Kings of War Slow Grow Challenge: Introduction

The Kings of War Slow Grow Army Building Challenge – Let’s Get Started!

Fully painted fantasy armies are one of the great joys of miniature wargaming. They look fantastic on the table, but for some people, the thought of building and painting a large army can be intimidating. It’s a lot of miniatures, after all!

Well, if you’ve ever looked at a fully painted Kings of War army and thought “that looks amazing, but I could never do it”, this challenge is for you!

On the other hand, if you’re reading this as a grizzled Kings of War veteran, with multiple armies and years of experience…this challenge is also for you! Maybe you’ve sometimes thought “I wish I had more people to play with”. The slow grow is the perfect way to guide new people into the hobby, and mentor them as they build their first army.

What Is the Slow Grow Army Building Challenge?

The goal is simple: build and paint a 2000-point army for Kings of War 4^th edition over the course of 24 weeks.

Rather than trying to tackle that all at once, we’ll be breaking the process down into manageable, bite-sized chunks:

• The 24 weeks will be split into four stages of six weeks each
• The goal in each stage is to complete roughly 500 points’ worth of models

Working in stages reduces the intimidation factor and helps keep motivation levels up. Each six-week block is a complete, achievable hobby goal in its own right, rather than a distant summit that never seems to get any closer.

We’re Building Armies Too (and Sharing the Whole Journey)

Four members of Team Mantic will be taking part in the challenge, with each of us starting on a brand-new army.

We’ll be sharing weekly updates here on the blog, where you’ll see what we’re working on, how we’re approaching the hobby, and how our armies are coming together over time.

It’s not our aim here to showcase perfectly polished studio armies. Far from it – we want to show what steady, realistic progress looks like, and prove that a sizeable army is achievable with a bit of structure and consistency.

Why Take Part? New Players and Veterans Alike

If you’re an existing Kings of War player, the slow grow is a great excuse to start a new project. A new edition is the perfect time to try out a faction you’ve never collected before or experiment with a different painting style. Working on it alongside the wider community should help with motivation and a shared sense of progress.

Importantly, it’s also an ideal opportunity to bring friends into the game in a low-pressure way. If you know someone who’s expressed an interest in Kings of War, but is yet to dip their toe in, now is the perfect time to bring them onboard!

(A casual tussle between friends.)

If you’re a new player, the slow grow is designed to remove some of the biggest barriers to getting started. Large armies can look intimidating, but they don’t have to be built all at once. You don’t need to be a fast painter, and you don’t need to know every detail of the rules before you begin. You can start small, learn as you go, and build confidence with each finished unit.

Just as importantly, you don’t need to wait until the end of the 24 weeks to start playing. With a small force, you can already be getting games in, either through Champions, if you choose to start with a Champions Company box, or through Ambush, which is a dedicated mode for playing Kings of War games at lower points values. You can be rolling dice and learning the game while the rest of your army takes shape.

The 24-Week Roadmap at a Glance

Here’s how the challenge will progress:

Stage One (Weeks 1–6):

• Milestone Date: Friday 20^th March
• Start with either a Champions Company, or roughly 500 points of Kings of War models (most likely three or four units).
• This is the “getting started” stage. You’ll be assembling your first models, deciding on a colour scheme and, after six weeks, hitting your first milestone.

Stage Two (Weeks 7–12):

• Milestone Date: Friday 1^st May
• Expand your fledgling force to 1000 points.
• While you continue to paint, you’ll also be able to start playing with the models you painted in stage one – you can try Champions if you chose to start with a Champions box, or you can cut your teeth on low-points games of Kings of War via the Ambush mode.

Stage Three (Weeks 13–18):

• Milestone Date: Friday 12^th June
• Grow your army to 1500pts.
• An exciting stage! You’ll be able play 1000 point games of Kings of War, while also painting up special units like heroes, monsters and war machines to add to your growing force.

Stage Four (Weeks 19–24):

• Milestone Date: Friday 24^th July
• The final stretch to 2000 points.
• The victory stage! By now, you should have an idea of how your army plays, and what units you want to add to bring it up 2000 points. Nothing can stop you now!

What You’re Building Towards: Summer Games and the Fate of Pannithor

Simply building and painting an army for its own sake is a rewarding experience. But we also have a clear destination for this challenge. Around the time that it concludes, we’ll be running a global participation campaign over the summer, giving players the chance to submit the results of their games and directly influence the ongoing narrative of Pannithor.

Build your army during the slow grow, then take it to the table and help decide what happens next.

How to Get Involved in the Slow Grow Challenge

Don’t be a mere spectator. We want you to get involved!

Here’s how:

• Choose a faction, plan your first purchases, and get started.
• Tell a friend about the challenge and get them involved too.
• Follow the challenge stages at your own pace.
• Share your progress with the wider community.

For that last step, there are a few different ways you can share:

• Firstly, by posting pictures of your slow grow army on Facebook or Instagram, using the hashtag #kowslowgrow2026.
• Secondly, you can create a hobby thread on the community-run Kings of War forum, in the “Showcase” section. We’ll be keeping an eye on this throughout the challenge. Be sure to put “Slow Grow Challenge” in the title of your thread.
• Thirdly, you can also email updates on your progress to us directly, at [email protected]. Please note, we won’t be able to reply to every email we get, but we will certainly read them all!

Throughout the 24 weeks, we’ll be picking out some of your projects and featuring them on the Mantic blog and social accounts. Let’s celebrate our progress together at every stage!

Early or Late Getting Started? No Problem!

Officially speaking, today is day one of the challenge, meaning that our goal date for completing the first stage is six weeks from now, Friday 20^th March.

However, we know that some of you have already started building new armies for Kings of War 4^th edition. And we’re sure that some of you will be reading this for the first time in the future, when the challenge is already underway.

If you’ve already started a new army for the new edition, that’s fantastic – you have a head start! By all means still join the challenge. If you like, you can adjust the goals, and work towards a 2500 point force (or larger!) by the summer.

If you’re coming to this late, no worries! You can simply get started, and move forwards at your own pace. We’d love for you to join the challenge and share your progress nonetheless.

Games at lower points levels will still very much count towards the summer campaign, so it’s no problem if you don’t have a 2000 point army ready by then. You won’t be excluded!

Coming Up Next

In next week’s blog article, we’ll focus on how to get started, particularly if you’re new to Kings of War. We’ll give suggestions on what to buy, the different places you can find the rules, and look at whether Champions or Ambush makes the most sense as your first step.

The following week, we’ll introduce the four challengers from Team Mantic and reveal the armies we’ve chosen. In subsequent weeks, we’ll start sharing our hobby updates.

It’s time to clear some desk space, dig out your brushes, and get ready. The slow grow journey starts now – come join us!