 |
| SMS Lutzow |
 |
| SMS Von der Tann |
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| SMS Moltke |
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| SMS Seydlitz |
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| SMS Lutzow |
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| SMS Derfflinger |
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| SMS Hindenburg in a recent game |
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| Moltke and Syedlitz |
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| Lutzow and Hindenburg |
Friday, 27 November 2015
GHQ WW1 German Battlecruisers
More new 1/2400 ships
I did a similar show off post a month or so ago with the equivalent British ships, this week I finished my collection of German Battlecruisers. Just toying with the idea of getting some Battleships now, at least GHQ putting their prices up by 30% has helped me decide who will be getting my money !
These ships really do scrub up nice and are a joy to game with, they would be even better if the masts didn't bend !
An old photo (but one I wont grow tired of) featuring Derfflinger, which was the first ship I painted earlier in the year, with Lutzow which I finished last week.
The collection keeps getting bigger, but its just for skirmish actions ! I have got 10 Light Cruisers nearing completion and 36 destroyers waiting to be based, oops.
Thursday, 26 November 2015
X Wing - The Campaign - Game 20 - Rescued from the Moon
That's not a moon !
For those who don't know, this is a continuation of the X Wing Campaign, full explanation and details of Campaign rules are here.
Mission Briefing
"Gentlemen,
We have received a message from one of the last surviving Bothan spies, he claims to be aboard a new "giant" space station, under construction near the Portant Sector.
His last message via a sub space transmission claims that the station will be capable of destroying an entire planet when complete.
You must get in and scan the surface for the spy, once located protect the rescue ship which will arrive for him.
To your ships, May the Force be with you"
Team "Rebel Scum"
Rick O'Shea PS 5 K6/B Wing
Spike Sharpie PS 4 E Wing
WK Jnr PS2 X Wing
Pop Cicle PS 4 A Wing
On discovery of the spy 1 x YT 2400 (random pilot, we had Leebo PS5) with Mangler Cannon, Weapons Engineer and Ion Pulse Missiles.
Team "Glorious Empire"
Tie Interceptor PS9 Soontir Fel
Tie Interceptor PS8 Carnor Jax
Tie Fighter PS4
Tie Fighter PS4
Tie Fighter PS3
Tie Fighter PS3
All empire ships set up within range one of their table edge.
When the spy is located the Empire player receives 3 rolls on his re-enforcement chart, we got
Tie Defender PS1, Heavy Laser Cannon and Ion Pulse Warheads
Lamba Shuttle PS8 Captain Kagi, Weapons Engineer, Anti Pursuit Lasers, Sensor Jammer
Tie Bomber PS7 Major Rhymer, 2 x Proton Missiles, 2 x Concussion Missiles and 1 x Proton Bomb
Empire ships are determined at random see the campaign rules for full guide
Set Up (played on the Space Station Mat)
Game should be played on a standard 3 x 3 table.
Rebel players set up on the top of the map within range 1 of the table edge.
Start with 6 potential Spy hide outs represented by the red meeples.
Game lasts until the spy is saved or dies.
Spy Locations - Rebel players must use an Action to scan each potential Spy Location, the ship must be in within range 1 to perform the action. When scanned the scanning player rolls 1d6 and locates the spy on a 6. The meeple is then removed from play. The next scan is done at a minus 1 on the roll and so on until the spy is located.
YT2400 - Arrives anywhere on the Rebel table edge on the turn after the Spy is located. To pick the spy up takes one action, the ship must be within range one of the spy to conduct the pick up.
On the turn of the pick up the ship will receive one point of damage per distance moved, so a 3 bank left will lead to 3 damage whilst a one straight forward would just give 1 damage.
Rebel Exit - For this game only Rebel ships may exit the game by flying off their table edge.
A night of evil luck for the Empire, with the ships and pilots at their disposal this game should have been fairly straight forward but no. Every single crit card for the Empire was the Tie killer, 2 hull damage.
Soontir Fel fell victim to the curse of the high skill pilot, getting blocked and suffered badly as a result getting shot down straight away. The Tie Fighters did there usual impression of a Catherine Wheel (flying round and round at high speed before exploding).
