From BobV: WW2 U.S. Winter Infantry and U.S. Paratroopers (200 points)

Happy New Year Everyone!

I am very excited to take part in another AHPC and hopefully excavate yet another slope of the Mountain of Opportunity. Today I present a small squad of U.S. WW2 Paratroopers and the remainder of a platoon of U.S. WW2 Winter Infantry (40 28mm figures in all).

Here are the Paratroopers:

These figures are a few years old. They are Warlord metals painted to a wargames table standard using mostly Vallejo acrylics over black. I finished them with a slightly diluted strong tone wash. I am not entirely happy with them but I still feel a bit rusty after taking the Spring and Summer off (the explosion of spring flowers is covering a serious injustice in basing).

Here are the Winter Dogfaces:

These figures are also several years old. They are an Artizan Designs range and very easy to paint. Like the Paratroops, I am not entirely happy with them either. I have had better luck with face shading by painting a tan contrast paint over a white or grey facial base. Here I washed strong tone over Warpainter Fanatic Ruby Skin base. I found that I have more control with the contrast paint so I will likely return to that method on my next project. These guys also took far longer than I wanted, I was hoping to get them out before the New Year. I ended up burning through more than one episode of "Brews in the Binyard" without hitting the pause button.

For Points I am claiming 40 X 28mm foot @ 5 points for a total of 200 points.

So glad to be back and see you again soon!   

***

Hello Bob, and happy new year! So, 200 points worth of 28mm infantry to kick things off? That ought to get everyone's attention! 

While many of the bases here are cold and wintry, it warms the heart to see proper metal castings being painted up for service on the gaming table (and say this as someone who paints buckets of plastic and resin as part of my 30k obsession...) I have always loved the interesting character of the Artizan sculpts in particular, and it is so nice to see more of them ready for action!

You expressed some incomplete satisfaction with the outcome of your brushwork - I would say it sure looks fine, although would gently suggest and increase in lighting so we can all see just how nice they will look in the photos!

That's...200 points for you! Boom!

GregB

From GeoffT - Limbo, WW2 US Paratroopers (55 points)

Hello Challengers,

This year I did a lot of sculpting, but that stuff is already painted.  So instead I will be working through the remains of a bunch of old school models I picked up from a shop moving sale.

The first submission was a project that I started a few months ago, but ended up in limbo.  I acquired a platoon worth of very nice Black Tree Design US Paratroopers. Quite timely considering Chain of Command 2 is due out in April 2025.

After painting the platoon and checking the army list I realised I was short a few pieces; browning 30 cal machine gunners and the mortar crew, so I mail ordered some from Northstar.  At the same time I preordered the new Silver Bayonet supplement, and therefore my order including the Paras went into limbo awaiting the supplement release date.  The limbo ended, they arrived and have been painted.

The colours came up odd in photos, have tried to correct back to true colour as best I could.

Eight x 28mm miniatures = 40 points 

Limbo bonus = 20 points

Total = 60 55 points.

This is also the first squirrel, for WW2 US Paras.

Kind Regards

Geoff.

__________________________________________

First, welcome back to the Challenge Geoffrey! A great set of American paratroopers, and with them languishing on your desk these past few months are a perfect Limbo entry. It's great to have the option of both moving or deployed support weapon teams, especially for CoC in which displaying these details are important. Well done!

Prone troops are scored as half points so I'd adjusted your total accordingly.

- Curt

PS: Also, as a reminder, please remember to place in your metadata labels as it assists for searching.

From MartinN: The Pit of the Pendulum [75 points]

As we step into the chamber, portentously named Pit of the Pendulum, we stop dead in our tracks. "What's that? That's no bloody pendulum!" we mutter to ourselves as from out of the dark comes a trio of men in camouflage smocks. Their faces, half hidden beneath their helmets, curiously distorted by the dim flicker of a flame not bigger than a candle. It's only when they stop just a few feet away that we realize with horror it's no candle but the pilot flame of a flame thrower...

Well, admittedly it took me a moment till I found a way to somehow shoehorn my current project into the Pit of the Pendulum. But honestly, I can't think of many things more terrifying than be burnt alive. The flamer is a support choice for British Paratroopers in Chain of Command (and probably any other WW2 platoon level ruleset) and has a crew of three. One man carrying the blasted thing with two others probably busy staying away as decently possible from their unfortunate fellow in case he might somehow attract the attention of their intended victims.

