15mm Egyptian Infantry Platoon, 1973

Tonight I finished* my platoon of Egyptian infantry for Conscript Greg's planned Prairiecon Yom Kippur War game.

 

The figures are from Khurasan, and the platoon is organized per the excellent information on the Khurasan website. Two sections of eleven men including one RPG, one RPD, and squad leader with Port Said SMG; one section organized the same way adding the platoon commander; and a support element of two Sagger teams and a mortar. The way the Khurasan packs worked out I ended up with three extra figures: one leader-type, an RPD gunner and a guy toting an RPG. Not bad.

The figures are excellent - just as you'd expect from Khurasan. Most of them (in fact all except the RPG gunners) are wearing the unique "assault vest" favoured by the Egyptian frontline troops in the YKW.

The troops also feature a good mix of poses. There are several obvious leader-types and lots of guys at the ready or firing their AK-47s.

The Sagger teams come in two flavours - prone...

...and kneeling. The weapons look very nice and they all fit well on a washer.

The support weapons pack comes with a mortar pack too, as well as a heavy machinegun (not shown QED)

The models were pretty straightforward to paint, too. I sprayed flat black as a primer, then painted most of the figure GW Calthan Brown as a basecoat. The vest was highlighted with Zandri Dust then Desert Yellow, while the sleeves, pants and helmet were highlighted with Deneb Stone.

Flesh got painted Dark Flesh highlighted with Dwarf Flesh. Woodwork on the weapons was painted Vermin Brown and the metal parts, Leadbelcher.

After this step the entire figure got a wash of Agrax Earthshade, and the component parts highlighted once more with the lightest tone - either Desert Yellow or Deneb Stone - save for the helmet covers.

  

I had a tough time figuring out how to do the camo covers for the helmets. I didn't want to make them too obviously "camo" but at the same time, wanted to differentiate them from the colour of the tan pants and sleeves. I ended up just stippling the Deneb Stone over top of the Agrax wash, leaving random slightly darker blotches showing through.
 

The last step was to paint the bases (Desert Yellow over Calthan Brown) and add GW Dead Grass and Army Painter tufts to taste.

And hey presto! Platoon complete - well, except for those pesky machinegunners. A quick trip to Home Depot or Rona will get the base sorted and they'll only take an hour or so to paint. These should be enough to play a Chain of Command or Red Storm! game, with tanks and tank destroyers added to taste.

*Obviously they're not "finished" as I've not painted the heavy machinegun and crew. Unfortunately I didn't have enough large washers on hand. So it goes...

15mm IDF Infantry from Khurasan

15mm IDF infantry from Khurasan - jeeps from Old Glory

Some more stuff painted for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge - this time a platoon (or thereabouts) of 15mm IDF infantry for the 1973 Yom Kippur War.  These figures are sold by Khurasan, although I believe they were sculpted by Mike Broadbent.  I based them individually for use in games like Bolt Action, Chain of Command etc.

More IDF troops

Over 2013 Khurasan has released a few product codes affiliated with the Yom Kippur War.  I game the period, and Khurasan generally has excellent products, so this is welcome in many ways. Over 2013, however, I have found that the ratio of actual figures released compared to computer renderings, previews and promises made on TMP by this provider to be getting worse and worse. It's a trend I like to call "Khuraspam" (see a recent example here - I would love to see previous promised stuff released before a fungus army arrives...anyway, I digress).  People who dare question this on TMP tend to attract a rain of indignation, but it is annoying. Yes, I know things get held up at casters, etc etc etc but maybe think about that before "previewing" things...anyway, back to the figures.

The detail on the straps is inconsistent on these castings

There are no figures that I know of specific to the IDF in 1973.  Some try to make do with QRF.  I went with Peter Pig infantry and head swaps, and it came out OK.  With such a vacuum in this specific market it's great to see specific 15mm IDF troops for the Yom Kippur War, right? Sadly, once they finally arrived, they were a bit disappointing.

Hex dude is the CO for the platoon, with his radio nearby; to his left is a guy with a heavy-barreled FN-FAL, mounting an AT grenade

Don't get me wrong - these are still way better than QRF.  And they have specific, unique things you will want if you game this period - things like troops with Uzi SMGs, or the updated bazooka, or the cool little knee-mortar and heavy-barreled FN-FAL with AT grenade.  Even Peter Pig infantry with head swaps still do not get you these things. But Khurasan has done way better than this quality-wise with other products, so I was disappointed.

