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Tremble before the mighty war dragon! This is my second 'giant costume' finished yesterday, and almost two years to the day of completing the full sized Star Wars Dewback patrol lizard you can also see in my gallery. Like the Dewback, the War Dragon has a skeleton of stout PVC tubing to support over 100 pounds of real steel armor (also used on a horse for jousting, with a different chamfron (face shield) and fewer neck plates. It was planned to lead the Dragon Con parade with this critter, but he just wasn't finished in time -- but will definately be there next year. The dragon's head turns with reins, and neck lifts with a pully system. The mouth opens, nostrils smoke and fire breath is being planned. The wings can be lowered and 'flapped' and the tail can thrash. It is 25 feet long now, but the tail needs to be lengenthed to over 30 feet and have an attached mace. The dragon walks on his hind legs which are actually the rider's real feet, mounted on stilts to stand as high as riding a very large horse.
In an 'alternate universe' Henry Tudor (who had the Red Dragon of Wales in his Coat of Arms and battle standard) enlisted the 'real' red dragon to help him defeat Richard III at the battle of Bosworth in 1485. All of the armor, made in the 'German High Gothic' style, is historically accurate for this period.
If all goes well, the dragon will be on display at the Cincinatti Comic Expo in two weeks, along with some of my other 'reptilian' creations such a the Dewback, Spitter dinosaur in Jurassic Park jeep, the Gorn Captain from Star Trek, and Bossk from Star Wars.
In an 'alternate universe' Henry Tudor (who had the Red Dragon of Wales in his Coat of Arms and battle standard) enlisted the 'real' red dragon to help him defeat Richard III at the battle of Bosworth in 1485. All of the armor, made in the 'German High Gothic' style, is historically accurate for this period.
If all goes well, the dragon will be on display at the Cincinatti Comic Expo in two weeks, along with some of my other 'reptilian' creations such a the Dewback, Spitter dinosaur in Jurassic Park jeep, the Gorn Captain from Star Trek, and Bossk from Star Wars.
Category All / All
Species Western Dragon
Size 1024 x 682px
File Size 291.9 kB
Thanks! I 'made' the steel armor by going to India and working with armorers there, doing some of the work myself, and having them help on the repetitive work. (I have designed a lot of historical armor there, and as 'payment' I get to use the workers on my special projects like this on each visit). It is a copy of an original set of horse armor in the Wallace Collection in Britain, made around 1480 in Landshut, Bavaria. The chamron is custom to fit a dragon head, but in the same style. You can see me on a horse wearing a slightly diffrent version in my gallery, also from the same area and period.
Thanks! The ground here is too rough to walk, though the feet can still paw the ground, if this were a live film. It is possible to wear this all day, and it is designed to march in long parades so long as it is on flat, preferably paved ground. Basically the dragon body is pushed along by the rider wearing stilts built in to the dragon's hind feet. Small, Pneumatic tires are hidden under chain mail under the dragon's front paws and the skirt of mail in the back which also conceals the real feet of the knight.
For displays, the real steel armor look great, but it makes the head very heavy to raise up, even with pullys. I may make lighter plastic vacuformed replicas of the armor pieces when marching long parades like Dragon-Con.
For displays, the real steel armor look great, but it makes the head very heavy to raise up, even with pullys. I may make lighter plastic vacuformed replicas of the armor pieces when marching long parades like Dragon-Con.
Amazing work! These just keep getting better. I am actually astonished that such a large and complex costume can be articulated with just one man and no power assist or animatronics. It is a pity that you were not able to enter this in the "Dragon Con" costume contest. I have no doubt it will win in the next.
It is a shame that the red dragon had been removed from the royal standard. This was not only the red dragon that symbolized Wales, but the being responsible for hollowing out the tunnels under Avalon, and driving forth the white dragon of the Saxons from Brittany. You would think the dragon responsible for saving Briton would have gotten more respect.
I must admit, I like your take on the history better.
It is a shame that the red dragon had been removed from the royal standard. This was not only the red dragon that symbolized Wales, but the being responsible for hollowing out the tunnels under Avalon, and driving forth the white dragon of the Saxons from Brittany. You would think the dragon responsible for saving Briton would have gotten more respect.
