathebear]

hey all, i actually own a massive 40k ork army and i wanted to get into fantasy and i was looking at all the elf stuff and i noticed that dragons in warhammer fantasy just look...so...cheesy...lol, i mean thats just my opinion, and i really like elves, but i'd much rather replace the dragons of warhammer with oh, idk....the mcfarline dragon sets lmao, what do you guys think? am i just too new-school?

actually, they remind me very very much of an old painting of the nazghul i've seen. i cant seem to remember what it's called though...anyway, do you guys think they should seriously redesign their dragons or leave them be?

[hamishspence]

Which ones- the serpentine ones?

They have already started to undergo changes- the High Elven dragon is now shown in flight (or, at least, just taking off) and looks more solidly built than the old rearing, snaky dragons.

Its possible subsequent dragons will look more like this.

If its the new High Elf dragons you're criticising, then I don't know.

[SolkaTruesilver]

Serpentine dragon = original chinese dragon inspiration, right?

Like the 3.5 Golden Dragon?

[agumathebear]

yeah, i was talking about the new ones and the old ones, they look like, very 70s lol. maybe that's just me, i mean im only 20 so i grew up with a different kind of dragon i suppose.

[hamishspence]

For a far more solidly built Warhammer dragon- Forgeworld:

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/dragon.htm

Much more like D&D.

[Eldan]

Sadly, that thing also has a price of "lol no £".

[hamishspence]

Yup- it seems Forgeworld stuff can be relied on to both look good and be horribly expensive.

Starships and epic scale models tend to be the exception though.

[Solaris]

I never much cared for any of 'em save the Forest Dragon, but the new High Elf dragon is a step in the right direction. The old High Elf dragons just look... goofy.

[tribble]

Let's get some pictures in here for those who don't have a codex/model handy.

http://www.gosfordhobbies.com.au/shop/images/P/newimagelge-50.gif

Pic related.

[SolkaTruesilver]

Let's get some pictures in here for those who don't have a codex/model handy.

Pic related.

Not that bad, I have to be honest. I saw much less impressive monsters.

[Solaris]

Not that bad, I have to be honest. I saw much less impressive monsters.

It's the new one.

This is the Wood Elf Forest Dragon, circa mid-90's: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7897721&postcount=861

I got one of the old High Elf dragons, kinda shoddily painted 'cause I picked it up secondhand and it's seen some days, but I can't find my camera right now.

[SolkaTruesilver]

It's the new one.

This is the Wood Elf Forest Dragon, circa mid-90's: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7897721&postcount=861

I got one of the old High Elf dragons, kinda shoddily painted 'cause I picked it up secondhand and it's seen some days, but I can't find my camera right now.

....

yish :smalleek:

It wouldn't be the worst thing if it wasn't for that huge head..

[warty goblin]

It's the new one.

This is the Wood Elf Forest Dragon, circa mid-90's: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7897721&postcount=861

I got one of the old High Elf dragons, kinda shoddily painted 'cause I picked it up secondhand and it's seen some days, but I can't find my camera right now.

I like that dragon. I like the other one you posted as well. When it comes to dragons I'm honestly pretty flexible.

[SolkaTruesilver]

I like that dragon. I like the other one you posted as well. When it comes to dragons I'm honestly pretty flexible.

Kinky! :smallamused:

[warty goblin]

Kinky! :smallamused:

Well what can I say, they light my fire. (Except the ice breathing ones, they give me goosebumps and send shivers down my spine.)

Either way, oh yeaahh.:smallwink:

[Wraith]

I seem to be the odd one out. I've always quite liked the Warhammer Dragons, and have gone off them since their more recent incarnations.

Admittedly some are better than others - Asarnil the Dragonlord (http://www.seandeitrick.com/wp-content/gallery/Kislev01/IMG_6503.JPG) from the Dogs of War army (not my model, by the way) in particular strikes me as being more reasonably proportioned, especially when compared to the Forest Dragon.

The newer ones, like the High Elf version pictured above? I just don't like them. Perhaps it's because I'm not a fan of models that are sculpted in the middle of lunging or such, as that one is - I always have a very definite picture of the battlefield in my head, and that looming big rock it's stood on detracts from that.
Even if the older dragons are all based on roughly the same shape (http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat50013&prodId=prod790890) and pose (http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat50045&prodId=prod1160011), I prefer them because they're huge and 'dragony' first and foremost, so that the model owner can choose to position it how THEY like rather than posed by the sculptor in a way that might not always be suitable.

....Or I'm just very, very old and don't care for these new fangled dragons and their dynamic bases and properly proportioned physiques..... :smallbiggrin:

[Zorg]

The newer ones, like the High Elf version pictured above? I just don't like them.

Well funnily enough the Elf Dragon is an update of the old (88) Dragonmaster's set dragon (http://solegends.com/citcat88/0804dragons.htm), which you can still get here: http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat1300199&prodId=prod1140119. The set came with two riders and a horse for the one who didn't get to go on the dragon.

However I generally prefer the more traditional Eurpoean style dragons, like Forge World's one or the more modestly sized one for LotR (http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat150081a&prodId=prod1080191).

However the thin 'worm/wyrm' style dragon has been a staple of minis for decades, as they are much easier to produce as the body can be pieces to link together rather than two halves. Anyone who's assembled a large metal kit pre 95ish will know how big the difference between todays casting and the technology then is.

[SolkaTruesilver]

I think I figured out what I dislike so much about the old dragon and their riders:

they didn't made any sense. The rider would sit on top of the highest position of the dragon, but that would be middle-neck. The dragon couldn't use his extended neck-reach to strike at people without throwing off the rider.

There, I said it. I just zapped a Catgirl, sue me.

[Wraith]

The alternative is to sit lower down, which is behind the Dragon's wings.

Which would you prefer - having to hold on REALLY tight, or being beaten and crushed to death by your own mount as it flies you to the battlefield? :smallbiggrin:

[Solaris]

Admittedly some are better than others - Asarnil the Dragonlord (http://www.seandeitrick.com/wp-content/gallery/Kislev01/IMG_6503.JPG) from the Dogs of War army (not my model, by the way) in particular strikes me as being more reasonably proportioned, especially when compared to the Forest Dragon.

Yeah, but the neck behind the head is a little thinner than I'd like. I just got one in the mail yesterday, and I'm putting it together as I type this. They won bonus points for making the saddle/rider optional.