Prone gunner with FN-MAG LMG...I know this is a common actual combat pose, but I hate prone figures...

What was the issue? Well, little things. The only FN-MAG gunner in the line, for example, is a prone figure.  This is a small thing, but many of us like to have variety, and I would have hope for more than one FN-MAG pose in the line.  And the figures are quite slight, very small, some of them really, really lean, nearly flat. And the detail is inconsistent...amazing and crisp, and then suddenly faded - all on the same figure.

A second FN-MAG - I did two of them, but I think a platoon technically only had one

I notice it most with the harnesses...the straps are there, and then suddenly not.  Maybe it's too picky to be thinking this with 15mm infantry, but Peter Pig generally nails this stuff - even Battlefront does, and so does most other Khurasan product I have seen. This wasn't a deal breaker at all, just annoying, kind of disappointing.

You can see a couple of the Uzi guys

But hey, they are still going to be good on the table.  I've based them individually, to represent the bulk of a mechanize infantry platoon.  The regular dudes are on 20mm round bases, NCOs are on square bases, the commander and radio flunky are on a hexagon base, and the heavy-barreled FN-FALs and knee mortars are on octagon bases.  Most of the troops have FN-FAL rifles, but I have sprinkled a few Uzis around.

Large calibre recoilless rifles on jeeps - handy, mobile and heavy duty AT firepower

And some perspective - you can see a couple of jeeps mounting heavy recoilless rifles in this pictures. These are from Old Glory. While I'm not crazy about the Khurasan castings, they are Mona Lisas compared to the Old Glory drivers...yikes. I think I've been spoiled by working with too much great stuff from Peter Pig. Bottom line - if you want to game this period (and you should!), you will want to but these figures.

The guys with square bases are NCOs

Also, let's give Khurasan credit - between these, the Syrian infantry, the T-55s and T-62s, they have released a good pile of product for the 1973 Yom Kippur War, much of which can be used in other periods, of course.  I just wish that more of the promised sections were fulfilled, and more than anything else, that Khurasan would start to under-promise and over-deliver a little bit more. 

Control Battalion Armour - 15mm Sci Fi

Control Battalion armour - 1/87 scale fun for the table top!

The random summer painting entries continue - now up is some armour for my 15mm sci-fi Control Battalion troops. I am one of those gamers that believes "the future is now" when it comes to vehicles for sci-fi gaming.  Some don't like that - they want all their sci-fi vehicles to look like floating pill bottles or glowing orbs or whatever.  But I still love the look of a current tank, hyped up with extra crap like reactive armour, jammers, retrofitted engines and optics, to fit the look of the future.  These models are painted with this in mind!

Control Battalion wants to work collaboratively with you...

I wanted some specific armoured vehicles for my Khurasan Control Battalion 15mm troops.  The Control Battalion are some of the coolest looking sci-fi troops in any scale - soulless and eerie.  They needed some tanks to match. In my recent entry on Khurasan's T-90A I explained how spooky the tank looked, so the T-90 was a natural for promotion to Control Battalion duty.  Throw in this f***ed up Russian thing, and I was sold!

A BMP-T - perfect for Control Battalion!

These are 1/87 scale model kits from Arsenal M.  I learned about them from the incredible TacoBat. I had been looking for a T-90 in 15mm scale for some time, and these popped up.  I ordered them from a retailer in Germany.  These were the only version of the T-90 and BMP-T I could find in anything close to 15mm scale at the time.  They arrived in due course, and naturally sat forever in my "pending pile" as I was busy with other projects!  Finally got to them this month.

The "T-900" - an ideal Control Battalion platform

These kits are model kits - not gaming kits.  They are NOT for the faint of heart.  They are not cheap (not Forgeworld level pricing or anything like that, just not cheap), and they are a f****ing pain in the ass to put together. I have the modelling patience of a gnat - and these take a lot of work.  The chains of swear words that came out of my mouth when these f***ing things were being built rival anything the hobby gods have ever been berated with at my place.

Got that?

Small pieces, anyone? F**K!!!

The box hides the challenge inside...