I must admit, I like your take on the history better.
Thanks, Arch. I really enjoy the challenge of making these things. Thank heavens for pvc pipe and fixtures, because there is so much trial and error making these creatures 'work'.
The dragon may go to the Cincy Comic expo in two weeks, though it is so big, they may not have a place to display it!
Actually, it is Elizabeth I's fault (being the Virgin Queen), that the dragon is no longer on the Royal Standard, not any dragon hating conspiracy. It was there for the 100 plus years there was a Tudor regent, but when other dynasties replaced them, it was natural their heraldic elements would be incorporated in place of the 'Tudor dragon'. He certainly lives on everywhere in Wales though, as I have seen firsthand.
I may develop this story further, but need to finsih the Smaug story first. It is something like 60 pages and would have been finished long ago, save for eschewing it to complete the dragon in time for dragon con. Maybe I should break it down in chapters and start posting it now.
The dragon may go to the Cincy Comic expo in two weeks, though it is so big, they may not have a place to display it!
Actually, it is Elizabeth I's fault (being the Virgin Queen), that the dragon is no longer on the Royal Standard, not any dragon hating conspiracy. It was there for the 100 plus years there was a Tudor regent, but when other dynasties replaced them, it was natural their heraldic elements would be incorporated in place of the 'Tudor dragon'. He certainly lives on everywhere in Wales though, as I have seen firsthand.
I may develop this story further, but need to finsih the Smaug story first. It is something like 60 pages and would have been finished long ago, save for eschewing it to complete the dragon in time for dragon con. Maybe I should break it down in chapters and start posting it now.
Against human strength and edged weaponry that would be true. But gunpowder matchlock hand weapons were increasing in the period which this style of armor dates to (late 15th century) and posses greater penetrating power than any human powered weapon at close range. The armor would also have a great psychological value too, the enemy realizing it would be powerless to harm it in any way. This illustrates the shortcomings of virtually every 'dragonslayer' story written. If an intelligent dragon (and they usually are in fantasy stories) did have any 'weak spot' or if its natural armor wasn't protective enough, it could use 'borrowed' human technology to remedy this, like the old "you can only kill it if you shoot it in the eye" cliché. It is amazing that so many authors of crap dragonslayer fantasy are too ignorant to see something so obvious when they make their dragons as intelligent as humans.
Good god, this is a marvel to behold! This mount reminds me of the dragon from Dragonworld, but like, mixed with one of the Nazgul mounts. I love it! I always love seeing real world crafts and puppets, and this is certainly no exception. The detail in this is amazing, and the craftsmanship is outstanding. I'd love to give this beauty a ride (and maybe pet it).
Great job, really. I could easily see this thing in an old dragon slayer type film. I can only imagine how much cooler this looks in real life. :D
Great job, really. I could easily see this thing in an old dragon slayer type film. I can only imagine how much cooler this looks in real life. :D
Thanks for the favorite, though I have to say I would never let any of my work be used in a 'dragonslayer' film. I don't think there was ever a 'dragonslayer' book, film or video game that wasn't ridiculously stupid, and created by people entirely ignorant of real human and animal capabilities. Scientists tell us that the human race could have never survived (and likely never would have evolved) if large carnivorous dinosaurs were still around, and flying, fire spewing dragons with human intelligence would be far more deadly than any dinosaur. Dragonslayer rubbish is the reason why most intelligent adults dismiss the high fantasy genre as just so much childish, unbelievable, fairytale drivel.
The problem with the whole 'Knights versus Dragons' cliché is that if there really were huge intelligent dragons in our world (or fantasy worlds for that matter), they would have undoubtedly subjugated (if not exterminated) humans centuries earlier when they had only sticks and rocks to defend themselves. Even if they allowed humans to live, they probably would have stifled any technology that could eventually threaten dragons. However, if gunpowder was around in a world with dragons, they would be large enough to wear armor heavy enough to stop bullets, though even their scales might do it alone. There are many real reports of musket balls bouncing of the backs of alligators and crocodiles before the invention of high powered modern rifles.
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