Bolt Action Four Army Battle Report! Polish Inaugural Fight!

Our latest Bolt Action Battle involved 4 armies and the Polish Army's inaugural battle. On this grand Soviet hamlet table our fictitious battle involved the German and Japanese armies confronting the Polish and Soviet forces. The game was to control the four objectives seen as the yellow stars. Each army received 750 points.

This was an early war action which involved plenty of infantry. The armor on the table consisted of a Panzer III for the Germans, a CHi-Ha with the light howitzer and tankette for Japan. The Russians brought a T34 and the Poles fielded an Ursus Armored car and a twin turreted 7TP. The Germans also had an AT Gun and the Polish Army brought a medium howitzer.

All armies had to designate who would be in on the first wave. The only reserves were the Poles who kept a truck and unit of 10 infantry off the table.

As things began, the Polish sniper and 7TP moved in on the left side along with the Soviet mortar team and a couple units of infantry.

On the right side the T34 moved in to oppose the CHi-Ha and tankette. He fired and missed. The Polish transport truck raced in across the center of the board stopping next to the far right objective. He was promptly hit by a slurry of machine gun fire and was knocked out disgorging the 12 infantry inside. 2 men died but the Poles were on the first objective. Two Soviet infantry squads and the Ursus armored car moved in to support them.

On the opposing side of the table the Japanese piled all of their units along with a couple German units against the Polish on the objective. The Germans deployed a unit of infantry to the center and a 6 man squad on their far right.

On turn two the Germans brought the Panzer III on to support the infantry squad on their right flank. It promptly fired at the T34 and missed. The T34 returned the favor by also missing. Snipers all missed and a few pin markers were exchanged on both sides.

On turn 3 the Panzer III was able to fire first, missing again. The T34 did not miss this time scoring a hit, penetrating the armor and destroying the German tank!

With the Panzer gone, the only trouble the T34 could possibly have were the Japanese suicide anti-tank team with lunge mines! The Poles on the objective continued to hold out taking tons of fire. The supporting Soviet infantry was also being whittled down. The Polish army brought in their reserve transport and infantry for additional support on the right, hoping to hold the objective. With the last die pulled being Japanese, the suicide team moved within striking distance of the T34!

Turn 4 started with two dice each for the Germans and the Poles. The Polish units tried but could not kill the Japanese suicide team. The next die fell to the Japanese who lunged at the T34 and destroyed it!! The Ursus advanced in support of the right flank but the Poles on the objective were finally wiped out due to having to many pins! The supporting two Russian infantry units fell too, leaving just two men from one of the squads hunkered down behind the destroyed T34. Only the newly arrived Polish infantry squad remained, close enough to contend the objective.

On turn 5 the Chi-Ha was able to crush the remaining Polish infantry. In doing so, its flank was open to the Polish artillery who scored a hit destroying the Japanese armor. Sadly it was to late to help the deceased infantry on the right flank. The Ursus was able to add pins and kill a few opposing infantry but the center and right were now in the hands of the Axis forces while the left two were unoccupied. At the close of turn 5 the German infantry squad, alone on our far left, made a run for the objective nearest them.

Turn six started with a furious exchange of mortar and MMG fire from both sides. The soviets had a 12 man rifle squad hiding in the farmhouse since turn 1. They dislodged themselves, moved into the swampy area, fired on the Germans heading for the left most objective and killed all but one. The twin turreted 7TP with 10 dice was able to kill the last German on the left flank. This allowed the Polish sniper team to run down the hill and capture the left objective.

With four dice left (1 German, 1 Polish and 2 Russian) the Allies had 1 objective and the Axis 2. The Polish die was pulled and their HQ squad ran across the road to contest the center right objective. The Germans fired on the Russian HQ unit but missed. With the last 2 order dice, the Soviet HQ unit ran to occupy the center left objective and ran the last 2 man infantry squad to contest the far right objective.

