Egyptian T-55 Company in 15mm

Egyptian T-55 company in 15mm - models from Battlefront

Before I got too much further back into Horus Heresy stuff, I wanted to finish off a project I had started back in the spring - completing Egyptian and Israeli forces for Battlefront's "Fate of a Nation" supplement.  I had painted quite a bit of stuff through the spring and summer for both sides, but true to my short-circuiting attention span, I eventually got distracted by other projects even with the finish line in sight!  This T-55 company was the last component I needed for the Egyptian force. I finished three T-55s in July, started on the rest of the company, but suddenly trailed off on to other things.

The T-55 - an inconic piece of Cold War era kit. A decent and modern MBT for the era of the Six Day War, they didn't get a chance to do too well in 1967 for the Egyptians, and the IDF destroyed a great number of them, and captured so many they refit them for IDF service!

I have the attention span of a gnat.  Anyway, while I did this other stuff, six T-55s were sitting on the painting table with a base coat of paint. After weeks of passing over them I finally snapped and finished them off this week.  So here is a completed T-55 company, nine tanks strong.

The tank with the open hatch will be used to represent the company commander

These painted relatively fast, but as I said in my previous post on these vehicles, the quality of the cast metal accessories is very, very disappointing. The cupola MGs, fenders, hatches, fuel tanks and crew were all very poor quality castings.  A great disappointment considering how much you pay for them.

Tactical numbers are from Battlefront; I don't know that the Egyptian army of 1967 was too rigorous when it came to turret numbers, but I think it adds a nice flourish to the vehicles

The main colour is GW's "Zandri Dust", pin-washed with GW's "Agrax Earthshade" wash and weathered liberally with some dark brown chipping and a bit of soot and dust coloured weather powder. The numerals are all decals from Battlefront.  And while their accessories seem to be taking a dive quality-wise, the decals are top-notch!

In Flames of War, the Egyptian companies essentially move as platoons...so this will be a horde of tanks...

This completes my initial Egyptian force for "Fate Of A Nation". In addition to these bad boys, I have a company of IS-3s, a company of mechanized infantry, and a pair of ZSU-57-2s.  It works out to something like just over 1000 points of stuff for the table.

We'll see how long they last on the table tonight!

Egyptian T-55 Tanks for "Fate Of A Nation"

Egyptian T-55 platoon in 15mm - models from Battlefront

The "Fate Of A Nation" roll-out on the painting table continues.  Here is a group of T-55s from Battlefront.  The models are 1/100 scale/15mm size.

The Battlefront T-55 model is nice, or at least a think it could be (stay tuned for more on this).  It is a little larger than the T-55 available from Khurasan, and a little smaller than the one available from Peter Pig. I prefer the size of the Battlefront model to that of Khurasan or Peter Pig, but I have to say that Khurasan's model wins out on good size, value AND really nicely cast accessories (like hatches, MGs, options on the fuel tanks etc - see Dallas' post here for some pics - they are beauties).

Decals from Battlefront

BUT, I have to say this about the Battlefront model - I generally like Battlefront a lot, but the quality of their accessories is really starting to slide.  On these tanks the hull and turret are resin.  The quality of the Battlefront resin is something I am starting to wonder about - on the BTR-152s, the hulls were breaking in the blister pack.  On these tanks, I had cracks on the decking over the treads - still visible on one of the painted models if you look.  These were cracked straight out of the packaging. This pisses me off - for what you pay Battlefront, you shouldn't have to piss around fixing that, or worrying about it.

If you look over the road wheels on the left side of the picture (the right side of the tank) you will see a chunk of deck missing - this is damaged while in the packaging, and trend I have noticed with much "Fate Of A Nation" front stuff from Battlefront - a serious piss-off considering how much you pay

On the Battlefront T-55 the cupola MG, the hatches, the fuel tanks and tracks are all cast in metal.  And the casting quality on these components is completely in the shitter. It's just crap.  At least the road wheels look OK on the treads, but overall tons of flash. The treads have appalling mold lines.  The cupola MG and fuel tanks are really, really weak. The fuel tanks have terrible seams and mold lines, and are cast in once piece  And don't tell me it is "isolated", as I picked up quite a few of these tanks and they are all showing the same problems.

