Taking advantage of the frequent sales by Black Tree Design, I’ve added some additional Wehrmacht troops to my 28mm World War II German force. Previously, I had painted up more than thirty of Black Tree’s figures, so this later order filled out my collection with a few more soldiers armed with rifles, another officer and a mortar crew with a nifty spotter with binoculars raised to his eyes.
When on sale, these metal cast models from Black Tree come in at about $1.50 USD each. This price point makes these miniatures super affordable, quick to get based and ready for painting up using my regular painting process.
Painting 28mm German Infantry
Clean flash from metal models with a sharp knife and glue to metal washer or plastic bases.
Apply filler putty to bases. When dry, scrape off excess with a sharp knife.
Basecoat models and bases with flat black spray primer.
Paint pants, helmets, soft hats, officer greatcoats and gas mask containers with Skavenlight Dinge.
Paint faces and hands with Tallarn Flesh.
Paint packs ans straps with Baneblade Brown.
Paint boots and equipment straps Black.
Paint bases, gun stocks, water bottles and helmet straps with Dark Brown.
Apply Agrax Earthshade wash to webbing and packs.
Dry brush pants, helmets, soft hats and officer greatcoats with Light Grey.
Lightly dry brush bases and gun stocks with Baneblade Brown.
Paint metal gun and water bottle parts with black and finish with a light dry brush of Metallic Silver.
Dry brush gasmask containers with metallic Silver.
Paint eyes with small dots of Off White and Dark Brown. Clean up around eyes with Tallarn Flesh.
Mix 50/50 Tallarn Flesh and Off White and brush highlights on cheekbones, chins, forehead, nose and hands.
Cover bases in white glue and cover in 50/50 mix of fine light green and dark green grass flock.
Glue small pieces of clump foliage to base.
Spray coat completed models with matte finish.
With about 40 of Black Tree’s models now complete, I’ve got a flexible, reliably sized force of simply outfitted Germans ready for deployment in a variety of European tabletop scenarios.
One of my favorite blogs, War Is Boring, had a very timely article this past week on the history of the M-9 bazooka. I had just sat down to work on a small project of outfitting my growing US 101st Airborne 28mm force with some additional support weapons, and the article provided some great inspiration for getting my force outfitted with more explosive back-up with some two-man bazooka crews and a 60mm mortar from Artizan Designs.
I’d recently finished a bazooka team and mortar from Warlord Games, so two more bazookas and another mortar from AD not only fills out my gaming options but also allowed me to compare the metal models from two great manufacturers. The mortar stands look nearly indistinguishable side by side. As for the bazookas, the Warlord weapon is a bit thinner than the bulkier AD sculpts but the soldiers themselves look perfect together when painted using the consistent process below.
Painting 28mm US Airborne Support Weapons
Clean flash from metal models with a sharp knife and glue to metal washer or plastic bases.
Apply filler putty to bases. When dry, scrape off excess with a sharp knife.
Base coat models and bases with flat black spray primer.
Paint uniforms and bandages on helmets with Tallarn Sand.
Paint helmets and knee and elbow patches with Waaagh! Flesh.
Paint faces and hands with Tallarn Flesh.
Paint webbing and packs with Baneblade Brown.
Paint bases, boots, gun stocks and helmet straps with Dark Brown.
Apply Agrax Earthshade wash to uniforms, helmet netting, webbing and packs.
Mix 50/50 Baneblade Brown and Off White and lightly dry brush packs, webbing and socks.
Lightly dry brush bases, gun stocks, helmet netting, holsters and elbow and knee patches with Baneblade Brown.
Paint metal gun, bazooka and mortar parts with black and finish with a light dry brush of metallic silver.
Paint eyes with small dots of Off White and Dark Brown. Clean up around eyes with Tallarn Flesh.
Mix 50/50 Tallarn Flesh and Off White and brush highlights on cheekbones, chins, forehead, nose and hands.
Apply Company B decals to shoulders and helmets, followed by a coat of Solvaset decal fixative from Walthers.
Cover bases in white glue and cover in 50/50 mix of fine light green and dark green grass flock.
Glue small pieces of clump foliage to base.
Spray coat completed models with matte finish.
