German Heer Pt.9- Tanks (& SPGs)

StuG III Ausf G

This is, hands down, my favourite German vehicle of WW2. I knew immediately that I wanted to include one in my force. This is a plastic Warlord kit, complete with schurzen armoured skirts.

I have a Pen & Sword book from their Images of War series that focuses on the StuG. It shows it's development over the years of WW2, using extensive archival photography. There are some excellent pictures from all theatres of conflict which proved really helpful. I particularly liked the pics of laden StuGs covered in all manner of stowage and equipment. As infantry support vehicles, they clearly got plenty of stuff dumped on them by the men they fought alongside. There was one picture of a StuG fording a river with a dispatch rider's motorbike slung on the back! This inspired me to cram tons of stowage onto the back of my StuG. When I later discovered the rules for Begliet squads that can ride on StuGs, I knew my decision was correct. I may sling a motorbike on the back at some point too...

Panzer IV Ausf H

I knew I didn't want to include Panthers and Tigers in my German force. Numerically, there were never that many of either, and I don't feel BA represents their enormous unreliability that well. They are enormous point sinks for an army list, and can be quite unbalancing/ dominating on the battlefield. No, I was always going to use Panzer IVs in my army- the workhorse battletank of the Wehrmacht.

There are so many excellent models out there to represent every kind of fighting vehicle in WW2. Plastic. Resin. 3D printed. So much choice. I went for a 3D printed model from Paint & Glue, because, at the time, I was on a budget, and it meant I could get a complete 2-part kit relatively cheaply and quickly get it onto the table. I've got several P&G vehicles in my collection, and this one was not a disappointment again. 

I tried to add shrubbery to this model to give extra camouflage, but ended up going way too over the top. The end result looked ridiculous, so I stripped off the clump foliage I'd applied and tried again. I was a bit more sparing the second time, and also added bits of a seafoam tree to vary the texture. I'm happier with the second attempt. If I add another Panzer IV to this army, I probably won't attempt this again, however.

German Heer Pt.8- Halftracks

Sd.Kfz 251/1 'Hanomag'

This was the kit included in the 1st Edition BA boxed set 'D-Day Firefight'. It sat in my garage for ages while I collected my Soviet army, and then got dusted off as the Germans got their turn. I use this for transporting my veteran Grenadier squad on the battlefield, mostly, but have used it for plenty of other squads.

I added stowage to make the vehicle look a bit more interesting, using a mixture of plastic components and Debris of War resin stowage. I also added a couple of passengers, which were included on the Sd.Kfz 251/10 upgrade sprue (see below) included in the 'Band of Brothers' 2nd Edition starter box. I couldn't fit them in that vehicle with the firer of the PaK 36, so included them here. I think this is an Ausf C variant- older and more complex to manufacture.

Sd.Kfz 251/10

I wasn't bothered in collecting one of these Hanomag variants, but it came in the 'Band of Brothers' boxset. I wondered whether to build it as a standard Sd.Kfz 251/1, but decided on a bit of variety instead. The reduced transport capacity of 8 is still decent, so I tend to carry my HQ and a weapon team or two, depending on the scenario being played. Again, I added some plastic and resin Debris of War stowage. This is a later variant Ausf D vehicle, I believe.

German Heer Pt.7- Transports

Opel Blitz Truck 1

I bought this Warlord plastic kit early on in collecting my German army, but didn't build it until much later. My big reason for getting it was the squad of infantry that can be riding in the back. I'd started painting my vehicles in Dunkelgelb yellow and camo colours, but wanted to paint this one in grey, to try out the paint scheme. Inspired by the model shown in the instruction booklet, I produced what looks like a more early-war German vehicle, but my rationalization is, perhaps this vehicle missed the directive to shift to Dunkelgelb in 1943-44? Either way, I wanted to paint a grey truck! I knew I'd get another Opel Blitz and paint it yellow after that, so grey it was...