The spy was located on the third scan with only two Imperial ships left on the table, a decent set of reinforcements was rolled, a Defender, a Shuttle and a Bomber. The latter with good pilots, sadly the Defender was a PS 1.
Its the first time we have used a YT2400 and I was quite surprised how fast and manoeuvrable it was. Its also quite resilient. All the Imperial ships concentrated on the rescue and it was to prove a close run thing yet again.
The key was the Tie Bomber, with its missile load out it was capable of taking out the YT2400 at distance, sadly it wandered too far forward, got blocked by a lower pilot skill ship and the rest is history.
The Rescue ship was down to two hull points when it escaped, of the remaining Empire ships the Shuttle couldn't turn quick enough to get back into a shooting position and the defender was too far away. The YT sailed off the board edge with the spy and the game was over. A win for the Rebels after a recent run of draws and Empire wins it helped the Rebels increase their campaign lead.
Pop Cicle was shot down in his A Wing, its a great quick little ship but has proved to be a little fragile in a campaign situation.
Another kill fest for the Rebels as they downed 7 Imperial Ships, Tie Fighters, more like Die Fighters.
X Wing madness will return with game 21 on the 9th of December. A mission which will see or intrepid band patrolling an as yet uncharted area of space in support of a fellow Rebel Squadron.
GEEK ZONE
Jim head mechanic in the Rebel Garage has a new A Wing to prep, he has also had to invest in a new Haynes manual for the K6/B Wing.
Pilot upgrades prior to start of game 20
Rebel Pilot results below,
Pilot Baby Brian - A Wing (1) not present - Totals Missions 1, 0 GC, 0 kills
Ship Zone
Uber geeks area for those who want to see what our intrepid pilots fly.
For those who don't know, this is a continuation of the X Wing Campaign, full explanation and details of Campaign rules are here.
"Gentlemen,
We have received a message from one of the last surviving Bothan spies, he claims to be aboard a new "giant" space station, under construction near the Portant Sector.
His last message via a sub space transmission claims that the station will be capable of destroying an entire planet when complete.
You must get in and scan the surface for the spy, once located protect the rescue ship which will arrive for him.
To your ships, May the Force be with you"
Team "Rebel Scum"
Rick O'Shea PS 5 K6/B Wing
Spike Sharpie PS 4 E Wing
WK Jnr PS2 X Wing
Pop Cicle PS 4 A Wing
On discovery of the spy 1 x YT 2400 (random pilot, we had Leebo PS5) with Mangler Cannon, Weapons Engineer and Ion Pulse Missiles.
Tie Interceptor PS9 Soontir Fel
Tie Interceptor PS8 Carnor Jax
Tie Fighter PS4
Tie Fighter PS4
Tie Fighter PS3
Tie Fighter PS3
All empire ships set up within range one of their table edge.
When the spy is located the Empire player receives 3 rolls on his re-enforcement chart, we got
Tie Defender PS1, Heavy Laser Cannon and Ion Pulse Warheads
Lamba Shuttle PS8 Captain Kagi, Weapons Engineer, Anti Pursuit Lasers, Sensor Jammer
Tie Bomber PS7 Major Rhymer, 2 x Proton Missiles, 2 x Concussion Missiles and 1 x Proton Bomb
Empire ships are determined at random see the campaign rules for full guide
Set Up (played on the Space Station Mat)
Game should be played on a standard 3 x 3 table.
Rebel players set up on the top of the map within range 1 of the table edge.
Start with 6 potential Spy hide outs represented by the red meeples.
Game lasts until the spy is saved or dies.
Special Rules
Spy Locations - Rebel players must use an Action to scan each potential Spy Location, the ship must be in within range 1 to perform the action. When scanned the scanning player rolls 1d6 and locates the spy on a 6. The meeple is then removed from play. The next scan is done at a minus 1 on the roll and so on until the spy is located.
YT2400 - Arrives anywhere on the Rebel table edge on the turn after the Spy is located. To pick the spy up takes one action, the ship must be within range one of the spy to conduct the pick up.
