SmallScaleOperations - 20mm Wargaming

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: House Davion's "Locust" painted

2011-12-31T16:09:00.003+01:00

Based upon the unseen Mech design, primarily for scouting and recon. This was a multi-part resin kit, based upon a scratchbuilt Mech. The N-scale community demanded copies, so the creator got his scratchbuilt custom Locust casted - and I was happy to obtain two of them.
Armed with only a Martel Medium Laser and two Sperry-Browning MGs, it cannot withstand any other Mech for a long time, but that's not its purpose in the first place.

I based the Locust on some rocky surface to increase the height slightly.

I wanted a striding pose, just as in the old FASA artwork of the TRO 3025.

The Locust is currently the smallest Mech used within the Inner Sphere.

A tiny, filigrane little BattleMech - I just love that thing.

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

2011-12-19T10:12:00.005+01:00

Some of the latest pics show recent progress. I finished off most of the details that still were to paint and added posters and shop signs.
The sand that was put into place at the lower end of the building was to conceal the flaws of the house (many of them). I've painted it to match bases and my desert gaming board.

I also painted the sidewalk that goes all around the building. The yellow and white stripes are typical for Iraq (they really have them).

The water tank and the electrical collectors got their rusty finish.

You may have noticed that also the satellite dishes have been attached now.

The corrugated metal roof has turned out better than expected. Probably the part I like most on the building.

Rooftop air cons painted now and Pola lamps attached.

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

2011-12-13T11:30:00.003+01:00

Wo-hooo. More progress :-) Spent some hours to rust n' dust a couple of things. Basicly all you do is painting small random blotches of Scorched Brown, paint a smaller blotch of Bestial Brown on top, add one of Red Gore and finally add tiny dots and lines of Blazing Orange. Looks like rusty metal doors. There is probably better ways to achieve that look, but hey - for the work of a couple of minutes it didn't turn out tooo bad, did it?
Rusty corrugated metal. I started with a mixture of 25% Bestial Brown, 25% Red Gore and 50% water and painted on a bascoat of this redish-brown colour. I then reduced the amount of water in the mix step by step and painted on random (!) blotches. Due to the wet paint (lots of water) it took a while to dry. Once dried, I painted on streakes (from top to bottom) with pure Bestial Brown and pure Red Gore (use variable length for the "stripes"). With a tank drybrush I then brushed a mix of Blood Red and Red Gore from left to right. Finally, a wash of thinned down Dark Flesh was put into the recesses. When the wash had dried, I used an old drybrush (a really messed up thing) to dab on small dots of Blazing Orange.

The garage doors where painted with Ice Blue and got a filter of thinned down Black Wash (not Citadel foundation one, the old one).

Basicly the rust effects where done exactly as on the metal doors above on the other side of the house. Blotches of various brown colours, each "dot" smaller than the one I painted on before. Then red colours and finally the Blazing Orange highlights. Finally I once again took the base colour of Ice Blue and covered all messy parts/mistakes that occured.

Off for more details now.

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

2011-12-11T01:27:00.005+01:00

I was experimenting with the base colours of the Iraqi house I am currently working on. Some friends passed on pictures they took in the middle east and those turned out to be a huge source of inspiration as well as a good reference for painting.

This is the "base colour" although it actually is four colours!! I started with a tank brush (GW), painting the entire building in Dheneb Stone. Once I was done, I used the same brush size to paint on some "streaks" of Kommando Khaki, followed by Iraqi Sand (Vallejo) of which only on the edges of windows and rooftop some streaks were applied. Khemri Brown was used from the top down, streaking on some random "rain marks".
Finally, some Charadon Granite was used to splash on some spots of darker brown. These marks can be all sorts of things - bullet holes etc.

After the base colour(s) dried, I used masking tape to mask the upper part of the building. I wanted some colour to break up the overall sandy look. A red stripe goes all around the building (its about the height of a 20mm figure).

Using the same colours as for the base colour and parts of an old Citadel miniature blister "sponge" (the stuff GW puts behind its miniatures in blisters), I was weathering the red stripe that leads around the first floor.

I just dabbed the sponge into one of the base colours at a time, dried it on some kitchen roll and then went ahead putting colour down in a random pattern. Finally I blended the worn, chipped paint into the upper half of the house by drybrushing the passage between sand colour and red stripe with Vallejo Iraqi Sand.

That left me with the bricks being visible in the open parts of the stucco. Reference pics clearly show that both, classical "terracotta" coloured bricks and sand coloured ones made from mud are used widepread in the middle east. Sometimes even both on the same building.

I was trying the red ones first and liked it that much that I decided to use solely red bricks.

I started with a base of Bestial Brown in all open stucco holes. On top I dabbed Red Gore which was followed by Blazing Orange in a random pattern. Make sure you don't paint over all layers you painted before - leave some parts visible. A wash of strong thinned down grey colour was used to determine the joints between bricks.

After the grey has dried I brushed Mig Pigments (African Sand) into the gaps and used thinner to fix it in place.

Now off to paint details! :-)

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

2011-12-10T14:26:00.001+01:00

Basecoat added. It really comes together now. I already painted up some parts. More pics of that progress later.

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

2011-12-10T14:06:00.005+01:00

I am going to expand my terrain collection for Iraq games with Force On Force by a couple of "urban" buildings. While I do already have a lot of houses, most of them are rather "rural" by their shape and size.

This is going to change now. For quite some month there was this unbuilt Stonewall Combat Scenics "two storey residence/shop" lying around my stash of unbuilt stuff. It was only a couple of days ago when I realized it is a) missing parts (roof and some doors) and b) doesn't fit at all.
This was the worst piece of terrain I ever came accross. But it doesn't help me - I need to get it fixed.
So here is what I came up with - tons of materials from even more sources.

The building like I said is from Stonewall. I had to replace the missing roof with styrene sheet.
Thanks to not fitting at all, plenty of putty was used all around. The satellite dishes are from S&S as are the bigger air conditioners.
Rooftop mounted AC are from S&S, lamps by POLA (H0 scale), the balcony is from another kit by Lasermodellbau (Najewitz), the corrugated metal shed from a Conrad Garage in H0 scale.
An old measuring cup with H-profile styrene sheet underneath makes a good water tank. The smaller AC units are also from Lasermodellbau.
The electrical collector was made from scratch, using Italeri parts.

WWII Special Rules from 1st Edition Force on Force

2011-11-25T12:52:00.001+01:00

Published by Shawn Carpenter over at ambushalleygames.com
Friday 25 November 2011, 03:36

First Edition Force on Force included special rules for adapting the game for use with WWII scenarios. These sections were omitted from Second Edition (the “Osprey” edition), in which we chose to focus entirely on post-war, modern combat. We’ve received a constant stream of requests to post these rules up so that players with the new edition of the rules could also use them.

Well, here they are!

Here’s a couple of important caveats to bear in mind with the use of these rules:

1. These rules have not been modified in any way from their 1st Edition format. You may find that you need to make some modifications to use them with the 2nd Edition of the rules.

2. The rules presented here may or may not be carried over for use in an upcoming Ambush Alley Games WWII rule set.

With those comments aside, ENJOY!

- The Crew at Ambush Alley Games.

http://ambushalleygames.com/resources/downloads/31-extras

Generic Iraqi Force: Infantry support weapons

2011-11-19T13:27:00.002+01:00

A couple of days ago another packet arrived at my home. Mark T. has sent back to me all of my Iraqi Gun crews - a mix of S&S and RH Liberation Miniatures. He was tasked to paint them to standards as he did with my Republican Guard last year. I completed the miniatures by adding a few details here and there, putting tufts etc. on bases and finally built and painted all weapon systems they are going to man. Thanks for your help, mate!

Iraqi Gun Crew #1: RH Liberation minis with RH Liberation Type 63 towed (Chinese) 107mm rocket launcher.
Iraqi Gun Crew #2: RH Liberation miniatures with RH Liberation SPG-9 73mm Recoilless Rifle

Iraqi Gun Crew #3: RH Liberation miniatures with MAC 1/72 Soviet mortar (plastic piece that comes with their UAZ jeep)

Iraqi MANPADS team: Soviet-built SA-7 Grail (IGLA) gunner (RH Liberation) with spotter (S&S Models)

Iraqi DshK team: Gun crew and DshK by RH Liberation, additional team member by S&S Models.

I saw a sign.... The Road To Baghdad: Iraqi Highway Signs

2011-11-16T20:00:00.007+01:00

Force On Force's first supplement is called "Road To Baghdad". I am in need for more Iraqi looking terrain. I thought an "actual" road to Baghdad would just do, especially as it is used in some scenarios/missions.
Task Force 1-64 on its way to Baghdad.

I made the highway signs using styrene profiles and sheets from Evergreen.

The actual signs came from a decal sheet from TheSquare. They were applied onto 1mm styrene sheet and then glued into place.

This layout only displays a fast scene I set up for the pics. The gaming table for the scenarios will be twice this size to give the Americans a challenging distance to travel while being attacked from left and right.

These road signs aren't exactly in scale as they are from Verlinden's range for dioramas in 1/35.

Nonetheless I think they fit just fine.

Another shot of the Verlinden variant.

The roads are from ESLO terrain of Germany. Lamp poles are 1/87 H0 scale and the telegraph poles from Italeri.

TF 1-64 scanning for targets.

Just another generic shot from the miniature's perspective. :-D

More terrain to come...

Generic Iraqi Force: BMP-2 with anti air gun

2011-11-13T16:49:00.004+01:00

After a long time I finally painted some 20mm stuff again. I hereby present my Iraqi BMP-2 with 23mm twin anti air gun. I used a mixture of wargaming models for this kit-bash.

Back view of the RH Liberation BMP-2 chassis.
Detail shot of the crew and ZSU-23-2 from S&S Models. The gun shield was made from styrene sheet. The figures were painted for me by Mark Taylor.

I went with a worn&torn look, using oil paints, paint chipping techniques and weathering powders.

Added some markings here and there to add a little colour.

It even got a liscence plate ^^

Your chance to give feedback on map size / figure photos size and amount

2011-11-12T20:54:00.002+01:00

Ok guys, so here we have a chance to change something for the better (if you deem it necessary):

vote in this poll at Ambush Alley Games' forum, please. All feedback is welcome.

Are there enough pics of painted eye-candy (miniatures) in our supplements? Are they big enough? yes / no?
http://ambushalleygames.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=8473

Do the maps for the scenarios need to be bigger on the appropriate pages within the book? yes / no?
http://ambushalleygames.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=8472

HUMINT, November 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-11-06T17:27:00.002+01:00

HUMINT = human intelligence. A new series of posts on my blog about news of various tabletop miniature producing companies concerning "moderns". The pictures were taken off the producers' catalogues with their prior permission. Cheers for that guys! Links to their webshops can be found within the right column of my blog (see sources for 20mm....).

Elhiem Miniatures (now also has Wartime in stock):

3rd November
New releases out now as listed by Matt himself:

Wartime Miniatures:
Bushmaster models - limited stock
New CIV2 and CIV3 sets replace old sets. I still have 2 sets of CIV3 left if you want them.

