First Impressions: Blood Red Skies

So after several eager months, Blood Red Skies by Warlord Games, finally arrived on my doorstep! To start I love the box art, The blood red skies (see what I did there?) with the planes flying in formation is just so awesome; definitely catches the eye.

Squadron of Spitfires

Squadron of BF109s

Now as I opened the Battle of Britain box, I can not confirm or deny that I squealed and cooed over the planes like a little girl seeing a box of kittens. The planes have very good detail and the two i've painted thus far have turned out beautifully. I also really love the positionable flight stands for displaying planes having advantage and disadvantage.

Now one of the few things that I knew about before the game arrived, was the colourful art on the cards (which are used for the planes, pilots, and skills, kinda like X-Wing). The art feels out of place compared to the box art, but its not really a negative. I believe if the card art was similar to the box art it would be difficult to identify the cards. I don't have a picture for the cards, because I'm waiting to sleeve them.

The same is for the chits and the measuring sticks. They are clear and easy to read but don't really fit with the box art.

I love the dice. The 6s are a Spade in the Battle of Britain box, but there are dice sets that have the countries logo on them.

The complete bundle also comes with Pilot minis for the Aces that are also included in The complete bundle. They come with awesome plinth bases. They will need some major cleaning, and I will be sharing my painting process.

All in all I can't wait to get stuck in to this game. I will be back with more about the rules once I get a chance to play it. Also, keep an eye out for some painting tutorials for every faction!

So chocks away, and see you in the Blood Red Skies

Review: Charlie Foxtrot Models

Ruined House 1

"Tabac tobacconists shop" and "Dormer House 2"

So about a month ago, I ordered some buildings from Charlie Foxtrot Models. They are MDF kits, which seem to be a standard in the hobby. One thing that sets the Charlie Foxtrot kits are, in my opinion; they are very characterful. I really like the unique look that each building has, especially the shops. Each building seems like it's own building, unlike other manufacturers. Now, I'm not saying I don't like other manufacturers, but Charlie Foxtrot Models are easily my favourite. They assemble with out headaches, and they for sure paint up nicely.

My first complaint with the kits are is that they didn't come in sprues, but where already punched out. Which isn't a massive complaint, but it was a bit surprising. My last complaint, is that getting the squares used for securing upper floors can be a bit fiddly. But that's probably just my poor craftsmanship.

All in all, I have fallen in love with these kits and will definitely be purchasing more in the future! I encourage everyone to check out the kits.

I would love to see Colin make some kits in 1/72 for the Vietnam War, such as village buildings and bunkers.

Charlie Foxtrot Models gets a 4.75 out of 5 Stars!

Into the Bush (Galen's Vietnam Project)- Tutorial: Jungle Scatter Terrain.

So the Vietnam War has been a fascinating subject to me for a long time. Probably due to hearing stories about the press coverage from my parents who grew up during the war. So when I started Wargaming, naturally I wanted to game the conflict. Over the past year or so, I've begun collecting forces and vehicles. But the most daunting part of gaming Vietnam is probably to model the dense jungle that makes up the Vietnamese Highlands. I've conducted numerous experiments and now I feel confident to share one of the methods I came up with.

Materials:

• Your prefered terrain basing material
• Plastic Aquarium/Terrarium Plants
• Clump Foam
• Flock/turf 

Step One:
So I decided to use balsa wood for my scatter bases, because I'm limiting my spending to save for a trip to Normandy in 2019. Also it's easy to cut without power tools. In fact you can just use a hobby knife to cut it. I shaped it in an oblong shape, trying to remove any super straight edges. I also sanded down the edges to make a bevel.

Step Two:

I spray painted it with Army Painter "Leather Brown" Primer, so if the flock gets rubbed of it looks like there is dirt.

Step Three:

With PVA glue I flocked around the edge 

Step Four:

Now using a punch to make holes to place my plants in. I like to make them in triangular patterns. Then just with a dab of super glue stick your plants onto the base.

Step Five: 

Keep adding plants around one edge of the base.

Step Six:

Once you have about a third of the perimeter suitably foliage. You may want to go in and put flock/turf among the plants to hide the base. 

Step Seven:

Another way you can hide the base is to use clump foliage to make the plants appear more dense than it really is. This is just up to personal taste. I like the way it looks.

Step Eight: 

Keep adding plants and clump foliage until you are happy with the look. This took me maybe two and a half hours, leaving time for the glue to dry.