The BMP-T waiting for basing and primer...very thin guns on that turret

They came together slowly but surely.  Painting them was delicate - they are made of a fairly sturdy plastic-resin, a kind of what-if-Finecast-didn't-suck material.  But they are still delicate - the BMP-T in particular is really fiddly when it comes to some of the turret components.  I hope they survive some gaming...

The 125mm main gun is delightfully oversized for sci-fi purposes

I can't dispute the casting quality - the detail is superb, great edges and lots of details.  And in case of the BMP-T, you got some brass bits to represent some of the armoured grating!! Nice touch.

Armed to the teeth - the BMP-T

Twin 30mm cannons, four AT missiles, and two 30mm automatic grenade launchers.  Ideal for peaceful resolution of issues.

I find it easy to imagine the T-90 in Control Battalion service - a sort of "T-900".  Instead of firing "Refleks" ATGM rounds, they are firing 125mm depleted-unobtanium rounds, coated with baby-seal-liver residue for extra hitting power, at their enemies.  The "Shtora" system, rather than trying to jam ATGMs, would actually project harmful radiation flashes at Control Battalion opponents, radiation the Control Battalion troops themselves see no effect from thanks to their genetically engineered makeup.

Khurasan Control Battalion vehicle crewman in the commander's hatch

I added a Control Battalion tank commander (a thoughtful set available from Khurasan) to one of the T-90s to try and help make the connection between the tanks and the troops.

The BMP-T looks like it rolled right into a sci-fi game.  Designed sometime around 2005 as mostly a prototype notion for the Russian Federal army, it is armed with AT missiles, grenade launchers, MGs and 30mm cannons.  I believe the BMP-T was conceived in the wake of the experience of the Russian army in Chechnya, especially places like Grozny, which were hard on armour.  This is supposed to be a kind of "tank escort" or "tank support" platform.  I don't think it is in any kind of serious service with the Russian army yet.

Control section on maneuvers with the BMP-T

Screw the Russian army - this thing screams Control Battalion.  Like the T-90, this thing sits perfectly in my estimation of an awesome sci-fi tank.  It looks like exactly the kind of vehicle that would accompany Control Units on their missions to establish order through force.  You know, in case "negotiations" broke down...

Khurasan T-90A on the right - Arsenal M 1/87 T-90 on the left

I ordered these models well before Khurasan came out with it's own T-90.  Naturally going with Khurasan tanks for Khurasan infantry might make sense, but the Khurasan T-90 is smallish for sci-fi purposes - again, nothing wrong with the scaling by Khurasan - extremely accurate in my view - just small for sci-fi.  Plus it would not fit with the 1/87 BMP-T. So I stuck with the Arsenal M T-90s for this project.

Control section on maneuvers with a T-900

I find the 1/87 tanks look much more imposing beside the 15mm sci-fi troops, and whereas the actual Khurasan T-90A fits the compact design philosophy of the late Soviet Union/Russia, this larger model looks great with the ominous Control Battalion troops. On the 1/87 vehicle, the road wheels go almost half-way up the the height of the average Control Battalion infantryman - very cool!

But if you are looking for a 15mm T-90 for a modern project, go with the Khurasan tank.  I would only consider the Arsenal M kit if you want a larger tank for whatever reason, have a lot of patience and some money you want to waste...go for these suckers! They nearly made me snap my crayons, but it was fun in the end!

Another view of the T-900

I am still trying to find the right APCs/IFVs for the control battalion troops.  I have a few candidates in mind - stay tuned for details! And for more random summer painting...

Khurasan T-90 Tank - 15mm Scale

Khurasan's T-90A main battle tank

Another random painting entry to share - this time one of Khurasan's new 15mm Russian T-90A tanks.  I purchased a three-tank platoon of these models when they were released (earlier this year, I think).  Khurasan has recently made a somewhat halting entry into the ultra-modern 15mm sphere with this release, and the release of a US M1A2 Abrams and some ultra-modern US 15mm infantry.

An attempt at the more contemporary Russian AFV camo

I love tanks, and the T-90 is one of my favourite vehicles.  I really like the look of up-gunned, later model tanks - the late model Panzer IIIs and Panzer IVs, the IDF Super Shermans and upgraded Centurions are all good examples.  It speaks to the reality of limited resources on military structures - sure, you are always trying to get the latest and most modern stuff you can afford into your line units, but often the most affordable and/or quickly attainable thing to do is find a way to throw a heavier gun, another layer of armour, and after-market versions of advanced support systems onto the tanks you already have. Plus it just looks cooler.