Usual combo of Zandri Dust, pin washing, sponge chipping and weathering powder

These still paint up OK and one might wonder if, because of that, these little nitpicks on quality really matter? Well, they certainly matter to me. For what you pay Battlefront, there is frankly no excuse for crap quality and it is very, very disappointing.  Khurasan's tank accessories, by comparison, are almost flawless - and if a one-man band like Khurasan can have decent metal bits cast, then an org the size of Battlefront can frigging figure it out too.  It is very disappointing to see Battlefront get so many things right (the sizing, the magnets, the decals etc.) and then screw up on the quality of the parts.

An easy target from an IDF gunner

Battlefront does retain one important advantage over Khurasan - it is generally open for business, whereas Khurasan is increasingly either out of stock, or closed to catch up on orders, or both.  This is why I ended up ordering Battlefront T-55s in the first place.  It was a dumb move. Don't make the same mistake I made - avoid Battlefront, and dodge the Khurasan supply situation. Order from Peter Pig, which I should have done, and will do in the future...the Peter Pig tanks are a little heftier, but worth it for the combination of high quality and actual availability.  It makes up for the headache you get trying to figure out their web site.

You can also try Old Glory - I haven't seen them myself, but their 15mm T-55s are supposed to be excellent.  If you can figure out whether it is Old Glory 15s, Old Glory 25s, or Skytrex, or Quality Castings, or whatever the !#$#!@ it is, then good luck to you...

Detail on the cupola hatches and cupola MG is really, really poor - bottom of the barrel in my opinion. The casting of the fuel drums as a single piece is also another weak point, and you will go blind filing off the mold lines to make them presentable...

In "Fate Of A Nation", the Egyptian tank unit selections are essentially companies, and can be rolled out in company-like strength of nine or ten tanks.  We have tested "Fate Of A Nation" and based on that I can sense three T-55s would barely last one turn, and probably not even get a chance to return fire before the IDF gunners wiped them off the table.  So these three will need company.  In all, I am aiming for a total of nine tanks in the unit. 

I like to paint lenses...adds character to the model.  In actual combat operations, I think they are often covered, but that's no fun!

But will I get there soon? When it comes to focusing on a gaming project, I generally have the attention span of a two-year-old.  I have actually managed to be fairly focused on this "Fate Of A Nation" stuff for like a couple of months, which to me feels like ten years.  In this recent run I have managed to finish infantry, APCs and air support for the IDF, and infantry & APCs, more infantry & APCs, some AAA tanks and some heavy tanks for the Egyptians.  I am so close to finishing a basic force for the Egyptians - I just need to finish another six T-55s (and maybe a few other bits) and I'm there...it seems so close, but I am kind of exhausted on the Egyptian tank front for now...stay tuned for another diversion as we prepare for another visit from our good friend Curt from out west!

15mm Egyptian IS-3 Company for "Fate Of A Nation"

IS-3 Company for "Fate Of A Nation"

I note with a casual glance at the calendar that this time of year is often referred to by many as "summer".  I too can remember these alleged "summers" growing up here in Winnipeg. They were brief, even joyous respites from the hellish siege-like conditions of a prairie winter, typically lasting around three months.  During these "summers", my paint production would plummet because, well, you want to be outside riding a bike, walking, visiting, gardening, BBQ ing, etc. But Mother Nature, following up on the worst winter in over 100 years, is continuing her "see you next Tuesday" mission statement for 2014, obliterating the long weekend in a blast of wind and endless rain.  (We are relatively lucky here in Winnipeg, sheltering behind flood defences that are marvels of engineering - my thoughts to any out there affected, particularly my friends in Westman and Saskatchewan, who may not be so lucky when it comes to flooding).

I used the bristles from a hair brush to represent antennas

Since there is no summer in 2014, I can keep painting during the rain.  So here is an Egyptian IS-3 heavy tank company for "Fate Of A Nation" - six tanks strong, all models from Battlefront. I had painted a test model of this tank back in early June, and finished the balance off over the weekend.

These are hefty models - really big, scary tanks (or scary looking, at least)

As I said before, I love the look of this tank.  It seems like it should be scary as hell on the battlefield, although by 1967 it sounds like there were fading in terms of their impact. I thought six tanks would be a good size for a company - on paper I think a Soviet-style tank company is like nine to 11 tanks, but given the mechanical issues of these old beasts, getting six into action is pretty good!