There the game ended in a victory for the Allied Team holding two objectives and contesting the other two. It wound up being a very close game where most of the action centered on the right objective till the last turn.

The Polish trucks got the infantry into action right away. Having a 12 man squad kept them in the game, taking fire and attracting a lot of attention, till the end of turn 4. There was a great moment of elation on the Allied side when the T34 stood victorious with very little to threaten it. Then a great moment of elation on the Axis side when a stick mine destroyed the T34!

At the end of a close game, on a great table, the Polish sniper team watches over the left objective as the Soviets emerge from the swamp!

Hope You Have A Great Battle!!

Warlord and Artizan 28mm Models for Bolt Action in Progress

Well there are always more models to build and paint! We are like everyone and have several additional projects all going at the same time. For our early war Polish Army we have the wz.29 Ursus heavy armored car from Warlord Games!

Designed in 1929, the Samochd Pancerny wzr 29, was more commonly known as Ursus. It was based on the chassis of a 2-ton truck, mounted a 37mm anti-tank gun and multiple machine guns. Although adequately armored for the inter-war period, the Ursus fared poorly when facing more modern opposition in 1939.

Another Bolt Action project is our US Army in Greatcoats for winter campaigns. You can see an earlier post HERE. These are recently primed reinforcements to bolster the Battle of  the Bulge.

Add a light howitzer, this one from Artizan Designs, and these boys will be ready for the onslaught.

This bazooka team was painted to add firepower. Remember to keep the get away jeep close by.

And of course you can always use an extra squad of British Infantry.

Have a Great Battle!
The Old Crow

Artizan Designs WW2 US Infantry Miniatures for Memorial Day

US Infantry supported by an M18 Hellcat approaching a hamlet

In honor of Memorial Day here in the US, we are focusing this post on the foot slogger and backbone of the army, the infantry! There are many companies who make miniatures of US Infantry, the one we are going to focus on for now is Artizan Deigns. We'll also share some great images of the infantry from World War 2 with you.

US Infantry in Greatcoats advancing down a lane in Normandy

Artizan Designs specializes in producing 28mm metal figures, designed to the highest possible standards. Their figures are of Historical subjects, and some of the ranges include:The Renaissance, Vikings, Arthurian Dark Ages, World War One and for today's focus, World War Two

US Infantry move cautiously through a French village

The World War 2 range includes American Forces, British and Commonwealth Forces, French Forces, German Forces, Soviet Union Forces, Italian Forces and Resistance & Partisans. The miniatures are perfect for use in table-top wargames like Bolt Action and Rate of Fire

All the figures come from the talented hand of sculptor Mike Owen. Their WW2 US Infantry is broken down into three groups, U.S in Greatcoats, U.S. Airborne and  U.S. Infantry You can also find The Devils Brigade, First Special Service Force figures. Here are three figures all in greatcoats, one with Sub Machine Gun, one with Rifle and one with a BAR

The BAR was given one to a section of GI’s where possible and was a partial counter to the feared light machine guns the Germans carried. Although heavy they were well liked by their users and often others in the section carried spare ammo for the BAR gunner.

US Infantry figures are suitable for American forces in North Africa, Italy, Sicily, Normandy and North-Western Europe. The Infantry in Greatcoats are good for representing winter battles in the Ardennes or anywhere across Northern Europe. Here is an image of two blister packs contents of US Infantry in Greatcoats with SMG and a FSSF pack with rifles and parkas.

This is an Artizan Designs US Infantry 30cal Machine Gun Squad in Greatcoats situated on a 60mm base ready for painting.

And here it is in action with the runner bringing in a replacement ammo box.

Pfc. Terry Paul Moore of Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was number one Browning Automatic Rifleman in 2nd Platoon, Company 'F', 184th Infantry Regiment of the US 7th Infantry Division and is lighting his first cigarette of the day on the island of Okinawa soon after the dawn attack on the town of Yonabaru. In the early morning of the 22nd of May 1945

The veterans of Company I slog through the mud and ruins of Jungersdorf at the end of their tenure in the Hurtgen Forest. There would be no respite for these men. Fresh from the horrors of the Hurtgen campaign, they were thrust into the path of the 6th SS Panzer Army and played a key role in the defense of the Bulge’s North Shoulder during the German Ardennes Offensive which started less than a week after this photo was taken.