US01 02 and 03 - Modern US Army I also have US05 but, only 2 sets so first come first served!

MA7 and AVC are both vehicle crew for modern
AFVLBW5 and 6 are new

Elhiem Figures:

COLD WAR NATO:
NAT01 Generic G3 riflemen
BW01 West German G3 Riflemen

COLD WAR WARPAC:
DR03 East Germans (reworked weapons)

US 2000+:
IOT03 The Third fire team of US Army in IOTV armour.

SPECIAL FORCES:
SF10 Devgru Command team
SF11 Special Forces Support team

Somalia Day of the Rangers:
DEL02 Delta Force Fireteam
DEL03 Delta Force littlebird snipers and bench seats

VIETNAM:
VC01 New range of Viet Cong

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: House Davion's "Shadow Hawk" painted

2011-10-30T01:27:00.003+02:00

Another one of the famous N-scale "unseen" designs. This is an 1/144 scale plastic kit from the Dougram animated tv show.

I will change my plans. No more 15mm. I am going to use Mechwarrior Dark Age 10mm figures as they appear to be more in scale with the Mech's cockpit.

Martel Model 5 Medium laser (arm), Holly Long Range Missiles (shoulder) and Armstrong J11 Autocannon (other shoulder) in firing position

Armstrong J11 cannon in upright position and jump jets. Note the head-mounted Holly Short Range Missile pack.

Side view with more details of the armament. Warning labels included ;-)

HUMINT, October 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-10-23T20:14:00.007+02:00

new range of Modern US Army. FireTeam 1 including 1 with Door knocking equipment
FireTeam 2 including 1 with SRAAW in pack and seperate Bipod for SAW Gunner

Platoon HQ (Pl Comd, Medic and RTO)

BushMaster GPMG Gunner and Digger

Generic Nato crew

SF troops

Afghan trader

Afghan Man

Females in Bhurka

Vickers MMG + Crew

Piat Team

Reviews and Interviews - Diehard GameFAN's musings about Ambush Alley Games' stuff

2011-10-13T00:49:00.002+02:00

You might find those articles as interesting as I did:

http://diehardgamefan.com/2011/10/12/tabletop-review-force-on-force/

http://diehardgamefan.com/2011/10/12/tabletop-review-tomorrows-war/

http://diehardgamefan.com/2011/10/12/interview-with-shawn-carpenter-of-ambush-alley-games/

100,000 views. I am speechless

2011-10-06T11:35:00.002+02:00

Hi there,
well I just clicked my own blog today and there it is: 100,000 views as of this morning! I can barely describe how that feels. This is nothing but my private little non-profit portal showing around my hobby stuff and talk about releases of friends' little miniature companies. That I would reach more than 100,000 views within one year I wouldn't have thought possible.

Some of you that follow blogger on a regular basis might have noticed that it was a little quiet over the summer months. Obviously there are reasons. For one that I am going through some rough times with a family member being seriously ill and for second, because I have started a second blog (yeah, that's right - another one) that completely will cover my Warhammer 40,000 related hobby endeavours. You can find it at www.swordofordon.blogspot.com
Last but not least I am also still into developement and testing of Force On Force supplements and I have to take care of two forums of which I am a moderator, which means I have to read a lot and take care of "my" communities (of which most are grown up enough to basicly run on their own).

So what's going to happen here in the future? Well, we at Ambush Alley Games have another bunch of books coming up soon. Ambush Valley Vietnam will be released this month (October) as well as Tomorrow's War going to follow right away.

Work continues on another four main supplements for release next year and some additional projects that are supporting Force On Force but aren't exactly Osprey releases (which means they will probably be .pdf download only).

My moderns are on hold at this moment for I am painting 40k stuff en masse (watch the blog!). Nevertheless I have decided to finish off the mid-'90s Bundeswehr that I started years ago, I have artillery support for both, Marines and Army (US) on my painting table and the ever present Chinese PLA will get finished hopefully later this year.

I'd like to thank all of you who visit this blog and comment about my stuff. I also would like to say "thanks" to Brian, Rob, Shaun, Mathew and all other vendors who allow me to bring their latest stuff in my hobby news section. You are supporting our hobby by fulfilling our wishes!

Thanks to all of you, who also are members at the AAG forum, The Guild and the German GW-Fanworld ("moderns" part of the forum) for your support, your criticism and nice comments. You are a great community that I am glad to be member of.

Once again my personal gratitude to Piers (aka Big P from GMG) who brought me into this - its all your fault, mate! :-D

Panzergrenadier platoon for my mid-'90s Bundeswehr

2011-10-04T09:49:00.005+02:00

These are among my first ever painted "moderns" after years of GW related stuff. I used Revell kits and boxes of infantry for those mid-'90s Bundeswehr Panzergrenadiere (all plastics in 1/72). For some reason I have never shown my early works, but as I never tossed them away and recently stumbled over the box they were in, I thought I might as well share them with you. :-D

For the pic above I cheated - the Marder IFV isn't this command squads' vehicle. I have to admit the one for these guys up to day has not even been built, although I have it sitting in my shelf for years (maybe I should finally do that *doh!*)
The whole platoon - minus its command squad.

Six Grenadier dismounts and their dedicated transport: Marder 1A3 from Revell.

The dismounts, to include squad leader, 40mm grenader launcher, MG3 gunner, dismounted MILAN ATGM starter and assist. gunner.

FlaRakPz Roland for my mid-'90s Bundeswehr

2011-10-03T10:30:00.003+02:00

A pretty simple conversion. A Revell 1/72 Marder 1A3 was combined with the Roland missile turret of a Rocco Minitanks Roland.

Although the turret is 1/87 it doesn't look too small in my opinion.

A GW 25mm base does the trick: I used it to increase the height of the turret.

Looking at it from this angle shows that you can actually mix some different scales on some models. ;-)
I have a platoon of mid-'90s Panzergrenadiere that I never showed in my blog. I will take some pics the coming days and post them too.

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-09-25T12:27:00.005+02:00

UAZ (enclosed)

Elhiem Figures releases:

SA7 Anti Air Missile teams

82mm Mortar and Crew

AGS17 Plamya Grenade Launcher and crew

SPG9 Recoilless Rifle and crew

Somali armed with LMGs

Somalis armed with RPG's

Rioting Mob

Somali civilians with AK47s

Somali mob unarmed

Somali unarmed civilians

Delta Force Snipers with support

TheHobbyDen releases:

more boxes and stowage

Land Rover

Recce Land Rover

alternative Land Rover

Container Truck

IDF Shot-Upgrade Centurion

A note from Andy Grubb (regarding Britannia and other stuff)

2011-09-15T21:19:00.001+02:00

Hi guys, just passing on this message as I know quite a lot of you are waiting:

by Piers » 15 Sep 2011 12:49

Spoke to the Grubster last night...He wanted me to pass on a message to everyone, especially here on The Guild.
Firstly he wanted to pass on a big 'thanks' for everyones support and patience with him while he is sorting things out. He really appreciates it.Secondly, to those waiting for orders - He aint forgotten you! Everyones orders will get there he is working through the pile... and its a big pile!

I also wanted to say something myself. Having know Andy for, must be nearly 15 years since I first spoke to him at Wargamer in Aston many moons ago, he is one of the old cut of traders. The reason Dave wanted him to take on Britannia was that they were cut from the same cloth im my opinion. If you are waiting on stuff - You will get it. Andy is working through a backlog generated by an overwhelming response that he didnt expect to get, on top of a busy show schedule and sorting out all the Britannia stuff. To give you an idea of the scope of that, he still hasnt moved everything from Britannia and he still hasnt sorted all the moulds out! Andy wont mention it himself, but he has been working till 1am and 2am most nights trying to get everything done, sort out Britannia, cast and mould and attend shows... Oh and have a life too! Not too mention getting a second website finished! Anyway, I just wanted to pass that on and say he is still cracking on and its all going well. He still has alot of hard graft to do... but he is getting there. We also discussed the African Militia figures that Dave sculpted and sent me. Andy hasnt as yet found the mould for these, nor the other BAOR releases that Dave had ready just before he passed away. If the African mould dont turn up, I have offered my test-casts that Dave sent me to be used as masters. Hopefully that will work out. It would be nice tribute to Dave to get his unreleased work available for people to enjoy.

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-09-12T22:39:00.004+02:00

paramilitary or police type forces,

these have modern body armour and webbing and are armed with modern us weapons, m16a1's and m60 mg's

ladies from africa, sold in packs of 8 assorted

M106 mortar carrier with mortar and crew (S&S also sells another mortar variant - 107mm and 82mm are available)

bedford rl 4 ton gs

ural 375 gs truck

half figs to create drive-by shooters: the white spec ops, european criminal gangs or body guards...

the africans....

...and after last month's Iraqis - here the Afghans.

TheHobbyDen releases for September:

HMMWV shelter carrier

Ambush Alley Games and Ground Zero Games team up for miniatures for Tomorrow's War

2011-09-11T15:46:00.002+02:00

Ambush Alley Games' sci-fi rules "Tomorrow's War" will get a line of its own miniatures made exclusively by Ground Zero Games. Thought you might like to hear that. :-D

I am looking forward to see the first ones.

http://shop.groundzerogames.net/

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-09-01T18:21:00.004+02:00

Somali civilians (mob)
"Skinnies"

Delta Force "D-Boys" for '93 Somalia

TheHobbyDen releases:

Brian got a lot of ready-made diecasts in stock. The latest include Stryker variants and the USMC light missile artillery HIMARS.

Various loads for the civilian truck released a couple of days ago.

The Guild Forum Big Game 2011 (UK): In-game photos

2011-08-21T11:36:00.009+02:00

This weekend the UK based "Guild Forum Big Game" took place. Again (after last year's success) the guys wanted to play a "Cold War Gone Hot " scenario. Desertraider and Andy Rix along with some others took a lot of awesome pics that I would like to share with you. All pics displayed belong to the guys who participated in the game and are shown with prior permission. The figures, vehicles and terrain are part of the group's own collection or were donated by players of The Guild forum, who couldn't participate this year.

This is 20mm or 1/72 scale - mind that, when you look at the pics! Guys, you rock!!!

If you want to see more of stuff like this (I mean really epic 20mm armies, games and stuff), why don't you sign up for The Guild forum, too? It's free and a really great community for historical gaming. ;-) Link can be found on the right hand side's column.

TOMORROW'S WAR: an exclusive sneak peek!

2011-08-20T11:43:00.003+02:00

Shawn has given away a sneak peek into the brand new (although slightly delayed) Osprey edition of Tomorrow's War! I can't wait to get my hands onto that book! It's even bigger than the Force On Force core rules. You'll love it, I promise.

HUMINT, August 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-08-13T23:22:00.002+02:00

Iraqi Policemen

New releases from S&S models:

burnt out GAZ jeep wreck

car ablaze

TheHobbyDen new release:

civilian truck

Byzantinum Models new releases:

more middle eastern houses

1/72 Caesar Modern US plastic figures compared to 20mm Elhiem pewter figures

2011-07-28T12:19:00.003+02:00

While there are many 20mm (or 1/72) sources to get figures from it seems that Elhiem and Caesar are somehow the most common to be found on gaming tables recently. The questions occurs again and again - how do pewter figs from Elhiem compare to "true" 1/72 scale plastics?