Second part of todays submission is another squad of Paratroopers as yet another support choice for the platoon. With these done I think it's on to a little bit of AT-capability to round out the force. 

Two of the figures were started before the challenge, so that makes for 75 Points for this submission.

11x Standing figure = 55 points

1x Themed Bonus Points = 20 points

From JohnSe - Curtgeld - Dick Winters (20 points)

This is it! My last miniature for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge! This is my first year, and I'm a little fuzzy on the requirements for the miniature donated to Curt. I believe the theme is "Daredevils, Gamblers and Risk Takers", though I may have missed the deadline for that particular bonus round.

No matter, the figure I picked to donate to Curt is "Dick Winters", the U.S paratrooper featured in the HBO series "Band of Brothers".  If jumping out of an airplane, behind enemy lines into Nazi occupied France doesn't make him a daredevil AND risk taker I'm not sure what does! He received a variety of Olive Drab, Khaki and Dark Green paint, but I've left his base with only a simple brown coat, ready for basing material to match the collection he eventually settles into.

This was a Historicon exclusive figure I've bee saving for a special occasion and completing my first Painting Challenge fits the bill. I've thoroughly enjoyed it, painted up a bunch of figures that have been lingering on my lead pile for ages, and been re-energized to tackle some new projects. Big thanks to Curt, my reviewer Dave, and all the other assistants who made the Challenge possible!

I'm hoping to get another 5 points for old Dick here, just squeaking over the 500 point mark. Looking forward to next year's challenge and tackling a larger point goal!

Thanks so much John! Captain Winters was an amazing fighting man; fierce, honest and almost painfully honourable. Serving as a frontline paratroop officer at D-Day, Market Garden, Bastogne and Germany is as much a 'risk taker' as anyone could hope to be - a very fitting figure for this year's Challenge.

It was a pleasure to have you join us this year John. I'm delighted the event contributed to an advancement through your lead reserves - now you have room to buy some more!

Again, thank you John. I hope to see you out for the next one.

From BenitoM - The Last Fallschirmjager Supports (60 Points)

Very slow production over the last two weeks, but at least I managed to finish the last support units of my Fallschirmjager unit for Chain of Command.

These comprised a sniper pair...

... an anti-tank team...

... an engineer with a flamethrower...

... and finally this lovely light recoilless gun model L40.

The real model:

I also painted one additional private and this other model in prone position with a pair of binoculars that I plan to use as a forward observer in my games.

Note that I did not make any basing work in the sniper. initially I was looking to to a base with heavy foliage, but then I thought about some of the urban combat games we have played, and decided to leave it bare.

After today's work, I bag a total of 50 additional points.All minis are Warlord except the last two, that belong to an Artizan blister.

Considering that there's only 1 week left and that I can only paint over the weekends, it's clear that I won't reach my target of 500 points. I aim now to reach at least 400 points before the Challenge winds down on Sunday; hopefully Friday and Saturday I'll have some spare time to finish 10 additional minis and credit the final 50 points I need.

Wow Benito, you are hitting these Fallshirmjaegers right out of the park. The camo and blending is just spectacular. I particularly admire that L40 and its crew (whenever I see these things fire I think the term 'recoilless' seems only to apply to the gun itself).

I hope you have the time to submit again before the Challenge closes but if not, it has been a pleasure having you with us Benito.

From BenitoM - Fallschirmjager Supports (107 Points)

Despite some hurdles (real life!) my FJs project continue progressing and finally I can post some of the support units that I've been working in over the past two weekends.

In any case, here are the latest contributions:

Mortar and HMG support stands

These models belog to the Warlord range. The HMG is positioned .in the edge of a forest ready to ambush any Allied unit falling within its sights.

Next we have a combat engineer assault  team with LMG pair, an additional ammo carrier and a junior leader commanding the team.

These minis are from Artizan. This brand's models area bulkier than the average Warlord model, but I just tested on a table and do not stand out significantly when viewed at a distance. I'm using Artizan models to add variety of poses to myFJ unit.

