paint: dreadball: rammers of krass brokkr

So, amongst last year's Kickstarter backings I pledged at Striker level on a little game called Dreadball. I've got mixed feelings regarding Mantic's handling of this project - Primarily that my FLGS had it for sale a good two-three weeks before I got my copy and that flashing on my Veer-myn is so bad that I stopped assembling them from frustration. - yet I was still incredibly excited when I got my box around New Year's and quickly assembled both the Forge Father and Orx teams and grabbed for my paints.

Rammers of Krass Brokkr : Striker (Gorim Ironstone model)

Because I tend to use paint schemes with a ridiculous amount of steps, I decided to change things up and see if I could strike a balance between speed and visual appeal by only using base-colors, sloppy highlights and an all-inclusive wash. The results aren't my favorite figures I've ever painted, but I think they do look like a coherent team on the table-top and I'm not ashamed to call them my own.

Rammers of Krass Brokkr : Team Photo

Oddly enough, the color scheme was picked out long before Dreadball was even a game! Several years ago, when I saw Mantic's Dwarf infantry models for Kings of War, I was struck by their similarity to one of the few He-Man toys I ever owned - Ram-Man. I always thought it'd be fun to paint up a regiment with colors that drive home their aesthetic similarities, but never had reason to purchase the models. Fast-forward to now, and I've finally got my hands on Mantic figures that, while not holding the aesthetic quite as well as their fantasy Dwarfs, they still hold close enough to follow through on the concept.

Rammers of Krass Brokkr : Guard

And, because I can't ever be too big a nerd, I decided this homage needed a team name and logo that helps solidify the connection between these guys and their Masters of the Universe roots. With a little research I found that Krass was Ram-Man's name prior to donning the armor that makes him literally spring into battle head-first and that Brokkr means mine and/or blacksmith. So the name roughly translates to "The Ram-Men from a Mine named Krass" The typography is a vectors-from-scratch throwback to the old Masters of the Universe logo.

I like to think I pulled it off.

Despite finishing these guys in January, I've still not given the game a whirl. One of the local guys took my Corporation team off my hands, but we've both been too busy with life and other games to get it to the table yet. I hope to remedy that soon, as I'll be playing in the Dreadball tournament at Adepticon this April, which happens whether I've gotten in practice games or not.