I added some heads from the Grenadier sprue to the transported squad, so they tied in with the other infantry. I also gave the NCO a wine bottle to swig. Maybe he'll pass it around to his men?

Opel Blitz Truck 2

This is a 3D printed model from Paint & Glue. It's a simple, one piece vehicle, which allowed me to add another transport to my force quickly and cheaply. I've got no complaints about the model, it does what it needs to perfectly. I finished it off pretty quickly, though, and I think that shows. I will go back and add some more detail to this, I think...

German Heer Pt.6- Reconnaissance

 Aufklarungs Recon Squad

This nifty little force option appeared in the Operation Market Garden campaign book. I like scouts and recon troops in general, and was happy to see this addition for the German army. I followed the suggestion in the unit entry- NCO with SMG/ MP40, 2-man LMG/ MG42 team and 2 riflemen- for my squad to ride in a Sd.Kfz 250/1 reconnaissance halftrack. As a small unit of veterans, they are more thematic than game changing, but I like their mobility and the possibility that they can cause an opponent problems with their two LMGs.

I bought a single sprue of Warlord Afrika Korps for this squad as there are plenty of heads wearing goggles, which I think a veteran recon squad in a halftrack would acquire for themselves. This also made them stand out from all the other plastic grenadiers that I have in the army a bit more to identify their different role. I'm sure the cut of the tropical uniform is wrong for northern Europe, but I just painted them in feldgrau colours and they look alright to me. Job done!

The Sd.Kfz 250/1 halftrack is a Paint & Glue 3D print. I have several of their vehicles across all of my BA forces, and I really like how affordable they are compared to resin or plastic multi=part kits. I followed the camo pattern that I've used for my other German fighting vehicles here, but added a good deal of stowage to this vehicle because I wanted to emphasise the self-sufficiency of this unit and their function of ranging ahead of the main force. They carry a lot of stowage- mostly Debris of War resin, but also plastic parts from the Grenadier sprue again to tie everything in.

Motorbike and Sidecar

I like that this was included in the first BA Errata/ FAQ as an 'Armoured Car' option for German armies. I can picture these things zipping around in most of the WW2 movies I've ever seen, so to be able to field them in BA was difficult to ignore.

My only addition to this Warlord kit was a piece of stowage attached to the back of the sidecar, beneath the spare wheel. This rolled up tarp allowed me to paint something in Sumpfmuster camo to tie in with my late-war force. Without it, I felt the model looked too 'early war', even though I'd painted the motorbike in Dunkelgelb.

On the tabletop, this is quite a brittle little unit, but it has great speed and can be used to harry your opponent's flanks. Plus, as an 'armoured car' it can spot Hidden troops at greater distances then other units. Not bad for the points!

German Heer Pt.5- Volksgrenadiers 1

Squad 1

Having started playing Bolt Action with Soviet Russians, I was already familiar with the Green troop rule. You can't get around this as you receive a free Rifle Squad of twelve hapless individuals, but I have more Rifle squads than the compulsory one to represent large waves of untrained Russian irregulars. When I bought the German Army Book, I was interested to see how Green was adapted further to add flavour to the Volksgrenadiers (and Hitler Youth, also...)

I bought a box of Warlord's Winter Germans, with the intention of using them as Volksgrenadiers. I didn't just want squads of greatcoat-wearing dudes standing in stark contrast to my regular grenadiers, so used some spare grenadier figures to add some variation in uniform and equipment to my Volksgrenadier squads. Confused yet?!

We've all seen the pictures of greatcoat and StG44 sporting Volksgrenadiers taking cover behind trees in the Ardennes. These seem to have become the popular image of the Volksgrenadier as they are the first to pop up on Google and feature on Wikipedia too. But, the truth was, not all Volksgrenadier Regiments were as well-equipped as this picture wants us to believe. Huge numbers of StG44s weren't available to create the assault weapon/ firebase units that Volkgrenadier regiments they were envisioned to be. Granted, Bolt Action lets you start with five StG44/ assault rifles in this squad, but I don't feel comfortable with any more than that. Personally, I'd like to be able to reduce that number further, if I wished, by downgrading more men to being rifle-armed. 

