Posts Tagged ‘Battlefront’

I know, I know I`m still doing the Normandy board

thing lol. Its been on hold for a while but my

creative juice has returned and its back to the

grind stone. I have been working on a small river/

stream and its taken some time to get it right. I hate

the lovely blue rivers you get on most wargaming boards

and wanted something a bit more disgusting looking to be

exact. Thus I need multiple coats of varnish over lots of

greens and browns because that’s the colour of the nearest

stream to me.

Click on a picky to enlarge:

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Now I have got the basis of the river in place I can

start to work on the bocage around it. I hope to cover

a lot of the river with overgrown stuff so it really looks

like a silted up, stagnant , slow running river.

Loads more work to do on the trench section and gun battery pits

but that will be a lot easier to do than the river.

If you have some British recon in WW2 and your

fighting in Normandy and beyond you just have to have

a SOD(Sawn Off Daimler). Why, because it looks like something

from a Mad Max road movie and that’s super cool.

In an effort to keep up with fast moving columns and a lack

of small agile vehicles the British removed the turrets off

Daimler armoured cars and came up with this crazy vehicle. Often

used as a command vehicle this thing was all about speed and wind

in your hair. Basically find a panzer and then drive like hell.

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Mine has a PIAT weapon(more for morale than anything else)

and some additional aerials.

I have been wanting to do a tutorial on painting

for ages and I finally remembered to take photos of

my work as I went along. This tutorial is aimed at

getting a basic to good standard on a 15mm Sherman or

any allied vehicle without using an airbrush. I use

a combination of Vallejo and GW paints.

Step 1: I assembled more or less entire the tank.Some

people leave the tracks off for painting.

Click on any picture in the tutorial to enlarge.

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I sprayed the

entire tank with Chaos Black primer. Leave for 24hrs.

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Step 2: Using a brush touch up any areas that the spray

can missed with Chaos Black GW paint. Just brush it on.

Step 3 : With a flat brush gently brush on Vallejo 924

Russian uniform over the whole tank. Please note at this

stage its not going to look great but bare with it. Also ensure

you brush strokes are in one direction down the length of the tank.

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Step 4: Another coat of Vallejo 924 exactly the same

as before. It should now start to look better.

Step 5: Finally another coat of 924 and the colour should

be perfect.

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Step 6: GW Agrax wash(basically a black wash). Gently put

it in all the small gaps and places shadow will sit. Do

not wash it all over the tank ! Don’t forget to do the tracks and

areas in-between and behind.

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Step 7: Drybrush 886 Vallejo Green Grey using a flat brush

over all the raised parts. This will give you a good

highlight against the 924.

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Step 8:
Decals time. Carefully cut out to size and put on

your decals. I put mine on with Micro Set and leave them to

dry over night.

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Step 9:
Next up is the tracks. Some people as mentioned add

the tracks later making it easier to get your paint brush into

the area under the mud guards. Its up to you but I find it

possible with a small brush. Paint the tracks black.

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Step 10 : First I use a HB pencil to literally

draw on the tracks leaving a silver shiny track look. Don’t go mad.

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Step 11: Vallejo 818 Red leather dry brushed(small amount) onto the

tracks.

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Step 12 : I then stuck on the wooden stowage and painted it Vallejo

Flat Brown. You can paint the tool handles at the same time. Later

highlight with GW Tallarn sand or Vallejo New Wood.

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Step 13 : Tool heads and clasps are painted GW Leadbelcher and later

highlighted with GW Chainmail. Finally add an agrax wash.

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Step 14: Optional weathering. Light dry brush of Flat earth on tracks

and lower running gear and bottom areas of the tank.

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Step 15: Optional adding crew. The commander was added and I used GW

green stuff to back fill the large gap in the commander’s cupola and help

stick the twin opening hatches on. The commander was painted with English Uniform

followed by an agrax wash. I used GW Tallarn sand for highlights.

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Step 16 : Testors Dullcote varnish spray to make sure your paintwork is

protected.

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I hope this tutorial was helpful and will make it easier for some

people to get started in the hobby without having to become master

painters. The picture below is what the finished product looks like

with a nice backdrop behind it and in the correct lighting conditions.

