Big Red Bat Battlemat

I'm back from Brittany and have been unpacking, tidying up, mowing the lawn and generally sorting stuff out today, so no wargaming just yet. One nice thing was unpacking my new 6' x 4' terrain cloth from the Big Red Bat shop, complete with a very subtle 15cm square grid. This is destined for AK47 People's Edition, but I'm also going to use it for Strength and Honour, as my units have very similar base shades. 

I'm even considering using it for the Sandbox Skirmish 15mm solo project, which has been stalked for ages as I just couldn't decide how to go about the terrain. It only needs a 3' or 4' square area, so the cloth would be more than adequate and I can ignore the grid for aesthetic purposes. The figures and vehicles I've test painted also match quite well with the Iberian Plains design, with perhaps a little bit of a dry brush to get the shade just right. It was an expensive purchase but it's looking like good value for money.

Sandbox Skirmish

Nick Jones, author of the excellent Bloody Betancourt blog, has just bowled a bit of a googly in my general direction and is thinking of putting together an African imaginations skirmish project in 15mm. As you may recall, this has been a slow burning project of mine for years now, under the working title of Sandbox Skirmish, primarily as I originally designed it around Nordic Weasel's No End In Sight rules and the Skirmish Sandbox patrol system. 

I've not visited this for ages but am now feeling itchy, so will dig out what I've done thus far for a timely review. The original project was set in an alternative post-colonial Aden style location but I have considered shifting it to East Africa and even bigging it up to 28mm, using the outstanding terrain modules that I was gifted by wargaming chum Jon Ward. This would use either Commando Miniatures or Eureka Miniatures but it's a bit of a jump up and very much a peripheral option....

...off in another tangent again but at least it's one I've charted before!

https://bloodybetancourt.wordpress.com/

Sandbox Skirmish Source Material

This was a bargain in a National Trust second hand bookshop yesterday at only three quid, especially as it's a hardback and in 'as new' condition. Not that I'm really interested in the Royal Leicestershire regiment to be fair, but it does have extensive detail on Aden so a bit of a gold mine for my Sandbox Skirmish 15mm post-colonial, semi-historical 'imaginations' project, which I've sadly neglected for months, if not years now? Anyway, too good to miss, so I snapped it up!

Eureka Miniatures British

The post colonial Aden 1967 British figures arrived in the post from Eureka Miniatures today and they are excellent. I only have a section of them for the moment but it's enough for a skirmish game using Wars of Insurgency or similar rules. I will put these away for a holiday project but hope to sort something out later this year at some point. 

Back to Africa

 

I had a nice parcel of Eureka Miniatures ZANLA guerrillas in the post today, with sufficient figures to kit out three sections of six and a commander. I thought some opposition would be a good idea but, rather than the obvious Rhodesian or Portuguese option, I decided to go for some British from the Aden range. I've ordered a section of ten figures to use as a patrol in a counter factual 'imaginations' type setting akin to my 15mm Sandbox Skirmish project, making use of the resin Humber Pigs from Warbases that I already have in the bits box. A bit pricey but very nice figures.

Post Colonial Payday

 

I've been back working full time for the last couple of months which means that, as a freelance, I've been able to boost my pay packet, giving me a little more pocket money to spend. This month, I've gone for a special offer from Eureka Miniatures, which is a platoon sized unit of ZANLA guerillas from their modern African range. 

These are lovely figures but a bit more expensive than your average 28mm stuff, so I didn't opt for them for the Sandbox Skirmish project, choosing the less well sculpted but cheaper Commando Miniatures range instead. Now, those will be used for Borneo, while the Eureka figures will be deployed for the imaginations post-colonial project, set in a fictional East African territory in the 1960's. 

The other half of the conflict will use the Eureka Miniatures British figures for Aden, relocated to East Africa. These will go well with the vehicles I've already acquired. I might also get some of the French Foreign Legion range, which is equally cool. The overall aim is to make maximum use of the excellent modular terrain that my old wargaming friend gave me a few weeks ago, which is crying out for some post colonial squad level skirmish action. 