What I do feel BA got right for Volksgrenadiers was the tweak to the Green rule that makes them even more varied in their potential troop quality. Some Volkgrenadier units were poor and crumbled under minimal opposition, others had a core of experienced and veteran troops to bolster the newer additions and performed extremely well. I like that I don't know what I'll be getting whenever my Volksgrenadiers come under fire. They may just melt away or become extremely shaken. They may hold their ground, but be poor quality. They may bump up to being Regular troops and acquit themselves nicely, but then, they may even show true grit and determination and reveal themselves to be veterans and prove to be a real problem.

I don't have all of my 3 squads painted up yet, only the first. With the Volksgrenadier First Lieutenant I've already painted, I plan on eventually playing an entire platoon of these guys at some point. I look forward to the improbable day that my opponent suddenly finds themselves facing three veteran squads of Volksgrenadiers that they weren't bargaining on. I can only hope...

As I discovered when fielding several units of Green Russian rifle squads, it can become tricky remembering which units scored what on the Green dice roll. Tons of pin markers is an easy indicator for a roll of 1, but what if your squad upgraded to a better quality? Volksgrenadiers have double the bookkeeping, being able to jump from Regular, all the way up to Veteran quality potentially. So, I adapted a little device I created for my Russian Rifle squads to clearly denote what morale level my Volksgrenadiers came out at. If they stayed Inexperienced, they got no extra base (and probably didn't survive for too long, anyway!), but if they upgraded to Regular or Veteran, here was my solution to keep track.

I printed off coloured strips with the troop qualities on them, mounted them on cardboard for depth and them glued them to the sabot bases. These particular ones are from Supreme Littleness Designs and I like them alot. After finding them for my Russian bases, I returned for my German versions. Well worth looking at their website.

German Heer Pt. 4- Teams

After choosing your HQ and two squad options for the compulsory Reinforced Platoon selections in Bolt Action, you can then start to have some fun! First off in any list for me comes the weapon teams. These provide a bit more welly in small games, and give you some options for how you want to play a battle/ scenario, but keeps things cheap points-wise (and £££-wise) before you start adding artillery and vehicles to your force.

I've always felt that the 0-1 option for most team-based weapons was quite low. I completely understand that this was done to limit enormous abuse by some players who, if allowed more, would by inclination go in that direction. I have, however, welcomed the new force organisation charts that have appeared in more recent campaign books that have played around with these number more freely and allowed more scope and variation depending on the scenario or the historical forces involved. For now though, I still have one of each of the weapon teams that I want to include in my German force. I would like to include a couple more MMG/ static MG42 teams in the future- as the German army became more focused on defensive actions (and I have a late-war German force)- it feels like more MMG teams would be acceptable additions.

Panzerschreck Team

I don't like the Warlord panzerschreck models. I quite like the Artizan Designs ones, but when I saw the Empress Miniatures teams (and their WW2 Germans in general), I knew these were the ones. It's the earliest version panzerschreck, before a blast shield was added, so the poor operator had to wrestle on a gas mask and gloves before he could fire it! Not conducive to split-second reactive fire at the sudden appearance of Allied armoured vehicles, but at least they sorted this out in the later versions. Love Paul Hicks' sculpts, whatever he's doing, so these were a no-brainer.

Sniper Team

Artizan Designs sculpts. Love these. Some of the first figures that I painted for this army, trying out the Sumpfmuster camo scheme. Got a bit carried away with the shrubbery that these guys are using for cover, I think, but I've still got a soft spot for these figures.

MG42/ MMG Team

These Artizan Designs models are the very first figures I painted for this force, and to me it shows. I love the sculpts, but I had issues with where the MMG firer positions in relation to the gun itself... I didn't even have Feldgrau for the uniform of the team leader with the binoculars, so he's got random GW grey trousers. I know that's not a big issue, and I know German uniform quality/ colour suffered nearer the war's end, but it's something I immediately see (and you all can now too...)

