Category: 1/72
Review: No Stars in Sight
From Nordic Weasel Games, No Stars in Sight is a new sci-fi ruleset that expands on the conventional wargame from the same designer, No End in Sight. The game is designed for small unit action of a reinforced platoon with a vehicle or two at most. The scale is for 6-15mm individual models, but larger scales or infantry stands could also be utilized. One thing that stands out is the game is meant to have a very small footprint on the table, with 2 to 3 feet being enough space to duke it out.
The game is more geared towards near-future engagements. Some trappings are offered for more futuristic technology and aliens. However there is a foundation that troopers in the future will be armed with advanced weaponry that utilize some type of projectile. All the while the universe tends to be geared towards a generic setting of future conflicts that somewhat mimic what we have in the world today.
Player’s troops are organized into units or independent fire teams with assigned leaders. Coherency with the units are pretty tight, with each trooper required to be within 6 to 8 inches of their leader. This works out though as squads are designed to be 4-5 troops at most. Players activate a unit and alternate with their opponent until all unit leaders are exhausted. Victory conditions are assessed, stress removed from leaders, and the turn sequence is repeated until one side has a clear advantage (or victory).
Units activate based on rolling a d6 and retaining that many activation points for their squad. Individual troops firing, recovering from pins, movement, and other miscellaneous actions require an activation point. There are options for group fire and movement, allowing 2-3 models a chance to activate on one point. Models but can only move and fire once when they are activated. At the conclusion of the unit’s activation the leader gains a stress marker.
Movement is a simple affair keeping everything at a constant 3 inches provided they are in cover. If players move a unit out of cover into LOS of an enemy however, this becomes a random roll of d6 inches. If caught out in the open, their opponent has an opportunity to fire at them hitting a trooper on a 6 (with the poor grunt being pinned on any other result). So those dashes across open terrain become a very tricky proposition, and even more so as there are no cutoff for weapon ranges. Anything that can be seen on the table is fair game.
Directed fire is split into two types as shock or kill dice. All basic weaponry throw out shock dice. For every 2 shock dice thrown, 1 kill die is generated. Shock dice can pin a model on a 5 or 6, while kill dice hit a model on a 6. Hits are rolled again resulting in killing the model outright on a 6, or wounding them. Either way, hits with kill dice typically mean the target is out of the fight being wounded which can be rather deadly.
Close assaults are even deadlier. When units approach within 6” of each other shock dice are dropped and kill dice are rolled instead, having hits generated on a 5 or 6. Actual hand-to-hand fighting results in just rolling of a d6 between players, with the attacking player killing the enemy if they roll equal to or higher than the defender (and being killed in turn if they do not).
With all of these pins being thrown around and casualties, they all contribute to degradation of morale. If players cannot roll over this amount on a d6, they immediately fall back a random distance. Casualties also incur stress on the leader. For each excessive casualty, one point of stress is added to the leader. At the end of the turn when all units are exhausted, each leader can discard 3 points of stress. All excess stress becomes permanent, making it more difficult to activate on future turns.
What you end up with is this slow degradation of a unit’s ability to function. Pinned models cannot take any actions until an activation point is used to remove the pin. Casualties and activating a unit slowly accumulate leader stress. After a few turns, they begin to whittle down the ability of a leader to do anything but have their squad hunker down and remain in cover.
Different types of troops with varying equipment is offered, from elite troops in power armor to irregular, lightly armed forces. Vehicles are also presented with a variety of armaments although most are land-based as tracked or walker equivalents (with no real rules for flying units). There are several optional rules to mimic near-future battles, including rules for improved communication and command (along with hacking these aspects) and there are also rules for drones and simple automaton combatants.
There are a variety of scenario ideas and a simple campaign system to allow for a more role playing type of experience, following a single trooper or unit through a series of battles. Some more military-centric rules for off board ordinance, smoke, combat drops, and the like are also presented. There are several generic alien species offered with small tweaks to combat abilities along with suggested scenarios to play them as.
Finally suggestions on a point system for force construction is presented. While the numbers do not not necessarily ensure a balanced game, they can provide some guidance for a fair engagement if trying to figure out how best to match up power armored troops against regular militia. This is a nice feature of the game.
