Battlefield Academy.

Now then,

Something a bit different today. I was on tinterweb the other day and saw a write up of this great game over on the Bleaseworld blog. Its a cool strategy game designed for the ipad, but works equally well on the PC. Really simple game that's mega addictive!

The intro screen before the missions remind me of the old commando comics from when I was a nipper! Cool.

Briefing map, again cool.

The battle itself, its almost like playing a tabletop wargame, but on the PC. 

So if like me your strapped for opponents, id give this game a try, great fun, and pretty cheap too.

Steve 

Panther G (late war)

Now then,

This week has been really busy for me at work, not to mention my normal laptop has had a bit of a meltdown and is away being sorted out. I'm using my new laptop, which unfortunately doesn't have the same software on it, so the pictures probably wont look great......

Anyway, the Panther tank is probably the coolest looking tank of WW2, not to mention being arguably the best tank of the war.  I've got myself a battlefront 15mm model.

Heres a few different colour schemes:

As with all German vehicles there seems to be alot of variation in colour schemes, I have based mine on the one to the left, but with slightly different shades of green and brown.

I think ill get away with it!

The problem with tanks in museums is that they probably get repainted every now and then, and were probably damaged and repainted when they first arrived, so im thinking there's a good chance the colours on them might not be 100% accurate anyway....














Heres mine ( minus transfers.... in the post somewhere!)

I was tempted to start putting dots all over it, but resisted, and im pretty happy with how it turned out. Ill have an update as soon as my transfers turn up, ill be putting them on the PUMA as well.

Next on the painting table will be the Soviet hordes.

Cheers for looking,
Steve

Sdkfz 234/1 and 234/2 Puma Armoured car

Now then,

I have spent today painting this vehicle up, as its the first late war vehicle i've done, naturally I did a wee bit of research. I had an idea that all the late war German vehicles were painted in a sort of "standard" ambush camouflage scheme, with dots everywhere...

This has proved not to be the case. Here's a few images I found on the net, click for a bigger picture.

There are a few variants shown above, but im guessing that, as with all things German in WW2, there was a lot of variation in colour schemes.

Here's what I have done.....

Sdkfz 234/1 Armed with a 20mm cannon, and a coaxial MG.

Sdkfz 234/2 PUMA.
An up armoured version, with a fully enclosed turret, armed with a 50mm AT gun

I really enjoyed painting this one, a great model, Battlefront (FOW) get quite a bit of stick but in all fairness, their models are pretty bloody good.

Next up I will be painting up my Panther, and I will have to have a go at the ambush scheme.

Anyway, thanks for looking,

Steve

Bolt Action Page - HERE

BOLT ACTION Update German Grenadiers

Now then,

Over a few evenings this week i've been working away at getting these lot finally finished. im happy to report that all my WW2 German infantry are now done.



The Wehrmacht soon caught on with the SS and their camouflage patterns, and made their own. What they came up with was the splinter pattern, as seen here, I think it evolved during the course of the war, and there were different versions made.













I have painted my platoon to represent a typical platoon fighting on the Eastern front, with a mismatch of German grey kit and bits of camouflage clothing mixed in here and there.

German Grenadier Platoon 1942 - 44-5?

The Platoon Commander and 2 additional men

Forward artillery officer

 Medical officer, sniper pair, Panzershcrek team.

Grenadier squad. #1 (NCO and nine additional men, including 2 MG42 teams)

Grenadier squad. #2 (NCO and nine additional men, including 2 MG42 teams)

Grenadier squad. #3 (NCO and nine additional men, including 2 MG42 teams)

 2 x MG42 MMG teams

 For use later in the war (1944+) Panzerfaust armed grenadiers.

The full platoon, I think I might add an antitank gun, and I already have an armoured car and a Panther to add to this lot, more of which later.

All my stuff for Bolt Action can be viewed here - Bolt Action Page

Cheers for looking,
Steve

Bolt Action update Waffen SS

Now then,

I've been cracking on with my Bolt Action Germans over the last few days, and the Heer infantry I need to get finished are almost done, more of which in a later post.

In the meantime between painting i've re-done a platoons worth of Waffen SS as an alternate force, full of veteran fanatical infantry.  I painted these originally as a FOW army, but since I switched to Blitzkrieg commander I found I had a few Infantry spare, so here we are, newly rebased for bolt action, repainted in places, due to chipped paint and given a coat of matt varnish.


The Waffen SS made great use of camouflage, and even patented their own types so that the Wehrmacht couldn't use it!

I have painted my troops in summer oakleaf camouflage, as you can see, its quite a difficult pattern to do in 15mm..(it is for me anyway!)

I believe that the SS were the first troops to have proper helmet covers, and theirs were reversible too, with summer oakleaf on one side and Autumn oakleaf on the other side.

Their smocks were also reversible.

So heres the troops:

Platoon commander and 2 additional men.

 MG42 team

10 man veteran squad, including 2 LMG (MG42) teams.

8 man Veteran squad, including 1 LMG (MG42) team.

8 Man veteran squad, including 1 LMG (MG42) team.

The full platoon, ready to take the fight to the Bolsheviks!

The updated and expanded Heer Grenadier platoon will be making an appearance over the weekend.

All my Bolt action stuff can be seen here - Bolt Action Page

Thanks for looking,
Steve

February is BOLT ACTION month!

Now then,

Ok so back to some historical's for me this month, ill be cracking on with my 15mm German force for Bolt Action, pretty much picking up where I left off last August, to be honest im so close to being finished, im not sure why i just didn't get them done ......

Anyway here's a pic of what needs painting up.

10 bods, an MG42 team, a Kubelwagon, a Puma armoured car with optional turret, and of course a Panther tank. Hopefully ill get the infantry done pretty quick, as I want to take a bit of time with the vehicles.

Slightly off topic I know, but the quality of my normal brand of paintbrushes seems to have dropped (GW), so much so that im struggling to paint with some of them. I got a set of pro art miniature brushes last year as a possible replacement, but they are totally shite. Synthetic garbage that splits in the centre, and curls up at the end.

So I have taken the advice of fellow bloggers, and got myself some of these :

Windsor and Newton, Series 7.

Bloody expensive but hopefully a sound investment, you will notice I got some brush cleaner/restorer too. We will see if they are any good in the next few days.

Cheers
Steve