WW2 Matilda Tank MkIIs – Part 1

I can’t recall the brand, but these chaps are destined for Crete.  The hatches were fiddly, and the commander and his open hatches have been well coated with PVA glue over the top of the initial super glue I used.  I am also trying out the nail board technique for mounting the models while I paint them.  Easy for the turrets, but the hulls are a bit heavy and I also wish I had used bigger nails to give me something more to hold on to.

The base coat is Tamiya Flat Brown XF10, the same as I use on my Australians (which these tanks will be supporting).

These models are my first attempt at 15mm AFVs.

WW2 Australian Infantry 15mm – Part 2

Finished!  Well, one packet anyhow.  I agonised over how to base them and finally settled on FOW medium sized stands of four figures and FOW small sized stands for pairs and singles.  The singles I want as platoon commanders for Crossfire.

The next decision was what scenic material to use.  I ended up using premixed plaster of the type I use when doing odd jobs around the house.  It worked really well and took the Tamiya Flat Earth XF52 paint easily.  I then used watered down PVA glue and sprinkled sand over it.  Next I did a patchy dry brush of Vallejo Stone Grey and finally a sparse sprinkle of some yellowish flock before adding the odd bit of scrub.

Based, but before sand applied:

And now ready for action:

Field Fencing – Part 2

So much for this being a Xmas project, unless I count it as Xmas in July, but I have now finished the ten strips of fences I made from the Peco kit.

The assembled fences were given a base coat of Tamiya Flat Brown XF10 after I had apples a layer of PVA glue to the base and sprinkled on sand to give it some body.  On the base I then painted Tamiya Flat Earth XF52 and on the fence itself I dry brushed Vallejo Stone Grey VJxxx.  Watered down PVA glue was then applied to the base and my standard mix of flock sprinkled on.  I wanted a more clumped look and tried to do a second application on one segment, but gave up in favour of applying some bids of random shrubbery.

Sand applied, ready to paint:

Painted and ready to flock:

Finished:

This last photo reminds me of playing the boardgame Agricola.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricola_(board_game) All I am missing is the sheep or cattle, which reminds me, I need to make some ploughed fields and similar terrain pieces.

Airfix 8th Army Vickers Machine Guns

These are old and I found them loose in a box of WW2 figures and decided they deserved basing.

I recall carefully cutting away the front legs of the machine gun and for some reason I had to reconstruct one of the gunners.

Prussian 12 IR 2nd Brandenburg

Last year I bought a bag of Battle Honors 15mm Prussian Line Infantry Marching (BPR02) which turned out to be enough to do three units for Napoleon’s Battles.  I cleaned them up within a few days of purchase and was dismayed that some had lost their bayonets.  Never mind, I decided these should be the ones I painted first. 

I wanted to do a reserve regiment and settled on the 2^nd Brandenburg which was ultimately brought on to the line as regiment number 12.  Apparently they wore a bit of a variety of uniform and equipment, but at least a good proportion had been outfitted from the 1^st Brandenburg depot as well as captured French equipment (well, that’s my story, even down to the inspiration for the flag).

I am pleased with the result.  The photos have lightened the blue of the uniform somewhat, but the colour is actually a much darker Prussian blue, as you would expect.

First, two pictures prior to basing and varnishing.

And finally the finished deal, in column, line and march column ready for their Napoleon's Battles encounter.

The last three photos were taken in natural light.  The officer in the third rank in the last picture is saying that the flock is greener on the other side of the board.

Field of Glory – Immortals

Although I’ve had the rules for a few years and been an Ancients players for decades (6^th and 7^th Edition plus DBA) it was only yesterday that I had the chance to get my Greeks out and fight Richard’s Persians using Field of Glory ancient wargame rules.

I hadn’t completed reading the rules (probably only a quarter of the way in) and Richard hadn’t played them recently so it was interesting to see the rule book used to the fullest degree.  I would have to say I was very impressed and we were able to work out nearly everything without too much trouble, however I am now reading them in detail.

The game opened well and my Classical Greeks (all 600 points of them) marched into battle in three lines.

Once the skirmishing had been resolved, my central Hoplites came to grips with the Persian Immortals and broke them without too much trouble.  Game over ... or so I thought.

Mopping up on the right met with disaster, the general in command dying in the fighting.  Total collapse on that flank.

Then in the centre and left, despite some real desperate fighting, the general there too died an heroic death and all remaining Greeks broke and fled.  This left only some of the skirmishes to cover the rout.  True to their name, the Persian Immortals rallied and came back to claim victory.

For a first game it was incredibly successful and compared to my experiences with other rules, had all I liked about them without the negatives – it felt like a battle.

The Greek miniatures are from my Tin Soldier collection.

Blitzkrieg Commander Game Write-Up

There are no photos from the game Richard and I played on Saturday afternoon, 12 May, but to me the essence of a good game is if it produces a compelling narrative.

In late 1944 a German counterattack had established a bridgehead that the Soviets were determined to eliminate.  A large force of armour and infantry backed by significant artillery assets was ordered to undertake the mission, but got off to a slow and confused start.  The Soviet barrage hit just as their forces were closing in on the enemy landing square on their lead elements, throwing the Soviet infantry into confusion who through, a command blunder, then fell back, quiet understandable, but against orders – they were of course expected to attack through the friendly fire.  Some of the T34s took a number of hits and stalled, but there were plenty of tanks and they proceeded to literally overrun the forward German positions. The German Tiger tanks then entered the fray and started to knock out the T34s, however the Soviet JS IIs which had been holding themselves in reserve (the only way to justify their tardy progress and save their commander from the firing squad) then appeared and took out the Tigers.  The German commander then suffered a command blunder in ordering the 88s, weapons that could have matched the JS IIs, to make a partial withdrawal.  Again, a move that was very understandable, but against orders.  Such a move could only result in the collapse of the German position and therefore nicely brought the game to a close within the allotted eight turns.

The game played well even though we were a bit rusty on the rules.

Richard organised the game so I haven't paid any attention to the points or Order of Battle for the forces involved.  For me it was all about the game telling a story.