US 3AD soldiers, Cpl. James L. Gregory and T/5 Omer G. Taylor of ‘C’ Company, 1st Battalion, 36th Armored Infantry Regiment, 3rd Armored Division seek shelter behind a M-4 Sherman tank while under German Artillery bombardment at Geich, near Düren, Germany, on the 11th of December 1944. [Colorized by Jared Enos]

A US 7th Armored Division 3-inch M5 towed antitank gun covers the approach road near the Railroad crossing at Vielsalm, Belgium. 23rd of December 1944. [Colorized by Jared Enos]

U.S. Infantrymen of the 55th Armored Infantry Battalion and a tank of the 22nd Tank Battalion move through the smoke filled street of a small village in Bavaria. Wernberg-Köblitz, Bavaria, Germany. 22 April 1945.

Remember those who served!
The Old Crow

In Her Majesty's Name: How to Paint Orville and Wilburton Wright for the Wright Pirates

Here they are, the illustrious leaders of the Wright Pirates, Orville and Wilburton Wright. These guys are ready to square off against The Bucharest Brigade, Society of Thule or the Black Dragon Tong inthe sweet steampunk game, In Her Majesty's Name. These daring adventurers hail from the US and are quite a formidable pair.

Enough of that, we started with base figures from Artizan Designs and did a few minor modifications. 

Orville had a hole drilled into his hand and a sword was inserted. This should help him out in those close quarters fights.

Wilburton was a bit tougher. We added a small spring to the barrel of his weapon and a piece of wire to feed the gun from his power pack.

The power pack, attached to his belt, was a small component from a circuit board.

Now onto painting Orville. Base coats of brown were painted on the coat, pants and shirt.

A wash of black was painted into any cracks, folds or crevices to accentuate shadows.

Dry-brush the original color over the areas where the wash was applied...

then dry-brush on your mid-tones and highlights. Here the pants received a Khaki mid-tone over the base coat and a highlight of Linen.

In mid process Orville is shaping up. The collar received a Mink Tan and will get a coat of Linen and final dry-brush of White. His scarf will remain black so simple highlights will work.

We used Brass on his goggles and Bronze on buttons and buckles. Sword blade was painted with Gunmetal, Sterling Silver and a highlight of Aluminium. For the hilt we used Antique Gold. The goggle lenses were painted with Midnight Blue and reflections of Winter Blue.

Now Orvilles younger brother, the daring and boisterous Wilburton. Once again we placed all the base coats on all the major areas. Burnt Umber jacket, Nutmeg pants, Chocolate Brown scarf and gun stock and a Tan for the flesh tones.

Being the brother full of bravado, we decided a red scarf would set him apart from the rest of the pirates. We added a coat of Heritage Brick, then Tomato Red and lastly Napthol Crimson.

A simple dry-brush off Linen adds highlights to his scarf, pants and coat.

His hair was based with Nutmeg and you can see the gun mid process.

Wilburton's hair was given a dry-brush of Orange, the cable Midnight Blue, fur collar finished like Orvilles and washes applied to the gun. the gun barrel was given a coat of black, dry-brush of Medium Gray, Linen and lastly White.

Here's another angle to see the hair and other details.

Now the finished product. Orville is now clearly sporting a pencil thin handlebar mustache and 5 o-clock shadow. Wilburton is eagerly motioning his men forward while his gun is smoking from the last freeze blast.

Extra black washes and highlights were applied to bring out the details.

Orville striking a nice pose.

...and to close things out, here they are leading a contingent of Wright Pirates across the airship yards. Now to get you their stat sheets!

Have a great Battle,

The Old Crow