Don’t let a point system detract you however. This is very much a wargame ruleset based on players agreeing to have a fun game and tinker around with asymmetrical forces. There are a lot of optional equipment and rules to utilize. The game does require going through some set hoops for playing them however. You have to use a board with a certain amount of terrain density, or at least be willing to break up long alleys of open ground. You really can’t field larger forces more than a few squads of 4 or 5 troopers each.
The Good – Pinning and suppression are key. I really enjoy the whittling down of actions a unit can complete due to taking enemy fire, and it’s not dependent on killing troops (but it doesn’t hurt either). I also appreciate how task resolution uses a relatively streamlined system for determining outcomes.
There is a fair bit of optional rules and varying techs and equipment to give games a little variety. There are a few scenario tables offering a pretty diverse list of possible combat encounters as well as a more narrative campaign. As there are aliens and planetary environments, the game is not exhaustive in detailed rules but certainly provides a nice platter of choice sci-fi elements to try out.
I have the PDF version so I can’t speak on the quality of the printed book. You get a very spartan layout with a decent number of charts including a few summary sheets at the end of the book. It’s serviceable and plainly explains the rules.
The Bad – The game has some rough edges, especially with excessive bookkeeping. Troops typically are wounded which need to be indicated somehow. Effectively they are out of the battle however a unit needs to spend actions stabilizing them and getting them to an extraction point. While untreated wounded troops have an effect on morale, treated/stabilized figures don’t. Add to this individual units getting pins and you have a clutter of markers and tokens hovering around every unit. While a small engagement with 2 units and 8 figures total would not be much of an issue, adding more models into the mix seems to glut the game down some.
Another rule regards stressed leaders passing off leadership to another model in their unit. Effectively this can get rid of any permanent stress (as it stays with the original trooper and is not transferred to the new leader). While the vibe of the rulebook certainly rings of folks playing in an agreeable manner, this is something that could certainly be abused.
Overall I found the rules pretty well laid out. However a few topics seem to jump around some. It feels like a few sections could have been tightened up and reorganized in a better fashion. There are some critical rules that seem to get buried in other key topics. The rulebook is far from being difficult to go through, but it’s also far from being perfect.
The Verdict – I see No Stars in Sight as sort of a mixed bag. I really don’t like the wounding of troops and seems heavy on keeping track of fiddly conditions in the likes of pins, stress, and unstabilized wounded troopers. But the game has many more hits than misses. The random activation of units, the desperate dash of units out of cover, the accumulation of control stress on a unit, all are highlights to the game.
I also appreciate the abstract systems employed by the rules. Movement, cover, and weapon types are not mired down in detailed minutia. However there is certainly enough optional rules and suggestions to make the game have some unique flavor from unit to unit. It’s a decent set of rules that give a challenging feel of command for small, tense, engagements with a futuristic feel. Still, there are some rough edges to the game. I think No Stars in Sight is a fair set of rules and not a bad choice if looking for sci-fi skirmish action, just not quite the home run I was hoping for.
Plastic Soldier Co. Churchill
For my Bolt Action British platoon I had originally picked up a Cromwell. I figured it could be a recon element for my reinforced platoon. But for a more standard force, fielding a tank commonly used to support infantry was something I wanted. So I picked up a Plastic Soldier Co. Churchill tank kit.
The 1/72 scale models are well done. They really are a snap to assemble and fit together nicely. The treads and wheel sections fit as a single piece. The rear side of the tread section lacks detail, but it’s really difficult to notice once assembled.
The hull is well detailed. There are some nice extra bits like jerry cans for the rear tread fenders and spare tread sections. The hatch can be modeled with the doors being either open or closed, and include a tank commander figure.
There are a variety of barrels provided for Mk III, Mk IV, and Mk V tanks, as well as an AVRE variant. There is a lot of flexibility with the kit. The set comes with 2 tanks and as you have another turret available, you can really get some mileage out of the models.
I liked the bren carriers I picked up and feel Plastic Soldier Co. has another winner with their Churchill tank. It is a good buy for a 20mm platoon. Not only do they look nice assembled, but they have a lot of options for barrel types meaning you can really stretch the use of the kits out for different tank types. Quite worth the buy for 1/72 wargaming.
Review: Battlegroup ruleset
Plastic Soldier Co. and Iron Fist Publishing have teamed up to produce the Battlegroup series of books. From my understanding Battlegroup Kursk was the first set of rules released combined with supplementary material to describe that engagement in WW2. From there, a small ‘mini’ book was released with just the base rules. There are several other books released that detail different campaigns with various theater selector lists for forces and scenarios, but these only have special rules related to those campaigns. You need the small rulebook in order to play.
