American Infantry step by step with wash technique.

My next American project after the Priests is to get some infantry done. It gives me a pause from painting US Tanks. I used the crew of the Priests to test out a technique.
First I cleaned and filed off any flash and then painted the entire figure with Khaki. As you can see I mount the figures for easier handling.

Base Colours.
Khaki over the entire figure. Then the webbing, Skin, Boots and wood on rifles, shovel (I used the same colour for them both), then Brown Violet and Panzer Grey for metal parts on rifles, tommy guns and a pistol.

Looks very basic and flat at this stage.

Ink wash over base colours is next. I mixed Brown shade with some black shade. Just to make a darker brown really and painted it over the entire miniature.

You could make the choice to stop at this point as they look not bad at all. A big improvement over the flat look before this step. But they looked a little dirty to me. These pics actually show that I painted the Brown Violet back over the Helmets and Zooks. Actually the front 2 figures with rifles where taken to the next stage


Next was painting towards a highlight.
I wanted my figures to pop a little more so I go over them with the base colours again but this time painting less area. Just looking for more raised surfaces really. I added Khaki to the Brown Violet to highlight the Helmets and Zooks and also used German Camo Beige to add small highlights to the Khaki Jackets.

Close up they look crude but this is a super duper enlargement. Next is basing but that will be in another Post.

All  colours used (Black Shade is missing from this line up). In retrospect after the base colours you could consider spraying (or painting) a gloss varnish to help the ink style wash flow. Some gamers are using that technique for shading German Late War tanks so it may work just as well on these figures.  
Cheers

Priest M2A1 105mm

This week I completed three Priests which make a good start to adding some Artillery to my American Flames of War options. I had 1 blister in my 'round to it' box that I purchased a while back and my local supplier (Comics NT) just happend to have 2 more when I went and had looksee last weekend. These 2 happened to have the Plastic tracks and the old blister, metal ones. I actually really like the plastic tracks and .50cal MG over the old metal parts. I intend to get 3 more Piests to give me the option for the full sized platoon eventually of course. I normally like to paint an entire platon at the same time but as 3 can be used I just got stuck into these models. It was a good chance also to try out painting US uniforms for the first time. Something I was keen to try.

One gun crew figure was actually missing a hand (poor fella). But I used him anyway and just positioned him so it would be very hard to see.

Some of the stowage added is from Brevet, drum and tracks are Battlefront and the larger roll I made from milliput. Most historic images show Priests with LOTS of stowage.
One of my dilemas was how to place any allied stars. I usually (but not always) try and find an historical refrence for this and it turns out that you have many options. No Stars, 1 star on the front or sides, small, big, circled or non circled or even roughly painted out with black paint. Lots of options.

 I like these Concord Armour at War series for reference and inspiration. They have colour side views in them as well as loads of old photos.

Cheers

The White Mouse is dead.

An amazing personality of WWII.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-08/tributes-flowing-for-nancy-wake/2829254

My first Early War Flames of War game.

In a word AWESOME!

Points: 1500

Forces: German Light Tanks vs SS Pioneer Infantry (source for both was Blitzkrieg)

Mission: Fighting Withdrawal (rolled randomly).

Table: Built using the ideas from Blitzkrieg. Roads, Hills, Forests (bog on a 1), Stream from long edge to long edge 3 bridges, 1 Ford, but trying out the Tree Lined idea (which seems to work really well so I will be using that again), and a standing crop.

I have never been a big fan of the Fighting Withdrawal mission. The defender has to defend 3 objectives across the table. Sure Objectives get gradually withdrawn but until then defending the entire width of the table is a big task.  The defender also has a shrinking force which makes it harder to defend with. I am not sure what my fix would be…maybe a platoon in ambush would help improve it.

 

Lists.

My list (Tank List)

HQ 1 x Befhelpanzer 1 x Panzer II

Combat 1 2 x Panzer II, 1 x Panzer 1

Combat 2 as above but an upgrade to one platoon with Panzer II Late.

3 x Panzer III E

2 x BunkerFlak

4 x 8 Rads (2 Platoons of 2)

Limited Stukas

SS List (Infantry)

2 Lots of SS Pioneer Infantry FT with Supply trucks

Arty 4 x 105 CT

4 x 2cm Halftracks

Stug Platoon (2 x Stugs and 1 Cmnd Halftrack)

1 x 2 gun AT gun Platoon (door knockers I think)

Priority Stukas (with Schwerepunkt)

2 Minefields used as the defensive item allotment allowed by the Supply trucks.

How did it roll?

I pulled of a win by taking an objective on around Turn 4.

I didn’t think I was going to do as well as I did in this game. I went and stacked most of my force on one side of the table in an effort to take a removable objective early. This was an obvious choice for me as that end of the table was isolated with the Tree lined stream blocking Line of Sight to supporting platoons except at bridges. If the game goes too long my platoons will only shrink in size or slowly (or quickly) be destroyed. When this happens my attack/assault power is so reduced it is hard to be affective.

My plan miraculously worked. I reckon for the most part I got lucky. I managed to pin the Arty and it stayed pinned for a few turns and was withdrawn as the first platoon to be removed. My Stukas seemed to turn up more often than my opponents despite being limited and his being Priority with the Schwerpunkt upgrade. I thought I was taking a big risk by trying to close the distance across open ground as well. I faced 2 x Concealed AT guns, indirect Artillery, Stukas and behind a hill 2 rock hard Early War Stugs to counter attack (yikes!). I thought my Bunker Flaks would have drawn more attention from Stukas and Artillery but they managed to get up the hill after the AT gun platoon was destroyed by lots of shooting. Destroying the AT gun unit caused the loss of the Companys 2iC and an Arty Observer. This left only the Stug Platoon to contest the Objective.