I really love the detail in the AD miniatures. The two bazooka teams each uniquely portray guys on the move or ready to fire. The figure kneeling with a radio to his ear is a new favorite of mine and will probably be used as a spotter to call in mortar support. Check out all the photos below for the results from the AD miniatures waiting to provide additional back-up to my US Airborne troops.
With my first 101st Airborne troops completed in 28mm, I’ve moved on to adding some support weapons. As a relative newcomer to World War II at this scale, I’ve also taken the opportunity to try another manufacturer’s miniatures for the sake of comparison.
In 2008, Warlord Games launched a small selection of WWII miniatures acquired from another manufacturer. To compliment the line of models, about three years ago Bolt Action came to the game scene with a slickly-designed rule set published by Osprey Publishing and a now vastly-expanding line of miniatures from multiple nations and combat theaters of WWII. The Warlord Games plastic and metal line of soldiers, artillery, transports and armor, along with the Bolt Action game system, have come to dominate the market and tournament scene for gamers playing tactical-level WWII in the larger 28mm scale.
For my first figures from Warlord Games, I stuck with a few metal models which scale nicely with my figures from Artizan Designs. The castings display a lot of exaggerated poses, animated facial expressions and detailed equipment which look great on a wargaming tabletop and reveal the influence of the designers who hail from the world of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 from Games Workshop.
In painting my first Warlord Games miniatures, I went with my same quick and simple painting scheme I’ve been using so far:
Painting 28mm US Airborne Support Weapons
Clean flash from metal models with a sharp knife and glue to metal washer or plastic bases.
Apply filler putty to bases. When dry, scrape off excess with a sharp knife.
Base coat models and bases with flat black spray primer.
Paint uniforms and bandages on helmets with Tallarn Sand.
Paint helmets and knee and elbow patches with Waaagh! Flesh.
Paint faces and hands with Tallarn Flesh.
Paint webbing and packs with Baneblade Brown.
Paint bases, boots, gun stocks and helmet straps with Dark Brown.
Apply Agrax Earthshade wash to uniforms, helmet netting, webbing and packs.
Mix 50/50 Baneblade Brown and Off White and lightly dry brush packs, webbing and socks.
Lightly dry brush bases, gun stocks, helmet netting, holsters and elbow and shoulder patches with Baneblade Brown.
Paint metal gun, bazooka and mortar parts with black and finish with a light dry brush of metallic silver.
Paint eyes with small dots of Off White and Dark Brown. Clean up around eyes with Tallarn Flesh.
Mix 50/50 Tallarn Flesh and Off White and brush highlights on cheekbones, chins, forehead, nose and hands.
Apply Company B decals to shoulders and helmets, followed by a coat of Solvaset decal fixative from Walthers.
Cover bases in white glue and cover in 50/50 mix of fine light green and dark green grass flock.
Glue small pieces of clump foliage to base.
Spray coat completed models with matte finish.
To begin, I’ve painted up a 60mm mortar team and a bazooka crew. here’s a few photos of the final results:
I’ll probably add a light machine gun and some other models from Warlord Games soon, but for now my US Airborne forces will be able to pack a bit more punch in upcoming games.
As with so many armies past and present, the infantry man was the backbone of the US Army during World War II. Armed with the M1 rifle, his training and an enormous line of supply to the rear, the American soldier was arguably one of the most formidable combatants in the history of warfare.
That said, even the most effective foot soldier often needs support. Along with machine gun crews, US infantry companies commonly contained the M2 60mm mortar. Crewed by just two men, the M2 added explosive punch in a highly portable weapon which could move swiftly with ground advances through varied terrain.
M2 4.2 inch chemical mortar in use during World War II
At the battalion level, larger mortars with more diverse ammunition, longer ranges and greater effectiveness were also available. The M1 81mm mortar (pictured at the top of this post) was used throughout the war with its 3000 yard range and mix of explosive shells. The larger mortar, weighing in at about 150 pounds, required a larger team and was commonly transported by cart or mounted in the back of a halftrack.
By the time of the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943, the even heftier M2 4.2 inch chemical mortar was added to the American arsenal. Designed but never used for lobbing various weaponized chemical payloads like poison gas, the M2 was set on a large rectangular base plate with a pinion-like stand to stabilize firing large explosive or smoke payloads over 4000 yards. The weight and over-sized shells of the M2 did limit its portability significantly, but even so, it helped to very effectively fill out the small artillery arsenal at the infantry level.
