So, I’ve been playing a lot of Dawn of War: Dark Crusade recently, and something I’ve been learning is just how much I’d been under-using Fire Dragons in that game, especially the Exarch squad that you unlock by conquering other territories. These fancy lads are not something to be trifled with, and I’m hoping that they fill one of the biggest gaps in my Eldar army up to this point: anti-armored firepower. They’re glass cannons, but cheap and hard-hitting glass cannons compared to Wraithguard. Because I love my metal models, I got a used set of Fire Dragons, dropped them into a bath of Simple Green, and got to work.

After actually making use of test models to make sure I didn’t botch the scheme, these were a second try, and one that turned out great. I hadn’t done models that faded from a red to an orange, unless you’re counting the hair on Howling Banshees, and I’m surprised and excited at how well it translated. I went with a lot of the other staples of my own Ulthwe color scheme – red for eyes and special gems, blue for the rest, and green tabards. I also went fancy and cut out some Fire Dragon decals for the helmets. Fighting with waterslide is always an exercise in frustration, but I love the result.

Something else that I would be remiss in not mentioning is the yellow colors. Painting all of those X-Men has made yellow feel like a much more useful, useable color than before, and I’m a little gobsmacked at how bold the yellows turned out on these. It’s definitely a color that I’m going to keep coming back to and using – Averland Sunset, Yriel Yellow, and Casandora Yellow are just a magical combination, a lightning-in-a-bottle trio that I find stands out in GW’s line compared to other yellow paints I’ve used.

I’m happy with the end result of this rescue project, but even moreso I think I’m happy that these are another model set that show sustained improvement over some of my previous jobs, like earlier Dire Avengers or Howling Banshees. I’m also looking forward to being able to pump out damage with these fellas that even neither Flex Tape nor the Adeptus Mechanicus can fix. Howling Banshees will always be my mainstay Aspect Warriors, but Fire Dragons are becoming a close second place. More on that to follow.