The scale for Battlegroup is set at 15mm to 20mm. Additionally it is a 1 man = 1 model system. There is no basing of units into fire teams. However as the game plays, actual basing isn’t really an issue. There are many examples of folks playing the game with multiple troops on single bases (like Flames of War). However, having a handful of single troops on lone bases is ideal to indicate casualties for a squad.
The rules themselves detail a pretty ambitious task of outlining a system that can be played at a variety of engagement sizes, from a squad up to an entire battalion. The squad level game is a bit of a misnomer as they expect you to take at least a platoon of troops, but it does give you varying levels of forces to play which can range from a few squads for an afternoon of fun, up to a full day of gaming at the battalion level. It’s a point system game, where you decide a point total and purchase units up to this limit. I picked up Battlegroup mainly for company level games.
The game utilizes a IGOUGO system of sorts. A player will roll a set number of dice to indicate the total units they can activate for that turn. For a platoon level this would be 2d6, while at the company level would be 3d6. I groaned a bit at this first but digging into the rules a bit more, I started to like it.
You roll to activate units, which really breaks down into teams. An entire platoon is really 4 individual units (a command team, plus three 8 man squads), and in addition you might have a few LMG teams that are also units. So that 3 platoon company suddenly mushrooms into 12-18 units, making that 3d6 activation roll a little more unpredictable. Add in additional MG teams, AT assets, field guns, artillery spotters, a few tanks, mortars, etc. You suddenly have a lot of things that may not be able to activate on your turn.
Each activated unit can be given one specific order; firing, maneuvering, a combination of the two, or just waiting in ambush to react to your opponent. Reaction orders also are a nice element, giving a chance to interrupt an opponent’s turn. This really allows for a fluid back and forth type of game making the turn progression more tense and engaging.
Movement is a flat rate for vehicles and infantry. Difficult ground will reduce movement to a d6 inch roll depending on the type of vehicle or terrain. Overall movement is a simple, easy system to execute.
There are maximum effective ranges for weapons, with small arms topping out at 30″. However this is tweaked some as there are two modes of fire. Area fire is a simpler affair where total firepower is determined and a single die is rolled to see an effect. If successful, they pin a unit.
The alternate is aimed fire which has a maximum range and individual die rolls for troop weapons, designated to inflicting casualties. Successful rolls to hit forces the target unit to roll for saves (6+ if in open ground, and much better if in cover). Failed saves result in casualties and morale tests, likely resulting in a unit either being pinned or forced to retreat. Combined with aimed fire is the need for spotting a target unit. Again a simple d6 roll test altered by different modifiers. If they can’t spot the unit, they can’t conduct aimed fire (area fire does not require a spotting check).
Vehicle fire mimics small arms fire some, however there is more gradation in target numbers to hit based on the type of gun and target armor. Also unlike infantry units, vehicles must keep track of the number of rounds fired. Close combat is more of an extension of aimed fire. When units come to within 5″ of each other, an intense firefight breaks out with both sides making attack rolls.
Morale is a pretty simple affair. If a unit is pinned they cannot be given an order until it is removed (more on that later). If a unit suffers a casualty, or is damaged, while pinned they roll on a d6 chart. On a 2 or less most units will break outright if they are pinned. The game is exceedingly dangerous to units in the open. Get them pinned and follow up with effective fire, you likely will have them break and run.
This leads into an interesting tweak to the the game, the Battle Rating (BR). Every platoon, tank, command team, etc. in your army has a value and the entire sum represents the overall morale and will of your force to fight. For each unit that is destroyed, you draw a random counter. These are also taken for other aspects of the game, such as your opponent having more scouts or when your opponent takes an objective. Effectively the only way to unpin units requires you also to draw a counter (unpinning d6 units while doing so).
The counters themselves are an uneven distribution of numbers ranging from 1 to 5 (with most being 2-4). As you draw counters you put these aside and secretly sum up the total. If the total of drawn counters ever exceeds your force’s Battle Rating, your entire group collapses and withdraws from the battle. This makes for some nail-biting decisions. Pinned units can do nothing and are exceedingly vulnerable to additional fire. If they break, you draw a BR counter. If you decide to rally some units, you draw a BR counter. So there is this fine line of deciding when to try and unpin units (or instead just let them keep hitting the dirt), as you never know how much pressure your force can take before they break.