Brian (from the Hobbyden - see link in the right column) has done a nice shot to compare them both and allowed me to use these pictures (thanks, mate!).

First off, Brian started to show us what comes with the cheap box of Caesar's 1/72 "modern US" set. There are some really nices poses included and for the really good price of just a single box they might be good for a lot of people to get started with "moderns". The cost of a single box of Caesar figures should be lower than 10 Euro and it holds 42 (!!) figures. Caesar figures are in perfect 1/72 scale. What Brian doesn't like about them are the helmets - in his opinion they could have been done better.

Now with the second pic, Brian shows us that Matt's pewter figures (Elhiem) are a perfect match of the plastics. While they are a tad chunkier (due to the material used) in my opinion they would mix perfectly. After all, humans come in different sizes, too. I have an US Army force that uses both, pewter figs from various sources and also Caesar's plastics. While opinions differ, I think especially the plastic sets from Caesar are a good way into the hobby. You can also get "insurgents" in a box of around 40 figures.

What troubles me with the Caesar plastics is the strange way how they include weapon options into their sets - the "modern US" for example includes the heavy .50cal sniper rifle but no spotter figure. It also has no M249 SAW included but M240 Medium MGs.

To build correct forces with those boxes you'll need to get yourself the other sets available from Caesar - just for some SAWs. :-( But when you do, you get various weapon options for a good price. Caesar plastics aren't as flimsy as others (Revell for example), they paint up rather nice.

HUMINT, July 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-07-18T22:04:00.005+02:00

another adobe from Rob

S&S Models releases for July:

African civilians (women)

Insurgent drivers - these are half figures that can be attached to the sides of diecast or resin vehicles.

African block of toilets

Shanty shop/cafe

"Police Station" kind of building.

8 ft container.

Ambush Alley: Force on Force Official Figures

2011-07-13T21:59:00.001+02:00

Matt announced the following today:

Elhiem Figures is very proud to announce they are now the Official Modern Figures for the rules of modern conflict; Ambush Alley: Force on Force!
As the Official Modern Figures for Force on Force, Elhiem Figures will be working closely with Ambush Alley to flesh out existing ranges and provide figures for future releases.

We will be updating our website this week with the news as well as our first changes of existing ranges to harmonise them with FoF army lists.
The first changes will be to remove the existing OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom) US infantry and replace them with IBA (interceptor Body Armour) range. The IBA will consist of new and re-worked OIF figures placed into packs that will expand the original line and make picking your figures for FoF easier.
The new IBA range will have sniper teams, a medic, NCO's, JTAC and mortar teams.
In addition we will start FoF Battle Packs, pre picked packs that will allow you to buy all you need to start playing (other than paint and preparation).

HUMINT, July 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-07-10T13:30:00.002+02:00

Israeli Jeep with TOW launcher

Byzantinum Models releases for July:

Rob wrote:

Finally we have the first sets of buildings out of the moulds for the new Byzantium range of Arabic buildings. intended orginally to represent poor rural communities the inspiration for the masters comes mostly from Afghanistan, although many of the features are common to this type of housing from North Africa across to the Middle-East. As usual we tend towards smaller houses based around the games we play, however we have some larger models due for release soon...All the roof's are removeable - and the walls have a nice subtle uneven surface which is typical, with some rendering crumbling away to reveal the hand made bricks beneath...

Wargaming "Africa" - some miniature comparisons. EDITED edition.

2011-07-09T23:53:00.003+02:00

Thanks to Jose V. once again for taking some pictures of his selection of 20mm pewter miniatures for African conflicts. Jose has now added the excellent S&S miniatures that were released just recently over the last few month.

Click the images to see them in full size.

From left: Elhiem; S&S (Shaun was worried these being youth elements); 2 Liberation Miniatures (to get the full spectrum), Mutineer and Flashing Blade (by now, I believe, OOP).

Now more pictures for those with measurements in mind...

...each small square is 1mm.

My kudos to Jose for allowing me to use his pictures. Thanks, mate. ;-)

Tomorrow's War: official cover revealed

2011-06-29T01:24:00.002+02:00

Shawn, Robby and Peggy have revealed the official front cover artwork for the forthcoming (although delayed by one month) Tomorrow's War game.
Some guys were faster (thank you, dear workmates) posting this (cheers to Dropship Horizon's crew) - but hey.... you can't have everything. :-D

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-06-26T11:07:00.003+02:00

Sat Comm Link equipment
Modern Trial/Enduro bike

ATVs, four and six-wheeled. Trailer with various loads.

ATV trailer, comes with different loads.

TheHobbyDen releases for June:

Israeli M113.

Grubby Tanks and Britannia Miniatures - June 2011 update

2011-06-23T10:34:00.002+02:00

On the behalf of Piers, I post this in my blog to let you know about Andy Grubb working hard on getting Britannia Miniatures back into action!

written by Piers Brand » 23 June 2011, 09:57

Guys,Spoke to Andy last night and he wanted me to let people know he is very busy but working like a demon to get through things! He is recently back from holidays and is working flat out to clear orders and set up Britannia Miniatures. He is getting emails and is trying to reply as soon as he can - So bear with him for a little while longer, he is flat out! He is also trying to get the GrubbyTanks site illustrated with as many pictures as possible.

But his hard work is bearing fruition...

http://www.britannia-miniatures.com/catalog/

Yes, the new Britannia Miniatures website is up, though its still got an awful lot of work to be done on it, this will give you some idea of his plans for the future. Andy is trying to add all Britannia ranges to this site, so you may well see some old forgotten ranges coming back! Im going to be supplying images for the ranges as much as I can, so Andy to hopes to have a good selection of things illustrated to start with.

So maintain your patience and keep your eyes peeled! Andy is almost there!

Tomorrow's War release date has changed

2011-06-22T18:06:00.001+02:00

Our Sci-Fi rules "Tomorrow's War" that were supposed to be released in September suffer from a delay of one month.

Shawn Carpenter, head of Ambush Alley Games said today:

Sorry, guys. We've just learned that Tomorrow's War's release date has slid from September 18th to October 18th. The slip was unavoidable in order for the printers to deliver us a book of the quality that we expect you to expect.
Fear not regarding our debut at Recruits in September, however. We will be receiving a quantity of books in advance to support the debut - so the book will be available for purchase from us at the Fall Recruits convention in Lee's Summit, MO, September 9th - 11th.
We're very sorry for the delay, but I assure you it was necessary and the improved product will be worth the extra 30 day!
Best wishes,
Shawn, Robby, & Peggy

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: new reinforcements on the painting table (WIP)

2011-06-13T12:37:00.002+02:00

The latest shipment of Dougram toys (Takara Nippon Sunrise figures) and ExoSquad 3inch figures has arrived - the old 80's designs that were used to depict the Mechs called Rifleman, Warhammer, Longbow and Shadowhawk. Four more figures are en route to me, bringing my collection of 15mm compatible war-walkers to a total of 25+ !!!

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-06-11T09:50:00.002+02:00

Elhiem Figures release that I forgot to post last week:

Soviet VDV in Afghanistan

TheHobbyDen releases for June 2011:
20mm resin gaming models. Painted by Piers Brand.

WC53 Power Wagon

M113

Mercedes 260SL as in use as taxi cab in many middle eastern countries

Wargaming "Africa" - some miniature comparisons.

2011-06-07T00:03:00.002+02:00

I would like to start with saying "thanks!" to Jose V. for taking this pic. He had opened a topic at the Guild about miniatures for gaming "Africa" in 20mm.
I don't own any on my own at this time, but thought it would be a handy resource for you guys out there to look at for some of the forthcoming books from Ambush Alley Games in 2012 ("Day Of The Rangers" and "African Bush Wars").
So, Jose shows us some of the miniature producers that currently have a line of miniatures with typical African appearance. I should point out to the latest S&S Models' releases for Africa that aren't included in the above pic. You can find those by following the HUMINT series of articles or clicking the appropriate label listed.

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-06-02T22:16:00.007+02:00

TheHobbyDen releases for June 2011:

20mm resin gaming models. Painted by Piers Brand.

T-72 tank. Resin hull with metal barrel.

Elhiem Figures new releases for June 2011:

TAL06 AQ Shadow Army

SF06 Veteran Advisors

OSP04 Female MPs (UK) with dogs

OSP03 modern UK forces

OSP02 modern UK forces

OBJ03 US door gunners (two dismounted)

NKVD01

IDF02 Israeli soldiers

FP07 French Paratrooper mortar crew

FP07 Pilots, 1950-1960s

FP05 French Parartroopers carrying wounded comrade

FP04 French Paratrooper light MG teams on the move

CWR05 cold war Russians with AT-4 guided AT-missile

CWR04 cold war Russians with heavy DShK machine gun and two crew

CWR03 soviet infantry (cold war) in camo suits

CWR02 cold war Soviet infantry in body armour

CWR01 Soviet cold war era infantry in basic webbing

BWG01 armed femals

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" finished

2011-05-25T11:48:00.009+02:00

The 160th SOAR "Little Bird" helicopters are finished. The BlackHawks will be started soon.

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV - DONE !!!

2011-05-23T18:01:00.003+02:00

Well, what can I say? It's finished. :-)

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (cleaning and touch ups WIP)

2011-05-20T23:00:00.002+02:00

All right, so this is where the magic happens: I tried to remove the excess of oil paint from the panel wash (mind you - its more than 36 hours later!) and guess what: it works ! ! !

I never tried this technique before and I am stunned how good it works.

Just compare the pics from yesterday with those I made just a couple of minutes ago.

Thanks to the gloss varnish before adding the panel wash, I could simply rub off all excess of oil paint wash with an old cotton cloth onto which I applied some turpentine.

shot from above - now I am off to apply decals!
sensor turret details

Stunning: all those nice rivets and panels of the access lids

The panel lines now really stick out nicely.

Even if those panel lines are very very narrow, they still "pop out" of the grey now.

Britannia Miniatures and Grubby Tanks - UPDATE

2011-05-20T18:32:00.002+02:00

Piers asked me to post this:

"Spoke to Andy briefly last night and he has started production again of alot of the Britannia lines. He has been working pretty much flat out to get things going so if you are after stuff, drop him an email. Word of warning - Andy is REALLY busy so dont be surprised if it takes a day or two for him to get back to you. Finally, Andy hopes to get a new Britannia Miniatures website up and running. He has asked me to help illustrate it with pics so I hope to help him build something that will drive the business forward. He has also not forgotten Grubby Tanks and has loaded up several new images there too. All in all, he is working hard to get things sorted and he seems to be doing very well!"

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (panel wash WIP)

2011-05-19T12:01:00.001+02:00

20mm SSgt Randy Sykes for a size comparison...

As you can see I have applied the oil paint panel wash. There is some excess oil paint scattered around the model, but thanks to the gloss varnish I will be able to remove that with ease tomorrow.

