The “black knight” has long been fantasy fixture in stories ranging from King Arthur and Ivanhoe to Monty Python and Marvel Comics. Given the iconic nature of the black knight, it did not take long for fans to begin asking to have one added to the Realm of Mythoss. We were excited to answer those requests in the Coliseum wave with the Black Knight Legion Builder.
A Look at Previous Black Knight Figures
We are obviously toy fans, and the figures we played with as kids have helped to shape the work we have done over our careers and certainly during the 20 years of Four Horsemen Studios. From time to time you can see the influence of some of those old toys creep their way into our designs. While the idea of a “black knight” is a pretty standard, generic one to begin with, there is certainly a bit of influence in our Black Knight Legion Builder from old series called “Dragon Riders of the Styx” and the Black Knight figure that was released as part of that line back in 1984!
We also did a few black knight type figures in the earlier waves of Mythic Legions. The Carpathias figure from the original 1.0 wave came with black and purple armor, and many customizers painted a helmet black to go along with that armor and create their own black knight.
In the “Covenant of Shadows” wave, we did another vampire knight in the Baron Volligar figure. Once again, many fans displayed this character as a stand-in for a black knight, but we always knew that a true black knight was not far away.
Enter the Coliseum
When we announced the Coliseum wave of figures, a wave which many Mythic fans consider the best in the line, one of the included figures was the Black Knight Legion Builder. Part of the storyline we established for Coliseum, the bio for the Black Knight was as follows:
“The many legends of the Mercurian Coliseum tell of fierce battles, horrific deaths, and glorious victories, but not often mentioned in these tales of the arena are the stories of those who guard the shadowy catacombs of the coliseum - those who protect the lives of the dignitaries who come for the spectacle - those who ensure that the combatants are held in check until the time they're called upon. The few tales that do briefly mention these loyal, but dark denizens of the Mercurian Coliseum describe them as shadows of destructive force, and warn that if you see a hint of red from the corner of your eye, or a flash of silver emerging from the darkness, your best bet would be to surrender to these black guardians.”
Available with a pair of heads, fans loaded up on these figures to create displays of these “dark denizens of the Coliseum”. They also discovered that, like all Legion Builders, the Black Knights were wonderful fodder for Mythic Legions customs.
Fuel for Custom Creations
Prior to writing this article, we asked Legionnaires in the Mythic Legions Cabal to send us their examples of custom figures made using the Black Knight Legion Builder. As you can see from the gallery below, this figure has been used in an incredible variety of ways! From simply adding new heads on the figure to complex customs that totally transform the toy, the Black Knight Legion builder remains one of the favorite base figures for customizers to use!
Select any of the photos below to see a larger photo of that custom, along with credits for each artist who created the custom.
Published on 07.24.20