"No Tiger Fear"; A Review of Stoessi's Heroes Miniatures

So a while back I posted on Stoessi's Heros Faceboook page about how much I would love to review his models, but I had no money to purchase them. Wonderfully, Thomas Stoesser got in touch with me and we arranged for me to get three models to review for free! But since shipping was an issue I decided to order four models, and then shipping wouldn't be an issue. Due to my incredibly clever idea, I was able to pick up the whole line! Even though Stoessi has been so lovely to deal with, I am going to be honest in this review. It wouldn't be a good review then, would it? Anyways, let's talk miniatures.

So, Stoessi's models are wonderfully detailed and very characterful. Which complies with his motto, or catchphrase, "Adding Character to Your Battlefield".

 I already liked the models, but finally to see them in person has been great. They sculpts are very nice and I hope my painting skills can bring them to life. The models were very easy to clean up with very minimal mold lines.

Donny Dumpf and PFC Miller

Probably my favorite model is "Donny Dumpf". Being an American I think that this model is absolutely hilarious. I can now proclaim while using this model, "MAKE WAR GREAT AGAIN! Back to the way things were in 1918!"

Stoessi's first model(?) was "Otto Hottenrott", a German Late-War Schütze. I would have liked him to have more field gear than just a bread bag and canteen, but that was an easy fix with adding spare parts to flesh out the model.

I'm not going to go in to what I think of all the models here, but they are all wonderful. My full thoughts on them will be during the Step-by-Step articles which I will be writing.

I also got a button that says "No Tiger Fear", and a Bottle Opener that says "We don't have the proper facilities to take you all prisoner. Sorry!"

Very thick tabs

My only true complaint with the models are the incredibly thick tabs that the models come on. I use flat bases like those that come with Warlord Games' kits. After a while of trying to figure out how to remove the models without damaging them, I decided on simply shaving the tabs down.  It's a bit tedious, but it doesn't end up bending the feet. This isn't a comment on the models themselves but it made prepping the models a bit more difficult.

I did accidently snap the rifle stock on "Red Army Sniper, Liudmyla Pavlychenko", during this process, but I just had to reattach it with some glue.

My rating of these would be 4.5 Star General. (For those unaware the highest general is a Five Star General)

Check out Stoessi's Heroes webpage here and his Facebook page here

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Tutorial: Elephant Grass/ Bamboo Stalks

So I've had a fascination with the Vietnam War for a long time now, and I've always wanted to game it. But only recently have I begun to build and collect models and terrain for the conflict. One of the things I've been scratching my head at is the infamous Elephant grass. I've seen a lot of references to using grass mats for the grass, but upon looking into this, I've never liked the way it looks. It looks too fake for my tastes (even at tabletop distance). Thus I came up with a scatter terrain idea.


Supplies:

• A hand broom
• Washers (I used 50mm)
• Green stuff
• Super glue
• Scissors 
• X-acto knife

Step One: 

First off, you're going to get your scissors or x-acto knife and cut the bristles off of your broom. You can super glue the bristles first but I've found it doesn't make the nice splayed look that plants have.

Step Two:
Take a bundle of the bristles and wrap green stuff around one end. You can also wrap it around both ends to get more coverage for one bundle.

Step Three:

Now stick your green stuff onto the washers. I always place a tuft over the hole.  Then repeat steps two and three until you are satisfied with the base. You can also supplement the bristle tufts with long grass tufts, but wait until you've painted the bristles.

Step Four: 

Trim the top of your tufts with scissors to get the tops a fringed look.

 Step Five:
Paint your bristles with green paint. I like to mix the the colours in small amounts to create an interesting and realistic look. It looks strange if all your grass is the same colour. I also paint the base.

Step Six:

At this stage I would glue your long grass tufts onto the base. But, I would use them sparingly because they aren't the most sturdy. 

Step Seven: 

Now just flock your base in what ever manner suits you.

One thing i've noticed, that due to not priming the grass, light catches the bristles and give it that sort of translucent look that plants have. I've found that this method will work well with 28mm and 20mm. You could also paint them in different colours for alien planets!

Size comparison of my grass with a 28mm and a 20mm figure.

I just want to say that this is the coolest thing ever.

Tutorial/Painting Guide: Galen's US Infantry/Airborne

This is the painting guide I have developed for my United States Army forces. Is it completely historically accurate? No. But it's close enough! For those of you that have an issue with non-historical accuracy for miniatures I'd like to direct you to this article on Warlord Games's site.