A platoon of SS Pio Infantry headed on over towards this objective to help out but by then I had 3 tanks keeping any eye out for them and they faced a stack of tank MG bullets zipping into them. A flame team did manage to bail my 1iC but not destroy his tank. Def Fire was also too much to allow any assault.

Here are some game pics...

Deployed ready to roll. White paper is a Mine Field.

Stuka Attack!! 4 Tanks under the template...Yikes!

Near end game. Closing down on the left side Objective. The 2iC is on the bridge keeping an eye on the Infantry trying to rescue the StuGs.

2 gamers who had lots of fun. I am the four eyed fat head with the hat.

Cheers

German 15cm Artillery Platoon

Here is the platoon that was re-named the Mini Thermo Nuclear Device after it's first use in a game. I completed this a few months ago but never got around to taking any pics. My advice to any one who buys this Battlefront box set is to use some card to pack the holes for the Infantry bases as they are fairly deep, if you don't the crews feet will be in mini pits. Actually the pics remind of a few details I need to attend to like the camo material on the observer helmets.

US 76mm Sherman Platoon.

Completed these this week and gradually growing my American collection. I picked a model magazine a while back that had an article by Steve Zaloga. His model had an Allied star on the roof of the turret. It looked in betweein the small circle star and the larger one from the Battlefront decals. I used the smaller one and due to the stowage I added I didn't bother adding the large rear deck star.

My recent FOW games.

In the last 3 weeks I have managed 3 games of Flames of War. I am limited to only playing in the afternoons at my local club due to 'she who must be obeyed' working that day. I used to manage at least 2 games when I attended but not the case at the moment.

1^st game was 2,000 points MidWar. Me with Hungarian Tanks (with German Stukas and 3 x Marder II) versus Soviet Mech horde. Game was encounter and due to my deployment I could see the game would be over for me by Turn 3 as I faced, from memory a full sized T-34 platoon move towards one of the objectives on the right side of the table. I was a tad rusty at the game with not having a game for a while before this one. I am also a very new Hungarian player with not many games using my midwar Hungarian Tanks (despite having them for a while).

Future projects for them is definitely getting an infantry platoon completed. It should fill the infantry void in the list. The game panned out as predicted and I even managed to lose my 1iC in an assault on Infantry. 2 tanks hit with top armour 1 facing AT2 in assault and yep I roll snake eyes. That’s the way it rolls sometimes.

Next Sunday game I tried a 1,750 Late War Fallshirmjager list from Hells Highway. I have never tried the Fearless Trained version so made a list that had the 5 FV Stugs and the 5 CT Halftrack recce tanks. Other support was 4 x Heavy Mortars. 2 x Regular FJ Infantry (Full sized) and 1 x FJ Pioneer platoon. I maxed out with the HQ support options and come game time I made a KG platoon with 3 stump mortars, 3 x Panzershrecks, and some FJ infantry teams. Sometimes the most unlikely platoons/teams on paper can surprise you in games and the Stump Mortars managed to do that in this game. I faced a really good SS Infantry list. One of the better ones I have faced at our club for a while. From memory it had 3 Platoons of SS infantry, a small FJ platoon, 3 x Pak 40, 3 x Nebs platoon, 3 x Flak gun platoon (ground mounted 24inch range ones) and 3 x Marder III (which became a real nuisance). Game was free for all and I was defender. I dug in as soon as I could and moved my Recce forward on a flank to shoot up the AA platoon guns. A ruski village was used for some SS infantry to approach my table side but they got sent packing by an FJ assault and the Stugs and Recce vehicle moved into a position that meant that the village approach was no longer feasible. The Stugs and Marders traded shots and a Stug went up but I only managed bails on them. It wasn’t until the Stump Mortars managed to range in and get a destruction result that the Platoon bugged out. We ran out of time but it was a very enjoyable game.

My most recent game was 1500points midwar commanding a German Armoured Recon list. 2 platoons of Panzer II Luch, a platoon of 2 x 8 Rads, 3 x Hornisse, 3 x Panzerwefers and also my very first game use of a Heavy Artillery unit for the Germans (15cm guns). We later nick named this unit the Thermal Nuclear Tactical Strike unit. I faced an Australian Div Cav list with 2 x platoons of Carriers, 3 x Grants, 2 x platoons of Crusaders, Air-Support (which showed up around 3 times but did nothing), and 4 x 25pdr platoon. Table was Italy style with a Village and hills and roads and forests and a wheat field. Mission was Hasty Assault.

It was a total slog fest. After only bailing 1 Grant from my Laser ambush (Hornisse) I had a sinking feeling that this was going to go pear shaped over the next 3 turns. By turn 2 the Hornisse Platoon was no more. But incrediblly I managed a narrow win in the end. The Div Cav lost the Grants when they bunched up and the small Nuclear strike managed to get them and the 1iC under the template. My reserves arrived late and slowly. I did manage a sneaky ploy to distract from all the attention that one of  my weakly held objectives was getting by double timing a Luch platoon across the table (after it arrived from reserves). Then attacking and assaulting the 25pdr platoon placed on it. They took out 2 guns and even pinned them for a turn but eventually got bailed by a Crusader that moved away from the Objective they where pressuring (as I had hoped) then assaulted by the independant Arty HQ Command Team.

This game though was one of those classics that just make you want to play another game. It was really enjoyable.

Cheers