Well, maybe not really; everyone and their uncle has at least a squad or two in their collection it seems. And who can blame them; they're just cool, let's admit it. So; I fell for them too, but only because they fit into my pulpy roleplaying campaign of course...
My campaign was in need of some cannonfodder for the players to mow down / outsmart (yeah right...
). And because my productivity is not all that high, I decided I wanted something rather universal. A unit that I can have popping up virtually everywhere, anytime, so I can use them again in later encounters.
The setting presently plays out in 1932, so a unit of Fallschirmjäger are a bit anachronistic, but then, their rides are even more so; two FA-223 Drache helicopters
But hey; this is pulp, and parachutes and helicopters mean that I can have them drop in / land virtually everywhere, hugely extending their gaming use. I did paint these guys up in (relatively accurate) early war colours, so I will be able to expand them later on into a complete fallschirmjäger force. Like the one that got their Arsche kicked during the invasion of the Netherlands and sat out the remainder of the war in POW camps in the UK
That would mean I would also have to build a Dutch force to oppose them, but I get ahead of myself...
I painted half of this squad in the standard green jump smocks, while I opted for splittermuster 31 for the other half. I know; I did not paint the green 'rain' stripes, but that was a conscious decision. I did these guys relatively quickly, and those tiny little stripes would have taken a lot more time. I could always add them at a later date of course.
They're all straight out of the box, except the MG assistant; he's a conversion, as the lot buy I got these guys in did not have one, and the gunner was too cool, in his firing pose, to leave out. Most of them are Artizan, with some other companies thrown in. I bought some straight from Artizan, so I'm sure about those (the Artizan troopers are easily identified as they all have the exact same face (which is a bit of a let down)) but there are some that I cannot place (but I'm sure most of you could at a glance). Maybe North Star and/or West Wind?
The weapons are all early war as well, so no FG42s or SG44s for these guys. I will do a second squad very soon, but I only have a MG42 for them and not a MG34 like these guys. Looks like a difficult conversion (gun is being carried on the shoulder), so I might either go for it, or source a completely different mini with the appropriate gun. This second squad will also sport 5 green (maybe two or three Luftwaffe Blue) and 5 camo guys, so I can then reorganize the two squads and have one in Splittermuster and one in green. Easier on the table I reckon...
But enough jibberjabber; on to the picures!
First a group shot:
The first two; an officer and one trooper with MP40:
Second pair; the MG34 team:
Numbers five and six, one with a K98 and one with MP40:
The next two are identically armed with rifle and machine pistol:
And numbers nine and ten are both armed with a K98:
Finally, because I could not help myself, the entire squad in action, taking an important junction shortly after being dropped off by their helicopter ride:
I will try and finish the first Drache this week. I converted it slightly, expanding its cargo / passenger space to hold ten troopers instead of the actual five. I'm also converting a pilot for it. Anyone notice that sitting / crew minis all suffer from Tyrion Lannister syndrome? They just have incredibly tiny legs. So I had to lengthen the legs of the pilot as the cockpit is a huge half sphere of glass panes and he would look ridiculous otherwise...
21 July 2015, 07:40:26 AM