(3) A junior leader and prone LMG team for my FJ section dressed in winter gear, both from Artizan.

And here you can see the complete section, mixing Warlord and Artizan models... can you notice who's who? I think they match nicely.

Infantry with MP 40s, again from Artizan. The more I paint models from this manufacturer, the more I like them.

And last but least, the second armour support (the previous was a Hetzer): a Stug III in a colour scheme than can be used fora any scenario from late 43 onwards. This was done with the help of airbrush fence-master Alfredo, from my gaming group.

Lovely work Benito!

I feel that Warlord has suffered from lack of quality control and consistency within their ranges, but I think these figures mix very nicely with the excellent Artizan models. I like the tree stumps with the MG team and your winter figures continue to impress. That StuG III is a lovely lump of kit. I particularly like the single-tone camo - as you say it will be very good for the '43 campaigns, especially those in Italy.

You're now well past the halfway point to your target Benito. Well done! Now, you have the push to the finish! 

From AnneO'L-28mm WWII US Paratroopers (32 points)

Next up a real treat as we have a entry from Anne O'L.  Veteran Challenge junkies will know that Anne's work absolutely pops with colour and personality.  Grab your self a cup of coffee and nestle in to enjoy the show.

As some of you are aware I got into this hobby by following wargamers here on blogger.  After four years I have decided that it is time to begin painting some historical figures.  The decision on what period to paint was an easy one-WWII has long been a fascination for me.

When I was little I watched a lot of WWII films and built a lot of planes, which I hung from my bedroom ceiling on fishing wire.  Also my brother, cousin and I would use plastic figures to re-enact battles outside in the yard.  As it was usually raining, our battles took place in a great deal of mud. However, the dirt and the muck lent a peculiar reality to the carnage of our playtime. In painting these figures I am, in a way, revisiting some of my fondest memories.

For my first effort I chose to paint a US Airborne bazooka and 60mm light mortar team.  Figures are from Warlord and are 28mm.

I found the Warlord figures to be quite nice-few mold lines and no real flash to speak of. Also the expressions on their faces give them a dynamic feel.

Currently I have some British para's on the painting table and am slowly working my way through them.  They are more challenging than these and are taking me more time than I expected.  Because they matter to me, I will take my time with them so there may be a few single figures posted before I finish them and get them posted.

As these are 4 28mm figures they should be worth 20 points.

Ok these certainly do not disappoint.  You've managed to capture the muted tones perfectly while retaining the patented Anne glow.  Great job on the basing too.  I make this 4 figures plus a crewed weapon= 30 points plus a couple extra for the colours and basing.

From BenitoM - Concluding the Fallschirmjager Rifles (40 Points)

My work this week are eight new German FJ rifles models for my Chain of Command platoon. With this I'm almost done for the basic platoon (three sections each featuring two LMG teams and the NCO), just need to complete two rifle models half way through on my painting desk.

I'm slightly behind schedule of my first project for the Challenge, as by the third week I should have painted the Platoon HQ section... but not too bad if taking into consideration that I'm a very slow painter.

Note there's a small variation in the models this week: five are aligned with the rest of models presented so far (mix of camouflage smocks and Luftwaffe blue coats) useful for the summer-autumn 44 period; but this week I have attempted some winter uniforms for the late 44 and early 45 battles.

My plan (…plans… what are they good for??…) now is to finish a total of 5 rifles and acquiring two LMG teams and a NCO model to feature a full section in winter gear. These will mix great with the German infantry winter models that I have in the pipeline for later in the Challenge... Still deciding though whether to add some snow to the base.

The eight models today will represent another 40 points for my personal score ...Yehaa!

Next week I will confront the HQ section (2 officers, radio-man, medic and anti-tank team) and hopefully will also start the supports (HMG, engineers, snipers, recoilless gun and SPGs)

Lovely work Benito! I admire your dedication to a single project and I also like that you've allowed yourself to play around with climate, uniforms and period of the war.  That keeps things interesting on the paint desk I'm sure.  Your winter-themed soldiers look excellent, especially with that blue-grey undertone. As you say, it might be nice to pimp their bases with a trace of snow to finish the image.

40 points in the bag! Great stuff and I look forward to the upcoming command group.