Side view - the smoke launcher arrays are metal - thank god!

The Soviet/Russian tank lineup is full of these kinds of things. So many T-55s, T-62s and T-72s and T-80s have been built over the years, and found so much use, that you see a lot of tanks, whose design originated twenty, thirty or sometimes forty years ago (or more) still lumbering into action with updated guns, reactive armour packages, improved MGs, night-fighting kit and other bits all bolted on to the exterior.

QRF T-80BV for comparison

The T-90 is the penultimate example of this - essentially a T-72 maxed out with upgrades. Whatever the combat merits of all of these enhancements, it sure makes the tank look cool and spooky as hell.  The sharp angles of the reactive armour package on the T-90 look extra sinister, more so than the other up-armoured Soviet designs.  The contrast between the size of the overall vehicle and its 125mm main gun borders on 40k standards.  And the "Shtora" jamming system (the boxes to either side of the main gun) looks downright eerie - a Jawa face with a huge cannon.  I love this tank.

Of course, using this tank on the table calls for contrived situations, as it has never seen any action with the Russian Army (at least that I know of), or with any of the client states who have purchased it as an export or for local manufacture under license (I believe India is doing this).  The T-90 is not really part of any realistic Cold-War-Gone-Hot scenarios unless you do a good bit of what-if-ing.  I don't think any T-90s were ever deployed with the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany - I don't think it was ready by the time the Soviet Union collapsed.

QRF BMP-2D for comparison

The T-90 is an interesting topic in gaming circles.  A lot of us armour geeks assign it an almost mystical, Tiger-tank-like aura, given its rarity in actual deployment, its cool look, and a sense that something called "T-90" has to be like 18 times better than something called "T-72" and 45 times better than something called "T-55".  It is the hope for a level game with the over-powered NATO MBTs.  I doubt it truly is - after all, it is still, at its core, a 30-year-old design, no matter the sexy kit crammed into it and on to it.

On the other hand, comment forums involving the T-90 tend to fill with derision for any Warpac/Russian vehicle, and somehow seem to base this conclusion on the performance of T-72s in Syrian and, even more so, Iraqi hands. This comparison is delusional and simplistic. The T-90 is an upgraded T-72, but to assume it would fare in Russian action as well as the doomed Republican units of T-72s in the Iraqi army is just silly.

With some Eureka 15mm modern Russian infantry

The Khurasan model is...adequate.  It is certainly the finest 15mm T-90 you'll find, but also the only one. I know it is heresy to question Khurasan, but I found myself slightly disappointed with this - the resin body of the tank and the turret are detailed, but not as crisp as I would wish, to catch all of the various edges of the reactive armour plates. The metal bits are sooo nice - a reliably tough turret MG, and metal smoke launchers (thank god!!).  But the resin is not so crisp.  I feel like this could have been a little better...but I am probably the only one, however.  At least Khurasan is trying some modern stuff, and it fills a big gap in gaming demand for modern 15mm.  Lots of us have wanted a T-90 model, but this is the only one out there - it truly fills a hole.

The other challenge you might encounter would be using it for sci-fi.  The T-90 totally has the right look for sci-fi, but this model is very, very small next to other 15mm sci-fi armour, both from Khurasan's line and others.  Next to the Nova Respublik tanks, for example, this thing looks like a scout tank.  I don't think there is a problem with the Khurasan T-90's scaling - it's just that the other sci-fi tanks are big suckers.

I go nuts painting the lenses - probably too much - but I find they make the tank look more alive/active

I have two more of these models to paint, so I hope to round out the platoon for some "what-if" situations in 15mm modern gaming. Maybe Mike F can paint up some Leopard IIs to represent Canada's current ultra-modern armour contingent... 

15mm Siler Force

 Here's the most recent 15mm sci-fi force. I basically wanted an excuse to paint up some siler tanks. All models are Khurasan except the AA tank which is from Critical mass games Merc range. Infantry are from Blue Moon manufacturing.

I can't remember what this thing is called, but it's also made by Khurasan. However, it is not available as it possibly infringes on the IP of a popular video game. The guy from Khurasan sent me one as a gesture of goodwill for misplacing an order of Siler tanks. I must say, I'm quite satisfied with the screw-up. I just added the two infantry and landing gear guns :P