The information and photos have been obtained from the Eureka Miniatures website

After a successful 100 Club launch and campaign, Eureka miniatures are proud to announce the broader release of our new 28mm WW2 Chinese. This entire range was sculpted by Kosta Heristanidis and matches perfectly with their WW2 Japanese also sculpted by Kosta.

100WWT200 Chinese Rifleman

An often-overlooked theatre, China was the first of the allied nations to enter what would become the Second World War. Frequently mistakenly dismissed as a minor front, the war in China was long, gruelling, and brutal, taking the lives of some 20 million Chinese.

100WWT200a Chinese Rifleman – German helmet

It was characterised by large-scale battles, constant guerrilla action, shaky alliances, and unthinkable atrocities.

100WWT201 Chinese LMG Team (2 figs)

The WW2 Chinese have been sculpted in the more common field cap worn by Chinese forces from the time as well as German helmets which were also supplied to select “elite” units.

100WWT201a Chinese LMG Team (2 figs) – German helmet

The range can be used to appropriately represent many of the different Chinese factions that were active during the war, including Nationalist, Communist, some warlord, and some Japanese collaborationist forces (such as the armed forces of the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China).

100WWT202 Chinese Rifleman with grenade discharger

They can also be used to represent some of the Chinese forces in Burma such as elements of the Chinese Expeditionary Force and/or Y Force.

100WWT202a Chinese Rifleman w/grenade discharger – German helmet

Chinese guerrillas in civilian attire appropriate for the period will be added to this range. Eureka miniatures recommend using some of the Artillery pieces from their WW1 range to go with the Chinese Crew. These can be found here: World War I Artillery in the Bulgarian and Serbian sections.

100WWT203 Chinese infantry with SMG

100WWT203a Chinese infantry with SMG – German Helmet

100WWT204 Chinese Officer

100WWT204a Chinese Officer in German helmet

100WWT205 Chinese NCO

100WWT205a Chinese NCO in German helmet

100WWT206 Chinese HMG and three crew

100WWT207 Chinese Mortar and three crew

100WWT208 Chinese anti-tank suicide men

100WWT209 Chinese Artillery crew

Comments:

Although I have yet to get my dirty mitts on these figures yet, the fact that they have been sculpted by Kosta Heristanidis means they will be excellent. He normally has great and realistic poses with body proportions excellent. Eureka castings will also mean there will be little or no casting lines or flashing.

I believe this is their best range from a coverage viewpoint. In their Australian and Japanese WW2 ranges there are no medium mortars (just the Japanese knee mortar) and no artillery crew. This means you do not have to hunt around for other ranges to help fill the gaps required. Also M/Guns and Mortars have teams of three rather than two in other ranges.

A gap is certainly the lack of a flamethrower, sniper team, and cavalry. The first two being almost essential in a Bolt Action list. The sniper team can be made up from the kneeling rifleman and artilleryman with binoculars. The later could also be used as a Forward Observer. Germans Early War figures could also be used to fill these gaps, as well as for anti-tank teams. There are also suitable riflemen and NCO’s to represent the “Big Sword” Squads from Northern China.

I had only just sent an email to Nic Robson about when these were going to be released and here they are! And they call me a Guru!

The rating below is tentative because I have yet to see the figures but I don’t believe it will change when I do. Well done Nic expect to hear from me in the New Year with a big order!

Relatives reading this – a Eureka gift voucher or cold hard cash will suffice for Christmas! I have enough socks.

I am a fan of John Lambshead’s “One Hour Skirmish Wargames” and so was keen to get a hold of this one when it first came out.

Sci-fi skirmishes are an increasingly popular genre of war game but they are more dependent than most on good scenarios to keep them varied and exciting. John Lambshead has taken the work out of scenario building. He presents a selection of thirty-six missions of varying complexity, each with clear objectives and victory conditions, a map showing set-up zones and some with special rules. Although they are set in his imagined dystopian city of Civitas Cavernum (aka The Sprawl), with its factions of Scavs, Proctors, Cultists and Corporates, the scenarios are designed to be adaptable to almost any setting and set of rules (including those published in the author’s One-hour Skirmish Wargames). In addition, there are no less than three mini-campaigns that link the scenarios together in various combinations.” (Publisher- paraphrased from back cover).