All paints listed are Vallejo, unless otherwise noted. The base and highlight are divided with "//".

Uniform

• M41 Jacket: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Khaki 70988
• M41 Jacket Variation #1: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Khaki Grey 70880
• M41 Jacket Variation #2: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Highlight Japan Tkcr. 332
• M43 Jacket/Trousers: Gnarls Green (P3)// Brown Violet 70887
• HBT Uniform (Dark Shade): Olive Grey 70888// Brown Violet 70887
• HBT Uniform (Light Shade): Gnarls Green (P3)// Italian Tankcrew 327
• M1942 Paratrooper Uniform: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Khaki Grey 70880
• Service Shoe/Jump Boots/Buckle Combat Boots Lower: Walnut Brown (Reaper)// Ruddy Brown (Reaper)
• Buckle Combat Boots Upper: Walnut Brown (Reaper)// Oiled Leather (Reaper)

Field Gear

• Web Gear: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Highlight Afrika Korps 340
• Web Gear Variation #1: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Highlight Ge.II (Feldgrau) 339
• Web Gear Variation #2: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Khaki 70988
• Web Gear Transitional: Olive Grey 70888// Japanese Tankcrew 328
• Web Gear Transitional Variation: Olive Grey 70888// Brown Violet 70887
• Bayonet Scabbard: Gnarls Green (P3)// Traitor Green (P3)
• Bayonet Scabbard Variation #1: Rucksack Tan (P3)// Highlight Afrika Korps 340

Tutorial: Pimp My MDF Building- Part One

So I've picked up a few MDF buildings from Sarissa Precision and 4Ground. Now some of them don't come painted. Now I could have just painted them quickly and been done with them, but I've decided to actually spend some hobby time in making my buildings look nice. Also I wanted to share my methods. So, here we go.

Supplies:

• Fine Grit Sand
• PVA Glue/Modge Podge 
• Kitty Litter
• Hobby Knife

 For this Tutorial I will be using Sarissa Precision "Large Farmhouse - Destroyed" which you can find here. So This being a destroyed building, there is clearly a large chunk of it that has been exploded. And I thought that the empty top floor didn't look right, and I wanted to come up with a way to have rubble, but not so that it would disrupt miniature placement.

Step One
So I came up with a neat little idea to have removable rubble. I took some spare MDF parts from the sprues and found a piece that would allow for an interesting pattern in the building. I glued the bits from the windows and built them up as a base for the kitty litter.

I also arranged some rubble in the corners. just to sell the illusion. a bit more.  I also added some spare parts to the roof as broken shingles


Step Two
I then added sand and kitty litter around in the corners; which I forgot to take a picture of. Sorry.

Step Three
Now before you start painting, you'll want to add the stucco onto the side. I left the cracks visible but you don't have to.

Step Four
Prime in what ever colour you want. I used black.

Part Two Coming soon!

War Game Theory: Variations on Uniforms for Your Army?

Over the past year I've probably painted about 200-400 Germans in 28mm; and I can say I am sick of Feldgrau and Feldgrün. It's a bit of a problem when you can't stand painting the uniform colour of your army any more and you still have another fifty to paint. So why not mix it up a bit?

I'm a huge fan of having individuals in an army. I have a model of a German Unteroffizier petting a cat, and I have a bunch of unique, kitbashed soldiers mixed into my units. This idea has only been recently been implemented in my assembly, but now I try to have one out of every ten guys to be doing something different, or in a unique/interesting pose. This is to help me not get burnt out on assembling the same pose over and over.

On to painting; Like I said, I am sick of painting Field Grey. So I borrowed a book from a friend,(German Uniforms of the Third Reich 1933-1945) that displayed the various uniforms worn by the Third Reich. This book didn't just contain Wehrmacht uniforms, but various labor divisions, railroad workers, etc. It provided massive inspiration for variations on the usual Soldat. I've also created variations for my Wehrmacht forces. Some have more grey uniforms, some have more green uniforms, just to mix up the uniforms and create a more intriguing force on the table.

Are all my variations historically accurate? No. But they don't have to be. In my mind, the hobby is about being creative. So be creative. I prefer to have some what historically painted uniforms, but are my armies accurate? Hell no! But they are in typical "military colours". Just don't paint your uniforms in some silly bright colour, or do. Just make sure you're having fun!