On the turn of the pick up the ship will receive one point of damage per distance moved, so a 3 bank left will lead to 3 damage whilst a one straight forward would just give 1 damage.
Jump to Hyperspace - To leave the table you need to declare
your attempt and then try and gain 2 critical hits, hits from previous
rolls carry forward. You cannot attempt to jump until after turn 4.
Turn 1. Roll 3 attack die
Turn 2. Roll 3 attack die + Pilot Skill / 2 (round up)
Turn 3. Automatically jump
Rebel Exit - For this game only Rebel ships may exit the game by flying off their table edge.
Victory Conditions
Rebel Victory - YT2400 to exit the Rebel table edge with the Spy on board.
Imperial Victory - Prevent a Rebel Victory.
Draw - Any other result.
How did we get on
A night of evil luck for the Empire, with the ships and pilots at their disposal this game should have been fairly straight forward but no. Every single crit card for the Empire was the Tie killer, 2 hull damage.
Soontir Fel fell victim to the curse of the high skill pilot, getting blocked and suffered badly as a result getting shot down straight away. The Tie Fighters did there usual impression of a Catherine Wheel (flying round and round at high speed before exploding).
The spy was located on the third scan with only two Imperial ships left on the table, a decent set of reinforcements was rolled, a Defender, a Shuttle and a Bomber. The latter with good pilots, sadly the Defender was a PS 1.
Its the first time we have used a YT2400 and I was quite surprised how fast and manoeuvrable it was. Its also quite resilient. All the Imperial ships concentrated on the rescue and it was to prove a close run thing yet again.
The key was the Tie Bomber, with its missile load out it was capable of taking out the YT2400 at distance, sadly it wandered too far forward, got blocked by a lower pilot skill ship and the rest is history.
The Rescue ship was down to two hull points when it escaped, of the remaining Empire ships the Shuttle couldn't turn quick enough to get back into a shooting position and the defender was too far away. The YT sailed off the board edge with the spy and the game was over. A win for the Rebels after a recent run of draws and Empire wins it helped the Rebels increase their campaign lead.
Pop Cicle was shot down in his A Wing, its a great quick little ship but has proved to be a little fragile in a campaign situation.
Another kill fest for the Rebels as they downed 7 Imperial Ships, Tie Fighters, more like Die Fighters.
Result (2 pts for a win, 1 for a draw)
Rebel Win
Campaign overall score is, Empire 17 pts, Rebels 23 pts
X Wing madness will return with game 21 on the 9th of December. A mission which will see or intrepid band patrolling an as yet uncharted area of space in support of a fellow Rebel Squadron.
GEEK ZONE
Jim head mechanic in the Rebel Garage has a new A Wing to prep, he has also had to invest in a new Haynes manual for the K6/B Wing.
Pilot upgrades prior to start of game 20
Pilot Rick O'Shea - Trade B Wing up to a K6/BWing
Pilot Crank Case - Sell Flechette Torpedoes and buy Adv Proton Torpedoes
The K6/B Wing is a B Wing upgrade for the Campaign, it costs 15 GC. The B Wing exchanges its manoeuvre dial for an X Wing dial, gains 1 hull and may add a Heavy Laser Cannon as an upgrade, it is only available to pilots with a PS of 5 or above.
