6 Day Para Painting Challenge: Day 1

Hey Folks,

Simon is hosting a Market Garden Total War game soon and next Thursday we are running a trail game at the Cavaliers.  It was in discussion about forces available that we realised that apart from Stephen S's new British Para's there are very few finished Paratrooper armies around!  You cant have Market Garden without paras...so Pooch and I threw down a crazy challenge, paint 1200pts of Para's by next Thursday!

Pooch is doing the US 82nd Airborne (he had an army in his drawer...) while I managed to scrounge and trade stuff to get enough models for a 6th Fallschirmjager Kompanie...

6th FJ for Market Garden

• Kompanie HQ with CiC PzFaust, 1 Stummelwerfer 42, 3 Panzerschrecks
• Von Der Hydte with 2 Panzerfuast Trap Teams
• Full Fallschirmjager Platoon with CMD SMG Panzerfuast 
• 2/3 Fallschirmjager Paltoon, all with Panzerfausts
• Machine Gun Platoon with 2 MG42 HMG's
• Mortar Platoon with 2 Stummelwerfer 42's
• Anti-Tank Platoon with 4 PaK 40's

So as you can see above today I based everything and under coated the first platoon...so lots more to go!

Cheers
Jason

Snow Challenge: Winter Panzers Update Three - But Where has the Snow Gone?

Hey Folks,

The Snow has gone now...and so has the Winter whitewash;

Tried my hand at the license plate...note sure if this is exactly where it went?

And with my StuG's I did for the Autumn Sperrverband. I am stoked  that I remembered the way to paint them so they match!

I decided to go back to weathered and chipped three tone camo as it really is more versatile then the winter wash. White Panzers look cool, but don't fit anything other then winter and it means I am really restricted is say someone wants to do Normandy or Italy for example. I am going to stick to the Autumn colouring from now on :)

Yes this means have to re-paint the Hornisse :P

Got a painting evening coming up soon, so might do some Hummels next.

Cheers
Jason

Snow Challenge: Winter Panzers Update Two

Hey Folks,

The Snow Challenge continues with Pooch slogging through his rifle company and Craig getting some French Guns for Laselle done.

I have been a bit slack but have managed to get a game in vs Pooch's Vet US Rifles.  It was a road block as apparently he had never played it before!  After all his years of Flames of War.  I quite like Road Block as while it costs you a unit you would like to keep (in my case the Hummels) it forces the "defender" to attack to grab the objectives the attacker can usually mass to defend fairly easily.

I got distracted by the late arrive of Pooch's reserves and the massed infantry attack on one of my objectives and left the other one poorly defended...and it cost me the game.  Overall a fun mission, and one I would suggest people give a run more often.

I have been painting as well, and people on the Battlefront forums have requested a step by step of my white wash technique.  Its really easy :)

Step 1: Just paint on streaks of watered down white.  I try not to get it in any cranny's

Step 2: paint a few streaks of GW Gryphon Sepia Ink along the panels and into the nooks and cranny's , just dont overdo it!

Step 3: Go back over with more white in streaks, but over less of the surface area to give a more layered effect.  I left any areas the crew might grab (like hatch cover edges) clear as the whitewash would wear off.  I did paint the top edges of the armour as while this would wear it helps to highlight the model.

Almost finished Hornisse's, just need Balkenkrauz, unit markings and mud

IS-2's Beware :)

Next up is a Platoon of Panzer IV's. These are still work in progress but are at the first stage of whitewashing.

So hoping to finish these off tomorrow, and then do some conversion work on the Command Panzer IV

Cheers
Jason

Snow Challenge: Winter Panzers Update Number One

Hey Folks,

So its snowing...time to get started on Pooch's Snow Challenge

My Backyard

 Given that its snowing, and that I already have a Winter table and that my Cossacks are a winter force...Winter Panzers were inevitable...

Tried my hand at some whitewashing.  Its standard Dunkelgelb/ Rott Braun/ Green  base colours then with  multiple washes of white, some white with chestnut mixed in and then a white glaze. 

Still have to add the Balkenkruz

And a better close up shot. 