Top view, showing some of the weathering on the deck and top of the turret

These six tanks will form a single selection for the Egyptians in "Fate Of A Nation" - following the Soviet model where the player is selecting companies instead of platoons.  I have never used them in a Flames of War game, so I have no idea how well they will hold up. My expectation is that they will serve as target practice for the well-trained IDF tankers and air force pilots...but they will look good before they blow up!

Another top view of the vehicles

My Egyptians now have this tank company, a mechanized infantry company (also here and here) and a section of ZSU-57-2 AAA tanks.  But this is still not enough to round out the basic force selection on the "Fate Of A Nation" org chart - a second tank company it required. So stay tuned for more tanks (and more, and more...)

Ready to face the IDF!

And I sincerely hope that wherever you might be reading this, you at least get a summer, or failing that, are not facing damage (or worse) from the scary weather than can accompany the season.  Meantime, the North American prairie climate can basically just go f*ck itself with a rusty chainsaw...

Egyptian Mechanized Infantry HQ - 15mm Fate Of A Nation

Egyptian Mech Infantry company command

Some more 15mm Egyptian kit off the painting line - this is the command element for the Egyptian Mechanized Infantry Company.  There is a command stand and some support weapon teams that are optional upgrades for the unit.

Recoilless rifle team for the Egyptians

Egyptian mechanized infantry company commander - likely one of the worst jobs available in 1967...

There are two LMG teams - I believe they are meant to be RPDs.  I find the assortment of Cold War-era LMGs very confusing - I thought the RPD had a circular magazine, but perhaps it could be belt-fed too? Hopefully someone more knowledgeable fill me in…

LMG team for the Egyptians

Another view of the weapon teams

There is also a single BTR-152 APC for these fellows to cruise around in - you can see this model was damaged, a common problem I have found with these models from Battlefront.  I have painted about five of these so far, and four or them were broken in the package in this way, with a cracked section on the side walls of the vehicle.

Note the chip in the side of the vehicle - I tried to dress it up as battle damage, but it is the result of poor packaging by Battlefront

There are also two recoilless rifle teams, 82mm calibre ("B-40", I believe). All together these four teams can join the mechanized infantry platoon, an enormous collection of bases and vehicles that occupy just a single selection on the Egyptian force organization chart for "Fate Of A Nation"!

This almost wraps it for the Egyptian infantry for now…on to the tanks…

More Egyptian 15mm Mech Infantry for "Fate Of A Nation"

Another Egyptian mechanized infantry platoon for "Fate Of A Nation"

Here is a second platoon of mechanized infantry for Battlefront's "Fate Of A Nation" supplement to their Flames of War rules.  The figures are all 15mm size and from Battlefront. This platoon joins one painted earlier in late May.

AK-47 teams for the Egyptians - and in the background you can see the wonky bumper on one of the BTR-152s...I figured they got handled a little roughly, so I thought it would be neat to have one that looked a touch like a jalopy...

The platoon contains six AK-47 assault rifle teams and a bazooka team. The BTR-152s are an optional upgrade for them.  Once again, the models from Battlefront are very nice overall, but I wish better care had been taken with the packaging, as the sides of the BTRs lost chunks of resin and had to be either glued back in or just dressed up as battle damage/neglect.

The BTR-152s are nice models, but the resin sides are brittle as sh*t and often break in the package - watch for that if you are ever considering a purchase yourself!

Consistent with their approach to Soviet-trained/organized forces on the tabletop, Battlefront sets the individual Egyptian force elements out in company strength. So these two platoons are now awaiting their command and support elements to round out the force.

Another view of the bazooka team and BTRs

The two platoons - so far comprising 14 infantry stands and four vehicles - still take only a single solitary spot on the Egyptian force org chart for "Fate Of A Nation", and it's not even a core one at that! To scrape together 1200 or so points worth of stuff I'll need to add many tanks to the force - I assume this is what many Russian collectors go through when trying to get together a force for Flame of War?

Pile of Egyptians finished...more to come...

Still more Egyptian stuff to come...at least I hope so, it probably won't be long until my painting focus wanders on to something else...

Dassault Ouragan from Battlefront - 1/144 Scale

Dassault Ouragan from Battlefront Miniatures

More "Fate Of A Nation" stuff.  This is a 1/144 scale Dassault Ouragan from Battlefront, a resin and metal kit released as part of their "Fate Of A Nation" supplement to the Flames of War game.  I finished this off this past weekend, where it rained for pretty much 48 hours straight.  The prairie climate can pretty much just go f*ck itself, but I digress...

