Category: world war two

15mm Home Guard MkIV Male Tank

I have had this tank for sometime. Don’t remember the manufacturer, though it may be Minifigs! When I was planning some Operation Sealion games back in the 1990s I intended that the Home Guard would make use of a museum Mark IV Male tank. I mentioned this also in an article I wrote on a French themed Operation Sealion, Otaire de Vigneur.

To add a bit of diversity to my games, I also have one of Minifigs’ World War One British tanks, for use by a Home Guard unit (stolen from a local museum no doubt).

Now  when I wrote that article and bought the miniature it was only an assumption and what I thought would be a nice idea, and probably had no basis in truth….

Well just shows a little historical research never hurt anyone, as the Bovington Tank Museum has on display a Mark IV Male tank that was used just in this way. It was used in World War One and then presented to the Navy. When war broke out in September 1939, the  Tank Mark IV (Male) number 2324 was refurbished for Home Guard duties; according to the Bovington Tank Museum website.

Our exhibit, a male tank, was presented to the Royal Navy’s Gunnery School, HMS Excellent after the war to commemorate their help training Tank Corps gunners and it was temporarily refurbished for Home Guard duties in 1940. (Believed to have been achieved by removed parts from another tank possibly on Southsea Common.)

This photograph is from HMS Excellent in 1940.

Another view of the Mark IV at speed.

So though I thought my idea was probably if Operation Sealion had happened, I didn’t think and didn’t realise that it had in fatc happened despite the fact that the Germans hadn’t invaded.

So if you are playing Flames of War Operation Sealion games using the Blitzkreig sourcebook than you can use a Mark IV Male tank as part of your Home Guard forces.Not sure how long though it would last against German Panzers though…

Now who has the stats for a Mark IV tank for Flames of War?

Flames of War – German StuG G Assault Guns

These miniatures come in the Open Fire Flames of War starter set.

The StuGs come all in resin with separate metal main weapons. If you buy the StuGs individually they come with metal tracks.

Side view.

The gun barrels were fixed by superglue.

See the full workbench feature on these StuG G Assault Guns.

Flames of War – British Shermans

These Sherman tank miniatures come in the Open Fire Flames of War starter set.

The Shermans come all in resin with separate turrets and metal main weapons. If you buy the Shermans individually they come with metal (or plastic) tracks.

These are very nice models. The gun barrels were fixed by superglue. However I kept the turrets separate so they can move freely during the games.

I did like the fact that these are three different castings, and not three copies of a single casting. You can see that from the rear, front and turret stowage.

See the full workbench feature on these Sherman tanks.

Panzerkrieg Normandy – Warhammer World War Two

There has been some interesting commentary in Wargames Illustrated recently on a new release forthcoming from Warhammer Historical of a set of World War Two rules, Panzerkrieg Normandy.

At Old Glory 2010, the report says…

The table with the most buzz this year was Operation Goodwood 1944 – a demo game being run by the local Derby Wargames Society. The table was impressive in itself, but the fact that it was being used to playtest the forthcoming Warhammer Historical 20mm WWII ruless (Panzerkrieg Normandy – working title) made it really interesting. Author Warwick Kinrade was on hand with a first draft of the rules, and of course, the main question leveled at him from show-goers was – “when will it be available?” a vague “not before Christmas” was given in reply.

Another quote attributed to Wargames Illustrated, but I couldn’t find it myself says:

The Historical Wargamers Group, in association with Wargames Illustrated, held another successful event at Warhammer World on 24 – 25 October, WAB players from around Europe did battle across several campaign settings and attendees were treated to a bonus surprise appearance when Warwick Kinrade of Forgeworld demonstrated the forthcoming Games Workshop World War II game.
Warwick ran through a game in which a British Battlegroup stormed a German held position in Normandy circa 1944 – the British sector in Normandy being the focus for the rulebook. The game is designed for 20mm figures although it will work equally well with 15mm (adjustments will be necessary for 28mm). Interestingly the game seemed to owe little to the well-known Warhammer game system.

The game is still work in progress with a release date of “next year – hopefullyearly on” planned. The core rulebook will be supported by further supplements, which will include more army lists and (further down the line) more threatres of the war).