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (painting WIP)

2011-05-18T11:45:00.001+02:00

Next steps completed:
I sprayed the entire model with Light Grey and painted the details with various Vallejo colours (not many details to paint; missile, propeller, sensors, landing gear).

Today I applied a satin varnish (gloss would be recommended, but I didn't have any).When this has dried, the panel wash with oil paints will be done next.

So far it looks like that (crappy pics, sorry)

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV

2011-05-15T18:40:00.002+02:00

I wanted to finish the Little Birds today but somehow got distracted by this lovely little quick-build: a MQ-1 "predator" UAV.

It was a RQ-1 Predator (which is not armed) from Italeri which I upgraded using resin parts from Unicraft. The MQ-1 can be armed with up to two M114 Hellfire missiles. I didn't like the resin missiles so I took one of my unbuilt Apache helicopter from HobbyBoss.

I will have to build a very large flying base for this one, but I simply wanted a model for the appropriate Fog Of War card in Force On Force. *evil grin*

No, the GW base won't stay - it only helps to paint this beast.

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" work in progress (3)

2011-05-13T23:30:00.003+02:00

Both "Little Birds" on their flight stands. Not really completely finished, but it gives an impression of how its going to look like.

The MH-6. The glass section of the canopy is a pain to fit. :-/

The SHQ pilots. Normally for Vietnam - but I think they well look the part for 160th SOAR from Mogadischu all the way to Iraq 2003.

The Business-End of an armed AH-6J "Little Bird". Ever since I was watching Black Hawk Down for the first time I adore those awesome little combat machines.

7-shot Hydra pods and M134 Miniguns...

Now I will need to put finishing touches to those models and start with the MH-60s.

HUMINT, May 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-05-11T13:35:00.006+02:00

Taliban gun crew for ZSU-23-2 aa gun

a shot up pick-up and rubbish skips barricade

the shanty's are finaly ready to buy, either singley or in packs of 5 assorted

we also have a few more types of burning tyres and hasty barricades

a 6 fig range of again non specific usa gun armed, (m4's, minimi, ect), modern body armoured troops with bare heads or basebal caps (SOF, advisors, contractors, mercenaries etc)

"school bus" barricade

new items have been added to the packs to give more variety

Taliban gunner for aa gun

some police type paramilitaries, a range of 10 figs with berets and russian weapons

population, a range of african youth militia -

armed with a variety of weapons, ak's, pkm's, rpg's, fn's, gpmg ect, some are fully clothed others not,typical of the sort of child soldiers used in africa

ZPU-1 AA gun

the shanty detail pack:

20 piece random assortement of useful details like, washing lines, water tanks, tubs, girders, corugated tin, oil drums, doors and other usefull stuff

106mm recoilless rifle

the weapons fit into the resin technicals (note: there are ground and vehicle mount tripods)...

recoilless rifles fit the back of the HiLux and other technicals

african gunners for the aa gun

TheHobbyDen releases for May 2011:

Toyota HiLux without rear cabin.

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" work in progress (2)

2011-05-10T16:01:00.003+02:00

AH-6J
MH-6

Prime(r)-time.

So, today I applied the grey primer (Tamiya)...I've been using grey primer spray as I do hope the paintjob will turn out brighter later.

Tamiya NATO Black sprayed on top. Agreed, in my pics it looks just like Chaos Black primer, but in reality its way brighter, more like a dark grey.

Time to paint up some details.

Modern US Army: MH-6 (SOF transport) "Little Bird" work in progress

2011-05-09T15:20:00.003+02:00

MH-6 with its typical benchs for the SOF guys to sit upon (crew is SHQ if I remember correctly, SOF guys are Caesar plastics - unsure if they will be added).

MH-6 side shot, note the new tail and the FLIR turret as well as the added GPS antenna.

MH-6 details: note the support struts on the bench (scratchbuilt) and the mounted (scratchbuilt) FRIES (=FastRope Insertion and Extraction System) over the rear doors.

MH-6 front.

Modern US Army: AH-6j (armed) "Little Bird" work in progress

2011-05-09T15:12:00.002+02:00

The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) is a special operations unit of the United States Army that provides helicopter aviation support for general purpose forces and Special Operations Forces. Its missions have included attack, assault, and reconnaissance, and are usually conducted at night, at high speeds, low altitudes, and on short notice. The 160th SOAR is headquartered at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The 160th SOAR (A) are also known as the Night Stalkers and their motto is "Night Stalkers Don't Quit".

Hi, so I finally started with a my Nightstalkers helicopter fleet. As they took part in about every campaign since Grenada, they will be very useful for my FoF US Army and Special Forces. I am planning on a MH-6, AH-6j, MH-60K, MH-60L DAP and an CH-47E.
I began working on the smallest of them all: the "Little Birds". I used Tamiya kits, Italeri kits and lots of scratchbuilding to get me two variants. Let's start with the AH-6j (armed) "Little Bird", well known since Hollywood's version of "Blackhawk Down".

AH-6j with M134 Miniguns (7,62mm) and M260 Hydra pods (2.75" FFAR) with seven shots each.

AH-6j side shots reveals details of the scratchbuilt weapons mount and the added details (new tail, FLIR, GPS antenna etc.)

HUMINT, May 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-05-04T11:31:00.001+02:00

Land Rover Snatch

Toyota Hi-Lux

BTR-50

The Dragon Rises: ZSL-92 IFV (Type 92) ready to support the Battle For Skira

2011-05-03T12:13:00.004+02:00

Good to be on vacation. You get stuff done, you know :-)

Finally painted up both S&S Models Type 92 (IIRC Shaun calls them WZ551 but that's the chassis only).
Two of the infantry fighting vehicles so far (more to come). Offering space for 9 soldiers and being amphibious as well as armed with a 25mm autocannon and a co-axial 7,62mm MG it adds quite a punch to my Chinese forces. Infantry NCO shown for scale.

Front view: mirrors, wheels and some other details I took from Revell plastic kits. Note the smoke dischargers on the turret front which I added as well.

Back view: The rear lights are taken from a Revell kit, but the resin hull has some to offer as well. Note the tools which I added.

Left side: The decals are from the same sheet I used for the ZTZ99b tank and came off ebay HK.

Note the rust marks I painted on with Vallejo Saddle Brown.

Right side: more tools (Revell) and the towing equipment above. You can see how the powder of Tamiya's weatherin master set was used to "dust" the tires and wheel houes. Before I apply such powders or pigments I normally start drybrushing with brown tones first.

A top view: it reveals the engine grilles and nicely shows the smoke dischargers on the turret as well as its 25mm cannon and co-ax MG. Note the panel lines that were pinwashed with Devlin Mud (GW) - a lot of work that seems to take forever.

Weathering detail shot: You just can't paint the realisic look of actual powders and pigments when you want to achieve a dusty and dirty look. This shot also shows how I used Saddle Brown for rust marks and battlefield damages. Note the exhaust's weathering, solely done with various brown shades of colour.

Exhaust detail shot: sorry for the bad pic, but I guess you get an idea how different shades of brown, applied in a random pattern of dots and lines, will make the metal look like it has been turned hot many times and is now totally rusty. I haven't used matt varnish yet, that's why the dark green is semi-glossy in those pics!

How to paint modern Chinese PLA woodland-camo vehicles

2011-05-03T11:08:00.004+02:00

Today I am going to share how I do paint modern PLA armor camouflage for woodland areas. I don't claim my way of painting this is right, nor do I say my colour selection works best (but I took the colour table from a 1/35 kit producer). However, given the amount of questions in different forums it seems like people like my vehicle's look. So here is a quick tutorial on "How to paint modern Chinese PLA woodland-camo vehicles"!

What do you need?

-model (obviously *LOL*)
-Tamiya's Grey Basecoat coloured primer spray
-Vallejo's Model Color Iraqi Sand (70819), Saddle Brown (70940) and USA Uniform (70922),
-Games Workshop's Chaos Black, Boltgun Metal, Chainmail, (Foundation) Mechrite Red, Blood Red, Hawk Turquoise, Enchanted Blue, Blazing Orange, Vomit Brown, Bestial Brown, Graveyard Earth, Scorched Brown and the washes Devlin Mud and Badab Black,
-Tamiya's NATO Black,
-Mr Hobby's H321 Light Brown, H303 Green (=FS 34102), H309 Green (=FS 34079),
-matt varnish spray
-Tamiya's weathering master (set A)
-brushes (sizes 2-3 down to 0)
-"drybrush" brushes (one with flat tip, one with round tip)

Step #1
Assemble the kit and put it on your base (if you prefer to). Use Tamiya's Grey Basecoat primer spray and give it a full coat. Allow the primer to dry completely, then start painting the base with GW Bestial Brown. Drybrush the base with GW Vomit Brown afterwards and add a drybrushed layer of Vallejo's Iraqi Sand on top.
Paint the whole vehicle (apart from tracks or wheels!) with Mr Hobby Light Brown. I normally tend to paint the sides of the bases with GW Graveyard Earth. But that's a personal choice, you don't need to.

Step #2
Time to apply the outlines of the camo pattern. I paint all areas that later will be green (no matter which shade of green) with Mr Hobby H303 Green. These colours do require some thin layers. Don't blotch huge amounts of it at once, rather go with more thin layers!

Step #3

When the first green camo pattern has dried, use Mr Hobby H309 Green (which is slightly darker) and add those blotches of the pattern. At this time you could basicly also start painting the wheels with Tamiya NATO black and paint areas that will get a metal surface with GW Chaos Black, to make sure the metal tone looks alright.

Step #4

Step #4 is by far the longest and takes a tremendous amount of time. First you will have to pinwash around all panel lines and recesses. Use GW Devlin Mud to do so. It will help to break the flat bright brown surfaces and add more realism to your model. Use the Badab Black wash to add dirt to the engine grilles on top of the vehicle.

These washes need some time to dry, so don't paint anything else until they are (otherwise you will touch areas of still wet wash and have your fingerprints all over the model!)

Step #5

The last step requires a lot of paints as we obviously need to paint up all details.
The lenses and windows get a base layer of GW Enchanted Blue. Once dried, add a thin line of GW Hawk Turquoise.

Drybrush the Light Brown areas of the camo pattern with Vallejo Iraqi Sand. Be careful and try not to touch the green areas. For the green edges use Vallejo USA uniform and drybrush them as well.

The tail lights I paint with (Foundation) GW Mechrite Red, followed by a center highlight with Blood Red.

All tools (the metal parts of them) and the towing equipment get a layer of GW Boltgun Metal, followed by a highlight with GW Chainmail. I also use this technique for the headlights. Paint them Boltgun Metal, then add a dot of Chainmail to the center.

The wooden parts of the tools need to be painted in a brown tone. I use GW Graveyard Earth to do so.

The exhaust needs some steps for a rusted look: give it a base layer of GW Bestial Brown, then use Scorched Brown to add random dots and lines (I really mean random!). When you are done, add same again on different spots with Graveyard Earth and Vallejo Saddle Brown - if done correctly the exhaust will look like rusted metal (check the entry of the finished ZSL-92 in my blog for a detail shot).