There are rules for calling in off board artillery and air support. A series of rolls are made to simulate communication and firing priority. As off board artillery goes, there is a fair amount of randomness where rounds actually land, certainly allowing for the potential of friendly fire. Anti-air assets on the table also have a role which is a pleasant change from other systems.
The book comes with a handful of scenarios depicting typical engagements you might see, from patrols to withdrawing actions. Most scenarios also dictate the use of objectives. Given that holding objectives forces your opponent to draw BR counters, these alternate goals add some variety to the scenarios and provides for some differing victory conditions.
As mentioned earlier this is a point system game. You select units up to an agreed total. The actual force lists are rather structured however, with limited choices based on the core units you pick up. The game is very infantry-centric but armor heavy battlegroups can also be drafted up.
There are no force lists within the rules however. These are all provided separately in different campaign books which have battlegroup lists, special unit rules, unit profiles, etc. and are very much themed towards specific combat theaters. In this aspect, historical gamers will probably enjoy this as gradation in forces can be achieved to represent different parts of the war. With a universal force list for different nations, this would be harder to model. However, you are not getting a complete game just picking up the ruleset book. You also need to invest in a campaign book to play the game.
The Good – There is a lot here to like. Yes, it’s an IGOUGO system. However with the random die activation and a plethora of individual units representing a platoon, you aren’t going to be able to count on activating every model on the table during your turn. Further, the reaction orders also provide a means to make responses to your opponent’s actions making the game even more dynamic.
Pinning units matter and is an effective means to shut down your opponent. The splitting of fire modes into either suppression or trying to inflict casualties is also a nice touch via the area and aimed fire orders. Among this is the Battle Rating system. Pinned troops are effectively out of the fight. To reactivate them requires drawing a BR counter. If you let them sit pinned and they get hit by further fire, they will likely break forcing you to draw a BR counter as they are destroyed. Do you let them remained pinned and wait a few turns before opting to unpin d6 units? Or do you force your hand early and just unpin that one unit? It’s a challenging decision with slow degradation of your force’s morale, along with the unpredictability when it has had too much and will retreat, all of which makes for a fun game.
The rulebook itself is written fairly clearly and offers plenty of examples. There is a good amount of artwork and photographs to entice the reader. It’s a rather handy size and well bound. The addition of a solid quick reference sheet at the back of the book is an especially nice touch.
The Bad – The game does have its share of bookkeeping. Ammunition use for tanks is the most notable. For a tank or two this isn’t much of an issue, but running with a platoon of armor, it could bog down. I dig the concept as a means to balance out heavy hitting guns compared to the armor workhorses and also a way to mimic logistical problems, but it’s clunky. I wonder if using a d6 roll to determine if a unit was out of ammo would be better.
Another thing that crops up are past orders for opposing units. Spotting a target can also depend on whether it fired the previous turn. Get a big enough game going and it can get a little murky keeping track whether individual units fired on the previous turn or not, so you likely will need to use markers indicating given fire orders.
Some of the task resolutions require a lot of procedural die rolls. Artillery is especially damning as you need to make a fire mission request, a communications skill test, then determine how close the spotting round hits, the number of guns that are part of the strike, etc.. While all the die rolling allows for more predictable results due to probability, it can be a chore to go through.
The rules express a differing view of design also. Some parts are well detailed (like vehicle aimed fire and artillery) while other aspects of the rules are glossed over with abstract task resolution. There aren’t hard definitions of cover. Close combat is very streamlined under a general assault that takes place within 5″ of an enemy. There are some points in the rules suggesting resolution by player agreement as opposed to hard, defined rules. It just seems a bit of an odd match in how the rules are presented where some elements are highly detailed, while others are not.
The book would really be aided having an index. Some important rules are shuffled off into sidebars. It’s not incredibly difficult to find what you need, but tracking down a key rule can sometimes be a little bit of a chore. The book itself is a scaled down version of the larger campaign books. I appreciate the lower price of the rules, however the print is exceedingly small. This isn’t a comfortable font to read at all and it’s a shame a larger one wasn’t used.
