Infinity Terrain and Operation Flamestrike

Just a quick update to showcase some terrain I’ve made for Infinity over the past couple of week and to highlight my efforts in Operation Flamestrike.

Supply Crates

I built these supply crates quite some time ago now – I think I have images in an older post. The rest of the contents arrived from The Assault Group early this year and I finally got around to finishing them off.

The construction is really simple: matchsticks and cardstock. Rule out 2cm squares on cardstock and then cut them out. Make sure to also cut out a section to insert inside to form a base to put your contents on. Alternatively have another piece for a lid. Glue matchsticks around your cube and lid to form the frame. I then glue the whole thing to a 40mm renedra base. For the contents I used modern 28mm scale weapons from The Assault Group. There’s a bunch of different things there: AK-74s, Drugnovs, M9s, RPGs, SAWs and the shotguns I forget the model of.

Painting them up is easy stuff: heavy coat of Raw Umber; heavy-ish dry brush Mud Puddle; very light dry brush of Bleached Titanium (a bone white). For the inside I also did some hatches of Yellow Oxide. The weapons are all painted black with Gunmetal Gry barrels and wooden details (stocks for example) done in Beige Brown. Simple pieces, look good and make for great supply crate/objective markers or just cover in general.

Bunkers/Barracks

A mate has these half cylinder bunker/barracks buildings which I think were originally for 40k. I liked them when I saw them and decided I’d make something similar. Fast forward to the other week, I finally got around to it.

I wasn’t so sure how it’d all work at first, but in the end it was very easy. Draw out a half circle on foamcore (I have a diameter of 10cm). Cut it out very carefully freehand with an exacto knife and use it as a template for the other half circles. Once they’re all cut out, make sure their fairly even in shape. Draw in where your door is going and cut that out. For a base use 3mm MDF. I’ve used a piece cut to be 15cm long and 10cm wide, plus 2cm kick outs at either end in from of the door. I painted the base and walls first, sponging a camo pattern on the outside wall to distinguish it from the base. Glue those on then measure out your roof from corrugated card. Roll it up to get the bend and make sure it fits right. Paint it up Gunmetal Grey and at that point it is done if you want. You can use PVA to stiffen it up (not too heavy though, you don’t want it to warp). I have a mixture of sand, grey paint and PVA for snow though, make sure it is a relatively dry mix. Once it is solid, paint it white.

For the doors I used thin cardboard and cardstock with magnets glued to the outside of the walls and inside of the doors (6mm diameter, .5mm thick rare earth). Paint them up however you like and you have a removeable door.

Building

Finally I have another building for my Ariadna snow table.

I used 3mm MDF for the base and the floor inside (it is raised off the base by 2cm). The base measures about 10cm by 18cm (roughly) and the building itself is about 10cm square. Standard 5mm black foamcore was used for the building itself. The ramps and roof are from a heavy-ish cardstock (Be Natural meusli bar box). I added three 2cm strips of the same cardstock to reinforce the roof. I also added a 1cm strip of cardstock around the base of the walls inside for the skirting. The exterior has a band of corrugated card round the base. Finally the doors are done the usual way: 6mm rare earth magents on the outside walls and interior of the door on cardstock tabs glued to the cardboard door proper.

Colours used to paint the structure include Natural Grey, Slate Grey, White, Gunmetal Grey (all exterior), Pistachio (inside wall), Antique White (skirting and doors) and Raw Umber (floor, also sponged lightly with white). The snow on the roof is done the same way as the bunker/barracks buildings.

Operation Flamestrike

I’ve been really enthused about Operation Flamestrike. If you play Infinity and aren’t already signed up, get into it here. You can also see my commander profile where you can access my battle reports which currently include:

Operation Red Oilfield

Operation Infallible Girlfriend

Operation Overpriced Hawk

Operation Smith the Wizard

I believe you can access these without signing up, if you are signed up, ratings, comments and commendations are appreciated.

Unfortunately I can’t get as many games as I would like, but I’m playing as much as I can. This campaign means my big pile of Bolt Action painting is on ice while I get more Infinity models done plus work on my Infinity snow table.

Keep an eye on my Operation Flamestrike commander proflie for more battle reports though, I may also shift them all over to here in the future too.

That’s all for now, happy wargaming.

El Alamein Mini-Campaign 3 – Assault on Tel El Aqqaqir

We played the third and final game in our El Alamein mini-campaign last night. The campaign had already gone the way of the Allies with two crushing defeats inflicted on the Deutsche Afrika Korp, so I was really hoping for a win to avoid a clean sweep.

Background

2 November 1942 and Operation Supercharge begins. The 2^nd New Zealand Division is tasked with carrying out the initial thrust, the objective being the capture of Tel El Aqqaqir (the base of Axis operations). The division had suffered significant losses in July (1,405 men in three days of fighting) and the toll of the battle so far had seen it further worn down. To reinforce the division, several brigades and battalions were brought under its command – including the 9^th Armoured Brigade. As a result of the depleted manpower, the 9^th Armoured Brigade was tasked with leading the assault – headlong into dug in German anti-tank gun positions, including Flak 88 guns.

