# Colours of a Nation?



## GrizBe (May 12, 2010)

It seems that every time GW releases new models, they change the colour scheme from the old one, or do something differently they you'd not expect, or wouldn't necessarily paint like yourself. Yet, everyone seems to have an idea of what an army should look like, despite having different paint schemes for themselves...

Soo, to cut the question short... What colours come to mind when you think of an army? How do you expect them to look or believe them to be?

For me what imediately comes to mind for armies...

Beastmen: Dirty browns and rusted metal, and rough horn, ill-kepmt.

Bretonia: Shining silvers, bright and elaborate primary colours.

Daemons of chaos: Mottled hues of patron god, strange shines and glazes.

Dark Elves: Black and purple, dulled silvers.

Dwarfs: Red beards...lots of lots of red beards. Bronze and silvers.

High Elves: White and silver, deep blue highlights.

Lizardmen: Greens and gold.

Ogre Kingdoms: Grey flesh, bronze and rust. 

Orcs and Goblins: Greens and leather, dried blood on weapons.

Skaven: Dirty colours, dark greens and reds, lots of muddy brown.

The Empire: Elaborate patterns of reds, lots of silver.

Tomb Kings: Bone and bronze.

Vampire Counts: Rotting flesh, blood reds.

Warriors of Chaos: Black iron, dirt and furs. 

Wood Elves: Greens and yellows, lots of wood.


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## coke123 (Sep 4, 2010)

Can't help but noticed you put Lizardmen as Green and Gold... Official colour scheme is blue, dude..

Otherwise, I agree with you. Is this in response to the obvious change in the Ogre Kingdoms colour scheme (fleshy becoming more human-skin tone and less grey)?


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## Arli (Mar 4, 2010)

Maybe I am the odd man out here, but I think any army that I deem to collect will have a color scheme that I like. I do not care that the official colors are blue (in the case of the Lizardmen). 

My armies are:

Lizardmen: Albino skinks with all skink heroes being red
Red Saurus and Cold One riders (Cold ones being green)
Temple Guard Purple and blue
Ogres: I plan on using a purplish flesh tone on these
Vampire Counts: Dull red and purple (or a blood red with a deeper purple wash).


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## Words_of_Truth (Sep 20, 2007)

coke123 said:


> Can't help but noticed you put Lizardmen as Green and Gold... Official colour scheme is blue, dude..
> 
> Otherwise, I agree with you. Is this in response to the obvious change in the Ogre Kingdoms colour scheme (fleshy becoming more human-skin tone and less grey)?


If you look at the army book for ogres the flesh was actually more graveyard earth and colours around that area. Admittedly my ogres are grey skinned because I think it looks a lot meaner and more in keeping with their rocky confines.


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## GrizBe (May 12, 2010)

@Coke: It kinda is. It got me thinking about what people see the different armies colours as. I remember back when Lizardmen were first launched, and they were typically green... hence in my mind, they are.

Personally, I prefer the Ogre's as grey. They're mountain dwelling trollkin in my mind, so a greyish skin-tone fits them better then the fleshy pink of humans.

On that mind though, should have added in fleshtones:

Humans - flesh pink.
Elfs - Pale flesh.
Dwarfs - 'ruddy'.


Really, this is an exercise in perception and seeing if things are pre-defianed in peoples minds as having to be a certain way. With me.. Ogre's look better greytoned.


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## scscofield (May 23, 2011)

My wife is painting her dragon prince cavalry unit with black/brownhighlight horses and green trim, white background armor


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## Alexious (Apr 13, 2009)

I am unsure really if things really change that much...

Night goblins have always been black robed with a yellow moon since... well since the 1980's.

The Empire provinces have had distinct colors since their inception which is probably the late 1980's early 90's. GW DOES however usually do a new Empire army whenever they do a new Empire book. At the moment its red and white, but previous to that it was blue... and previous to that it was Green and Yellow. (Each according to a province)

Dark Elves have always had a black and purple theme as far back as 2nd edition with green overtones in places. 

Dwarves have not changed in ages either. Lizards have always been green or blue since their inception as well...

I don't see that many changes. Sure the figures have become more clear and much more detailed adding some color as detail emerges. But not over the top. It has changed as much as 40k has really with bolter casings etc and as painting style develops not really color choice.

The late 1980's to the mid 1990's were a different era for GW and Citadel... most of the comments here in the forums reflect the newer dirtier styles like you see on 40k vehicles etc... however when asked.. most people still love and want that crisp clean bright color style of the older period. 

Here are some examples for you...



















The main color choices have remained constant... 20 years hence from release.


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## coke123 (Sep 4, 2010)

Words_of_Truth said:


> If you look at the army book for ogres the flesh was actually more graveyard earth and colours around that area. Admittedly my ogres are grey skinned because I think it looks a lot meaner and more in keeping with their rocky confines.


They still look kinda greeny grey to me, but I see where you're coming from.



GrizBe said:


> @Coke: It kinda is. It got me thinking about what people see the different armies colours as. I remember back when Lizardmen were first launched, and they were typically green... hence in my mind, they are.


Ah, well you see, I wasn't in the hobby back when models were carved from dinosaur bone, so the official Lizardmen scheme has always been blue for me. That said, my Lizards are actually painted green; I've never quite understood why a Jungle dwelling race wouldn't have developed a green colour for camouflage. The choice of blue for their colour has always baffled me. So I guess that everything I do must be just intrinsically correct... Hence I picked the original colour scheme?



GrizBe said:


> Personally, I prefer the Ogre's as grey. They're mountain dwelling trollkin in my mind, so a greyish skin-tone fits them better then the fleshy pink of humans.


Actually, I think the opposite. I really like the fleshy tone they've been given; I think it gives them almost a caveman feel, and i think that it really adds to the whole Ice Age aesthetic a lot of their new (and old, for that matter) models have. I play Lizardmen for the dinosaurs, and all the prehistoric monsters the Ogres are getting has me really tempted into starting them...


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