Tutorial: Galen's "Cheap" and Easy Bocage

Everyone knows that if you play a World War Two game, who's main focus is the Normandy Campaign, you have to have hedgerows or Bocage. Now If you're like me, your wargaming hobby is on an extreme budget. I've seen a lot of tutorials for Hedgerows that require more money that I'm willing to spend on building the banks of the notorious Normandy hedgerows. Now, not to say that these tutorials are bad, in fact If i had more funds I would most likely be using them. But as stated previously, I don't. So, let's get on to how I made some nice looking* terrain pieces

Materials

• Yardsticks
• Sand
• Sticks & Twigs
• Clump Foliage
• Wood Glue
• Modge Podge
• Superglue
• Hobby/Pocket Knife.
• Sandpaper or Sandblock

Step One

First take your yardsticks and cut them down to your desired length, I use 12" as my base length, and the supplement them with smaller lengths. Then you take your pocket knife and shave down the edges to give the base a bevel. Sand down the sides to make them smooth.

Step Two

Now go outside, and gather up a bunch of twigs, and smaller sticks. These will make up the bank of the hedgerow.

Step Three

Take these sticks and glue them to the yard stick, If you want you can also add dowels or bamboo skewers to support the foliage; make sure you do this before you put the sticks on. break up the sticks and glue them in place to build up your bank. You can also add in Tree Armatures to insert some trees into your hedges.

Step Four

Once you have the sticks in place, get your Modge Podge and a large brush and paint it on to the branches. Pour sand over it and let dry. Once the first layer is dried, then you're going to add more layers untill you are satisfied with the look. I personally used three layers of Modge Podge and sand. The sand will most likely drip off the side of the base, just take your knife or sandpaper and clean up the sides when it's dry.

Step Five

When it's all dry, Prime it with your favorite primer. I used Army Painter Black Primer.

Step Six

Paint your base with a brown. I personally like P3 Battlefield Brown. If you want you can also dry brush it with a lighter shade, I would recommend P3 Bootstrap Leather.

Step Seven

Now you can take your super glue and start glueing your foliage to the base. I used Woodland Scenics, Foliage Clusters, because they are bigger than standard Clump Foliage. 

Step Eight

Once you have your hedges finished up. you can flock and put static grass on the base. And there you have it a set nice looking hedgerows.

*In my opinion

Tutorial/Painting Guide: Galen's Wehrmacht- Early & Late War- Part Two

<<< Part One

 Step Nine: Highlight the raised uniform areas with the appropriate Colours. The Early War Soldat (Left), has a German Tkcr. I (Feldgrau) for the Tunic and Russian Tankcrew I for his trousers. The Late War Soldat has the German Tkcr. II (Feldgrau) afor the whole uniform.

Step Ten: Highlight the Field Gear.

 Step Eleven: Paint the Flesh tone Highlights. I used Ryn Flesh (P3)

 Step Twelve: Highlight the wood. For these I used Bloodstone (P3) and Gun Corps Brown (P3) Respectively.

 Step Thirteen: Paint the Suspenders and Belt...

And Finished!

Don't forget to add the appropriate Waffenfarbe to their Shoulder boards! These Soldaten are Infantry. Now they are ready to be based.

Tutorial/Painting Guide: Galen's Wehrmacht- Early & Late War- Part One

So, Some people on the Bolt Action International group over on Facey-Space asked for some photos of my Germans using the Painting guide I posted a couple days ago. Upon examining my figures I realized I had modified the painting guide as I acquired more paints and they didn't quite match. So Here I am painting two new figures I found in my Assorted Mini Box to showcase the colours and style I use.

 Step One: Prime in Black. I use the Army Painter Black Primer

 Step Two: I paint the flesh tone base using Idrian Flesh (P3) and the helmet using Great Coat Grey (P3)

 Step Three: I paint the uniform using German Tckr. II as a base for the Early War (Left), and German Tckr. I for the base of the Late War (Right)

 Step Four: Then I move on to the Field Gear. The only major colour difference between Late War and Early war that I can find is the shovel covers. Early war is Black, and Late war is a sort of Olive Drab.

Here you can see the different shovel cover colours.

 Step Five: Paint all the wood bits the rifle and the shovel handle. I use Umbral Umber (P3) as a base for all wood.

 Step Six: Paint the Gun Metal, and buckles. I prefer Cold Steel (P3), as my go to metal colour because it makes the metal pop on a table.

Step Seven: Hit the miniature with your favorite Wash/Ink solution. I prefer Agrax Earthshade (Citadel) 

Step Eight: Wait for the Wash to dry.

Note: I chose to paint the Webbing after the highlights are finished.

Part Two >>>