The Verdict – Battlegroup is a solid WW2 miniature wargame. There are some rough spots and with larger games, bookkeeping can get to be somewhat clunky. Additionally, this isn’t the most innovate set of rules and you’ll likely be finding yourself treading over familiar game elements found in a myriad of other WW2 rules.
However it gets a lot of things right. One thing that stands out with me is the sheer unpredictability of unit activation and force morale. You can count on your plan of battle up to a point and then… well… things get interesting. It’s another game that emphasizes suppression and pinning of units. This has an important role in the game and you’ll find ordering units to cross open terrain will get either pinned to hell, ripped to shreds, or dispersing in a retreat. The utilization of cover and judicious use of ambush orders are needed.
Yes, it is a point based game. However taking a peek at some of the campaign books, it doesn’t feel like a tournament army list-of-the-month game. Battlegroup really seems to have it’s feet firmly in the historical camp. I’m certain that it’ll get some complaints on not having proper campaign TOEs, but there are far more hits than misses with the force lists.
I don’t think Battlegroup will quite replace my WW2 infantry skirmish game of choice. I need to get a few more games in, however I still feel that Bolt Action and Chain of Command both scratch that itch for me. However I wanted a ruleset I could use for 15mm and was looking for something different to Flames of War. Battlegroup does this quite well, and I totally expect it’ll be my go to rules for WW2 company action in the future. If folks are interested, an excellent overview of the rules as an intro report can be found in a list of PDF download links.
Italeri (and a smidgen of Revell) WW2 Japanese troops
Sadly when it comes to WW2 gaming the Pacific is usually under represented in many war games, especially miniature games. For squad based stuff, Battleground WW2 touched on it a bit with one of their supplements. However it’s always taken a back seat to the European theater. In fact, I daresay that the African theater gets more love over the Pacific.
It all comes down to manufacturers for minis, and clearly they want to produce lines that will sell. Just seems a shame the Pacific and Asian WW2 theater never seems to garner much attention. This was something I certainly wanted to rectify with my Bolt Action armies. So when the Imperial Japanese Army book hit, I certainly wanted to take a stab at collecting a force.
Fortunately, I am delving deep into 1/72 scale stuff, so getting troops is super cheap compared to 28mm. The downside is I really can’t get a lot of specific teams. However there is quite a variety of decent model ranges at that scale.
I settled on buying Italeri ranges for Japanese troops, along with the 70 mm field gun kits. The field gun kits were an especially great find as they had a lot of odd teams. In that set were AT rifle and suicide AT teams, along with some models that would be great for arty observers and could serve as mortar spotters in a pinch. Not to mention a couple of 70 mm field guns.
I like the range of Italeri models. There were a lot of options for different mortar types, including knee mortars and rifle grenade launchers. Both of which I could use to cobble together a mortar squad if I wanted. The downside was I could not field any models carrying smgs, so I had to settle with my sergeants just armed with rifles.
Being a Japanese list, I wanted lots of bodies in beefy infantry squads and planned on fielding at least 3 rifle squads and likely a full mortar squad too. Despite the high model count in the Italeri kits, I opted to pick up a Revel miniature set also. I only took a handful from that set but it was enough to fill out my infantry squads.
I also was struggling a bit finding appropriate minis for snipers. I opted to use a couple of kneeling figures and glued some plastic plant leaves on their backs to differentiate them some and still slightly capture that look of a sniper. A little wrapping of the barrels in trimmed athletic tape along with a healthy slather of water-downed PVA glue helped too.
I’m pretty happy how they turned out. A sizable force for Bolt Action with enough options to keep it interesting. Not to mention enough minis for another squad or two if I wanted to field another cheap inexperienced unit. Certainly looking forward to playing them and trying a different assault-heavy force. Now I gotta work on more jungle terrain!
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| Type 92 MMG |
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| Type 96 LMG mid-reload |
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| Type 97 AT-rifle |
Armourfast house
While my Bolt Action platoons have been slowly shaping up, I really needed to get some terrain together. I went the super cheap route getting some paper buildings made which came out okay. However getting troops inside a building can be a key part of the game. My paper models have the roofs firmly affixed to help keep them a sturdy construction. While I can lift them up and plop them over figures to represent troops inside the house, having models with detachable roofs would have been better (seriously have to consider working on making some with foam board).
