"1/144 scale German Aufklarungs Section - winter patrol" Topic

Hi Guys,

Finishing up some small painting here, with this recce section of two SdKfz. 250/9s and a single 250/5 OP/com halftrack.

These are 1/144th scale 3D print models from ebay supplier Kamiya. The models were camouflage painted in a typical 3-color scheme, and winterized with white pigment then dry brushed for the frosty look.

Despite the section's diminutive size, this element can produce some disproportionate effects, by locating enemy advanced positions in-game.

For a size comparison – and a handy recce unit type for the collection.

Great work – amazing detail for very small models!

Those look fantastic man, can't wait to see them in action.

V/R,
Jack

Frederick and Jack, thanks for that!

I've got a couple snow mats ready for these winter units, to play tactical games on. Still, I'm falling back to my areas-style game map, and to our group's modded Tank on Tank game system, as the games I'm most looking forward to doing. To me, it's the scale of the action that's allowed by this 'gridded', areas-style mat that enables an efficient game to be run, and on a space that renders the approach terrain to a sector, a front line, as well as some battlefield beyond – in depth.

Here as an example, from a 4ft. X 4ft. game board that I'll use for tactical, company-level actions (no grid) -

The areas-style mat mentioned here below (it's 6ft. X 4ft., and the fields on it function as a movement grid), and the ground scale for each area can be specified as desired – our mod uses one area equaling roughly 500 meters. The red/white range stick seen is marked in 500 meter bands, used for measuring firing ranges –

One thing I discovered when tufting the first (tactical) mat above, was that rolling it up for storing didn't crush the tufts flat. So, I'm thinking of embellishing the 6X4 mat too, by adding tufts onto it also.

Anyway, mostly just thoughts on the hobby, and some prep work accomplished here…..or planned.

Beautiful stuff as always!

Any chance you can share your ToT mods?

Chuck

Chuck, I sure can.

Now I can't do this with a lot of direct support (so some needs to be inferred by someone whose familiar with the basic board game system already – the Lock n' Load rules can be downloaded as a free PDF file), but let me just upload our mod here (two-sided QRS and some '45 period sample counters with the new velocity rating icons, and range ratings on them that are used with the mod).

Hopefully rt-clicking and choosing "open image in a new tab" will allow the images to be zoomed closer to full size here –

The QRS is also formatted as a PDF file, so I could send this to someone who PMs me here, and provides me their email address.

EDIT -

Here's some notes I wrote to a gamer on Board Game Geek, who was interested in the mod (these may seem a little more like bullet points, but I'm just pasting these here) -

You'll notice on the counter sheets that some elements have icons next to their red Range numbers – these symbols correspond to when these weapons are shooting Direct Fire at Hard Targets, otherwise, when any elements are firing "HE" (that is, at Soft Targets), they use the black column in the DF Resolution box only, and then further modify their to-Hit numbers in the Add. DF Modifiers box located at the bottom of the QRS.

Additionally, you'll see on the counter sheets Artillery and Airstrike counters too – these are used like "ammunition loads" – that is individual aircraft make a ground attack for each, or are like artillery "barrages" shooting "for effect". The smaller size strike counters are placed on an individual element (a tank, squad, weapons element – a single miniatures' base), while the larger strike counter is placed to affect a whole game area (a hex of area). Each enemy element(s) within these attacked areas will all be rolled against for results. If an attacking player places more than one barrage strike against the occupants of an area, then each individual element caught under these artillery strikes will be rolled for by the number of strike counters placed (reflecting a heavy barrage attack by multiple artillery batteries firing from "off-board").

So, now artillery strikes are considered as off-board artillery assets, which are used up whenever they're limited number of counters are placed vs. elements within an area or hex (using a Strike action to shoot vs. an occupying unit) – the small counters vs. individual elements, the large counters affecting all elements in an area.

You'll want to duplicate the strike counters so you can assign the number of air, mortar, and field artillery attacks you want available in a scenario (for example I've printed out 6 Med. Mortar strike counters for the Germans – and I allocate these out (3, 4, or 6 being available) depending on the scenario I've designed to use them in.

