Major Ballsup's Hobby Shed

Over the last few weeks I've added some more French Foreign Legion paratroopers to the Algerian War project.  I took advantage of Elhiem’s pre-Salute sale to fill the gaps in my collection with some supporting troops.  With a couple of exceptions of figures that I didn’t want I think I have the whole range now. First up is this medical party.  These figures add such a nice element of narrative that within days of finishing them off I had based a game around them ( AAR here ).   I added some support in the form of this pair of snipers and a recoilless rifle gunner. And finally the Legion got some heavier support in the form of a 81mm mortar team and a .30 cal medium machine gun team. It may be something like 12 years ago since I painted the first batch of these, before the days where I kept notes.  I tried to match the colours as well as I could but they are a bit different.  I had real trouble trying to match the green of their berets, but when they’re...

I finished off these figures at the end of May.  Four are painted as ALN fellaghas for the Algerian War and one is a Viet-Minh - I'm sure you can guess which.  Apologies for the photos I just couldn't seem to get them right.   They are actually US Marine Raiders Command from Battlezone Miniatures , Sgt Major Miniatures sculpts.  I picked up this pack and some German Panzer-Grenadiers from Steve at Salute.  Whether in person or over email Steve's service is second to none.  Top bloke.   The US Marine Raiders range has proved invaluable and I've used all of the packs in my ALN force.  Those figures in this range that are sculpted as Filipinos with obvious Asian features or clothing I've finished as Viet-Minh for my First Indo-China War project.  As no one makes any specific figures for the  ALN (or for the Algerian War at all come to that) I've had to really look into things and improvise throughout this project.  I think th...

Mission Brief On a mission in the djebel a company from the 1er Régiment Etranger de Parachutistes (1er REP) have taken casualties, including their beloved commander Capitaine Charbonnier.  Having requested a helicopter medical evacuation a small unit of paras are trying to get the Capitaine to the landing zone.  Can they get the Capitaine to safety before the  Algerian Nationalist Armée de libération nationale (ALN) close in? Table Set up The game is played on a 3ft x 3ft game mat.  The area is hilly and undulating with rocky outcrops and scrubby vegetation which provide cover and potential ambush points.  There is one flatter area of ground which has been identified as a possible landing zone for the helicopter.  Six numbered hotspots have been placed on the table from which any insurgents will generate from.  Roll to see where the initial ALN forces will deploy.   Starting positions Game length The length of the game is 10 turns.  The...

Background Guelma district Algeria 1957.  A platoon from the 1er Régiment Etranger de Parachutistes (1er REP) of the Légion étrangère/French Foreign Legion (FFL) have been inserted into the djebel to intercept an Armée de libération nationale (ALN) katiba that has been  attacking French troops.  After a punishing night march the legionnaires have positioned themselves to stop their quarry disappearing into the mountains.  Will they be able to catch and destroy the ALN fighters?   Table Set up The game is played on a 3ft x 3ft game mat.  The terrain is hilly with rocky outcrops, with the area where the FFL deploy having more scrub and a few trees.  There is plenty of  cover and potential ambush points.  For Bolt Action purposes the disrupted nature of the terrain means that Run actions are not possible.   Game set up and rules modifications for solo play The length of the game is 6 turns, with a roll of 4 or more on a D6 the end...

It's been another busy hobby month, so it's another long update.  I finished a number of units, made some terrain and got a game in.   Completed This month I have mainly been working on Warmaster Revolution.  I've set myself the target of completing both the 10mm Chaos Dwarf and Ogre Kingdoms armies before Salute in April.  I've been cracking on with these and have completed the following:   A regiment of Gnoblars for the Ogre Kingdoms army.  The third and final regiment of Chaos Dwarf Axemen .    A regiment of Hobgoblin Wolf riders . A regiment of Bull Centaurs . A pair of Hobgoblin Bolt Throwers . I also threw together a few more scatter pieces for  Mediterranean/Algeria games.  Dead simple to make, I already had the bases cut out from when I made the first batch , I just collected a few more stones from a car park on a day out.  These will also do well for a Post-Apocalyptic wasteland project I'm starting on....