Sprue detail for the PSC US Heavy Weapons set with 60mm, 81mm and 4.2 inch chemical mortars
To my initial force, I’ve recently added both 81mm and 4.2 chemical mortar platoons (photos below). I continue to be impressed by the PSC sets both for their sculpting as well as their value. I love the mortar crews holding their ears as the mortars fire and the guys crouching with binoculars. The tiny arms can often be a bit wonky when gluing the figures up, but this also allows some flexibility in poses. I set up one pair of figures in a little vignette of one guy reaching over to console his comrade who has been rattled by all the noise.
Completed 81mm mortar platoon
Detail of 81mm mortar and command
Completed 4.2 chemical mortar platoon
Chemical mortar platoon observer and command stands
Detail of a 4.2 chemical mortar squad
I’m putting my new mortar support platoons to use already in the Infantry Aces Campaign we’ve been running at the club for more than a month now. Although their first outing this past weekend wasn’t very successful, I’ve been studying up on FOW mortar smoke tactics. With strength only in numbers with my relatively inexperienced Confident/Trained riflemen, I’m going to be giving my force another try soon with mortars raining smoke and pinning fire on my German opponents. My hope is the mortars will provide just the support my American infantry need to fight to another tabletop victory.
Although African-Americans have fought in every war in US history, their fight has often come on multiple fronts of prejudice and acceptance at home and abroad. Segregated units such as the famed 54th Massachusetts during the American Civil War and the 369th Infantry Regiment Harlem Hellfighters in World War I have received their due in popular culture in recent years, as have the WWII pilots of the Tuskegee Airmen.
On the ground, African-Americans in WWII were most often relegated to support roles early in the war as truck drivers, stevedores and cooks. By late in the war with reserves of Allied soldiers dwindling throughout the European campaigns, black soldiers were pressed into service at the front lines of the Battle of the Bulge and the Italian Campaign. It was in the actions in Italy where the famed 92nd Infantry Buffalo Soldiers added another chapter to their service history.
Shoulder insignia of the 92nd Infantry Division ‘Buffalo Soldiers’
The Buffalo Soldiers in the Italian Campaign
The name “Buffalo Soldiers” dates back to the frontier Indian Wars of the 19th-century when post-Civil War free blacks volunteered for service in various US army capacities in the West. Later, these units continued serving in various capacities through the Spanish-American War and into WWI. Reactivated in 1942, the Buffalo Soldiers of the 92nd Infantry Division finally made their way to the war via Italy in the fall of 1944.
Video of the 92nd Infantry arriving in Italy in October 1944
As part of the US 5th Army, the 12,000 men of the 92nd Infantry made up part of the multinational Allied coalition of US, Brazilian, British and UK Commonwealth forces which sought to break the Gothic Line. Cutting across Italy, the Axis hoped to hold off any further Allied progress north to meet with other Allied forces pressing through Europe from Normandy inland toward Berlin.
A 92nd Infantry Division mortar crew firing near Massa, Italy
Led by senior white officers in otherwise segregated units, the 92nd Infantry made up a key element of the left flank of the Allied push up through the Italian peninsula. Crossing the Arno River and proceeding north, the 92nd made its way up the Mediterranean coast through Lucca, Massa and on to La Spezia and Genoa by the time of Axis surrender in May 1945.
The legacy of the contributions of the 92nd Infantry Division’s effectiveness in Italy has been much-debated. A paper from the 1950s does what I read to be a good job in explaining the challenges the Buffalo Soldiers faced — delays in reinforcements, shortages in re-supply and a lack of training for the kind of terrain encountered in Italy. I believe much of this can be chalked-up to the ingrained organizational racism against the segregated units. Post-war, the members of the Buffalo Soldiers also returned to a United States still entrenched in racial discrimination. It was not until the late 1990s that two members of the 92nd were recognized with Medal of Honor commendations, some fifty years after the war’s end.