BTR-152

 

A while back I ordered a 28mm resin BTR-152 model from a seller on eBay called 3D Printing Valley for a possible post-colonial project, akin to my 15mm Sandbox Skirmish scheme. When it arrived it was a 15mm scale version but very nice nonetheless. The seller very kindly offered to send me the 1/56th scale model, which arrived today. It's a very nice one too and scales well with the Commando Miniatures Arab Regular figures that I was thinking of using for the project. That's what I call customer service!

Wars of Insurgency Rebel Force

 

There's a good chance that I can re-boot my Sandbox Skirmish post-colonial patrol project in the near future, using Wars of Insurgency rather than No End In Sight, at least to start with. To see how I can make the switch over work, I've taken the rebel platoon that I organised and ran it through the points system in the Wars of Insurgency rules, to see how it all added up. This lot totalled a respectable 219 points without including any grenades or the additional BTR-152 that I was thinking of bolting on. The three militia teams and attached mortar are supplemented by a regular team of Cuban military advisors with a Gaz truck, the whole lot forming a People's Popular Front unit. I can adjust this up or down between 200 and 250 points quite easily, so a good starting point for the project and more than manageable for painting purposes. 

Sandbox Skirmish Saga

                     

It's been a few years now since I began my 15mm Sandbox Skirmish project and it's really been a saga of stops and starts all along the way. I did get round to painting a section of figures earlier this year but otherwise it's pretty much ground to a halt. Next year I'm determined to shift it up a gear and get it moving along, possibly with some impetus from one of the chaps at the club who has similar interests and may well be up for a game or even a mini campaign, if I can twist his arm enough. This will be for No End In Sight and/or Wars of Insurgency, with One Hour Skirmish as a third fall back option. 

Painting Ferrets

 

That looks quite good if a little boring

Much more colourful 

I've base coated my AK-47 armoured cars and carriers in a sand colour, as it just happened to tick my boxes, but I'm now wondering if I should add some camouflage pattern over the top to make them look less 'deserty'. I painted my Sandbox Skirmish armour in a similar way, using a British mid-green shade, but the AK-47 ones need to be a bit more colourful. I'm thinking of a nice bright reflective green or a very dark brown, similar to the images above, so will have a look at my paint shades to find some options.

Sandbox Skirmish Aden Insurgency

 

After a long holiday away, I've been making up for lost time by raiding the local second-hand and charity book shops. I have now acquired half a dozen assorted hardbacks and a few softbacks, the latter including a copy of Aden Insurgency by Jonathan Walker. This is the book that initially inspired my Sandbox Skirmish post-colonial project in 15mm a few years ago, although at the time it was the digital version on my now defunct Kindle. 

It's great to have a hard copy now, as I can flick from chapter to chapter making notes and finding useful information, without having to scroll back and forth on my phone, which is like reading a book through a letter box. It's made me want to pick up the project again and get the rest of the platoon painted up, along with their vehicles and that lovely resin Whirlwind helicopter. 

Post War Whirlibitds

 

The 3D printed helicopters from Lambda Gaming arrived today and, once again, I'm very impressed. I particularly like the Whirlwind as it really looks the part and is very sturdy, perfect for wargaming purposes. The Flying Banana is also really good but a bit more fragile in the tail department, so will need careful handling once assembled. The models come with stands and magnets to attach the rotor hubs, so will dismantle to pack away. I'll use the Whirlwind for the Sandbox Skirmish project, where it fits in perfectly, while the Shawnee will go to Vietnam for the Bohica project, as transport for the ARVN. Excellent!

Hello Helo

                 

I had a message from the chap who runs Lambda Gaming a while back, saying that he had added a 15mm scale Piasecki Shawnee and Westland Whirlwind to his range of 3D printed models. As I was dead impressed by the Mi-18 helicopter I bought from him via eBay, and had been after both of these types for Vietnam and Aden for years, I shot an email back to him today and put in an order for one of each. I think I've also persuaded him to make a Westland Commando and a Westland Scout, but we'll have to wait and see?

Boots on the Ground

                 

Another charity bookshop bargain yesterday, a hardback copy of Boots on the Ground by Richard Dannatt, for the price of a BLT. I ate the aforementioned sandwich while reading the chapters on Malaya, Borneo and Aden, which were very interesting and gave a sound overview of the military - political tensions involved. Very good as a primer.