80mm/ Medium Mortar Team

Artizan Designs models, again. I try to base my teams individually so I can represent casualties physically rather than with counters or dice. Additionally, I really don't like basing teams on 60mm round bases or similar because it limits where they can be placed on the table sometimes. If you want to snuggle them into cover nicely or conceal then in ruins/ buildings, a big base won't let you do that. Just my preference, though. Below the mortar team is the spotter that they can optionally take.

German Heer Pt.3- Infantry Squads 2- Veterans & Begliet

 Veteran Grenadier Squad

Originally, this squad was made up of basic grenadier models who were given extra gear and better weapons to denote their more elite status. I wasn't completely satisfied with how they looked, but found an answer in the Warlord plastic Waffen SS sprue. The additional heads, equipment and weapons allowed me to make some individuals that looked like no other soldiers in my force. The 6 men the sprue allowed me to put together freed up some grenadiers to slide into other squads and gave the veterans a more unique appearance.

The 4 grenadier models that remain in the squad are the make-ups to a 10 man squad, but are the ones that I felt fit in (& were already painted & had the equipment I needed them to have...) I know the SS men are wearing the fancy lace-up collared smocks with baggy sleeves, etc, but I covered them all in my primitive Sumpfmuster camo scheme, so hopefully they don't look too out of place and seem like hardy combat veterans that have accumulated a decent amount of experience, firepower and gear between them.

Four StG44s is enough, I really feel, to not feel like overkill (or min/maxing). Two LMG/MG42s gives them some punch and differentiates them from the standard squads. I don't want elite squads to become too abusive in what they're equipped with, or an enormous points sink. I think this squad comes in at around 200 pts, roughly. Ok for larger games where they can be accommodated. Red base edge denotes an NCO, as always.

Begliet Squad

One of my favourite squads in the Soviet army list is the Tank-rider squad. Images of Russian soldiers clinging onto the backs of T-34s as they rumble into battle have always inspired me, and were a big part of why I chose a Russian army first when I started playing Bolt Action. Imagine my happiness when I read through the Stalingrad campaign book and discovered the Begliet (Bodyguard) squads! SMG armed troops riding into battle on top of a StuG! Perfect!

So, some of the discarded veteran grenadiers that needed to make way for their Waffen SS sprue replacements (see above) moved into this squad. A couple needed arm replacements to be equipped with MP40s, but otherwise I had six men already out of the full squad of ten. I didn't opt for an LMG/MG42 in this squad, as I decided close-quarter support for the StuG was more important than a few more mid/long range shots with an LMG. 

German Heer Pt.2- Infantry Squads 1- Grenadiers

I knew I wanted to do a late-war German Heer army, despite loving the various Fallshirmjager ranges out there. I really like the metal sculpts from Artizan Designs, but knew I wanted to use the Warlord plastic Grenadier models for my rank and file. I'd been playing Bolt Action since 1st edition with my Russians, but bought the Band of Brothers 2nd edition starter set mostly for the A5 rulebook, terrain and pin markers, but also for additional grenadiers and the SKDFZ 251/10 halftrack to get me started. My Soviets would now have an opponent to fight against!

Grenadier Squad 1

Led by an Obergetreiter/NCO armed with an SMG/MP40, another man (Gefreiter) armed similarly, an LMG/ MG42 team and 6 men with rifles (+2 panzerfausts), this is my default infantry squad composition. I love the multitude of options that the Grenadier set provides, and combined with other German plastic sprues, it allows for plenty of variations, particularly if you intend to field a lot of squads. As a side note, my NCOs are denoted by the red edge to their bases.