Paint the gun barrels of the 25mm autocannon and the co-axial MG with GW Chaos Black.

Use Vallejo Saddle Brown to add marks of rust on areas that might got shot at or damaged in previous missions. Don't go crazy with this - you don't want to paint a wreck!

Drybrush the wheel houses and their direct vicinity with GW Scorched Brown, Graveyard Earth and Vomit Brown to add dirt for the weathering (don't forget the lower hull on front and back). You can also softly brush over the tires, but I prefer to use pigments and powders for those.

Last step is adding the powder of the weathering master set (A) from Tamiya. I use the applicator to "paint" them on the flanks of the tires and into the wheel houses. Afterwards the brush side of the tool is used to "dust" all lower hull parts and the road tread of the wheels.

That's it. Take a good look at the ZSL-92 IFV article on my blog. The various shots from there will help you to undestand what paints go where.

Chris

Stylish Blogger Award

2011-05-02T21:57:00.006+02:00

Well, first off: thanks, Donogh ( http://donoghmccarthy.blogspot.com/2011/04/stylish-blogger-apparently.html ) for adding me to this.

1. Thank and link back to the person giving you the award.

Done, thanks, Donogh.

2. Share seven things about yourself.

a) The Avatar pic is not me. But I guess you knew that. :-)

b) It shows a TV character that coincidently bears the same first name in that show: Chris.

c) I am not a soldier, yet I am surrounded by many of them (no, I am not in custody) LOL

d) I love Lagavulin. Google it, if you don't know what it is. No, I am not an alcoholic.

e) I am a Metalhead since I was four years old. According to some family members I was dancing to "I wanna be somebody" from W.A.S.P. at that age. \m/

f) Apart from camouflage I don't have anything but black coloured stuff to dress in. No, I am not an Emo. ;-)

g) I cannot stand stupid people and I get annoyed by watching the news easily. :-)

3. Select 10-15 blogs who you think deserve this award.

Phew, that's hard. I mean, I watch many blogs because certain themes in there are of interest to me (while others aren't). Well, I guess I just list 10 of them.

Gruntz! For being a 15mm epiphany http://www.gruntz.biz/

Cold War Gone Hot for painting awsome amounts of Russian troops http://coldwarhot.blogspot.com/

Dropship Horizon for being there (yep, that simple) http://dropshiphorizon.blogspot.com/

Plastic Warriors for his love to 1/72 http://plasticwarriors.blogspot.com/

Red Line Painting Service, because he's a good guy all around http://redlineps.blogspot.com/

The War Depot for his nice set of A-stan terrain http://wardepot.blogspot.com/

Wargames & Walking because of his love for Force on Force http://wargamesandwalking.blogspot.com/

Erestor for his painting skills http://warpainter-erestor.blogspot.com/

Donogh for being an inspiration so many times http://donoghmccarthy.blogspot.com/

hetairoi for his many interesting articles http://hetairoiwargames.blogspot.com/

4.- Contact these bloggers and let them know about the award.

Will do. ^^

Force On Force: new website, new forum design, new Quickstart rules and free stuff

2011-04-28T11:29:00.003+02:00

Hi,

just posting to let you guys know about the new website of Ambush Alley Games being online now as well as the forum being re-designed and back up. If you haven't joined yet, now's the perfect time!

Furthermore there are new, free download Quick Start Rules that explain the basic game mechanics, so if you are interested in the game, why don't have a first glimpse at the core rules first? You can find them for free in the right column of this blog or at the new website of AAG.

Shawn and Peggy also have put out a free set of Fog Of War cards, so you can download them and don't have to damage your books. You can find them under "downloads" at the website or you can use my blog (right column).

cheers,
Chris

Grubby Tanks and Britannia Miniatures - April 2011 update

2011-04-26T22:03:00.002+02:00

On the behalf of Piers, I post this in my blog to let you know about Andy Grubb working hard on getting Britannia Miniatures back into action!

written by Piers Brand » 26 Apr 2011, 12:11

Just spoke to Andy today and he asked me to post a quick update on things as he is very busy!http://www.grubbytanks.com/catalog/
He has moved alot of the Britannia stuff over to his premises, and moving the 'Monster' that Dave created is taking time. He has a number of ranges that aint seen the light of day for years, let alone even getting things properly sorted. But he hopes to have a few metal ranges back in production over the next couple of weeks, quickly followed by the resin vehicles. Andy really is working full tilt on this, so fair play to him. He is also trying to get the website updated with pictures as well. On top of this, he also has some new releases... Not to mention starting on yet another new range of WW2 figures for Kellys Heroes... Sadly I cant what it is yet, but it will be good!
So, if you are after Britannia stuff, I would suggest dropping him a line and seeing if he either has it in stock or when its liable to get produced. I think he is conscious of the desire for the modern ranges, so they may well get his attention first. But as always, the best option is to drop him a line. Im going to keep The Guild updated as often as Andy feeds me news, (...)
I for one will give him all the support I can over the next few months as I imagine it will be hard work getting everything sorted and running right. He does have some new things coming soon, so hopefully next week I may have some new bits to show off for him!

Cheers,Piers

The Dragon Rises: PLA Type 99 (ZTZ99B) battle tank adds its firepower to the Battle For Skira

2011-04-24T22:09:00.007+02:00

The Type 99, also known as ZTZ99 (...), is a third generation main battle tank (MBT) fielded by the Chinese People's Liberation Army. It is made to compete with other modern tanks. Although not expected to be acquired in large numbers due to its high cost compared to the more economical Type 96, it is currently the most advanced MBT fielded by China. The ZTZ99 MBT is considered one of the 12 best tanks in the world, and is a successor to the Type 98 G tank manufactured for the People's Liberation Army (PLA). (taken from http://tanks.net16.net/ztz99.html )

This resin and metal kit is made by S&S models. I had it sitting on my shelf for nearly 1 1/2 years now and it was about time to finally paint it. If you click the label "PLA" you will even find the post were you can see it raw, without paint (and how long ago that was, too *doh!*)

This shot gives you an idea of the impressive size of China's latest battle tank in ~1/72 scale, the infantry NCO is shown for scale.

Of course the turret spins. :-D
I cannibalised a Revell T-72 for drums, towing cables and the obligatory trunk of a tree. Note the texture on the log.

Front view revealing the additional armour plates of hull and turret frontside.

The small device with the laser warning label is part of an active protection system (APS). The laser-dazzler confuses enemy sights, optics and incoming warheads of ATGMs. The PLA badges and numbers are part of decal sheets I got off Chinese ebay for bargain.

The side view shows the subtle weathering. I was trying to add some mud and dust effects to the trackguards. Some chipping here and there gives it a well-used look.

Rear view. Towing cable and drums and better view of the trunk of a tree that is used to pull the tank out of mud if it got bogged down.

Other side with the commander's hatch and the QJC-88 heavy machine gun (pretty much the same like the Russian DShK).

The top of the tank shows the engine's grilles and the camo nets in the turret stowage bins.

Detailed shot of the turret. Note the optics and laser-dazzler device (APS). Some minor rust marks were painted on various armour panels.

Mud and dirt stains on the trackguards were painted on using a variety of brown colour tones. Paint chipping was done using saddle brown from Vallejo.

The Dragon Rises: PLA anti air teams with QW-2 SAM launchers

2011-04-19T10:10:00.003+02:00

These shoulder launched QW-2 SAMs are the equivalent of the Russian IGLA or the US Stinger missiles. They are heat-seeking and a real threat to any aircraft or helicopter in low altitudes.

I used the appropriate miniatures from S&S and Elhiem West-Germans to resemble three such teams.

Bases are made from steel washers (30mm), some stones added and little bit of flock and foliage...
The Elhiem minis were converted. The Stinger missile had to be re-designed to bring it closer to the look of the S&S launcher the other miniatures are bearing. I like the fact that both miniatures are having different heights - like real humans, miniatures come in various sizes, too.
One holds a spare missile while his mate scans the sky for any incoming USMC helibourne invasion force to Skira.

The Dragon Rises: PLA spotter team with QBU-88 Marksman Rifle

2011-04-19T10:02:00.002+02:00

These S&S models of the PLA range are my forward artillery observer team or could act like a scout team for other purposes. The standing rifleman has a long-ranged QBU-88 rifle with a strong scope. The fuel drum and ammo boxes they hide behind are battlefield accessoires made by Italeri.
I used Tamiya weathering powder to add the rust to the fuel drum and dust to the ammo crates.

The Dragon Rises: PLA weapon team with HJ-8 "Red Arrow" anti-tank guided missile

2011-04-19T09:52:00.003+02:00

The HJ-8 "Red Arrow" is a SACLOS (semi-automatic command to line of sight) guided missile in use with the Chinese PLA. I used a modern French MILAN team from RH Liberation to build this little diorama of a tank-hunter team waiting in ambush position.
I wasn't sure about markings used on the launcher tubes, so I went with those that could be seen on vehicle based ATGMs of the PLA during the 2009 Parade in Beijing.
Note the shoulder straps made from Green Stuff.

Both team members received QBZ-95 Assault Rifles made by S&S, which I added to the shoulder straps I made from Green Stuff. Basicly I only did this to make the obvious French-looking miniatures (they are based upon such) look more Chinese army like.

The Dragon Rises: PLA weapon team with QJC-88 HMG

2011-04-19T09:42:00.003+02:00

QJC-88 heavy machine gun emplacement. Figures by RH Liberation, based upon an Iraqi DShK team. Sandbags are from Italeri's 1/72 battlefield accessoires.
The loader has received a shoulder strap made from Green Stuff putty and a S&S rifle (QBZ-95)

The team wears Type-87 woodland camo. I tried to paint little red rectangulars, they shall resemble small Chinese flags worn on the shoulders...

Note the assault rifle I added to the loaders' back.

The Dragon Rises: PLA squad for the Battle For Skira

2011-04-17T13:25:00.002+02:00

After months of doing nothing to them, I finally painted up one of three Mechnized Infantry squads for the PLA (=people's liberation army) made by S&S models. These will face the USMC in the "Battle For Skira" campaign, which is based upon the pc game Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising made by Codemasters. With only a limited number of miniatures available, I'll have to represent the PLA forces with some older equipment compared to the soldiers within the pc game. A squad's loadout: A= leader, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle B= rifleman, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle C= rifleman AT, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle and PF-89 launcher D= rifleman, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle E= fire team 2 leader, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle F= rifleman MG, QBB-95 Sqaud Automatic Weapon G= rifleman, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle H= rifleman, QBZ-95 Assault Rifle

Fire Team 2, second guy from left carrying the Chinese QBB-95 SAW light machine gun. Fire Team 1, second guy from left carrying a PF-89 AT rocket launcher.

Full squad in Type 87 general woodland camo.

Back view with webbing, pouches etc. Note the flag on their shoulder.

Generic Iraqi Force: ZPU-4 anti air gun

2011-04-12T11:17:00.004+02:00

The ZPU-4 is a towed, quadruple-barreled anti-aircraft gun based on the Soviet KPV 14.5 mm machine gun.