Table and Mission

I selected Hold the Line for this mission. The Allies would be assaulting along the road heading towards the village with the hill off to the left. The objectives were the hill and the far house (back and right of the road).

The Forces

I’m afraid I don’t have pictures of the forces for this battle.

German:

HQ with two Panzer III Ls

Two Panzer platoons – 1^st with two Panzer IV F2s, two Panzer III Ls and a Panzer III N, 2^nd with one Panzer IV F2, two Panzer III Ls and one Panzer III N

Heavy anti-aircraft battery with two Flak 88s with extra crew (so rate of fire 3)

Priority air support from Ju87G Stukas

British

HQ and two heavy armoured platoons with three shermans a piece

Light armour platoon with three honey stuarts

Kingforce armour platoon with three Churchill IIIs – this platoon wasn’t actually part of the force organisation chart, but we were doing a fun “use everything” battle, so it came under the company’s command

Sporadic air support from Hurricane IIICs

Order of Battle

I positioned my Flak 88s to cover my right flank and held my 1^st Panzer platoon in ambush (with the intention to appear them on my right flank). My mate deployed his two Sherman platoons on his left and right flanks, Honey Stuarts centre left and Churchills centre right. His HQ was positioned at the rear behind the ridge.

Turn one and three Hurricanes would have come roaring in had Axis fighter aces not shot down two of them – already a good start for me. The entire British force moved up save the HQ and all opened up on the Flak 88s – scoring very few hits, all of which were saved. The lone Hurricane dropped its payload, but the Flak made its save with ease. Things only got better for me in my turn. I sprung my ambush on the right flank and opened up on the Shermans opposite, although I only knocked out one and bailed the other two. On my left flank however my Flak 88s decimated the Shermans that had moved up to take them on. I also managed to call two Stukas in which failed to score any kills on the Churchills.

Turn two and more Hurricanes came roaring in, two planes this time and my interceptors failed to shoot any down. All British tanks remounted, the Churchills moved up to take on the Flak 88s and the two Shermans on the left pivoted to engage my Panzers. The Honey Stuarts moved up the centre and turned left to also engage my Panzers. The HQ moved from behind the ridge to the back centre of the British line. The Stuarts failed to do anything, but the Shermans knocked out both my Panzer IV F2s. Meanwhile the Churchills silenced a Flak 88 while the Hurricanes did nothing. My turn and my reserves were still delayed, but two Stukas came in on the enemy HQ. I kept everything put and in shooting took out two Churchills with my Flak 88, with the third failing its motivation check and quitting the field. My Panzers bailed two Honey Stuarts, but otherwise were ineffective. My Stukas managed to knock out the enemy command tank though.

Turn three and the Hurricanes were back and again I wasted another air support die on trying to intercept. All tanks remounted, the Stuarts repositioned further into the centre and turned to take on the Panzers. HQ shermans, now commanded by the 2iC moved up to assist the remaining Sherman platoon. Shooting saw the Panzer III N obliterated but the remaining to Ls kept their cool. The Hurricanes failed to inflict damage again. In my turn reserves again failed to materialise, but my Stukas were back on the British HQ. My Flak 88 took out one from the Sherman platoon, but the remaining tank held. My Panzers bailed all three Honey Stuarts, which I was most unimpressed with. My Stukas failed to inflict any further casualties.

Turn four and the skies were as silent as the Honey Stuarts’ engines, with all three tanks failing to remount. The Shermans remounted and opened up on the two Panzer III Ls obliterating the both of them. My turn and I still had no reserves and no Stukas this turn too. My Flak 88 took out the last Sherman in the platoon, but the British passed their company morale check.

Turn five and no Hurricanes again. Two of the Stuarts remounted and took the hill that was a mess of burning Panzer wrecks. The command tanks moved up and turned right to deal with the Flak 88. My turn and it was all down to  my reserves roll: fail and have the British snatch victory from the jaws of defeat; pass and have my Panzers move up to contest the hill. I scored two fives and was able to bring both my 2^nd Platoon and command platoon on. They bailed both the Stuarts on the hill, which wasn’t particularly fantastic, but good enough because I was contesting the objective.

At the start of turn six we decided to call it a win for the Germans. We did movement and shooting with the Shermans and they took out the Flak 88 command team, with the gun failing its platoon morale check so my mate could have the satisfaction of seeing it off, but the battle had already been decided.

Aftermath

In the real world the 9^th Armoured Brigade suffered heavy losses, but silenced close to all of the German guns, including the Flak 88s. It was another fine battle last night and it was good to finally do some real damage. Again the visual impact of the battle was fantastic and the scene of tanks trundling across the desert and the board slowly filling with wrecks really is quite powerful. That’ll be it from North Africa for some months though. We’ll probably return later in the year, but next up is Operation Barbarossa played out in Bolt Action. That won’t start still late April when my mate returns from his holiday to the US. Until then, I might post some other content, perhaps of my Ariadna and of the terrain I’m working on for Infinity. Happy wargaming.