Rebel Pilot results below,
Pilot Rick O'Shea (5) - B Wing, survived, 4 kills, 13GC - Totals, Missions 20, 14 GC, 29 kills
Pilot Spike Sharpie - E Wing (4), survived, 2 kills, 9 GC - Totals, Missions 20, 11 GC, 16 kills
Pilot Ensign WK Jnr (2) - X Wing, survived, 1 kills, 7 GC - Totals Missions 5, 12 GC, 4 kills
Pilot Pop Cicle - A Wing (4) shot down but survived, 0 kills, 0 GC - Totals, Missions 13, 5 GC, 5 kills
Not Present
Pilot Crank Case - Y Wing (4) not present - Totals, Missions 14, 8 GC 11 kills Pilot Baby Brian - A Wing (1) not present - Totals Missions 1, 0 GC, 0 kills
Pilot Oi M'Groin - Y Wing (2) not present - Totals, Missions 4, 3 GC 0 kills
Pilot Sir Jeremy Dodger - X Wing (2), Not Present - Totals Missions 3, 7 GC, 2 kills
Pilot Twiki Bond - A Wing (1), Not Present - Totals Missions 1, 6 GC, 0 kills
Pilot Ensign WK Jnr (2) - X Wing, survived, 0 kills, 2 GC - Totals Missions 4, 5 GC, 3 kills
Pilot Captain Tangent - A Wing (3), survived, 0 kills, 2GC - Totals, Missions 9, 5 GC, 0 kills
Roll of Honour
Pilot Brian RIP
Pilot Commander Wayne Kerr veteran of 7 Missions, RIP
Uber geeks area for those who want to see what our intrepid pilots fly.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Previous Game Links
Wednesday, 18 November 2015
6mm Adler ACW - Confederate Infantry - From Box to Table
Hoods Division in Quick Time
Those of you who tune in on a regular basis will be aware of our ongoing ACW fest, our re fight of Gaines Mill. Having sorted the Army lists I was fine for the Union troops however I was well short of Rebels. Luckily I never throw anything away and lying in a box in the depth of my gaming room is a big box of unpainted Adler Miniatures untouched for at least 15 years.
If you haven't seen them Adler are superbly detailed "6mm" figures, I put the scale in inverted commas because they are a bit bigger than 6, especially when compared with the old 1/300 Heroics and Ros figures, they don't mix that well with other manufacturers stuff but that's fine because they do everything you need. You can check out their full range HERE.
So the mission was on to "knock out" a quick division of Confederate Infantry, I picked Hoods as they were next on the orbat I was working on when I last painted some of these (many years ago), I decided to do this post in the familiar Box to Table format showing the process from bare metal to on the table ready to game.
Adler Miniatures are supplied in strips of 4 with a small spacer between each base as shown at the top of this photo. 1st job is a quick clean up of the figures with a craft knife. Generally the figures are very good and usually a quick snip at the end of the bayonet is all that's needed. I then prime the figures with my usual Matt Black spray paint. Finally to get them ready for painting I temporarily fix them to a strip of wood with some white tack. Generally I work on 12 figures at a time.
I work up a Brigade at a time which is generally 100 to 150 figures. With Confederates I am looking for a generally ragged look and I will paint each batch of 12 in slightly different colours. Here I have started on the left with pale blue grey on the trousers, then in the middle mid grey jacket with finally on this set a highlight on the jacket.
Starting to add a bit of detail now with the blanket roll (any colour you want !) then in the middle I have painted the Musket and Flesh with Beige Brown and at the end of the row I have done the bayonets silver.
On the home stretch now by painting the hat, then in the centre painting the Flesh with Beige Red and finishing off with a wash over the hat, flesh and musket with Strong Tone Wash.
I have been particularly vague about colours because with Confederates you have more or less a free range, line up every single shade of Brown and Grey in your paint collection and pick them at random for each piece of clothing.
And that's it for painting, next up basing. All my old stuff is based for Johnny Reb II as per the rules i.e. 5 stands per unit. Over the years whilst playing big games I have often thought about more efficient ways of basing the figures. I toyed with the idea of basing them on a single base in line but decided that would be too restrictive. I also considered movement trays but with 200 or so units that's a lot of work. I finally decided to double up the ordinary stands and leave a separate command base, this reduced the number of elements I had to move when playing but retained a reasonable amount of flexibility for changes of formation.
I have also taken the opportunity to move from card bases I cut myself to pre cut MDF. The photo above shows the process.
1. Cut the figures free from their strips and glue to MDF base.
2. Sculpt a base around the figures, covering up the bases using filler.
3. Paint the base (when dry) with Miniature Paints Earth Brown.
4. Dry brush with a Dark Sand / White mix.
5. Paint patches of dark green on the base at random.
6. Dry brush green areas with yellow.
I leave a flat space at the back of the command bases to write in the unit name. I use a colour coding on the bases to determine who is commanded by who. So in this instance Hoods Division has been allocated the colour Green, each Brigade is then given a separate colour so, for example Laws Brigade is white, so all of its bases including the commander have a green and then white line for ease of identification when playing.
