The kingdom of Xylernia, in the northeast corner of Mythoss, is a land of vast forests and incredible natural beauty. Populated by the Fae of the Realm, it is the area of Mythoss where the touch of the Great Mother, Selyne, is still most keenly felt.
Stationed along the borders of this vast kingdom are the steadfast protectors of Xylona’s Flock known as the Xylernian Guard. This “Figure in Focus” article will take a look at this elite unit of Fae guardians, including some behind-the-scenes details on the creation of this brand-new figure!
Building All Stars 5+
The fifth installment of the popular “Mythic Legions: All Stars” series started like the few that came before it – with a fan vote to help decide on which previously-released figures would be reissued in this new wave.
When the vote began in early March 2022, fans were surprised by some of the changes included in this year’s process, including the fact that only the “top 3 winners” would be named as All Stars. This was because we had big plans for All Stars 5 from the very beginning, including adding a number of brand new, never-before-seen figures to the wave!
Mythic Legions: All Stars is a very popular offering, and Legions fans new and old appreciate the chance to get a second shot at previously sold-out figures. The challenge with All Stars, however, is that outside of a few Power-con Debut figures, these waves do not add anything “new” to the line! With only so many wave releases in a calendar year, taking up a slot for a reissues-only offering was proving to be a challenge as we strived to get all our new ideas out for fans to enjoy.
Starting all the way back in the Advent of Decay wave, we began tooling extra heads that were not actually part of the wave itself. “Tooling” is the process of creating the steel molds from where the figures are eventually made. Creating new molds takes time, so by having new heads ready to go, we are able to add brand new looks to characters using molds that already exist, but which have never been used in the line! For example, the heads for Thallyn Frostbow, Torgun Redfin, Thumpp, Thwikk, and even the new Baron Volligar 2 were all tooled at the same time that the Advent of Decay wave was, back in 2017! The new Volligar head was not used until the Illythia wave that was shown in late 2020, so that shows you how long some of these “new” parts sit around before we are able to use them.
In the years since Advent of Decay, we have amassed a nice little library of unused parts, and we decided that the new figures that would be part of the Mythic Legions: All Stars 5 wave would utilize some of these pieces! This is why we dubbed this wave “All Stars 5+”, because it included so much more than a typical All Stars wave would!
As for the Xylernian Guard. Not only was his brand-new head sculpted and tooled some time ago, we actually even teased it on our Instagram page way back in June, 2020. On that date we made a post on our social channels showing some “fine cuts” from the Arethyr wave. On the table shown in those images was a knight helmet that we oh-so-casually left lying around! Many eagle-eyed fans caught the inclusion of that head in the images and questioned what it was, but they would have to wait until July 16th, 2022, over 2 years later, to see that new head in use! This was the date when our friend, D Amazing, dropped a video reveal/review for a new figure from the Mythic Legions: All Stars 5+ wave – the Xylernian Guard! Below you can see the original images we posted teasing this new head.
The Diversity of the Fae
One of the things we’ve always loved about the Xylona’s Flock faction is that it allows us to be both focused and diverse at the same time. While the faction is largely populated by members of the “Fae” of Mythoss, we’ve been able to explore the diversity found within this race through the various releases we have done.
Xylona’s Flock are very much in touch with the world around them, and the idea of diversity within a family is certainly in line with nature itself. For the elves of Mythoss we have so far seen wood elves, whisperlings. Faerie elves, frost elves, and shadow elves. These elven sub-races are spread across the kingdom of Xylernia (or in the case of the shadow elves, beyond its borders in darker areas of the Realm), so when we created the Xylernian Guard as a unit of Xylona’s Flock who are stationed along the borders of the kingdom guarding it from threats, we loved the idea of having the elven sub-races be behind those masks. This was written directly into the bio for these soldiers:
The Xylernian Guard are charged with protecting the borders of Xylernia. Stationed at outposts across that great kingdom, these soldiers are comprised of the sub-races of elves found throughout Xylona’s Flock. Amongst their ranks there can be found wood elves, whisperlings, ghost elves, and other members of this Fae race. Xylernian Guards are each given a golden shield bearing the visage of the Great Beast from which their faction is named. These shields mark their standing in the army of Xylona, and help the Xylernian Guard maintain their vigilant watch as they shield their beloved kingdom from the evils that wish to see it destroyed.
