20mm WW2 US paratrooper supply carts

I picked up a little bag of SHQ figures from the tabletop sale at Penkridge back in August.  Four supply carts and 4 2 man crews.  Two were standard supply carts, while the others were supplied with models of lieutenant colonel Benjamin Vandervoort - not sure what I'll do with the spare Vandervoort.  The cart crews include a standard US infantryman, but I've painted him up as a paratrooper - he just hasn't bothered to camo up his helmet and add some skrim.

For D-day, these guys are painted in green ochre, with added US dark green reinforcing patches on knees and elbows.  Webbing and equipment is German camo beige, while helmets and carts are brown violet.  Weapons and wheels are black grey.

Vandervoort carts. 

Basic supply carts.

Nice little bargain set to add some resupply capability to my US paratroopers.

Thanks for looking.

20mm WW2 US paratroopers (lockdown 4)

Although this is the fourth of my posts during lockdown, this is the unit I've been working on since we first closed down.  These are mostly Italieri/Esci US paratroopers with some Airfix and Revel figures, as well as some specialists from Grubby/Britannia.  According to PSR, these figures wear the M1942 uniform, which is a sandy colour.  Following recommendations on the web, I've gone with Vallejo green ochre, washed in Agrax Earthshade.  Webbing is Vallejo German camo beige and khaki, boots are saddle brown.  Knee patches are US dark green.  First platoon is illustrated below.

Three man FHQ.

Two man bazooka team.  Guy with bazooka is from the Italeri AT weapons pack.

Britannia Miniatures bazooka team.

Two man artillery spotter team, radio operator is Airfix.

A pair of .30 cal MMGs, meant to be the M1919.

2" mortar team from the Italeri AT weapons set.

Second platoon.  Not enough Italeri figures for 2 platoons, this platoon has more Airfix figures mixed in.

Command squad, all Airfix.

Mainly Italeri paratroopers with an odd Revel figure.

More paratroopers.

A pair of .30 cal MMGs from the Italeri AT set.

Engineering squad, Airfix figures with a Britannia flamethrower (front right).

Some more substantial AT capability from a Britannia 57mm AT gun and crew.

Another 57mm AT gun from Britannia, but this time the crew wear the M1943 uniform, making them suitable for Arnhem/Market Garden.

Mainly Airfix figures painted up as third platoon in M1943 uniforms.  These have a Vallejo Russian Uniform/green ochre mix for the main uniform colour, with webbing in green grey.  Britannia bazooka teams at either end of the front row.

Britannia bazooka team.

Britannia artillery observer team.

Airfix paratroopers in M1943 uniform colours (PSR suggests these figures are wearing the M1942, but here they wear the M1943).

More Airfix paratroopers.

That's cleared a lot off my painting table.  Even more can be cleared away when I finish the next platoon, which should bring my British paratroopers up to Co strength.  Then, for some variety, I have some various odds and ends, plus a troop of Britannia Special Boat Squadron troopers for the mid-war Mediterranean theatre.  After that, maybe some regular British and/or US infantry for WW2.

As ever, thanks for looking.

15mm D-day Game Gauntlet 2019

Saturday saw the first of a weekend of gaming at the Gauntlet Show, held at Deeside Defenders club based in Broughton, Chester.  Owain and Ben had come up with a scenario based on a generic Omaha beach-style landing, with US paratroopers attempting to secure vital cross roads inland and meet up with the seaborne forces.


Ben and Mike defended the beaches, that Owain and his Dad landed on, while Ian and I took on Richard's reserves with our paratroopers.  Each sector had 800 points for each side.  Rules used were Battlegroup - Overlord supplement providing the forces.


I don't really have a coherent account of the overall game, being fully preoccupied with the doings on our end of the table.  We used the recce screen scenario and rolled for 6 turns before either the paras or German defenders were able to reinforce.  US recce consisted of a jeep recce team, a jeep recce command team and an infantry recce squad.  German recce comprised 2 SdkFz 250/9s, a sniper team and a recce infantry squad in a 250/1.  The US troops using their superior Jeep mobility on road, quickly secured the objective in the middle of the table and the infantry team secured the objective in the US deployment zone.  German recce infantry did the same in their sector and then pushed their 250/9s forward.  Despite lots of 105mm artillery and mortars to call on, the German recce systematically wiped out the 2 jeep recce teams and secured the central objective.  While the rear area was pretty quiet, the beaches were very busy, with a lot of US infantry casualties, especially amongst the flamethrower teams.


On turn 7, the US troops started to arrive, pushing forwards along the hedgerows.

An artillery spotter raced forwards to try and get a good position before the German armour (S-35s) arrived.

