STALINGRAD Bolt Action Mega Battle!

For years I had just three of these chaps done, which is not enough to field them on my games of Bolt Action. Now I have 8 which is enough to have a vaguely survivable unit on the table.  Veteran rated troops armed with SMG’s will give the enemy a unit to fear, when it gets close enough. To give it more punch, and longer range I have just assembled a Light Machine Gunner and Loader. I also intend to add 2 more SMG armed troopers to allow the unit to take more hits, and get out mote shots, with the hope that it can get close enough to riddle the enemy with automatic fire.

I love the models from Warlord, and it’s great to now be able to represent some ethnic diversity in my Soviet force, with some fantastic Central Asian feature people, ready to give the Third Reich a good kicking!

Siberian Veterans boxed set

The Great thing about Stalingrad is getting to us wrecked buildings in a sea of rubble, but if not managed correctly, there is the danger that it could be a slow game.

My solution to this potential issue has been to wherever possible include or add  holes in buildings and scenery to provide a line of sight, so that there is no where for units to hide.  This will mean that though in hard cover, there will always be a risk from being shot at, and snipers like their historical counterparts, will have a field day here. This will allow for greater attrition and a quicker game, keeping the element of risk wherever you place your units.

I have also included the options to have holes in wars between buildings sharing a wall, to allow greater mobility and jeopardy, in the same way a set designer for Lazer Quest or more recently a developer of Call of Duty have become so proficient at.

I would rather have a quicker, more mobile and deadly game than a slow stalemate, this approach should prevent that potential problem from occurring.

Even Snipers need to be aware!

After a concentrated blitz on getting buildings and objectives done, I have now taken a break and gone back to getting some more boots on the ground.

A small but key addition to my 100th Jager Division platoon, now means that I have a team to lead it, and in game terms the platoon can now act as as an independent unit.

I have taken inspiration from an apparently correct historical source, and I have repainted the epaulettes hopefully the correct way for a Leutnant  in 100th Jager, with green piping over whit/silver.

The model is posed in a dynamic manner that fits in with the whole swift moving ethos of the Jager troop types.

I think that this has to be my finest hour in scenery painting terms. It’s a great kit from 4Ground (https://www.4groundpublishing.co.uk/indie-design/things-from-the-basement/tftb-pavlovs-house-destroyed-end-block), which I could nor resist further embellishing with bricks, rubble and painting.

I have used weathering powders added to water in dirtying up the rubble and rusting up the metal staircase banister, which I have then wiped with a dry sponge from a blister pack.

I have abandoned my previous method of adding dry pigments to brick work bases, because with high “gaming figure traffic” (I have just come up with that expression!) on scenery pieces, it would wipe of and leave traces of miniatures, and generally make a mess. I found that very lightly dry brushing the Vallejo ‘Red Leather’ bricks with Vallejo ‘White’ (I know, gosh the creative naming at Vallejo!)  it has a permanent effect that I actually prefer!

I am really pleased with the outcome here, and l watch this space for more developments with the rest of Pavlov’s House!

This was the first miniature that I painted for Bolt Action, about 6 years ago. I was buying anything that could be quickly and easily painted, just so that I could build up enough miniatures to start hosting games.

I have created a wash from Forgeworlds sadly now extinct ‘Dry Mud’ Weathering Powder, to add depth and colour to the base. and some of the clothing.

This chap will either act as an inexperienced commander for a small platoon of Feldgendarmerie, or be a mobile objective for the Soviets to kill or preferably capture.

I have painted the Party badge to took chipped and battered, to add a bit of grit to the model.

I painted the glasses as purely reflective to hide the characters eyes, to add a feeling of coldness to the character.

• https://store.warlordgames.com/products/guarding-the-chateau?_pos=1&_sid=e3296eb75&_ss=r&variant=31469089587280&aff=42

To add another option, and some much needed anti-tank capability to my ‘Soviet Naval Infantry’ platoon, I have converted some standard metal infantry into dedicated ‘Tank Hunters’.

I have removed al their original sailors cap heads, scraped the excess lead from the tassels of their backs, and given them all new helmet heads and anti-tank grenades. With the changes they stand clearly out from their squad based compatriots, and in true wysiwyg gaming, they all have an anti-tank grenade to mark each man clearly as a ‘Tank Hunter’.

I wanted to field a complete 3 squad platoon of Naval Infantry, with a good range of dedicated weapon teams all in the distinctive ”Black Death’ uniform, so that the whole formation clearly stands out on the battlefield. Happily, these three chaps have got me another step closer to realising my goal.

Soviet Naval Brigade box set

One of Warlord’s older miniature sets, but definitely still wort painting and putting into the project.

Their is a mild naïve charm to these early models as the quality of the new miniatures has set a high standard, but they are still a great addition to my army.

This team will be added to a ‘regular Heer’ or possibly weak second line unit, and will be kept suitably out of harms way. Very much a valuable asset on the table to challenge immobile enemy artillery, good for area denial and brilliant on rare occasions when they actually hit.

I have given them white piping on their epaulettes to mark them as Heer, and I intend to make them up a spotter from Warlord’s plastic ‘Blitzkrieg German’ box set, so that they can indirect fire, hopefully adding to their longevity.

Blitzkrieg German medium mortar team (1939-42)

Now I feel like this project is cooking with Gas!

I now have enough of the modular ‘Urban Ruins: Stalingrad’ 4Ground kits to make a complete building block .I would strongly recommend using super glue and super glue fast-activator spray, as opposed to PVA wood glue.

This will easily fill a sixth of a 4′ x 6′ gaming table. Also, the great thing about it being modular is that it is easy to pack away, transport, and best of al, can be used to make an huge range of scenic layouts.

I am really happy with the end results, hopefully depicting a believable burnt out building that has been lashed by rain.