Vanari Dawnriders for AoS

Vanari Dawnriders prepare to charge into battle. 28mm plastic figures from GW.

My surprise (even to me) Age of Sigmar project continues - here we have a unit of High Elf Silver Helms Vanari Dawnriders, the battle cavalry arm of the Lumineth Realm-lords in GW's "Age of Sigmar" setting. These are all 28mm multi-part plastic figures  from GW.

What lovely animation on these sculpts.

As I have said in all of the other recent posts on this subject the figures are...well, they really are lovely! I know that for many folks - myself included- it is hard to separate feelings regarding the demise of the "Old World" when contemplating these models. But even allowing for that frustration, I must say I was truly blown away by these models. I joke (lamely) above about the obvious starting reference point for these particular models being the High Elf Silver Helm cavalry from GW's long lost Warhammer Fantasy Battle Game, and that basic inspiration is, to me at least, obvious. But the sculptor/designers took that, and then went to town, hitting the sweet spot for what I would love to see when it comes to "High Elf Battle Cavalry". 

This, to me, is what "elf" cavalry should look like! Very cool.

I love how these models look - the proportions, the armour, the sense of motion and speed given by the mounts and the poses of the riders. They look like they would hit hard, hit decisively. And yet the armour, while glorious, is hardly overwhelming, and thus they retain that faintly delicate sense that, to me, an effective "elf" aesthetic should have when it comes to war - the glass jaw. This sort of cavalry will be successful because it arrives at the exact right moment to the exact right place on the battlefield, charges at incredible speed and hits a precise point on that battlefield with great precision. Support from powerful magicians and spellcasters doesn't hurt either, right? 

The connections to the base are, however, dangerously lean...just a plastic leg...yikes.

At the same time, while they can dish it out, they are not meant to take sustained punishment in any way. Their armour affords them both the cool, elegant "elf" look and the protection necessary when engaging on their own terms, but should they be caught unawares, should the powerful mages supporting them fail or otherwise be overcome...well, suddenly, it's time to get out of there. Besides, when you live forever, you can always wait for a better moment, right?

"Steedmaster" on the left, regular warrior on the right.

So yes, I loved these models, and would like to add more at some point to make a larger unit. But nothing is perfect, and there are some challenges to be advised of with these particular figures. I have said before that GW is the best when it comes to designing plastic multi-part figures, and I still believe that, but these Dawnriders show how this talent can start to push aside practical gaming considerations.

You get a beautiful standard with sculpted detail...again, the plastic connections all make me nervous, but so far, so good...we'll see how it does in an actual game...

This is particularly a concern when it comes to the connection between the mounts and the bases - generally on one leg only. One plastic leg. Yikes. Do these people never game themselves? Said plastic leg usually has an slightly enlarged bit of terrain or ground around it to ease and support this connection, but it is still pretty tenuous with everything going on up top with these figures. 

Another view of the standard bearer.

And that brings me along to the other issue with these models - like, they are pretty complicated to assemble. It's the flipside of all the beautiful details...but they are tricky as f*ck to assemble, and kind a tricky to paint. Looking back, I wish I might have taken them on in sub-assemblies...but even that is a little fraught, as there is nothing generic about them. Each mount only has one type of rider, and each rider has their own pose of legs and arms that only works with that mount. It is not that there are no options - quite the contrary, you can make the leader just a normal warrior, the standard bearer is totally optional too - it is just that there are a LOT of components to keep track of, they have only one overall set they can go with...it's just tricky. And that's fine! It's not a reason to avoid the kits - they are gorgeous! Just be prepared...

"Hey, look over there - a painting distraction. Charge!"

So with these five Dawnriders painted, I am closing in on completing all of the models that came with the initial impulse buy, the "Shining Host" box set. Stay tuned for more on this project - but other diversions of course! Thanks for reading, have a great day.