I think my tutorial pictures had a bit too much light in them giving

the tank an incorrect shiny look.

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Happy painting .

I seem to have slowed down as Christmas is crept up

and concentrated on the small bits of detail needed to

bring the battlefield to life.

More walls(you can never have enough walls), a water trough

and pump by Hovels, a well from Hovels, a barn from a cannot

honestly remember(I buy things and they sit in boxes for ages

and then I remember them but for the love of.. I cant think

where I bought them from !) and some crafty animal water troughs/

feeders which have come from a new spring of battlefield goodies

I discovered recently. The spring of goodies is the world of miniature

dolls houses and farm equipment and its huge and full of 15mm/20mm size

objects 🙂

Anyway I bought a couple of cow looking troughs and stuck them to

side of the building and a wall and filled them with Scenic realistic

water(I tried E-Z water 1st but was not happy with the result). Add on

some foliage and Bobs your uncle. I also scratch built a tap on the side

of the barn to feed the trough.

None of its actually finished yet but nearly there.

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Finally just got to say to everybody, “Have a wonderful

Christams and I hope Santa brings everything you want“. Failing

that do what I do every year,put your own presents under the

tree lol

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Its just been released today specifically for people playing Flames Of War.
Basically its an online army generator saving you the time and effort to
work out what you can and cannot field on the table.

Here is the official line :

Forces Of War gives you the ability to prepare and refine army lists effortlessly.
This website is an automated tool which lets you trial endless combinations of platoons
and options from Flames Of War Intelligence Briefings until you find the ideal design
for any points level or model collection. Not only does it allow you to build the perfect army list,
but also print it out in an attractive, easy-to-read format, including the appropriate
Arsenal data and Special Rules for your force
.

Beware there is a cost involved but its a lot cheaper than buying all the books.
Rough costs work out at $16 an online briefing compared to a $50 book.
You can also have smaller briefings at a $1 a go. Its also only in ipad format so far, I think ?

Follow the link below : http://forces.flamesofwar.com/index.aspx

A big plus for this as I see it is that its much easier to have a tablet on your
gaming board with all the rules, lists and info than half a dozen large books.
The storage factor is also a large plus as I have shelves of books going dusty.

I will be giving it a go later and will report back.

As the end of the Year is just round the corner I

decided to go for a group shot of my growing British

forces which are being assembled to take on my Panzer

Lehr sledgehammer.

Just click on a picture to enlarge. Be aware these

pictures are quite big 🙂

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Plenty more room on the table so best get painting.

I think some aerial power is required ?

Everybody needs something to stop the Panzers in

their tracks and these babies could do just that.

17pdr guns that had better performance than the

German 75-mm (long) or 88-mm counterparts.

All four are made by Battlefront and I have chopped

and changed the crews to make them as British looking

as possible. Out with helmets and in with the berets and

pipes. The vehicles have 75th Anti-Tank Regiment markings

which once gain fits nicely into the 11th Armoured Division

tree.

Click on an image to enlarge 🙂

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Continuing with my British forces I decided to add

some much needed recon starting with an Armoured

Car Platoon. I have started with 3 Daimler Dingos

by Battlefront,2 Daimler Mk1 Armoured Cars by

Battlefront and a beefy Staghound by Skytrex. I

already have a Carrier Platoon so I can mix and

match as required in the reconnaissance role.

All the vehicles and markings still fit into the

11th Armoured umbrella with the “44” being the

Inns Of Court Regiment

I have added some extra stowage and changed a

few of the crew. I also added aerials which are

essential for a recon vehicle to report back what

it can see.

Click on any image to enlarge 🙂

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I have been playing around with the camera and

some standard model railway backdrops and this

photo just stood out for me.

“M18 waiting for the Mortain counter attack 1944.”

Just click on the piccy to enlarge.

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A certain person with lots of trees on their blog

has inspired me 🙂

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As you can see I`m making sure my British 11th

Armoured have an answer to the Panzer Lehr

oncoming onslaught. M10`s with 17pdrs plus

a few extra bits including another Hellcat and

a Sexton.

The crews are still work in progress. Not long

until finished.