Apart from the gunner who I didn't even start to paint yet, the ZPU-4 gun for my Iraqi army is done.

20mm metal kit by RH Liberation. Painted in Russian Green (Vallejo), washed with thinned down oil paint Viridian (Norma oil paints), chipped with Dark Angels Green (GW) and Scorched Brown (GW) as well as Saddle Brown (Vallejo). Tires are NATO black (Tamiya).

The whole model was dusted using MIG pigments and Tamiya weathering powder. Not the best kit made by Rolf, but painted I really like it.

HUMINT, April 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-04-08T22:31:00.005+02:00

HUMINT = human intelligence. A new series of posts on my blog about news of various tabletop miniature producing companies concerning "moderns". The pictures were taken off the producers' catalogues with their prior permission. Cheers for that guys! Links to their webshops can be found within the right column of my blog (see sources for 20mm....). Najewitz Modellbaushop releases for April 2011: Jens at Najewitz Modellbaushop has a new series of 20mm generic middle eastern buildings that can be used for Africa, Iraq and other settings.

Government Building or Palace

TheHobbyDen releases for April 2011:

20mm resin gaming models. Painted by Piers Brand.

Mercedes 220S M715 M151

M52

Isuzu Flatbed lorry

HMMWV

BRDM-1

Ambush Valley Vietnam sneak peeks

2011-04-07T10:54:00.004+02:00

The Force On Force supplement Ambush Valley Vietnam (by Piers Brand and Joe Trevithick) is going to be released in October, so Piers has been busy taking a lot of pictures of "on table action" for the book. He is not only an excellent painter, he also knows how to create some really impressive photos of miniatures. Some of them he released as a little preview of things to come. Enjoy (and thanks to Piers!)

Modern US Army: Abrams tanks WIP - turrets finished

2011-04-04T00:00:00.004+02:00

Thank you, real life - for letting me have off from work for once. Oh happy day, I was able to put finishing touches to the Abrams turrets. Due to a lot of feedback that my vehicles appear to be too "clean" for frontline armour, I had a go on those turrets with Tamiya's superb weathering sets. These sets come with three boxes of pigmet powder in various tones and a dual applicator (one side a brush, the other a pen-type Weathering Stick). Please note that no matt varnish was applied when I took these pics. It is absolutely necessary to apply a coat, otherwise the pigmets will stick to your fingers everytime you grab your toys!!! See the frontside of the armoured turret hull - the vertical weathering was done with the applicator stick.

A close up of the weathering in various tones of pigment.

Another shot of the frontside. I used "Sand", "Light Sand" and "Dust" to apply those faded lines.

See the dust and pigments on the turret top? These were applied with the brush side of the applicator tool.

I mixed all pigments that came in the sets from Tamiya and used the applicator tool's brush to "drybrush" (the technique is the same as with a acryl or enamel paint) dust and sand into all recesses. Note the duffel bags in the lower part of the pic - it shows traces of multiple tones of pigment.

With the pen-side of the applicator I brushed carefully over all weld seams. I also applied dust to where the crew would most likely have went over on the top of the turrets.

The barrel of "Columbia 2", 2nd platoon, Charly Company, Task Force 1-64

The barrel of "Carnitore", 2nd platoon, Charly Company, Task Force 1-64

Multiple pigments were mixed and applied heavily over the complete stowage, just as it would have been in a sand storm.

The strong amounts of powder in-between the items in the stowage bins creates a very realistic look.

Wargaming "Moderns", Resources Vol. 4: in-depth knowledge about historical conflicts

2011-04-02T12:22:00.006+02:00

Welcome to Volume #4 of my series of articles about books which will help you getting your historical gaming of "Moderns" right. This time I will introduce to you Osprey Publishing's "Essential History" series. What are these about? Well, they are as the name already says a collection of essential knowledge about a certain era in history. As Osprey's focus is on the human history of warfare, they do of course first and foremost portray conflicts in history. If you want to game a certain era you feel interested in, you normally need to know something about the background of the conflict. Most likely the questions you need to answer before you start collecting forces are

when was it fought,

where,

by whom,

and most important: why?

The "Essential History" series does help to cover these questions with in-depth detail and knowledge to find all answers you need. Once you found what forces were deployed, it's easy to pick a miniature-producer of your choice, buy your force and use "Warrior", "Vanguard" or "Elite" series of books, to paint and build them accordingly. If you know when in history you are fighting, your resources of books will help you not to field a variant or technology that wasn't available. If you know who did fight, you might find it out of a sudden interesting to field troops, that most never heard of before participating (like fielding French Armor, instead of US in Desert Storm - yes, they were there!). Detailed information about whom you are facing helps determining, what you need to collect as an opposing force. Why the war was fought is by all means most important - it helps to come up with own scenario ideas or mission objectives.

Osprey does produce a lot of books in this series, most of them that are already released will give you an insight into the conflict you are most likely to play. Step by step, they also un-cover what was long hidden from public. Politicians and regimes and their very own agenda of reasons to send troops into a war, the truth behind some of the real goals they wanted to achieve.

Who were the strong men (or women) behind the governments of the era in focus, how did they behave - aggressive or rather diplomatic? Who lead the forces, successfully or pathetic? How did the war unfold, air campaign and ground conflict described in detail.

What was the Chronology of the war? What goals where achieved and when? When and where did the most important operations take place and who won those battles? This series of books will help you to answer all of these questions.

Combined with the other series Osprey has in stock and the forthcoming campaign packs and supplements for Force On Force, gamers will have unprecedented knowledge about the forces and wars they fight with miniatures. I doubt any other game or publisher ever has presented playing history in such a detail as you can cover with those books.

whispers - guess what's coming for Force On Force in 2012

2011-04-02T00:20:00.005+02:00

...and NO, it is not an apocalypse supplement. :-D Joseph McCullough of Osprey Publishing was talking about them and Ambush Alley Games teaming up in an interview he did with meeples&miniatures on April 1, 2011 and how the release schedule is looking like for this year and the forthcoming year 2012. As it is already confirmed, 2011 will see the supplements called

Road To Baghdad

Enduring Freedom

Ambush Valley Vietnam

Cold War Gone Hot

while 2012 seems to be supposed to see the release of

Day Of The Rangers (new and expanded Somalia 1993 supplement)

Bush Wars (various African wars)

Contra (Central American conflicts, to include Panama and Grenada)

Fallujah (US forces in Iraq 2004, one of the bloodiest battles fought during the campaign)

Britannia Miniatures - the legacy of Dave will go back to business!

2011-03-30T00:21:00.004+02:00

Jenny Howitt, Dave Howitt's daughter, gave us the good news about her dad's work going to continue with help of Andy Grubb at Grubby Tanks. She wrote: Hi this is Dave Howitt's daughter Jenny. Firstly I would like to thank everyone for their kind words and wishes they have been much appreciated in this difficult time for us. Just letting everyone know what is happening with Britannia Miniatures. The business is currently in probate, but once that is sorted Britannia will be being sold to Andy Grubb of Grubby Tanks. (http://www.grubbytanks.com) [...] Thanks Jenny Howitt. Good news indeed for all gamers of 20mm size - Dave's work is some of the best on the market. Nice to see it going back to business!

HUMINT, March 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-03-28T22:35:00.006+02:00

Cold War Americans (1964-84). Based on Cold War TOE. US 1/2 Sections Cold War Americans (1964-84). Based on Cold War TOE. US 1/2 Sections Insurgents with Support Weapons

Insurgents with Mortar Insurgent Leaders/Dickers

Insurgents with Small Arms

Generic Moderns

Helo Crew, Suitable for Chinooks, BlackHawk, most really. 2 x Doorgunners and 1 x Ramp Gunner.

Snipers in Ghilli Suit.

Generic Special Forces (also suitable as Contractors)

EOD Specialists

figures including EOD suit, Detector and EOD bomb-sniffing Dog

Leader, Comms, GPMG

Special Forces/Contractors:

4 x SF with M4's + SAW

Najewitz Modellbaushop releases for March 2011:

Jens at Najewitz Modellbaushop has a new series of 20mm generic middle eastern buildings that can be used for Africa, Iraq and other settings.

"Little" Mosque with Minarett

Arab / middle eastern style buildings - a review of Art Of War Terrain's stuff

2011-03-26T23:17:00.004+01:00

Art Of War Terrain was a shop (link in the usual place, right-hand side column of the blog) I came across when I was searching the web for new suitable terrain for my games set in Iraq. I can only say I was really stunned when I saw the price for the terrain below: the whole set of six (!) houses was only 31€ (~44US $). I then read the item's description and thought I'll give it a try. I got them a couple of days back and here are my findings:

First of all: it is six (!) houses for a very, very decent price. They are going to cover almost a quarter of my smaller gaming table. They don't need assembling and they are pre-painted in a greyish-white colour. Hand-crafted items, made out of thin MDF - very sturdy and not at all bad looking. But let's get a bit closer...
Included in this set, called "wargame terrain DESERT TOWN 15mm / 1:72 scale painted",
are multiple storey houses and single floor houses. Some have flat rooftops others domed ones.

All doors are fixed in half-open positions, all windows cut out.

The set has various shapes of buildings, rectangulars and some with little towers - but all with a lot of space on top to give miniatures cover.

Some houses I will convert a little using the S&S items for satellite dishes and air conditioners. The one on the right-hand side looks more residential, so I'll add some shop signs to the left one.

For a whole set like this I was really surprized how big some buildings turned out to be. The stairs add a nice touch.

Not that I would need this to be the case for Force On Force games, but those little gems even have removable rooftops (all of them!)

They aren't as big as some of the other buildings (other companies' products), but they do blend in nicely with all of them and really expand my collection of wargaming terrain. I like the little holes Ray left to help taking off the roofs - it looks like a door of some sort. Ever wondered from where those Insurgents actually got to the roof? ;-)

Like I mentioned before, you can take off the roofs and all inner ceilings. Something I didn't expect for that price.

Just to prove my statement about inner ceilings!

And then there is something that I would really like to share with you guys: the conduct of the shop's owner: Ray B.

When I ordered those buildings it took a little while for them to show up. When I asked about the whereabouts, Ray turned out to be not only a guy who wants to sell something, but also a fellow wargamer - and a really nice guy to chat to. We exchanged quite a bit of mail about many different things and because I had to wait longer then expected, he even offered a full (!) refund.
What was charged too much for postage, was refunded. This is what a gamer needs - somebody you can trust in and a honest business partner. Ray turned out to be both.

He said he is going to expand his 1/72 scale collection soon and I am looking forward to see it being online for sale. All of his terrain for sale is hand-made, so you got to expect a little time in between his offerings on ebay. But it's well worth the wait!

Arab / middle eastern style buildings - a review of The Colonial Steamboat Company's stuff

2011-03-26T22:20:00.007+01:00

My ever-growing terrain collection got bigger recently. The houses I show to you below are from The Colonial Steamboat Company (see link list in the right-hand side column). Sometimes - if you are lucky - you can get your hands on items that aren't out of the ordinary range of models they sell (raw kits), but already painted and assembled perfectly. Those two buildings are such items, which I was able to win on ebay.
They are made out of some ultra-lightweight materiél and came sand-coloured.
I'll go and add some items from S&S to them, mainly satellite dishes and air conditioners.

