From PhilH: The Fall of France at World Cinema (110 Points)

For the World Cinema studio, we are making a French war film to honour the valiant (if doomed) French resistance to the German war machine.

These open a new project for me, some early war Chain of Command. With a SCW project under my belt, I have a fondness for the dorkiness of early war armour, particularly French, without an overengineered compensating big cat in sight. I’m looking forward to having a go at some of the French armour schemes, though will get the infantry done first. 

Here are eighteen French infantry from Crusader miniatures, a full Group de Combat and a bit, and the platoon’s V-B rifle grenadier team. This is about half of the core platoon. One Group de Combat, 11 men:

These are first line troops in 1935 regulation kit. Shout out to @pilpol75 on Twitter for sharing uniform details and colour references, they were a great help. I don’t think mine are perfect colour match, but I’m satisfied with the result. One of my hopes for this project is that I can work through each force fairly rapidly (relatively, on my timescales), using some new techniques. I used to be quite set in my ways with my methods, but it is good to try new things (or I just drank too much of the ‘growth mindset’ kool-aid). I did a couple of test models late last year, which were promising and helped refine a method to push this big batch through in one go. My batch painting usually stretches to 5 models at a time, so 18 was ambitious (ok, I know these are rookie numbers to some of you but I’m chuffed).

Using Trello to track my progress, I know the painting took me 10 days where I didn’t work on them every night: lightning fast for me. Some bits were a slog, like blocking in all the leatherwork on the satchels and straps, but overall they were a smooth and satisfying process. So much so I am enthused to get on with a second batch straight away and smash though the whole platoon. I shan’t at the moment though, because there’s only a few weeks of Challenge XIII left and I have other studios and projects to stop in at. 

The method uses drybrushed base and highlights on all of the brown greatcoat and legs, then green satchels, before blocking in other colours. Then I hit them with AK interactive enamel washes streaking grime (greatcoat) for the lovely rich brown tone, and NATO dark brown (satchels, legs), before wiping off the excess with makeup sponges. Allowing that to dry. I just had to highlight the flesh, weapons, straps and helmets. I think the enamel wash gives them the grizzled look I was after. 

Eighteen 28mm figures is 90 plus the studio for 20 is a tidy 110. And more to come!

These are fantastic, I have a French army, and they are great fun.