Grenadier Squad 2

Some more of the same, but different... I think the NCO 'gesturing' arm is from an older Warlord German sprue, but cant be totally sure. I like the amount of kit that the Grenadier sprue holds, so you can load out each man with bread bags, canteens and whatever else they might need. I tried to add a helmet hanging from the webbing of any man wearing a cap, but you'll have to take my word on that one...

German Heer Pt.1- HQ Options

HQ Options

So, my second army after my Soviet Russians was some Germans, so that Ivan had someone to fight against. I immediately liked the plastic Grenadier models from Warlord, and particularly liked the Late-War German range from Artizan Designs, which makes up a large portion of my weapon teams. But first, the HQ options.

These are Empress Miniatures, Volksgrenadier NCOs, but I'm using them as my First Lieutenant and his +1. I like the officer model's pose, scanning the action with his binoculars to hand, His gnarly aide has an eyepatch hidden under his cap brim, so I like to think of him as an Eastern Front veteran. Note, I denote officers with a yellow base edge.

This is my other First Lieutenant + man, who represents the actual Volksgrenadier element of my German force. I love the idea of variable troop qualities, and the amended Green rules for Volkgrenadiers for Bolt Action made them a tempting option to model and paint. I've used the Warlord Winter German plastics, plus several Grenadiers to vary up the squads I've made, but the officer and his aide are both equipped with nice warm greatcoats, even if all of his men have not...

These are without doubt my favourite FOO models by nationality. There is so much character to these two men. I chose the peaked capped head for the Forward Observation Officer himself. I like how he's calling out grid references/ directions which the radio operator is frantically shouting to the artillery batteries behind the lines. Nice models. Blue base edges denote non-leadership providing HQ choices.

By contrast, I've never been completely satisfied with any of the German medic models I've come across, so I decided to make my own. This 'Sanitator' was made from a plastic grenadier body- I wanted to capture him running from cover, braving bullets and explosions raining dirt and mayhem all around as he dashes to treat a comrade. His left arm is simply a rifle holding arm, which I angled to (hopefully) represent him flinching/ angling his helmet to shield his eyes. The right arm held a MG34/42 ammo box, which I replaced with a random bag from the sprue which I felt looked like a medical bag. White base edge denotes a medic (plus making them much easier for my opponent to spot and level his snipers at...)

Terrain- High Walls

I'd wanted to make some high walls for a while now. All of my obstacles- hedges, fences and stone walls, to date, have been waist/ chest height, so I wanted to produce something taller to block line of sight and offer some variety.

As I've made more and more urban scenery, I felt like I wanted some taller walls to create storage yards and enclosed spaces to make things a bit more interesting. A continued inspiration for me as I've grown in confidence as a scenery maker has been John Bond and his wargaming blog. He produced some high walls a good while back for his Chain of Command games, and these provided a basis for my ideas. You can see John's walls on his blog here.

I don't have carpentry skills or tools to make attractive walls from wood, like John, but I do like to use foamboard to extend my MDF buildings. I used the same material here, which I'd found worked well for the high walls around my hotel backyard so thought it would do nicely. Instead of engraving brickwork and cracks into the walls, I experimented with using printed brick paper to represent the exposed brickwork under the plaster cladding. I stuck some patches of brick paper onto the bare walls, then added watered-down filler to make the plaster texture over the top. After painting the 'plaster' and capping the tops of the walls with cardboard tiles, I added weathering, moss, rubble and posters.

I like how these came out, and will go back to some of my earlier buildings and add chipped bits of brickwork poking through on some of the more bare surfaces. Watch this space...

I made the gates in my usual way- coffee stirrers. The hinges and lock plates are cut from cardboard. The gate handles are small sections of paperclip bent into loops.

Because foamboard is quite soft, I was able to poke little holes into the surface with a pin to make bullet holes. Think I'll go back and do the same to my older buildings to add a bit more 'war' to them...

The wall sections with the corners missing from the base allow me to join two walls together to make a corner (see below).

I also made two small t-sections to allow me to put walls at right angles to one another and make some different enclosed areas.