As you can see they are quite big, at the moment they are the tallest of all buildings I have in my collection.

One building got a hallway right through it - its even wide enough for a Technical to hide within!
The stairs that lead to the upper floor are wide enough for a 20mm wide washer (base) to place miniatures on.

I love this particular building. It can contain a little bazaar. Very middle-eastern, just perfect for my games.

Again, the stairs are excellent to even place your troops upon. If you look at the door that leads to the roof, you can see its perfectly in scale for 20mm miniatures.

It got another entry on the opposite side. By the way - you can place miniatures inside. The floors are removable!

Second building, other side. The windows are perfectly cut out to fit the inner floors - figures will be located exactly where a real human being would be, when placed inside the building.

Really large buildings, compared to the tanks I placed for scale.

The roof has been removed: it even has rooms!!!

The inner floor has been taken out, you can see there is other rooms on first floor. That's what I call a detailed piece of wargaming terrain!

Same goes for the other building I got. Roofs and inner ceilings are removable.

First floor....

These buildings are by far some of the best wargaming terrain I ever had. Ultra-light, very sturdy and pre-painted for a decent price. If you consider buying middle-eastern terrain, don't miss those!

I will work them over to make their generic look a bit more Iraqi. With some posters and other small details they are going to lose their rural look and hopefully turn into some nice urban terrain.

Ambush Valley 2 - The Redux! Content preview

2011-03-25T00:27:00.003+01:00

Piers Brand, writer of Ambush Valley and in-house painter/photographer said: "As some may know Osprey will be publishing a revised version of my Ambush Valley supplement for Force-on-Force in October. I have been joined by Joe Trevethick on this and I think we have pulled together something really special for Vietnam players. As a sneak peek, I thought you guys may like to see the contents page list... Its not complete but it will give you a good idea whats coming... "

CONTENTS
Introduction.
A Place Called Vietnam.
Vietnamization - New Rules
The Advisory Period (1965-64)
The Defense, Counteroffensive, and the End (1965-1975)
Unit Organizations.
The United States.
US Basic Infantry Units.
US Army Rifle Company.
US Army Rifle Company.
USMC Infantry Company.
Specialized Infantry Units.
US Army EOD Detachment
USAF Combat Security Police Flight
Above Company Level
US Military Armor Units.
Basic Armor Units.
USMC Medium Tank Company, Tank Battalion.
USMC Anti-Tank Company, Tank Battalion.
USMC Amphibian Tractor Company, Amphibian Tractor Battalion.
Specialized Armor Units.
US Army Airborne Tank Company, Separate Airborne Brigade.
US Army Artillery Battery (Automatic Weapons, Self Propelled and .50 Caliber Machine Gun), Artillery Battalion (Automatic Weapons, Self-Propelled)
Miscellaneous US Army Armor
US Air Force Armor
Above Company Level
US Army Cavalry Units.
Division and Brigade Cavalry Units.
US Army Armored Cavalry Troop, Cavalry Squadron, Infantry and Infantry Division (Mechanized)
US Army Cavalry Troop, Cavalry Squadron, Airborne and Airmobile Division Or Separate Brigade (Light)
US Army Air Cavalry Troop, Cavalry Squadron, Infantry, Infantry Division (Mechanized), Airborne Division, Airmobile Division, or Separate Brigade (Light)
The Armored Cavalry Regiment
US Army Armored Cavalry Troop, Armored Cavalry Squadron, Armored Cavalry Regiment
US Army Air Cavalry Troop, Armored Cavalry Regiment
Above Troop Level
The Republic of Vietnam.
Infantry Units.
ARVN Infantry Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
ARVN Mechanized Rifle Troop, Armored Cavalry Squadron.
ARVN Regional Force Company, Regional Force Battalion.
ARVN Regional Force Mechanized Platoon.
ARVN Popular Force Platoon.
VNMC Infantry Company, VNMC Infantry Battalion.
NPFF Company.
Armored Units.
ARVN Tank Troop, Armored Cavalry Squadron.
ARVN Tank Company, Armor Battalion.
ARVN Armored Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop, Armored Cavalry Squadron.
ARVN Armored Car Troop, Armored Car Squadron.
Free World Armed Forces.
Australia and New Zealand.
ANZAC Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
Australian Tank Troop, Tank Squadron, Tank Regiment
Australian Cavalry Troop, Cavalry Squadron, Cavalry Regiment
The Republic of Korea.
ROKA Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
ROKMC Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
The Kingdom of Thailand.
RTA Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
The Republic of the Philippines.
Philippine Army Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion Combat Team
Special Operations Forces.
US Army Special Forces
US Army Infantry Company, Ranger
US Army Infantry Platoon, Scout Dog
US Navy SEAL Platoon
USMC Force Reconnaissance Company
USMC Reconnaissance Company, Reconnaissance Battalion, Marine Division
South Vietnamese
Luc Luong Dac Biet (LLDB)
South Vietnamese So Cong Tac (Special Mission Service)
South Vietnamese Lien Doi Ngoui Nhia (LDNN) and So Phong Ve Duyen Hai (Coastal Security Service)
ANZAC Special Air Service Troop, Special Air Service Squadron, Special Air Service Regiment Special Programs
The Civilian Irregular Defense Group (CIDG)
Program Projects Delta, Sigma, and Omega Intelligence Collection and Exploitation (ICEX) and the Phoenix / Phung Hoang Program
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front
The People’s Army of Vietnam..
PAVN Infantry Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
PAVN Sapper Company, Sapper Battalion.
PAVN Armor Company, Armor Battalion, Armor Regiment
The People’s Liberation Army and People’s Liberation Armed Force.
PLAF Infantry Company (“Main Force” and “Local Force”), Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment
PLAF Sapper Company, Sapper Battalion.
A Not So Secret War – Laos & Cambodia.
Laos.
Unit Organizations
The Armee Nationale Laotienne, Forces Armee Laotienne, and Forces Armee Royales ANL/FAL/FAR Infantry Company, Infantry Battalion
The Hmong Irregulars
The Thai Unity Battalions and Other Irregulars Cover Operations in Laos
The Pathet Lao.
Cambodia
Scenarios
Battle of Ap Bac, 2nd January 1963
First with Honour 1964
Enemy at the Gate, 31st January 1968
Shutting the Barn Door, 1st February 1968
The Ben Cam Sweep, 28th November 1969
Firefight along the Dong Nai, June 1969
Battle of Binh Ba, 6th–8th June 1969
The Longest Fight, An Loc 1972
Unit Organizations.
The Forces Armees Royales Khmere.
ARK Infantry Company, Infantry Battalion.
The Forces Armees Nationales Khmere.
ANK Infantry Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Division and Separate Infantry Brigade. ANK Mechanized Squadron, Infantry Division and Mechanized Regiment Armored Brigade. ANK Armored Brigade.
FANK Special Forces
A Detachment and B Detachment
Covert Operations in Cambodia
The Khmer Rouge.
Sample Vehicles.
Bibliography.

HUMINT, March 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-03-20T23:30:00.006+01:00

Pack 2 : An 'engineer' pack. This has a soldier using a Vallon mine detector, another using a wrecking bar for loop-holing purposes, a third carries an assault ladder, whilst the fourth test fires the XM25 25mm grenade launcher, currently on trials in Afghanistan.

Pack 3 : A 'command' pack. Has a bareheaded SNCO/officer type pointing and issuing an order, a light mortarman & 2 x radio operators, one with a Minimi.

Pack 4 : A crew served weapons pack. There's a 2 man medium mortar team, with mortar & a soldier firing a Javelin missile.

Najewitz Modellbaushop releases for March 2011:

Jens at Najewitz Modellbaushop has a new series of 20mm generic middle eastern buildings that can be used for Africa, Iraq and other settings.

A modern House with shop.Supplied with air conditioners, power poles and satellite dishes

And another House in old style.

S&S releases for March 2011:

Shaun and Stewart have been busy once again and so we get another bunch of brand new vehicles this month. The Special Forces Quad Bikes were created with help from Brian. There are going to be various riders to man them.

Special Forces Quad bikes.

"War Pig" United States Special Forces vehicle.

Shaun said: "this has mostly moulded in stowage, but does have metal stowage that can be added or left off, the crew figs are from Elhiem, thanks to Matt for the license agreement, and to Simon Ford for badgering us both to do it. (...) the rear gun and seat are separate and again can be changed, the gun will be a .50cal HMG, but a 40mm Grenade Machine Gun or GPMG (General Purpose MG) option is available. Although you will not be able to buy them just yet, they will surely be ideal for those Ambush Alley games. My thanks to Mark Taylor for the paint job."

Land Rover WMIK of the British Special Forces.

Shaun said "...it has lots of metal stowage and will have 3 crew, you can choose between beret, helmet, floppy hat or spec ops crews. Main armament can be either .50cal HMG or 40mm Grenade Machine Gun."

Wargaming "moderns" - a guide to start Force On Force

2011-03-20T13:05:00.003+01:00

I was asked to write up a "starters tutorial" for Force On Force. I have tried to put the most important information in. For links to sources for miniatures (at least in 20mm), see the right column of this blog and scroll down. Same goes for terrain.

You can click on these images (to zoom in) two times to bring them to full size. This will make it easy to read the text. Just use your browser button to "go back".

NOTE: I updated my blog on March 22, 2011. This article is now also available for (free) download (pdf file). If you look into the right-hand side of the blog you'll find a link to click on.

"Person Of Interest" - a Force On Force game report

2011-03-17T05:42:00.007+01:00

Wargaming "moderns" - some scale comparisons

2011-03-15T14:51:00.004+01:00

Due to some people requesting such a thing: scale comparison for "moderns".

A= S&S Models Modern Chinese PLA Officer
B= Caesar 1/72 Plastics Modern Chinese PLA Rifleman
C= RH Liberation modern US Rifleman with M16
D= Britannia Miniatures modern US Rifleman with AT-4
E= Stan Johansen modern USMC Rifleman with AT-4
F= Stonewall modern US Rifleman with M4
G= Elhiem modern US Rifleman with combat shotgun
from left to right:
A= S&S Models Modern Chinese PLA Officer
B= Caesar 1/72 Plastics Modern Chinese PLA Rifleman
C= RH Liberation modern US Rifleman with M16
D= Britannia Miniatures modern US Rifleman with AT-4
E= Stan Johansen modern USMC Rifleman with AT-4
F= Stonewall modern US Rifleman with M4
G= Elhiem modern US Rifleman with combat shotgun

Note: I didn't show my Revell Bundeswehr 1/72 plastics as they are not stored in my appartment at this moment. They do have the proportions of the Caesar plastics!!

Links to the webshops can be found in the right column of this blog (see "sources for 20mm...)

Modern US Army: Abrams tanks WIP - hulls finished

2011-03-14T23:13:00.004+01:00

If you look at the blog you can see I have been busy with writing recently which means I didn't do a lot of modelling. But that is about to change (once again). I finished both hulls for my 2nd platoon of Charly Company's Abrams tanks. Please DO NOT pay attention to the turrets. They aren't finished of course!