Sandbox Skirmish Patrol

Here's the finished test figures for the Sandbox Skirmish project, with the bases painted in Vallejo US Tan Earth and a dry brush in Vallejo Iraqi Sand, plus some Gamers Grass light green tufts. I've put them with the Humber Pig and Ferret armoured car to make up a small patrol, the other three section squaddies being the drivers and Ferret commander. I now need to paint up the rest of the platoon and finish the other vehicles.

Sandbox Skirmish Painting Experiment

 

This is the result of my experiment in painting 15mm figures using a basecoat and wash method, instead of my usual layering over a black undercoat. In some ways I think it works well, the shading on the packs for example, but in others I'm not so keen. It also wasn't any faster than layering, which was a surprise. I think I'll stick to my usual method for my Red Actions! project but, as I've started using washes for the Sandbox Skirmish figures I'll carry on with the same for the rest of the British infantry platoon. Ho hum.

Sandbox Skirmish

       

This 15mm post-colonial skirmish project has been hanging about for a few years now but will get a reboot over the half term holiday, as I'm on a roll with my 15mm AK47 stuff and really enjoying the painting. I recently discovered the Wars of Insurgency rules, which would work well for this, so have some impetus to get on with a painting test run for the British infantry platoon. 

However, I'm thinking of relocating the action to a fictional East African ex-colony, where the government is facing a nationalist insurrection and has called on the British for political and military support. The response has been the deployment of a small contingent from a soon to be amalgamated West Country regiment and a few shady special forces SAS types.

I've re-sprayed a strip of eight of the figures in a Citadel Death Guard Green basecoat and gave the layer paints to get them started, which will be a change from using a black undercoat. It may of may not go to plan but, if it goes tits up I can always strip them back and start again. The vehicles just need finishing off, as they're three quarters painted already.

Should be fun!

Wars of Insurgency

                           

This is a set of skirmish rules that I hadn't heard of before bumping into a recommendation on a Facebook group. It's very much inspired by the original AK47 in style and content but with a system for skirmish level battles, rather than company level, and a slightly more serious tone. The army lists ate based around the same factions as AK47 and there's a clear emphasis on the political manoeuvring aspect, through a well designed campaign system. I really like what I've read so far and for only a few quid it's a bargain. I can see myself developing a 15mm or 28mm skirmish equivalent to my AK47 games or even using it for the Sandbox Skirmish project with a few minor adjustments. Very cool!

http://www.firstcommandwargames.com/wars-of-insurgency.html

Sandbox Skirmish Low Stakes

This is a project that I have been tinkering with for a couple of years but which never seems to get shifted in a forward direction, for whatever reason that may be, one of which is my lack of bullet biting when it comes to painting 15mm figures. 

I haven't painted anything in 15mm for years, so I'm sitting on a fence when it comes to how to do it. In the past, I've painted in layers over a black undercoat, which works well but nowadays a lot of people seem to go for a block, wash and highlight approach, which works when you have a lot of figures to wade through but is perhaps lacking when you only have a dozen or so for skirmish games.

I desperately need some practice in advance of the Red Actions! project, so I'm going to have a go painting a squad or two of 15mm modern figures for the Sandbox Skirmish project, possibly not the British platoon I've undercoated in Citadel Death Guard green but instead some US or Israeli figures. 

This will allow me to get things wrong as well as right, with a low-stakes outcome but a useful result, if it goes according to plan. 

Fat Frank's Desert Roads

 

After much prevarication and futile thoughts of 'I could make that myself one day', I got round to acquiring some desert road pieces from Fat Frank, which you see being used a lot for various wargaming purposes. These are homemade from black plastic material coated in glue and sand then dry-brushed in a suitably arid shade of what looks like magnolia emulsion. As such, they are pretty simple but no less effective, plugging an obvious gap in my 28mm scaled desert terrain. I chose the 70mm wide version which works as a single lane track in 28mm and a double lane roadway in 15mm, so pretty handy for skirmish games in both scales. I'm quite pleased with these as long as they don't curl up or fall to bits, but I may do a little bit more painting and decorating with some tufts to blend them with my existing terrain. Now, where did I put that stagecoach.....?