Spike Lee’s Miracle At St. Anna
As a wargamer and film fan, I often turn to the movies to cross-pollinate my interest in a period. Spike Lee’s Miracle At St. Anna from 2008 tells the story of four soldiers from the 92nd Infantry who hide out in a small Tuscan village and bond with its residents amid the oppression and danger of German occupiers. Lee’s movies often run hot and cold, and Miracle at St. Anna met with mixed reviews, poor box office results and a fair amount of criticism over the lack of historical accuracy. All that said, the Italian locations and strong individual performances makes the movie worth a view for a rare glimpse of African-American soldiers in WWII cinema.
Modelling the 92nd Infantry Division for Flames of War
In late February 2014, the revised Flames of WarRoad To Rome and Fortress Italy compilation was released as an updated and expanded guide to the Italy campaign of 1944 and 1945. The Fortress Italy book covers the German and Italian defenders, and Road To Rome outlines the Allied US, British, Polish, French and lesser-known UK Commonwealth forces from Canada, New Zealand, India and South Africa. A third book, Italy Battles, provides special mission rules, battle scenarios and campaign notes for Anzio (aka “Operation Shingle”) and Monte Cassino.
Having dedicated years of my FOW modelling and gaming to Western Europe, these books provided a great opportunity for myself and other members of Metropolitan Wargamers in Brooklyn, NY to dive into a club-wide Italian project. I’ve also been wanting to put together a unique company for my FOW collection, and I was pleased to find the 92nd Infantry Regiment outlined in the Road To Rome book. With all our focus on the Italy theater, we’ve decided to dive headlong into a multi-month FOW Infantry Aces campaign, and there will be more to come with updates on our new Infantry Aces blog.
For my 92nd Infantry I decided to snap up the two sets from the Plastic Soldier Company – Late War US Infantry 1944-45 and US Infantry Heavy Weapons. At about $26 a box from my favorite online dealer The Warstore, the PSC kits are a huge value in fielding an entire infantry company along with bazooka, machine gun and mortar supporting weapons. Assembly involves lots of small parts and bases must be purchased separately, but getting a whole company on the table for a fraction of the costs of FOW models can’t be beaten.
Pvt. Fred “Radio” Rogers and Lt. Daniel McFeeley
To fill out my force, I picked of the FOW Infantry Aces set for about $12. The pack gives you nine stands of character models to create special Infantry Ace command stands for use in the Infantry Aces campaign. The blister pack includes general US, British and German models with special Fallschirmjäger, Japanese-American Nisei, Kiwi and turbaned Indian characters. I shared the models with my fellow players at our club, and modelling these guys really adds some nice personality to the game. For my Command Ace stand, I’ve modeled the fictional Pvt. Fred “Radio” Rogers and Lt. Daniel McFeeley leading the way for my company.
One of my three rifle platoons for the 92nd Infantry Division
In the FOW Italy campaign, the 92nd Infantry Division is rated as Confident-Trained making my force cheap and numerous. To start, I’ve constructed three rifle platoons with two rifle squads each plus a platoon command and bazooka in support. Along with my rifles and McFeeley and Rogers leading the way, I’m also bringing a weapons platoon in support. The platoon packs a punch with three 60mm mortars and four M1919 machine gun crews.
My Buffalo Soldiers mortar and machine gun weapons platoon
For all my models, I glued the PSC soldiers and equipment onto FOW bases and then hit them with an army green spray coat base. Boots, equipment, rifle stocks and flesh got a dark brown. Pants were done in a tan paint and leggings got a brownish off-white color. Guns were finished off in a metal coat. Basing involved a layer of fine gravel and larger rocks coated in a brown wash and then dry-brushed in a grey-white. Finally, tufts of brown-green grass completed the Mediterranean look of the models.
The beginnings of my platoon will be hitting the tabletop shores of Italy this coming weekend in their first round of our club’s Infantry Aces campaign. In the coming weeks I’ll be adding additional infantry weapons support with additional mortars, machine guns and more infantry. Even before these guys see their first action, I’m pretty thrilled to have put in the time to create some pretty unique models that I haven’t found modeled anywhere else at this scale. As in WWII years ago, I think the 92nd Infantry Buffalo Soldiers have been too often forgotten by mainstream history and many gamers alike. With my soldiers hitting the field again, I hope to bring a bit more glory back to these men who not only contributed to the fight against Axis fascism but also stood bravely against the tide of so much history against them.
Brooklyn Wargaming 