I have just completed another six bases of German infantry, allowing me to field two companies of Germans to my latest standard of painting and basing, including having at least one figure with Panzerfausts in each unit. All the figures are Peter Pig Late War Germans in 15mm. One NCO is an old figure that was posed throwing a grenade but all the others are from the current range.
I had already painted the company HQ, 3 infantry bases and a tripod mounted MG42. which until now I had been using with 6 bases of 'old' German infantry for 'O' Group.
To complete a full usable 'O' Group battalion I just need another company HQ, MMG base and a battalion HQ. The latter is the biggest modelling obstacle. Should I give the commander a horse, a stolen Citroen, a field kitchen - at least he could have a hot bratwurst - or should I be really generous and give him a Kubelwagen?
Next on my jobs list though is a Carrier Platoon for the British.
Great work on these: especially the camouflage helmets.
ReplyDeleteBill.
Thank you. The rather simplified representation of the spinter pattern was from folowing a how to on the Crac des Chevaliers blog. http://cracdeschevaliers.blogspot.com/2013/05/painting-heer-splinter-camouflage.html
DeleteI would give him a Alsatian and a signaller on a motor bike
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of an Alsatian - always nice include some animals in command or camp bases.
DeleteAssuming these meant to be German "leg" infantry, or maybe Volksgrenadiers, then I think any of the options you mention would be suitable for the battalion commander, apart from the Kubelwagen. The full "book" organisations are on the Bayonetstrength website, which you are probably familiar with. A messenger on a horse, bicycle or motorcycle would be correct and one "light car" is allowed at battalion level. All other transport of the battalion HQ, signals and train elements was horse-drawn. This light car, if even present, would almost certainly be a civilian car of modest size and engine capacity, but of any manufacture at all. It certainly wouldn't be one of the purpose-built cross-country cars, a Horch or whatever. These were kept strictly for motorised units. A Kubelwagen isn't certainly wrong but they were seen as pretty much a cross-country vehicle and you would be much more likely to see a captured allied car, or more likely one of local manufacture: a French one in this case. There aren't many models of such modest vehicles available, especially in 15mm, but you might be able to find a Citroen Traction Avant. I still think a "Gulaschkanone" would be the best vehicle to characterise a German infantry HQ, but I think you said there are no models in 15mm. Could be scratch built, but you'd also need suitable figures of cooks and whatnot, so probably too ambitious.
ReplyDeleteHi John,
DeleteGeneral purpose Germans, I suppose - certainly nothing too fancy. I have been looking on Bayonetstrength - as you say a light car is listed as standard for the later part of the war and I'd assumed that would be a Kubelwagen. I would prefer a civilian car but I've not managed to find anything suitable so far.
I have however now found a 15mm Gulaschkanone but - and I feel bad saying this when QRF has gone to the trouble of making what can't be a very commercially rewarding model - I wasn't hugely impressed. Also I'd probably only have space for one of the trailers so it seems a bit wasteful.
https://quickreactionforce.co.uk/product/gsv16-field-kitchen/
I've been looking at scratch building something but only got as far as collecting reference pictures and setting aside a pair of cart wheels. No cooks (apart from the rather rough looking QRF ones) but Peter Pig do some figures of Germans having lunch though they are very early war in long boots. They also do horses and horse holders so that is always an option.
No easy and entirely satisfactory solutions so far. I'm hoping something will turn up before I have painted everything else in the queue and I have to make a decision.