More panzers base coated (though I cheated as I bought them this way...)

And more Panzers, Mobelwagons, a Hummel/ Hornisse (I magnetised the barrel so I could swap it out) and a few Hummels to finish building.  I'm going on the record that while the new plastic Schurzen looks great, its a pain in the ass to build!

So no work today as its "essential travel only". I plan to get cracking on the other 3 Tanks and the 2iC that are base coated.

Cheers
Jason

Flames of War Panzerkompanie for Conquest

Hey Folks,

Real Life has been a tad nuts recently, so I have been especially crap at blogging.

Not much progress has been made in all my various projects :(  I have however committed to doing a German Panzerkompanie for Conquest.  Its probably going to look like this:

1750pts Panzerkompanie (Fortress Europe)

• HQ Panzer IV's
• 4 Panzer IV's
• 4 Panzer IV's
• 2 Mobelwagons
• Full Panzerpioneers
• 3 Hornisse
• Some sort of Recon

The Panzer IV's and Panzerpioneers are the core of the list, while I have been trying out various support units to see what works.  It looks like the Hornisse might be the go, though I did like the Hummels in a game I played vs Pooch the other night...

What I like is that the army is all Panzer IV Chassis...cause while the Panthers, Tigers and Tiger II's got all the glory it was the Panzer IV that was the workhorse.  Its a cool tank and looks awesome "en masse"

Hope to get some Project work up soon, especially as its about to snow in Christchurch again and Pooch is muttering something about a "Snow Challenge" :)

Cheers
Jason

BFG: Star Wars Campaign Update 4

Hey Folks,

Turn 8 has been resolved and saw some major action!

• The Vaagari 1st and 2nd Fleets successfully raid Csilla, defended by the Imperial 1st Fleet.  The Vaagari win the engagement and temporarily drive the Imperials out of the system. 
• Meanwhile the The Chiss 2nd fleet sneaks in the "back door" and successfully raids the Vaagari base system of Cormit while its defence fleet is busy at Csilla.
• The Chiss 1st Fleet assaults and captures Cam'co (which I have mislabled as Schesa)
• The Rebel 1st Fleet liberates Oyokol
• The Rebel 2nd Fleet activates at Rhigar
• The Imperial 2nd Fleet occupies Kinoss
• The Imperial 3rd Fleet evacuated Cam'co before the Chiss assault, and moved to defend Naporar 

So we see the following promotions;

• The Chiss Admiral Than now has 18 Renown points and is promoted to Sub Sector Commander.  This gives him leadership 9 and 2 Re-Rolls.
• The Unnamed Vaagari Commander has 11 Renown points and is also promoted to Sub Sector Commander.
• Rebel Admiral Mari'Nara has not gained any Renown (due to his "Fabian Strategy", ie cowardice) and languishes at 10 Renown points and the rank of Battle Group Commander
• Group-Captain Pallaeon lost the Cam'co System (Rebel intelligence has heard something about "Four Kingdoms Strategy") as well as been temporarily driven from Csilla.  Through shrewd management of his resources he has maintained his Renown at 9 points, and his tank of Battle Group Commander

So on to Turn 9, and the action should continue to heat up!

Cheers
Jason

Epic A: Kult of Speed - Skorchas out the Wazoo

Hey Folks,

Done a bit more work on the Deathskulls for Epic Armageddon, this time a Kult of Speed full of Skorcha trikes.

These are built out of most of a Warbike stuck to the back of an Old Skool Battlewagon to make a fat ass Trike. The Skorcha turrets are built out of mostly 40k Shoota's with BFG ship masts for the skorcha barrel

The single buggy (in the middle) was built out of two Old Skool Battlewagon front ends chopped up added to another warbike.  The twin Plasma cannons are from the Warband sprue

Ready to burn!

WIP shot to show the different element's used

So they are fast, and nasty with a 4+ Fire Fight value and the Ignore Cover rule but are Light Vehicles (so vulnerable to AP weapons) and only have a 15cm range!  They may take a bit of getting used to but if I can use them in concert with another assault formation they should kick ass :)

Next up - A Landa...

Cheers
Jason