28mm Warlord WWII Fallschirmjaeger for the Med

 All,

Yeah, I'm speeding things up a bit, going to three posts per week now.  I feel like if I don't then I'll never get done and back to actually playing some games ;)  Just kidding, it's not the posting, it's the painting that's slowing that down...  In any case, my last post was Early War FJ, so why not post some mid-war FJ for the Mediterranean, specifically thinking Tunisia, Sicily, and Italy.  These are Warlord plastic multi-pose figures and, I must admit, I really love them.  They're fun and easy to put together, and they're fun and easy to paint; even with a bunch of camo on them they were a snap to paint.  They've got nice poses and weapons; I understand not everyone loves the sort of comic book superhero aesthetic of Warlord Games' plastic 28mm troops (their metals are much smaller and more normally proportioned, in my experience) but I'm a fan and while I admit they all look like bodybuilders when you look at them closeup, on the tabletop it's not even noticeable.

As usual, I've got about a platoon's worth of infantry with some crew served weapons: MG-42 on tripod, 80mm mortar, and anti-tank gun.

Once again I went with Contrast paints, using priming in light gray then hitting their trousers and painted metal with Aggros Dunes, their smocks and camo helmet covers with Skeleton Horde, which I then went over with Militarum Green and Gore Grunta Fur (also used for wood) for the camo.  I did slings and some pouches in Plaguebearer Flesh, while other gear (canteen, bread bag, mess kit, etc...) and some pouches were done in Wyldwood.  As always, Gulliman Flesh over matt white was used for skin and Lead Belcher over Basilicum Gray was used for unpainted metal on weapons.

The whole mess.  

Again, from a different angle.

First up is a leader type with an FG-42 (the Warlord FG-42s all come with scopes on them, but I don't like them so I sliced them off).  Here's a good look at the desert trousers and camouflaged smocks, and this guy wearing a gray 'piss cutter' hat.

Reverse, with a good look at his gear (shelter half is wrapped around the gas mask canister).  I'm really happy with how the camo turned out, and it was super easy.

One more look at him.

Three paratroopers firing their FG-42s from a kneeling position.

A closeup.

A dude moving up with an MP-40 (and a cigarette in his mouth!), with some sort of satchel under his arm.  I'll make him an engineer and pretend it's a satchel charge.

Side, with a bit of a look at him clutching the satchel.

Reverse.

Three dudes charging ahead with their MP-40s blazing.  I swear these figures take me back to the Airfix 1/72 German Paratroopers I had as a kid...

Closeup.

Reverse.

Another one, but this time with a barracks cover on.

Reverse.  

Front.

Three kneeling squad leader types with MP-40s and soft caps, pointing.

A close up.

A machine gunner hauling ass with the gun over his shoulder and an ammo box in the other hand.

Reverse.

Rear quarter.

Three more machine gunners, moving up.

Closeup.

Reverse.

An assistant gunner, also hauling ass, belted ammo around his neck.

Front.

Other side.

Three more assistant gunners.

Side.

Other side.

A rifleman dashing forward with his Mauser K98.

Reverse.

And another.

Reverse.

A para taking a breather, scoping things out, making sure the coast is clear.

Reverse.

A few more riflemen in kneeling positions, two firing and one racking a fresh round into the chamber.

Reverse.

A couple riflemen standing up, racking in rounds.

Reverse.

Okay, now things get a bit different as they're actually not Warlord products.  This PaK is from Crusader Miniatures.

Other side.

And then we've got a machine gun team from Offensive Miniatures.  Nice figures, noticeably slimmer than Warlord and Crusader, but they'll be alright.

Flip side.

And an 80mm mortar team from Offensive Miniatures.  Same as the MG team, nice figures, just noticeably (up close) slighter.

Reverse.

So, not a lot of infantry, but I figure I can borrow from the Early War FJ (you saw earlier) and the Mid/Late-War FJ (for East Front and Northwest Europe) I plan on showing you next in order to fill them out as necessary.

I'm very happy with how they turned out, and I'm very curious as to what you guys think, if they look the part or if I'm way off base with something.  I'm dying to get some stuff on the table and play some damn games, but I'm trying to stay disciplined; I've got a plan to photo and post all my completed 28mm forces, and I've got a plan to keep painting to a certain, designated point (I have three more forces until I'm finished: the first are some German infantry that I'm working from scratch and am about 75% complete on, then some summer Soviets  from scratch to fill in some holes in my summer Soviet force, plus some more dudes that I bought painted and need to work on the basing, and then some winter Soviets that I bought painted and need to work on the basing.  I've promised myself that once I've finished those I am done painting for awhile and will commence to playing some actual wargames on the tabletop.  I forecast that I should be finished painting in the next three weeks.

As always, thanks for looking, and it's always good to hear from you guys, keeps me motivated to continue posting.  Next up, those late war FJ I promised ya ;)

V/R,
Jack