Inspiring box art

Near-total air superiority was one of the key factors of the IDF's stunning success in the Six Day War in 1967.  The IDF opened the war with "Operation Moked", a surprise air assault by the Israeli Air Force that caught the Egyptian air force on the ground and pretty much toasted it. I think they took out something like 400 Arab aircraft. After that, the IDF armoured brigades could roll out into the Sinai with full-on air cover.

I suppose the artful nose was a common thing on these planes?

Beautiful plane! The golden age of jets!

With the Egyptian Air Force in tatters, the IAF was free to strafe and bomb the Arab columns as they tried to fall back to the Suez Canal.  French-built beauties like these prowled the skies over the Sinai, crushing the Egyptian troops. No wonder the thing was over in a matter of days.

Nuln Oil pin washes are your friend

With all of this in mind, I thought it would be fun for the IDF to have some air support when we try "Fate Of A Nation" at some point in the future.  Besides, the Egyptian ZSU-57-2s will need something to shoot at, right?  And air support activity always seems to be fraught with drama during Conscript games - see here, here and here for a couple of examples.  Goodness knows what the heck will happen when this puppy gets called in...

Couple of bombs underneath

The Dassault Ouragan carried bombs and was armed with four 20mm cannons. All useful for tuning up enemy armoured columns!  

Flight stand from Battelfront includes magnets - brilliant!

The Battlefront model is very nice. The base is sturdy, and you get magnets to boot - yay! The decals are great too. You can't go wrong with the whole growling-face-on-the-front-of-the-plane motif.  I wondered where this symbol came from - it seemed awfully custom, but a cursory online search seems to reveal that it was popular in the IAF.  Or perhaps just popular with model box art people :)  Either way, I love the look of it.

I think the dice is supposed to represent how strong the actual mission is? I don't really know Flames of War that well

My only gripe? I wish it was 1/100 scale, like the other vehicles - not that it matters at all in terms of the gaming, just a pedant tic in my own mind. The model would probably be impractical at 1/100 for gaming...

So my IDF now have tanks, some infantry and air support.  Need to focus on the Egyptians now. Stay tuned for more "Fate Of A Nation" stuff...

15mm IDF Mechanized Infantry Platoon

IDF Mechanized Platoon - figures from Battlefront

 As part of the preparation for the Yom Kippur War game at Prairiecon this year I had finished some IDF M3 half tracks.  Now there are some infantry to go along with them - this is an IDF mechanized platoon from Battlefront for their "Fate Of A Nation" supplement to Flames of War.

Each squad of two bases has their own M3

Decent sculpts from Battlefront

All of the 15mm Yom Kippur War gaming we have been doing uses individually based infantry. I don't play Flames of War very much - maybe once or twice a year - but since they came out with "Fate Of A Nation" I have been wanting to try it out.  These mechanized infantry will serve as a support platoon for the IDF tank company.

Would work for '73 as well as '67 in my view

The Battlefront models are pretty nice. The platoon includes troops equipped with FN-FALs, Uzi SMGs, FN-MAG LMGs, a couple of bazooka teams and a light (50mm) mortar team. I think these would work for 1973 as well as 1967 without too much trouble.

Most of the troops carry FN-FAL rifles, with a sprinkling of Uzis

Khurasan offers IDF mech infantry for 1973, but the kit is almost identical.  Given the choice, I would recommend the Khurasan figures over the Battlefront ones, although the Battlefront pack comes with all of the bases you would need as well.

Two FN-MAG teams are also an option to upgrade the platoon

The IDF force-org chart for "Fate Of A Nation" only allows for one of these platoons to be attached to the tank company, so I expect an IDF player will have to be a little cautious using them, as it seems the Egyptian/UAR player can get two whole companies of infantry into their force.  This seems appropriate - elite mechanized troops that need to be used with care by the commander in order to have the greatest effect.
 

Command & weapons group - mortar and two bazooka teams

Between these guys and the M51 Shermans I have already painted, I basically have a 1200-or-so point IDF tank company for "Fate Of A Nation".  I'm not sure what point total an "average" FOW game would be, but since it is mostly tanks, I guess it would go pretty fast. And as mentioned above, these will work fine for a Flames of War game set in the Yom Kippur War as well.

Ready for action on the table

 Stay tuned for more 15mm Arab-Israeli stuff from the painting table...