The other notable addition to this figure, which was also made part of their story bio, is the large shield that they carry. We first sculpted “3-dimensional faction emblem” shields for the Mythic Legions Tactics: War of the Aetherblade Attila/Gorgo 2-pack set. Those figures each come with a new shield bearing a fully sculpted version of their faction’s logo, as opposed to the earlier faction shields which had the logo painted flat to the shield’s face. While sculpting the shields for the Army of Leodysseus and the Legion of Arethyr, Eric also did one for Xylona’s Flock. At the time, we were not sure where it would end up, but as we planned out the All Stars 5+ wave and the Xylernian Guard figure, it was a great chance to include this awesome new accessory with the figure.
The Xylernian Guard also makes use of some of the new library parts that were introduced in the Illythia wave, namely the “leather” boots and gloves, as well as some soft goods designed by CJESIM. The inclusion of this soft goods loin will make it easier for this figure to be displayed on a mount, and since it is fully wired, it also allows for additional posing options for display or photography. For those fans who may prefer the original plastic loin piece, either for consistency of display or for customizing purposes, the Xylernian Guard will also come with a second loin in the original plastic style.
Below you can see some of the images that Trevor Williams shot for this new figure, including a look at the accessories/head options he comes with. Because the armored visor part comes off of the helmet, you can easily swap the visors between the two heads to achieve your preferred display option.
Xylona’s Army
While they are known more for their connection to nature than for their militaristic might, you would be wrong to assume that the kingdom of the Deer does not have a formidable fighting force at its command. Amongst the Legions of Light, Xylona’s Flock is most closely aligned with the Army of Leodysseus, and the two factions have trained together over the ages, allowing both factions to benefit from each other’s strengths.
Within the army of Xylona’s Flock there is first and foremost the guards of Castle Silverhorn. Those guards are divided into three units; The Beast Guard of the outer perimeter, The Silverhorn Sentries of the outer wall, and The Royal Guards who protect the castles’ interior. The great minotaur, Asterionn, is captain of the entire force, while other high-ranking members of the Flock are charged with the day-to-day leadership of the specific units. These three units are the most prominent soldiers in Xylona’s Army, in large part because of their station at the heart of Xylernia – Castle Silverhorn.
Other areas of Xylernia are protected by those who make their homes in those wild places. For example, the green-skinned whisperlings protect the mysterious northern area of the kingdom known as the Whispervale, while the Emberdellian dwarves guard the great forest known as the Emberdale, where they make their homes in the towering trees. While these residents of Xylernia are all members of Xylona’s Flock, they are not strictly associated with the Xylernian military. They recognize Queen Artymss Silverchord as their leader, but they do not necessarily answer directly to any of her military commanders or leadership. The Xylernian Guard fall somewhere between these two segments of Xylona’s Flock.
Xylernian Guards are indeed part of the formal military structure of the faction, but their stations are remote, taking them far from the hallowed halls of Castle Silverhorn. Xylernian Guards live in the far reaches of the kingdom and the units in those areas are made up of natives to each of those locations. The Xylernian Guard unit stationed along the Whispervale is made up of whisperling warriors, while the guards of the Greentop are largely comprised of the wood elves native to that region. These various units are able to fit in perfectly with the other denizens of these areas while still maintaining their commitment to Xylona’s Flock and its overall strategies for protecting the kingdom.
Preorder Your Xylernian Guard
The preorder for the Mythic Legions: All Stars 5+ wave begins on Friday, 7/29 at 12pm EST at StoreHorsemen.com. The preorder will run until Sunday, September 4 at 11pm EST. To see all the figures from this new wave (or at least those that have been revealed so far), check out the wave page on this website.
Published on 07.22.22