The FHQ also takes up a good vantage point.

Paras scurry across open terrain, trying to beat the advancing German armour to the hedgerows.

One of the Somuas beats the Americans to it.

The vital gap in the hedgerows with burning recce jeep by the chateau.

A lucky deviation saw an 81mm mortar battery land a barrage right on top of some advancing Somuas, brewing up one and pinning the other - phew a delay.

More paras, this time engineers in the foreground and a platoon command beyond.

Another chateau, this one providing an excellent vantage point to the recce infantry squad, who called in mortar fire from this point throughout the game.  A newly deployed 81mm mortar would soon be available for smaller fire missions.

A para LMG and bazooka team advance to support the infantry.

The bazooka went on reserve move and then closed with the Somua by the hedge, which was pinned by mortar fire.

More artillery and mortar strikes - lots of pins and a brewed up Pz III and another Somua.

The engineers advance to get in the fight.

The Somua gets brewed up by the plucky bazooka team.  With the rest of the tank platoon brewed up or pinned, we expected more armour, but it had been directed towards the beaches, to contain a US armoured breakthrough, spearheaded by a Sherman dozer.

At this point the Germans on the beaches exceeded their break point and resistance ceased, allowing the US armour to push across the beach road and enter the town - they would be looking for some infantry support from reserves across the beach or pressing paras into service.  With the German tanks in the rear areas whittled down, they too decided discretion was the better part of valour.


It was a great game, fortunes favoured the Germans initially in our area and the US recce was slaughtered, although the foot patrol managed to keep up withering mortar fire on the advancing German reserves.  With the arrival of US reserves, an artillery spotter and the FHQ were able to call in 105mm fire, which swung the balance back in favour of the yanks.  That and a couple of heroic bazooka team members.


I'd have been happy to try the scenario again the following day (maybe swopping sides), but sadly we had a pre-commitment to Joy of 6 in Sheffield on Sunday, so Richard, Ian and I went over for that, putting on a game based around 21st Panzer's attempts to push the British back into the sea inland of Sword beach in the late afternoon of D-day.  More on that in a later post.


Thanks for looking.

15mm US Paratroopers

Members of the Defenders club are organising a Flames of War tournament/campaign to run over the winter.  Although I'm not very familiar with the rules system, I thought I'd sign up and dust off my 15mm collection.  As an aside to the game we're also going to play a BKCII game using the same forces to see how the feel of the two systems compares on the same scenario.

My US paratrooper forces are the nearest to being complete and should be able to make up the 1750 points needed.  Although painted with shoulder patches attempting to show the "Screaming Eagle" of the 101st Airborne Division, for the campaign they are going to represent the 82nd "All American" Airborne Division plus attachments suitable for Normandy.

Here is a Parachute Infantry Company HQ with CO stand (actually the FoW Maxwell Taylor stand) and 2iC stand, plus optional extras of 3 bazooka and three sniper stands.

 A reinforced Parachute Rifle Platoon (1st platoon) of three rifle/mg sections, each of two stands plus an optional extra stand, plus a mortar squad of one bazooka and one 60mm mortar stand.  Note the larger than normal platoon command stand at the front.

 2nd Parachute Rifle Platoon, organised as 1st Platoon.

 3rd Parachute Rifle Platoon, organised as 1st and 2nd Platoons.

 A Parachute MG platoon of two MG sections, each of four stands, plus two optional additional bazookas.

 A Parachute Mortar Platoon, with two sections of 81mm mortars, each of two stands and optional additional bazooka stands.

 One gun section from a Parachute Field Artillery Battery with command stand, observer team and staff team.

 A Parachute Engineer Combat Platoon with two operating squads of two rifle/pioneer stands, plus a weapons squad of two MG stands, with a pioneer supply cart and command stand (actually the FoW Gen Gavin stand).

 An attached Glider Rifle Platoon with three sections of three stands, command stand and bazooka.

 Two M1 57mm gun sections plus the command stand (actually the FoW Eureka Beacon stand) from a Glider AT platoon.

One tank destroyer section of two M10 3" GMC tank destroyers, plus an M20 utility car and carbine team, with command stand and jeep with .50 cal AA MG, all from an 899th Tank Destroyer Platoon.

For the actual campaign, I shall have to be careful in what I select as its likely that they will be up against some armour heavy forces.  The only dedicated AT weapons are the tank destroyers of the 899th and some glider-borne 57mm guns, so I will need to go with a few of the optional bazookas and hope for some close in fighting in dense terrain - bring on the bocage or some forests.

Looking forward to getting these guys into action.  Thanks for looking.