Dreadknight Post Build Breakdown and FAQ:
To start with, it was allot of fun to build and paint this, and I realize I work better with looming deadlines! Thanks again to Kurt from the Annapolis Games Workshop store.
Constuction Notes:
In general the model goes together smoothly, little to no flash, another excellent, clean new release from Games Workshop. Almost everything "clicks" into place. I built it without instuctions (none were shipped with it) and it took about 3.5 hours, taking alot of time to explore each bit and carefully clean it of flash.
The following points are worth noting however:
Arms – Limited range of motion, infact I had to cut down and replace the “pistons” on both arms to get them in the “at rest” pose I got with my build. You can swing them forward or back about 30 – 45 degrees, up or down a bit less. Overall getting a dynamic pose will require some work. Arms are VERY strong, and will be able to easily magnetized for weapon swaps. If you wanted to go further you could place Ball magnets in the arms and the servo assist arms for a reposable model. The link is for K&J Magnetics, my favorite site to order from.
Ranged Weapons – Good options, only 2 bodies for the 3 different guns, so it will be hard to build all 3 options without making some sacrifices on style, or bitz ordering a 3rd gun body.
Close Combat Weapons – Extra Hands are a plus, the hammer is well designed and it will be easy to convert to a longer haft for all those who want it… However the sword is a flimsy piece of plastic.. It will break quickly and often unless you carefully pin it or pose the Dreadknight like I did where the sword is crossing the body and is supported. The first 11 year old who grabs your model is going to break the sword either way. Very disappointing for such an amazing bit.
Legs – The biggest disappointment of the model is the fact the legs have ZERO possibility for posing striaght out of the box..... NONE! The legs are two piece fixed bits which socket directly into the pelvis into keyed slots. Even though the feet are attached via ball socket there really is no real adjustments you can make unless you changing the facing. Making a Dynamic model “crushing” anything beneath its feet is going to be a several hour conversion process where you have to cut and pin the legs in 2 spots. Additionally the leg to hip socket is fragile. I would suggest pinning it for strength in the construction process. I pin the legs and also “squished” them in together, and using a plastic glue fused the legs to the pelvis for a second stronger point of contact.
All in all I would give it 3.5 out of 5 stars, loosing points for limited range of motion, fragile legs and sword and limited conversion possibilities due to it's LARGE size. I think the people want Knight Titans will be happy however.
DakkaDakka / Blog FAQ:
Painting:
Basecoat:
Boltgun Silver --> Chainmail --> Mithril SilverWashed with Badab Black in the recesses, and black lined where needed.
Final highlights with watered down Mithril Silver
Highlights:
Gold Highlights were Shinning Gold --> Burnished Gold --> Mithril Silver.
Details:
Decals are from the Witch hunters sheet, an example can be found here
Plasticard was the 1/8th inch tubes from Plastruct
Book bit was from the Dark Angels Ravenwing Vehicle upgrade sprue.