Looking around for some options, I ended up buying a tile roofed, 1/72 farm house from Armourfast. The kit is very nice if a little pricey at $14.50 USD. The model comes with varying colors so that you could literally assemble and play without the fuss of painting. I somewhat embraced this and opted to give the model a very basic one-over with some washes and drybrushing.
The house is simple to assemble and offers some decent options regarding the windows. There are a slew of window shutters you can use to represent open or closed windows. The roof and chimney can be put together without breaking a sweat. I will say however the instructions are a bit sparse and I did have to think through the construction a bit, as there are certain ways the walls for the house and chimney fit together. Nothing brain burning, but be sure to take a bit of time looking at how the pieces fit together.
Still, working with the plastic was a breeze and a welcome change compared to thick blocky houses of resin. The pieces fit together very well, with the roof section sitting fairly snug on the house walls and easily removable. Additionally, the inside walls have small tabs on them, allowing you to put in a second floor if needed. I cut a section of board to do just that and it fits nice and secure, allowing me to get a little more coolness out of the model.
The scale of the model is for 20 mm figures. I have one of my Plastic Soldier Co. mini in the some of the pics here to give it some scale. Honestly, the house would work just as fine with 28 mm figs. The doors would be a tad small but the space on the table is pretty beefy. Overall the model measures 14 cm by 9 cm, with the peak of the rooftop at 11 cm. I find true scale 28 mm buildings end up occupying too much tabletop real estate. Something a little smaller looks passable and doesn’t seem like a brick of plastic on the table. If you need a quick bit of terrain for your table and looking for something flexible, consider giving this house from Armourfast a look.
British PIAT teams – Italeri anti-tank teams
I’ve been getting the finishing touches on my British platoon for Bolt Action wrapped up. I wanted some anti-tank assets and was in a pickle for finding a PIAT team in 20mm. Hunting around I found some anti-tank teams from Italeri that looked like they would do the trick.
They weren’t quite perfect though. One ding was I was also getting quite a few models for other armies in the kit that I wasn’t working on (and the included German troops were redundant). The other was the troops were paratroopers and not typical British army troops. However one thing I like about Bolt Action is the game adopts an attitude of under-strength platoons with a mix and match force composition. I could easily see the PIAT team as misdropped paratroopers hooking up with an army platoon the initial days of the Normandy campaign. If anything, it’s encouraging me to pick up some paratroops for another force, or possibly include a small group to represent veteran squads.
The plastic itself is pretty stiff. However, it’s just a tad soft and not quite the material found in Plastic Soldier Co. kits. Overall the detail is decent. Some of the molds are blurred though. The kneeling figure has his knees clumped together in a blob, with no real definition for the legs. While most of the webbing and pack kits have a fair amount of detail, some of the packs and excess gear is a little blocky. The faces and helmet netting are somewhat sparse on detail also.
The poses are okay with the firing and cocking figures done well. There are two figures in a running pose with extra rounds that form the rest of the teams. They seem a little odd, but the sculpts capture a dynamic pose okay. It might be considered a little mismatched with the other firing and cocking figures that are in a static pose. Another small gripe is the figures look a little big for 1/72. The Italeri minis are larger by about 2-3mm compared to the 20mm figures from Plastic Soldier Company (pictured below right)
Despite my complaints, overall I’m happy with the figures. I’ve got my PIAT team, the figures look okay and look like they can take a little wear and tear on the gaming tabletop. I wish they were regular army uniformed troops, however I have to admit I am eagerly awaiting painting up a squad or two of paratroopers now. They’d make a great small contingent of veteran troops for my British platoon.
Plastic Soldier Co. – British Universal Carriers
Slowly wrapping up my British platoon for Bolt Action I picked up a set of British Universal Carriers from Plastic Soldier Company. This is a nice model kit with 3 sprues for Mk 1 and Mk 2 carriers. Each includes 2 crew members, Bren LMGs, and a pair of passenger models. The kit for the most part assembles pretty easily. The one downside was the crew members.
Sort of temporarily fitting them together, I tried out slipping the driver in and thought it’d be no issue to paint it up separately. I found once assembled I couldn’t quite get it in without a bit of force. Fortunately the gunner slipped in a bit easier. However, I then found out the Bren gun simply did not fit within the port slot. I had to work on trimming it down and couldn’t quite get the angle right with the crew member inside. The front armor panel can be attached as a separate single piece. Working on this model again, I would get the Bren gun mounted to that first, paint and seat the crew, then add the front armor plate.