I have added the appropriate decals for my tanks, added some minor chipping and weathering effects, using different shades and tones for drybrushing and pin washes. Furthermore MIG pigments and Tamiya weathering powders were used on the armor plates and mine plow.

The exhaust of the turbine. The engine of the Abrams tank produces an enormous amount of heat. I drybrushed with black and two brigher tones of grey and finally added some pigments.

I love the way the lower section of the hull turned out after oil paint wash, pin washing pigment use. It looks dirty and heavily worn.

The mine plow. What appears to be wet mud is MIG pigments with fixer to hold them in place. The latter hasn't dried which makes it look wet. I hope this turns into a more dusty/sand mixture once it has dried - it wasn't supposed to look like wet mud. Oh, well....

Slightly different shades of desert camo - thanks to oil paints. Looks worn and torn.

Once again - don't look too close to the turrets. They aren't finised yet (they haven't even been started to be exactly. *LOL*)

Force On Force and Road To Baghdad: more sample pages

2011-03-14T11:55:00.004+01:00

Hello lads, I got some more pictures of pages taken out of the forthcoming Force On Force rules and the supplement Road To Baghdad. Frank Bauer of the German historical wargaming community Sweetwater Forum got a promotion copy of the books and released some photos he had taken. Thanks for that, Frank!

Force On Force and Road To Baghdad frontpages.

Road To Baghdad sample page. The first missions concentrate on USMC actions.

Force On Force sample page. Detailed rules for actions and reactions by infantry.

Force On Force sample page. Movement and terrain/obstacles.

Road To Baghdad sample page. A typical mission briefing, to include force composition and terrain layout. Furthermore enemy positions and mission objectives.

HUMINT, March 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

2011-03-13T20:08:00.006+01:00

HUMINT = human intelligence. A new series of posts on my blog about news of various tabletop miniature producing companies concerning "moderns". The pictures were taken off the producers' catalogues with their prior permission. Cheers for that guys!
Links to their webshops can be found within the right column of my blog (see sources for 20mm....).

ELHIEM releases for March 2011:
Another set of Taliban miniatures on guard duty.

Matt made also a new set for his growing range of Pakistanis. Indo-Pakistan war anyone?

Iranian commandos - Elhiem offers a huge range of minis to play the Iraq-Iran War of the 80's.

Cold War US troops in arctic gear. Now these are superb for scenarios like Ice Station Zebra or maybe a mission similar to those in Call Of Duty Modern Warfare??

S&S releases for March 2011:

Shaun made a simple kit for a Jeep M38A1. Comes in handy for all of you Vietnam players out there. It was also used in large quantities by Israel in the Arab-Israeli wars.

A Dutch Army Special Forces Mercedes G-Wagen. As in use in Afghanistan for example.

Palleted cargo for military trucks. Could be used for any scenario including supply vehicles. Can also be placed in Forward Operation bases or any backyard on most gaming tables. Very useful little pieces!

A 20mm container. Shaun has done a lot of other containers in various sizes out of resin. This one can be placed on most tables: at a harbour, a construction site, in a military base. Very nice model.

Najewitz Modellbaushop releases for March 2011:
Jens at Najewitz Modellbaushop has a new series of 20mm generic middle eastern buildings that can be used for Africa, Iraq and other settings. The Hotel Olympic Mogadischu particularly is stunning - it looks exactly like in Blackhawk Down. The other building is a generic house with balcony. It comes with parts for either Turkish Balconies or Air Conditioners.

Wargaming "Moderns", Resources Vol. 3: books and guides for vehicles

2011-03-12T23:11:00.003+01:00

As I have promised, the third volume of my articles on "wargaming moderns" is all about the armored behemoth of the battlefield: tanks and military vehicles in general. Let's face it: infantry actions are fun and challenging, but if you really want to blow some things up in your tabletop games, you know you want to have a tank or at least an APC or vehicle of some sort in your army. On the market for the military enthusiast there are some great book titles to help you sort out your needs. Same goes for the plastic or resin kit modeller and of course for the tabletop gamer.

Most military vehicles tend to stay in service over decades, although there will be newer technologies implemented at some time during that period of service. Sometimes it's confusing when or where a certain variant of a vehicle was used. In other conflicts different variants (new and old) where used side by side in an army. Some vehicles only got new guns, others better armor or just some more high-tech sights and sensors. Other military vehicles recieved a totally new silhouette because of a re-design of turret or hull. So, how does the avarage gamer find out what he needs for a certain period in military history? Let's first have a look at Osprey Publishing's "New Vanguard" series of books. Osprey offers a huge amount (really! it is huge) of books in this series. Covering most vehicles ever used in an armed conflict. Be it WW2 stuff or the latest inventory like the US Army's Stryker wheeled vehicle. As you can see above there is books about the history, deployment and variants of the US HMMWV and ABRAMS tank for example, but also about Russian-built stuff like T-55 tanks or the British WARRIOR infantry fighting vehicle. Osprey not only offers books about the ground vehicles, they even have "New Vanguard" series books about helicopters - Hind or Cobra to name just two. Check out the huge list on their website!

So, why did I invest in those books? Well, I have started to collect them - because they are some of the finest books on the market if you need to get details about armor, weapons and transport capacities etc. of such vehicles. This is important, as Force On Force (and most other games) represent such technical detail in their rules. Force On Force allows you to create your own stats for vehicles, but also comes with a representative list of most of the common military vehicles used by the most important countries. If you don't find the variant you want to use in your scenario, "New Vanguard" will help you to construct balanced yet realistic stats.

If you want to find high quality pictures for conversions into certain variants of your miniature tanks, the books give you an insight un-challenged on the market. They also cover the full history of developement, a series of articles about their use in conflicts (past and ongoing), their battlefield performances against different opponents and many fully coloured plates to reveal full detail about them. Especially the coloured drawings are of interest for gamers and painters, as they do show a lot of interesting camouflage options, tactical markings and other stuff close-up. The picture above is an example out of the book about the Russian BMP vehicle. (It comes handy for my collection, as the Iraqis I currently build a force for have used them a lot).

Another book I recently got my hands on is from Concord Publishing's "Mini Color Series". It doesn't have any developement history, it doesn't compare the abilities with other opponent vehicles, nor does it have the nice colour plates of the Osprey books. So, what does it have?

What made it interesting for me was the gigantic amount of colour pictures directly from the frontlines of the famous "Thunder Runs" of the armord units of 3rd ID. I was building (actually I still am) lots of US Army vehicles (where Osprey's books came in handy) and was looking for a way to make them look like 3rd ID's tanks during the invasion into Iraq 2003. They were looking a bit like gipsy (please, no offence) waggons. Covered with gear, rucksacks, tents, water tanks, jerry cans etc. I was trying to achieve the same look on my 20mm vehicles. The internet did give me some idea but defenitily not enough. Concords' book was able to show me what I needed to know. So, if you are considering realistic vehicles for a setting in Iraq during the early stages of the conflict 2003-2004, I recommend to look for this book, too.

SmallScaleOperations - 20mm Wargaming

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: House Davion's "Locust" painted

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

Iraq Terrain - 2 storey residence/shop (work in progress)

WWII Special Rules from 1st Edition Force on Force

Generic Iraqi Force: Infantry support weapons

I saw a sign.... The Road To Baghdad: Iraqi Highway Signs

Generic Iraqi Force: BMP-2 with anti air gun

Your chance to give feedback on map size / figure photos size and amount

HUMINT, November 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: House Davion's "Shadow Hawk" painted

HUMINT, October 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Reviews and Interviews - Diehard GameFAN's musings about Ambush Alley Games' stuff

100,000 views. I am speechless

Panzergrenadier platoon for my mid-'90s Bundeswehr

FlaRakPz Roland for my mid-'90s Bundeswehr

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

A note from Andy Grubb (regarding Britannia and other stuff)

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Ambush Alley Games and Ground Zero Games team up for miniatures for Tomorrow's War

HUMINT, September 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

The Guild Forum Big Game 2011 (UK): In-game photos

TOMORROW'S WAR: an exclusive sneak peek!

HUMINT, August 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

1/72 Caesar Modern US plastic figures compared to 20mm Elhiem pewter figures

HUMINT, July 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Ambush Alley: Force on Force Official Figures

HUMINT, July 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Wargaming "Africa" - some miniature comparisons. EDITED edition.

Tomorrow's War: official cover revealed

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Grubby Tanks and Britannia Miniatures - June 2011 update

Tomorrow's War release date has changed

Tomorrow's War meets Battletech: new reinforcements on the painting table (WIP)

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Wargaming "Africa" - some miniature comparisons.

HUMINT, June 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" finished

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV - DONE !!!

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (cleaning and touch ups WIP)

Britannia Miniatures and Grubby Tanks - UPDATE

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (panel wash WIP)

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV (painting WIP)

They don't call it a "Predator" for nothing... MQ-1 Predator UAV

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" work in progress (3)

HUMINT, May 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Modern US Army: MH-6 and AH-6J "Little Birds" work in progress (2)

Modern US Army: MH-6 (SOF transport) "Little Bird" work in progress

Modern US Army: AH-6j (armed) "Little Bird" work in progress

HUMINT, May 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

The Dragon Rises: ZSL-92 IFV (Type 92) ready to support the Battle For Skira

How to paint modern Chinese PLA woodland-camo vehicles

Stylish Blogger Award

Force On Force: new website, new forum design, new Quickstart rules and free stuff

Grubby Tanks and Britannia Miniatures - April 2011 update

The Dragon Rises: PLA Type 99 (ZTZ99B) battle tank adds its firepower to the Battle For Skira

The Dragon Rises: PLA anti air teams with QW-2 SAM launchers

The Dragon Rises: PLA spotter team with QBU-88 Marksman Rifle

The Dragon Rises: PLA weapon team with HJ-8 "Red Arrow" anti-tank guided missile

The Dragon Rises: PLA weapon team with QJC-88 HMG

The Dragon Rises: PLA squad for the Battle For Skira

Generic Iraqi Force: ZPU-4 anti air gun

HUMINT, April 2011, Vol. 1: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Ambush Valley Vietnam sneak peeks

Modern US Army: Abrams tanks WIP - turrets finished

Wargaming "Moderns", Resources Vol. 4: in-depth knowledge about historical conflicts

*whispers* - guess what's coming for Force On Force in 2012

Britannia Miniatures - the legacy of Dave will go back to business!

HUMINT, March 2011, Vol. 3: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Arab / middle eastern style buildings - a review of Art Of War Terrain's stuff

Arab / middle eastern style buildings - a review of The Colonial Steamboat Company's stuff

Ambush Valley 2 - The Redux! Content preview

HUMINT, March 2011, Vol. 2: new releases for gaming "moderns"

Wargaming "moderns" - a guide to start Force On Force

"Person Of Interest" - a Force On Force game report

Wargaming "moderns" - some scale comparisons

Modern US Army: Abrams tanks WIP - hulls finished

whispers - guess what's coming for Force On Force in 2012