There are some great scenarios like the fight for control of the bridges over the sewer stink (river) and the gang war that starts because of a fight outside a bar by two rival gang members over which gang has the right to drink there.

The campaign rules are probably a misnomer, I would have used “linked scenarios” but never the less are well thought out and provide a rationale for weekly club games where there is an incentive to win to gain advantages for the next game and to conserve resources if things are going badly.

If you enjoy Sci-Fi gaming this one is a good investment. I like it. Any experienced gamer could come up with scenarios that are just as good but with this on your shelf you don’t have to think – always a good thing for wargamers!

Well almost! I just have to add some flowers and shrubbery to the hut bases and it will be done, but it is now ready to play on.

The buildings from WIP (3) were finished with some poster paints and a size 10 brush. The corrugated “iron” roofs were washed with Nuln oil.

Japanese commander has been alerted that enemy approach.

The troops rush from their slumber to prepare for an attack. (You have now seen two thirds of my painted Japanese platoon!).

Pigs are a form of currency and designate the wealth of a village. Long pig was also a common dietary item even as late as the 1960’s. Money is still almost meaningless in Highlands – wealth and respect is measured in pigs. Pigs are not for meat (except ceremonial feasts), just an investment. Pigs are used as bride money at weddings, and you can pay with pigs for a new house construction or a piece of land.

Still in existence although to a far lesser degree than in WW2 is Vailala Madness, or the cargo cult of the Papua area that began in 1919 when greater quantities of Western “cargo,” arrived by ship or plane into the region. There was a view that their tribal gods would bring them some of this “cargo”. This was reinforced when crashed cargo planes were looted for their goods.

These cabbages were made out of rose craft beads. In reality the crop would almost certainly have been yams.

I posted way back in December 2016 on how to make these.

Another bank vault. Fences are from Knights of Dice.

The Australian platoon scouts lead by their Captain approach the village. In reality the villages would have already warned the Australians as the Japanese treated the New Guinea inhabitants very poorly.

With this project finished I now have some terrain to fight over.

Finally finished the first coats on all of the Village huts.

These will be finished tonight and if I get up early enough to set up the photos should appear in tomorrow’s post.

No, this is not about a Dan Prescott touchdown play!

The DAK ATTACK is set of rules that are written for gaming with the Long Range Desert Group, and can be used for Solo or Multi-Player games. The rules set comes complete with markers, separate play sheets, and two sets of game/mission cards. Ideal for any scale.

The Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) have long been a favourite of gamers and movie makers alike. The Great range of figures in any scale make them easily accessible to most gamers.

28mm vehicle from Offensive Miniatures

The basic game is based around a half patrol of LRDG vehicles carrying out a raid on an airfield or similar and afterwards surviving its journey back to friendly lines.

The initial raid section has rules for all the activities you would need (laying charges, firefights, carrying out running repairs to vehicles and crew) and a simple card based AI to control the DAK forces ranged against you. It has nice glossy pictures but is a bit pricey for the size of the rules.

I easily read the rules over lunch and was able to get a good grasp of how they play. I do like the simplicity of the solo system and if you like this period they are worth a look at.

So if you are interested in movies like “Desert Sands” or “Raid on Rommel”, “Combat” and “Commando” comics, or Boy’s Own Annual stories then it may well be for you.

NB. No Dallas Cowboys were hurt in the writing of this post, but Ferguson and Brown may be out for the game against the Jaguars tomorrow!

Just a quick post to update you with the little that I have done.

All of the roofs have been completed with the “capping” to finish them off.

The capping over the shrinkage on the scourer has fixed up that problem.

It also provides a better finish to corrugated roofs as well.

The same with the shingle roof.

With the roofs completed I just need to get the soldering iron out to mark in some more floor boards and then I can start painting. I hope to have them finished tomorrow if Christmas “stuff” doesn’t get in the way.

