flames of war Archives - Felix's Gaming Pages

Flames of War Early War Monsters

We have had an update from Battlefront about the Early War releases we heard about before.

We saw again the TOG 1, the Char 2C, but also the German Early Wars Monster, not quite the Großtraktor I thought it might be in my blog post last July.

The tank they have gone for is the Neubaufahrzeug. Multi-turreted, heavy and slow, they were not considered successful, which led to only five being produced. These were primarily used for propaganda purposes and training, though three took part in the Battle of Norway in 1940. The Neubaufahrzeug had many connections to the previous Großtraktor, utilising many of the same components including the engine and transmission.

Battlefront also showed us some pages on the other Early War Monsters as well.

Return of the Armoured Train

The Armoured Train is coming back to Flames of War according to the recent Christmas 2025 Battlefront Update.

It was only a a couple of months back that I was thinking about my own model of the armoured train I have on my workbench.

Thinking about that 15mm German Armoured Train

After much consideration I did in the end get a German Armoured Train for Flames of War. Though they were not used on the Western Front (as far as I am aware) it is my intention to use it against British (and American) tanks. Then again I might just get in a few Soviet tanks for a quick game.

Well that plan which I decided I would do, was back in 2013, and then like too many projects, it got shelved and put in that pile of shame, that I guess quite a few of us have.

There was another kit I liked, which I didn’t get, which was the Tank Hunter Car.

I have been thinking about getting the models out again and getting them painted. I think what may have delayed the model was the fact that the completed models on the Battlefront website (at the time) were painted using an airbrush.

They don’t sell them on the Battlefront website any more, and they seem to sell on eBay, so another option would be to sell them and then buy some different resin models to add to that pile of shame. Decisions, decisions.

15mm ruins

I noticed on the Amazon site that there are quite a few companies out there who are producing 3D printed ruins at what I think are quite reasonable prices. I also remembered that I have quite a few old style 15mm resin ruins that are in various stages of painting.

I think before I start buying more ruins, I really ought to find and finish painting what I have already.

Painting the T30 Heavy Tank

I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks.

The T30 was designed at the same time as the T29 Heavy Tank. The T29 Heavy Tank was an American heavy tank project started in March 1944. The Heavy Tank T30 was developed to counter new German tanks, such as Tiger I, Tiger II, and tank destroyers, such as the Jagdtiger, or Soviet heavy tanks, such as IS-2 or IS-3.

Having constructed the tank, the next step was a white undercoat.

I then sprayed the underneath of the model with Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green. This is to add shade to the model before applying the basecoat. It looked a bit like this similar T29 model.

Then the models were sprayed with Army Painter Army Green Spray.

Next stage will be painting the tracks.

Painting the T28

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them at the beginning of the year. I ordered both the Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks and the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. In that box there are two T28 Super Heavy Tanks.

The T28 super-heavy tank was an American super-heavy tank/assault gun designed for the United States Army during World War II. It was originally designed to break through German defences of the Siegfried Line and was later considered as a possible participant in the planned invasion of the Japanese mainland.

After constructing the two models, I gave the two tanks a white undercoat.

Then the models were sprayed with Army Painter Army Green Spray.

Next stage will painting the tracks.

Painting the T-55

I have the Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the American and Soviet tanks. The GF9 Operation Unthinkable boxed set, the American versus Soviet, contains 21 tanks. Six of these are the T-54-1.

What I didn’t realise was that the T-54-1 model can also be made up as a T-44 or a T-55 as the different turrets are included. This gives even more flexibility over just using them as T54-1 tanks. I decided to make two of the models as the T-44 and the other four as T-55 models.

The T-55 is a series of Soviet-era medium tanks that were introduced shortly after World War II. It is one of the most widely produced tanks in history, with over 100,000 units built in the Soviet Union and under license in Poland and Czechoslovakia. The T-55, along with its predecessor the T-54, became the backbone of armoured forces for the Warsaw Pact and many other nations. The tank featured a low-slung, compact design with a cast, dome-shaped turret and was armed with a 100mm rifled gun. While it was considered advanced for its time, its design was later outmatched by more modern tanks. However, its simple, rugged, and reliable nature has allowed it to remain in service with various armed forces worldwide, often with significant upgrades.

Having made progress on the T-55 models the next stage was a dark green base coat with Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green.

Having thought this was too dark, I have been using Army Painter Army Green Spray on the two T-44 tanks.

Painting the T29

I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. Three of these are the T29 or T30 Heavy Tank.

The T29 Heavy Tank was an American heavy tank project that was started in March 1944 to counter the German Tiger II heavy tank. Although it was not completed in time for use in World War II, the T29 served as a valuable testbed for post-war engineers to apply new concepts to artillery and automotive components. The tank featured a powerful 105 mm T5E1 gun and a massive, heavily armored turret. With a weight of approximately 64 tons, a crew of six, and an upgraded V12 engine, the T29 was a formidable and innovative design for its time.

Having constructed and undercoated the model, the next stage was adding a shadow.

I then sprayed the underneath of the model with Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green. This is to add shade to the model before applying the basecoat.

Then the models were sprayed with Army Painter Army Green Spray.

Next stage will be painting the tracks.

Painting the ISU-130

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them at the beginning of the year. I ordered Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks. I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks.

The ISU-130, is a tank destroyer based on the IS-2 chassis armed with an 130mm S-26 gun.

Having constructed and undercoated the models, I then sprayed the underneath of the models with a black spray to add shadow and depth.

For the basecoat I used Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green.

I decided that this was too dark, so for these models I then gave them a light spray of Army Painter Army Green Spray.

This will then be my testbed for the models and my other Soviet tanks.

The next stage will be painting the tracks.

Painting the IS-3

I had ordered Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks. I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. There are three IS-3 tanks included in the boxed set.

The IS-3 is a Soviet heavy tank developed in late 1944. Its semi-hemispherical cast turret (resembling that of an upturned soup bowl) became the hallmark of post-war Soviet tanks.

I had already constructed two of the IS-3 tanks, so it was a relatively easy process of constructing the other one., to which I added a commander figure to the cupola on the turret. I also gave the models a white undercoat.

I then sprayed the underneath of the models with a black spray to add shadow and depth.