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Some questions:

1) Do you have any points system for units ordo you just play scenarios?
2) Seems like gang up tactics is gone in your rules? No +1 for other firing units(Platoons)?
3) Seems like a lot of dice rolling to roll for all elements. Could be really many attacks or am I wrong?
4) How do you deiced how many of the 1-7 elements are in a unit?

So grateful for sharing your system =)

Thanks Johan, and I'll get to your list above here -

1) No points system, and just meant for scenarios (at the moment).
2) Yes, no +1, because now there's multiple fire opportunities from not only within a unit itself (by its elements), but the mod still allows other units to join a shooting action that's been initiated by another unit (using the original rules restrictions).
3) It can be – I use pairs of colored matching dice for this. So two white, red, green, blue, and black dice each (that's just the colors I use, and with numeric faces instead of "dots"), and this makes rolling quicker – we just "pair-up" the same colors rolled and see which ones are hits.
4) Aha, well now that's the heart of the modded game transitioning to a given, exact ground scale, and then the "figure" scale and ranges have been derived from that. Units are now actual platoons, batteries, or sub-sections (the latter could be atritted platoons also). Our game scenarios use historical unit structures, so a typical German tank platoon in WWII was usually 5 tanks, but sometimes 4, and as many as 7 in a few reconnaissance platoons. Some of the late-war German Panzer Brigades had platoons of only 3 tanks. Soviet tank platoons very early-war, at the time of their tank divisions, were 5 tanks per, but then quickly were changed to 3 per, as the Soviets concentrated on easier to organize and command Tank Brigades, which they employed till the end of the war. The Soviet SP battalions (SUs), could have batteries (platoons) of from 3-4 assault guns each, sometimes up to 5. With modifying the game to have the basic maneuver elements being a platoon unit, which contains their actual number of elements (of tanks, guns, infantry squads, etc.), the game system has greater "longevity" (it's not just 1 hit = 1 kill per counter, but now there's multiple dice-rolling by elements within each unit, and those attempting to destroy multiple elements within a target unit). Oh, and the destroyed hits/kills are removed in the numbers that are scored, so platoon units show their actual strength as they take losses.

Again, I'm hosting games that use miniatures (with individual miniature vehicles, guns, or infantry squad stands being an element each), and so players see "on-board" the strength of their platoon units at full-strength, and as they suffer losses during the action ("kills" can be removed from the board, or marked with "smoke" for visual fun).

Here's a few pics from a game I put on in January. The first shows the German forces organized for the scenario (they're grouped by platoons – from 3-5 vehicles/infantry squads each) -

Here's how this force looked on my custom areas-style game board (I substituted 1 platoon of Panthers for the StuG III unit, but all else is the same as the picture above and the wargame setup here) -

So as you can see, there's one platoon's worth of tanks or halftracks deployed in each area (still used in game function as a "hex") above, with HQ or FAO sub-units/sections allowed to "stack" within the same area of another platoon if desired.

Those tables, with either mat, are absolutely gorgeous, and thanks for sharing your rules mods.

V/R,
Jack

@FlyXwire -- I can't PM at the moment. Please send a copy of the QRS to Schogun6 AT gmail DOT com.

Thanks!

Chuck, I've emailed the QRS. :)

Jack, thanks again – my gamin' brother!

Dave

Hey All,

I was needing some Soviet recce counterparts for the winter scenarios, and have finished up this addition to the mechanized troops – a platoon of Lend-Lease White Scout Cars.

1/144th scale 3D prints from Kamiya, and crews by Minifigs.

Finally, and maybe even final too for the winter kit here, a section of Soviet SU-76s.

The graphic in the corner is an example of force rosters I've been working on, where players can see the organizational makeup of the units they might have in their commands – this one for an infantry platoon strong point, AT-reinforced. (example of things that can get players up to speed on their scenario troops, and some of the unit factors they'll need to reference while playing) -