It is nice having a plastic kit though as assembly and doing some alteration is a snap. For myself, I’ve got two for transports and likely will convert the third for a Vickers MMG mount. A bit on the fence for that though.
There are a few small accessories such as a spare tread wheel and a folded canvas tarp for the back.
I modeled mine with passenger troops that could be removed. Just a simple way to model the unit as a full or empty transport, with a visual reminder using a figure.
Despite the hiccup with the Bren gun and the crew, it really is a great kit. The models are well detailed and you can’t beat the price for a bunch of transports. Likely with a 5 man capacity, you’ll want a few of them in your force. So getting 3 a pop is a nice buy. The models here are for 1/72 scale. Hopefully PSC will be pushing to expand their 28mm line. I’m certain these would be a great seller.
Plastic Soldier Co. – German platoon painted
Quietly over the past months I’ve been steadily working through my German platoon. There is a local con coming up in September and I think I might try to demo a few games. With my Brits done I wanted to also get a group of Germans finished to face off against them.
The detail for the German figures are pretty good. Some of the MG42 weapons are a little bulky and odd looking, but for the most part the figures are accurately modeled and equipped. I’ve assembled models both from the late war and the heavy weapons kits available from Plastic Soldier Co.
Some of the figures are from Zvezda pioneers and pak-36 sets.
Another handful are Airfix pak-40 crew members (which I couldn’t pass up as the AT gun also came with an Opel Blitz truck). The one below is also with a Zvezda pioneer armed with a flamethrower.
However you can see the bulk are from PSC. They certainly paint up pretty well and happy with how they turned out.
Modelmates weathering wash
Usually for my tanks and such I’ll give a drybrush of brown paint to simulate mud and gunk that will pick up on the wheel guards and treads. It’s a simple technique that gets a decent effect. I never really dabbled in weathering pigments much. Then I heard about this nifty line of products for washes from Modelmates.
Modelmates translucent washes come in a variety of pigments that are really nice. A big plus for me is that they can be diluted and cleaned up in water. So I decided to pick up a bottle and try it out. I got the mud brown color wash. They come in plastic containers with a small bead inside to facilitate mixing. The top has a sloped funnel lid to allow excess paint inside the lid lip to drip down back into the pot. The manufacturer recommends trying out the wash on a section first for testing if painting on plastic, as the wash themselves have a little solvent in them. Apparently for some plastics this can be an issue. I think for the typical plastic used in model kits this isn’t a problem, as I didn’t get any peeling of paint or pitting of the model surface.
I dabbed a bit over the wheels and let it set in, followed up with a matte spray coat. I’m really impressed with how the weathering wash looks and it’s a breeze to apply. Here is a bren carrier I’ve been working on. The carrier on the bottom had just a drybrush of brown for mud, with the carrier on top also having a coat of Modelmates weathering.
I would certainly have a lot of water on hand and use a crappy brush. I’ve heard that while it’s water soluble, it can gunk up your brushes and will dry pretty quickly as the solvent evaporates. So having water nearby to rinse out your brush every tank tread or so would likely help in keeping the brush intact. With weathering, it really added a lot more depth to the basic treads modeled on the side of the carrier.
I’m really happy picking up this weathering wash. Likely I will check into picking up other shades, especially if working on an African-theater platoon, as the dust colors look really nice. They are a super easy way to dress up a basic paint job. Best of all they seem easy to work with and cover well over acrylic water-based paints.
Plastic Soldier Co. – German heavy weapons
Some time ago I posted on some German infantry I’d gotten from Plastic Soldier Co. As I was wanting some other specialty units, I opted to also get some German heavy weapons teams for my force.
The 1/72 scale figures in this kit are well done and have a nice amount of detail, just like the German infantry minis. There are 6 troops armed with panzerfausts for some extra AT options. Aside from Panzerschrecks there are multiple models for 8cm and 12cm mortars. There are also MG42 teams with tripods in the set. While I think some of the multiple teams are redundant for your typical Bolt Action force, there are some theater selector lists that allow for more heavy weapon units. I also suspect that upcoming scenario books for Bolt Action will have some expansion on the limits for particular team weapons.
I am hoping this company considers going into 28mm more. While I think some of their model kits are a tad lackluster at larger scales, the German kits are great and would likely be a very competitive buy over other manufacturer’s models.
Geek Ken 