To be honest this doesn’t surprise me as in recent years we have seen a huge growth in 28mm World War Two figure ranges. However the fact that they are aiming the rules at 20mm (well probably 15mm) to me shows how successful Flames of War have been and that they want to get into that particular market! Well possibly.

Flames of War – Open Fire

Open Fire! has been carefully designed for someone who has never heard of Flames Of War before, or has seen the 256 page rulebook and not known where to start. Open Fire is not a simplified set of the Flames Of War rules, but rather a complete introductory box for a new player!

Open Fire Starter Set

Really nice idea and perfect for me.

16 page full-colour introduction booklet.
3 detailed American Sherman tank miniatures.
2 detailed German StuG G assault gun miniatures.
3 American dice.
2 German dice.

I think what surprised me was unlike the blisters I had seen the tanks were all resin rather than resin hulls and metal tracks.

Time to start painting…

The War That Came Early: West and East

One of my Christmas presents was the next in the alternate World War Two series, by Harry Turtledove in which the war starts early, The War That Came Early: West and East.

westandeast

In 1938, two men held history in their hands. One was Adolf Hitler. The other was British prime minister Neville Chamberlain, who, determined to avoid war at any cost, came to be known as “the great appeaser.” But Harry Turtledove, the unrivaled master of alternate history, has launched a gripping saga that springboards from a different fateful act: What if Chamberlain had stood up to Hitler? What would the Nazis’ next move have been? And how would the war—which Hitler had always regretted waiting eleven months to start—have unfolded and changed our world?

Here, Turtledove takes us across a panorama of conflict fueled by ideology and demagoguery. Nations are pitted against nations, alliances are forged between old enemies, ordinary men and women are hurled into extraordinary life-and-death situations. In Japanese-controlled Singapore, an American marine falls in love with a Russian dance hall hostess, while around him are heard the first explosions of Chinese guerilla resistance. On the frontlines of war-ravaged rural France, a weary soldier perfects the art of using an enormous anti-tank gun as a sniper’s tool—while from Germany a killer is sent to hunt him down. And in the icy North Atlantic, a U-boat bearing an experimental device wreaks havoc on British shipping, setting the stage for a Nazi ground invasion of Denmark.

From an American woman trapped in Germany who receives safe passage from Hitler himself to a Jewish family steeped in German culture and facing the hatred rising around them, from Japanese soldiers on the remote edge of Siberia to American volunteers in Spain, West and East is the story of a world held hostage by tyrants—Stalin, Hitler, Sanjuro—each holding on to power through lies and terror even in the face of treacherous plots from within.

As armies clash, and as the brave, foolish, and true believers choose sides, new weapons are added to already deadly arsenals and new strategies are plotted to break a growing stalemate. But one question looms over the conflict from West to East: What will it take to bring America into this war?

I did buy and read the first book in this new alternate history series, Hitler’s War. Though I liked the premise, the book was well written; I did not enjoy it as much as other Turtledove novels. I think the main reasons was that there was no satisfying ending, always an issue with a series of books, and a usual trait of Turtledove a wealth of characters that can at times get confusing.

Now we have the Early War period for Flames of War, there are plenty of miniatures that could be used to recreate battles from both books. You could quite easily create a 1938 era Czechoslovakian army to fight an Early War German force. Likewise there are plenty of French and British tanks too.

I have read the first couple of chapters of this book and I am really quite enjoying it. I think having read the Blitzkrieg Flames of War sourcebook I am more intrigued by this era and the story in the book.

15mm WW2 Russian Infantry in Summer Uniform IN PLASTIC

I was pleased to read that The Plastic Soldier Company have recently released 15mm WW2 Russian Infantry in Summer Uniform in plastic. Very nice they look too.

PSC_15-Russians_packfront-300px_01

If you have read my (main) website recently you will know that I have started looking at and thinking about playing Flames of War (at the time of writing I have only done some modelling and reading the rules).

Now I am not actually playing Russians so these models are less useful than it would seem. However this is just the first release of many planned by The Plastic Soldier Company.

They are also intending to release, in 15mm in the near future:

  • T34 Tank boxed set
  • Late War British Infantry

I would suspect that we will see German stuff too, and a lot more if this stuff sells – which I suspect it will. That’s when I will be buying some… though slightly tempted by the T34 tanks.