WW2 on a budget: 15mm US Airborne, Grenadiere & Markers (13.10.14)

[NTM]

Very nice work. I'm interested in giving the BF plastic infantry a try. Don't want the poor quality tanks contained in the Open Fire set and don't really need a full company so the Armored Infantry or Panzer Grenadier platoon boxes will probably be my first port of call. Need to clear a bit of space first though.

[NTM]

Turns out BF have previewed plastic Cromwell Comet British infantry and StuG at Flamescon. Apparently the last of those will be in a new Open Fire set which means it could be a good buy for me.  Pictures of the infantry sprue very similar to PSC IMHO.

wargamerontour.blogspot.co.uk

[Mad Doc Morris]

Thanks both, and thanks NTM for the heads-up.
I bought the Open Fire! starter set because it was BF's first all-plastic set (like said, I'm no big fan of PSC's earlier infantry sculpts) and provided excellent value for money. However, the mixture of Allied forces was odd, and by now one's certainly better off buying their platoon boxed sets – if you aren't after the Flames of War rules stuff.
Plastic Tommies look nice, but with PSC already in the market they need some special merit.

[NTM]

Know what you mean I have the PSC set and the only advantage I can see that the BF one may have is a better mix of command figures. The PSC heavy weapons box seems to address that issue though.  As I don't really need another full company I may get a new improved Open Fire or a motor platoon with M5 which will no doubt be made available.

[Borpipe]

Beautiful, Exquisite, WOW!!!

Been thinking about going to 15mm for skirmish games too.  You have shown what can be done.

[moiterei_1984]

Well, how could I have missed this? They're bloody awesome 

[Mad Doc Morris]

Again, thank you, fellas.
I'm sure there are better examples of what can be achieved in this scale in regards of painting and modelling. However, these were quick to do and are fun to game with – one's at an arm's length at least, thus won't notice the issues apparent on close-up photos.
Also it's a first to have completed forces (no armies, really) for both sides at hand, and it's quite satisfying. Now to build or buy 15mm terrain, my least favourite if mandatory part of this project. Browsing LAF for tips right now.

[CPBelt]

Paper Terrain's 15mm Italian line should do nicely. http://paperterrain.mybisi.com/products/mediterranean-buildings



15mm WWII skirmish is a great scale. Welcome to my world. I use Peter Pig. You're painting is really nice.

Don't worry about using late war Germans for early war. IMO we all do this. It's just a game. (Right now, much of my German armor and artillery is old Axis & Allies stuff pre-painted for N. Africa. I bought them for .50 a piece. Works fine for my Normandy games. I'm sure there was a desert camo Tiger and 88mm gun in Normandy somewhere! Just because nobody was able to photograph them doesn't mean they weren't there!

I tried CoC but it was not for me. I also have Bolt Action which wasn't for me. So out of frustration I decided to write my own rules. YMMV.

[sonicReducer]

Wow, your minis are amazing. You paint better at 15mm than I can at 28mm.

I also went for 15m for CofC, mostly for budget but also I find 28mm overcrowds the table. I have a German platoon done and currently working on a US platoon. The thing I like about 15mm is that I can do an average paintjob but they still look good, batches of 24 are also nice and quick to paint.

Looking forward to seeing more

[Mad Doc Morris]

Cheers, guys.

CPBelt, paper terrain is a neat option indeed. I've done a few containers and basic buildings for Infinity some time ago. Being me, though, I would prefer something more durable and less artificial looking in the long run. The more since I probably won't game in urban environments too often, i.e. I probably rather need a few 'hallmark' buildings along with an emphasis on generic terrain. Unfortunately, I'm very lazy (and lousy) at creating trees, hedges and the like. Further pondering required.

sonicReducer, exactly my thought! I was able to produce a full platoon in two painting sessions (couple of hours each), which is a new personal record. Admittedly, as mentioned earlier, they still need a few finishing touches. But it's very easy to build up playable forces. Having played quite a few Lardies games, I think most of them are 'a scale too far' – much better with smaller scale figures than advertised. At least if you haven't access to really large tables. Which brings me to terrain again…

[mellis1644]

Wow great work, your stuff is very impressive.

[sundayhero]

Really cool. First, congratulations for your painting. You're really good, and I especially know it since I started recently in small scale (20mm modern and 10mm fantasy).

Obtaining a decent result in small scale is relatively easy, but painting figures like you did is not !


Concerning the minis themselves, I also plan to start metal 15mm WW2, squad to platoon level, and I'm really impressed by Forge of battle minis price and quality balance.

Seeing them propainted by you decided me to add 2 platoons on my small christmas wish list  The good thing is that Forge of battle products are already organized in platoons, as far as I know.

[NTM]

I quite like the forged in battle stuff too. The packs allow you to do a platoon but are not specifically organised as such. They all have 40 figures but have enough to do what you need with perhaps a few leftover. It's not a bad thing especially if like me you play at a level other than 1:1.

[Mad Doc Morris]

Well, again you're too kind.
sundayhero, I'm sure FiB will live up to your expectation, they are really good. Don't know if a single set covers all requirements for a regular, 1:1 platoon, though. For example, you'd have to buy Airborne standard equipment like LMGs and mortars separately (which is, given the price, no big deal). A strange omission is the lack of bazookas while BARs are included. So you probably have to substitute a few models from other ranges – like said, BF plastics provide a good basis.

[NTM]

I've also found the Peter Pig platoon packs to be very good value for money