German Infantry Guns

Infantry Guns are among my favourite close support weapon (who doesn't has a favourite support weapon?).
German infantry guns have a very nice look, small in size, cramped with crew.
They are not so effective in truth, both in game and in reality. Less agile than a mortar, they are cumbersome to deploy and transport (requiring towing) they suffer also from a low production efficiency, as a lot of work is needed to produce those beauties (mortar, instead, are hollow tubes on bases...).
In game they suffer from their number (2 per platoon is not enough to deliver some serious damage).
But, nonetheless, I like them a lot!

here come a couple of platoons I did some years ago (2013...) and I still like the result.
They are Forged in Battle 15mm German 15cm sIG33 and German 7.5cm IG18. Quality is top notch and I appreciate when poses are reasonable and you can easily understand what they are doing. I really hate when you get artillery crews with shouting poses (to whom are they shouting and why they need to shout in middle of a bombardment) and, worst, with officers intent to look far away with their binocular or with the hand over their eyes... (what do they think to be? Napoleonic artillery officers overlooking their direct fire on enemy battalions?).
In both these sets people is busy with their work of loading, aiming and firing their ordnance without too many distractions...

I'm sorry for the quality of these pictures. They were done in a sunny morning with my old cell phone.

Pendraken Painting Competition 2014 (3)

Last entry for Pendraken Painting Competition 2014:

German Panzergrenadier in the Ardennes.

SS scout platoon

For long time my primary interest in wargaming was into Napoleonic period. Lot of rules, lot of miniatures (mostly plastic 1/72 from various companies)... then I was sucked in Warhammer for a while (just 5 years, nearly not enough for anything but a couple of armies... a lot of fun, by the way, and a very big improve in my painting skills...). After Warhammer I was got in Flames of war. That's eight years ago, and from then, I've collected and painted a lot of platoons (mostly germans), I've had a lot of games (much more fun than WH, indeed), and some tournaments too... I like tournaments, but only when they propose axis vs allies match. I really hate to hear: "Ok, we have both germans... let do it's a drill...!" or worst: " I really like your panzerlehr list. But it's a little bit weak on AT, what do you'll do if you'll meet a Koenigstiger?".
Anyway, I have more shelves devoted to FOW on my cabinets than any other period/scale/system...
I hope to show everything on these pages, but it will take some time.
so, Lets begin with some SS scouts on schwimmwagen, a very nice and charming platoon, but really small to be really useful and, being Fearless Veteran SS, too expensive too!
By the way, they are useful also as Tank-hunters... and this is the role I've depicted them in.

 Schwimmwagen!

 I've tried to match each car crew with a base

 as you can see, I spend a lot of time on bases, as I think they have to be really eye catching at this scale in order to pop out from the tabletop

 It looks like late summer in France...

 ... I've tried to give the impression of a wet morning...

 c'mon yanks, come closer with that bloody M10...

 Ah... what a lovely sunset in t he countryside...

SS in ambush!

 oops, I wasn't aware of that glue blob on the tree... lets paint it on...

Projects, Work in Progress and Old Favourites...

I'm definitely not a compulsive wargamer... I do not buy the last ruleset on the market on day 1 nor do I start a new project every month to abandon it as soon as I got the minis in my mailbox...
But nonetheless, I fall in love very often for new periods, miniature lines, different scales and extravagant projects. So, I fear I can still be categorized on the compulsive/maniac side of the hobby... how sad...
The main difference is that I never (and I have to underline this word never) abandon or end a project.
I still regularly paint (and have game with) my first wargaming love: 1/72 plastic napoleonic with which I've began my career back in the early 90s.

The only big move on has came 5 years ago, when I did halt all my fantasy, sci-fi and GW, sold a part of them and definitely stuck myself on historical wargame only (and the only regret I feel is toward my local GW distributor, whose yearly balance has had a big flex due to my decision... sorry Igor!).
Therefore, I like to put a little order on my wargamers mind categorizing my actual and future WIP.
please consider that these projects would never meet an end. I firmly minded to continue to buy/paint/have games with all of them. It could be happen I'll left something behind for a short time. or even a long period break. But I think I'll find all these periods/projects still interesting and worthwhile in the next 10, 50, 100 years to come...

so, let start categorizing: I'll divide my projects in "actually playing", that means I have a very good selection of them painted and I've many games with them during the year (I do not play with unpainted/primed minis), "collecting and painting" which are developing projects, not yet arrived to a game or, sometimes, for which I haven't found an opponent and. "future interests" which group both seriously thought future projects and some itching extemporary inspiration from my fellows or from blogs...

ACTUALLY PLAYING

• 15 mm WWII, mainly from battlefront, for Flames of War games (that is my most played system, actually, I'm also involved in tournaments...).
• 28 mm WWII, warlords, artizan, offensive miniatures, that I'm playing with Bolt Action rules (but I'm thinking to give a try to the new Chain of Command from the TooFatLardies guys...)
• 1/2400 WWI naval wargame, with model exclusively from GHQ, using Naval Thunder rules
• 1/72 napoleonics, various plastic soldiers companies, with Lasalle ruleset

 COLLECTING AND PAINTING

• 10 mm Franco Prussian War and 1866 wars, mainly from Pendraken, but with some raids on Magister Militum camp, this is a well set project, with other 3 guys actively painting their armies in order to have, in a short time, some big clashes using 1866/70 rules.
• 6 mm Yom Kippur War, with GHQ 1/285 models. Still uncertain on rules, Cold War Commander or A Fistful of TOWs? we'll see... we'd like to have a game on october, just to give a commemorative tribute...
• 28mm Old West from Artizan... but just a small skirmish band of 10 7th Cav. soldiers.
• 15 mm napoleonics from AB ranges... just for painting sake.
• 1/1200 napoleonic ship of the line, Langton and GHQ... how lovely are these models... I've even find a new opponent...
• 1/2400 WWII naval on pacific front. GHQ models at various stage between mounting, priming and thinking on colour scheme...
• 1/285 WWII aircrafts, GHQ and Raiden miniature stuff. very lovely, I'll play with Bag the Huns 2 rules as soon as I get someone to involve in...
• 28 mm (or more closely 30 mm), WWI early war english army from Renegade miniatures.
• a small Dystopian War french fleet (yes I know, I've said no more fantasy nor sci-fi on my workbench... but these are so lovely...)
• ... and from the bottom of my models drawer, some very old projects: a late roman army in 15 mm (Magister Militum) and very old 25 mm Foundry Carthaginians, originally thought for WAB.

FUTURE INTERESTS
what a dreadful category... so many future interests...

• I'm spotting, almost everyday, on the web for Eureka' and Old Glory 15s' Seven Year War Prussian, French and Austrian... I think this new project is very close to step up to the above category...
• I'd like to give a try to the AK47 Republic ruleset from Peter Pig, with a couple of armies from their beautiful range...
• 1/1200 ironclads from various sources for Lissa... no idea which rules nor against whom to play.
• 1/600 Thoroughbred's ironclads. Really like to put together two small river fleets and let them discuss their points of view about federal politic on the game tables...