Australian troops of B Company, 30th Battalion crossing a shallow creek between Weber Point and Malalamai during the Battle of Sio in 1944.

With the growing threat of Japan in the pacific the bulk of Australian forces were returned home to manage the threat. Previously the Australian army followed British guidelines, and the changes in establishment, weapons and composition showed a maturing of the Australian army hierarchy as it developed a structure to suit the specific needs it was facing.

The emphasis was on the flexibility, training, and weapons required for jungle warfare. With many battles in the jungle becoming a series of small skirmishes, often at section and platoon level, the emphasis was on the ability to bring the maximum amount of short ranged fire possible.

A single ten man section section with 4 Thompson SMG’s, a Bren gun and five rifles (often snipers), succeeded in doing this.

With the decreasing threat of enemy planes, artillery, and tanks, the need for heavy equipment was not required. In order to increase the effectiveness of infantry units they were stripped of elements which were not necessary in tropical terrain or those that were no longer required due to declining Japanese threats mention above. Equally it served to reduce the size of the Australian Army in order to free up manpower for civilian industry in the face of a growing manpower crisis as the wartime economy expanded.

The six jungle divisions consisting of 3 Militia Divisions 3rd, 5th and 11th and the 6th, 7th and 9th AIF Divisions were trained specifically in jungle warfare. The other divisions retained the old structure and were used for garrison and home defence duties.

The need to locate enemy strong points along the advance meant the need for training scouts to probe enemy defences to achieve this. These were small groups of skilled men whose main task was to locate the enemy not fight them. However they were all armed with Thompson SMG’s to be able to defend themselves with large amounts of firepower should this be required.

Next will be the Jungle Patrol engineer sections.

Over the last month I have been working on the Command and support units for my Jungle Division Bolt Action Platoon.

Here is what I have finished so far.

These include 3 Matilda 2 tanks, four special characters and a medium machine gun.

A light mortar, anti-tank rifle and a chaplain.

Lieutenant and aide (front), and Captain and aide (rear)

Sniper (left) and short 25pdr and Jeep and horse limber tows.

Flame thrower and PIAT.

Sniper (right front), and Observer (centre).

Medium mortar to the right of the tanks.

There is still two Universal Carriers and two LVT4 Buffalo transports caught up with Christmas logistics but hopefully these will arrive soon.

Carriers were used initially by the militia units which they found quite vulnerable but each Jungle division still included a company of them.

Tomorrow I will start the first of seven infantry units.

The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a water-cooled .303 British (7.7 mm) machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army, but used by most Commonwealth armies and many fighter planes.

During the Second World War, machine guns were initially brigaded into single formations to provide better flexibility and improved performance. However, unlike the British Army, the Jungle Divisions Infantry Battalions retained their MG Companies and the Divisional MG Battalions provided additional support.

This meant that the maximum possible number of Vickers MMGs within an Australian Infantry Division was much greater than that of the equivalent British formation. Reinforcing the jungle doctrine of maximum flexibility and firepower.

The weapon had a reputation for great solidity and reliability. Ian V. Hogg, in Weapons & War Machines, describes an action that took place in August 1916, during which the British 100th Company of the Machine Gun Corps fired their ten Vickers guns to deliver sustained fire for twelve hours. Using 100 barrels, they fired a million rounds without breakdowns. “It was this absolute foolproof reliability which endeared the Vickers to every soldier who ever fired one. It never broke down; it just kept on firing and came back for more.”

Hogg, Ian V.; Batchelor, John (1976). Weapons & War Machines. London: Phoebus. p. 62. ISBN978-0-7026-0008-1.

Tomorrow I start the PB!

I had previously painted a Chaplain and posted on it but that one ended up in my British Commando Bolt Action platoon. I hate sorting out figures before going out for a game or a competition, and prefer to have the army in a box/case etc., ready to go. Hence painting up another one.

Tomorrow the last of my Jungle Division HQ, Support, and transport figures and then I will start on the 65 PBI.