Bolt Action Campaign Case Blue
The next supplement for Bolt Action is on our table - Campaign Case Blue, covering the summer offensive into the southern region of the Ostfront.
Campaign Case Blue was released in late October 2023, much early than initially anticipated. As the communicated release date was January 9th of 2024. Along with Campaign Stalingrad and Road to Berlin this book completes the coverage on the Eastern Front even further.
Bolt Action Campaign Italy – Tough Gut
We cover the second part of the Italian campaign today and move on from the Soft Underbelly towards the Tough Guts.
Almost a year after the first book, Campaign Italy: Tough Gut was released in August 2023, expanding the possibilities for the Italian forces even more. The first book covered the activities until Ortena in December 1943 and we pick it up again in the second supplement in January 1944 with their move further towards Rome through Cassino, until June 1944.
Warlord Games – HQ Store & Studio 2023
While were in Nottingham for Bring Out Your Lead, we used the time on our hands to visit the new Warlord Games Headquarter and Store. The moved within Nottingham from the Business Centre (where Northstar and a few other miniature companies have their offices as well) to Lenton, not far from the Warhammer World. And once again, it is impressive to see how much the company has grown and I want to share my impression with you.
You can sign up for a guided studio tour, which is held Fridays at 13:00. You'll need to book the day before by 12:00. Tickets are 15 GBP per person (free entry for children under 15) and you get a goody bag of sample figures. Conor, who runs the Warlord HQ store, is the tour guide and brings you from station to station, to learn more about how the miniatures are crafted and how a miniature company this size operates.
Cruel Seas – Royal Navy Flotilla
To counter the Kriegsmarine in Cruel Seas, we have a flotilla of the Royal Navy. This would be themed around the English Channel and North Sea, to cover the battles between the German and British vessels in those areas. Again, this is meant to be used as a stand-alone as well as combined with Blood Red Skies and Bolt Action, or other world war 2 systems for campaign games.
I am not even fixed on Cruel Seas for this one, I played Action Stations at CONflict and would be fine, using that as well.
For the names of the vessels, it is a bit different as it depends on the size or class of the ship, if it has just a number or a name. Wikipedia is quite helpful here, as they provide a proper overview.
Bolt Action A34 Comet Cruiser Tank
We've covered the lighter Cromwell tank before (the resin kit in 2013 and the plastic kit in 2014 - only in German), and we're following up on this class of British tanks, with another draft from 2018's backlog we're completing today - the A34 Comet Cruiser Tank.
My attention to the Comet Cruiser tank came from World of Tanks, as I really enjoyed playing the Tier VII medium tank back then. So, when Warlord Games added the kit to their range, I just had to have and now want to share the build report / review with a bit of delay with you.
Cruel Seas – Kriegsmarine Flotilla
So, here I am with my Kriegsmarine Flotilla for Cruel Seas. Next step would be painting the ships. Therefore I researched camouflage and denominations for those models.
With the German Navy it was not custom to give boats names. Some crews gave their ships inofficial names, but those were never documented in the navy records. The policy to name ship classes after the first boat of that class, was first used after the war and introduced by the Bundesmarine (the navy of the Federal German Republic). Sweeping boats didn't originally carry the class names listed on pages like wikipedia and such. A bit like with Hetzer for the Jagdpz. 38t.
Bolt Action Bishop Self Propelled Gun
We covered a few self-propelled guns in the past, and some that didn't make it to tank week, just like this Bishop QF 25 pdr SPG. But today is his day and we cover him in a review.
This is a 28mm resin kit by Warlord Games with a RRP of 31,50 GBP / 38 EUR. It is listed as a made to order kit, which does not mean he is mail order exclusive, but just something that is less likely to be on stock and is casted once ordered. Your local gaming store can order them in and it might not come in a boxed set with printed artwork, but a neutral packaging. As I had this kit for a long time (and this review is in draft since 2018), mine came wrapped in bubble wrap with a sticker on it.
Bolt Action Tiger I Ausf. E
This is one comes from the vault and prepared for a while now, but somehow got sidetracked with the further completion.
The Tiger I Ausf. E is a plastic kit, produced by Italeri for Warlord Games in 28mm / 1:56. We've covered Tiger I and IIs on here before, among others by Warlord Games and Rubicon, in plastic and in resin.
The Tiger I was a German heavy tank of world war II, with the official designation PzKpfw. VI (ordnance inventory Sd.Kfz. 181) and was produced by Henschel. A total number of 1,347 units were build between 1942 and 1944 and were in service on the Eastern Front, North Africa and Europe in the late war. The early variants were prone to track failures and breakdowns, and the tank in general was expensive to maintain and to produce (expensive materials and labour intensive production methods). One of the reasons why, even as it was an impressive "war machine", it was overengineered. There were prototypes, for example by Porsche on the Tiger I development, the VK 45.01 (P), the hull was later used for the Ferdinand.
Bolt Action – SdKfz 250/1 250/3 and 250/10 variants Ausf. A
The German motor pool receives another addition. Warlord Games picks up the Sd.Kfz. 250 "Alte" again, and adds further variants for the Ausführung A.
The Sd.Kfz 250/1 is the leichter Schützenpanzerwagen, the standard troop carrier. Build straight from the sprues, no additional parts or conversion needed. There is already a multi-option box available, giving you access to the /9 leichter Schützenpanzerwagen (2 cm), a Reconnaissance variant with a 2 cm KwK 38 autocannon and a small turret, identical with the one of the Sd.Kfz. 222 armoured cars, and the /11 leichter Schützenpanzerwagen (schwere Panzerbüchse 41), with a heavy anti-tank rifle and an MG 34. This new set, covers two additional sprues, adding the /3 leichter Funkpanzerwagen, command variant, equipped with radio equipment and /10 leichter Schützenpanzerwagen (3.7 cm PaK), another reconnaissance variant with the 3.7 cm PaK 35/36, variants.
Bolt Action – Italian Bersaglieri
Warlord Games produced various kits to support the release of the two Italian campaign books for Bolt Action. We've covered Soft Underbelly on this blog already - and now the second plastic kit introducing the Italian Bersaglieri, to give you more options in addition to the regular Soldiers and Blackshirts.
The Bersaglieri were a troop of marksmen (the name translates into sharpshooters) and they served the Royal Italian Army. The units can be recognized by their black feathers on their helmets, which are not only worn with their dress uniform but combat helmets as well. The Bersaglieri fought in the Italian invasion of France and in the Greco-Italian War, later Bersaglieri regiments were deployed on the Eastern Front. One battalion of Bersaglieri participated in the East African Campaign. Six Bersaglieri regiments served and were destroyed during the North African Campaign. This means that the content of this box, similar to the Soldiers and Blackshirts plastic kit, is primarily for early and mid-war forces.
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