I give each of the units two flags, 1 typical Confederate Battle Flag the other a unit flag which is usually a state flag, again this is to help with recognition on the table rather than strict historical accuracy. I probably take about 20 minutes per strip of 12 figs so for me I'm fair motoring through them.
So to finish off a selection of pics to show off the Division.
The Gaines Mill Game is done and dusted look out for the write up soon. Currently on the paint table are some 28mm WW2 Tanks and more WW1 ships can't beat a bit of variety !
Those of you who tune in on a regular basis will be aware of our ongoing ACW fest, our re fight of Gaines Mill. Having sorted the Army lists I was fine for the Union troops however I was well short of Rebels. Luckily I never throw anything away and lying in a box in the depth of my gaming room is a big box of unpainted Adler Miniatures untouched for at least 15 years.
If you haven't seen them Adler are superbly detailed "6mm" figures, I put the scale in inverted commas because they are a bit bigger than 6, especially when compared with the old 1/300 Heroics and Ros figures, they don't mix that well with other manufacturers stuff but that's fine because they do everything you need. You can check out their full range HERE.
So the mission was on to "knock out" a quick division of Confederate Infantry, I picked Hoods as they were next on the orbat I was working on when I last painted some of these (many years ago), I decided to do this post in the familiar Box to Table format showing the process from bare metal to on the table ready to game.
Adler Miniatures are supplied in strips of 4 with a small spacer between each base as shown at the top of this photo. 1st job is a quick clean up of the figures with a craft knife. Generally the figures are very good and usually a quick snip at the end of the bayonet is all that's needed. I then prime the figures with my usual Matt Black spray paint. Finally to get them ready for painting I temporarily fix them to a strip of wood with some white tack. Generally I work on 12 figures at a time.
I work up a Brigade at a time which is generally 100 to 150 figures. With Confederates I am looking for a generally ragged look and I will paint each batch of 12 in slightly different colours. Here I have started on the left with pale blue grey on the trousers, then in the middle mid grey jacket with finally on this set a highlight on the jacket.
Starting to add a bit of detail now with the blanket roll (any colour you want !) then in the middle I have painted the Musket and Flesh with Beige Brown and at the end of the row I have done the bayonets silver.
On the home stretch now by painting the hat, then in the centre painting the Flesh with Beige Red and finishing off with a wash over the hat, flesh and musket with Strong Tone Wash.
I have been particularly vague about colours because with Confederates you have more or less a free range, line up every single shade of Brown and Grey in your paint collection and pick them at random for each piece of clothing.
And that's it for painting, next up basing. All my old stuff is based for Johnny Reb II as per the rules i.e. 5 stands per unit. Over the years whilst playing big games I have often thought about more efficient ways of basing the figures. I toyed with the idea of basing them on a single base in line but decided that would be too restrictive. I also considered movement trays but with 200 or so units that's a lot of work. I finally decided to double up the ordinary stands and leave a separate command base, this reduced the number of elements I had to move when playing but retained a reasonable amount of flexibility for changes of formation.
I have also taken the opportunity to move from card bases I cut myself to pre cut MDF. The photo above shows the process.
1. Cut the figures free from their strips and glue to MDF base.
2. Sculpt a base around the figures, covering up the bases using filler.
3. Paint the base (when dry) with Miniature Paints Earth Brown.
4. Dry brush with a Dark Sand / White mix.
5. Paint patches of dark green on the base at random.
6. Dry brush green areas with yellow.
 |
| The Finished Division |
I give each of the units two flags, 1 typical Confederate Battle Flag the other a unit flag which is usually a state flag, again this is to help with recognition on the table rather than strict historical accuracy. I probably take about 20 minutes per strip of 12 figs so for me I'm fair motoring through them.
So to finish off a selection of pics to show off the Division.
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| Divisional Command Base containing the main man Hood |
 | |
| Brigade Commanders |
 |
| Hoods former Brigade of Texas and Arkansas Troops |
The Gaines Mill Game is done and dusted look out for the write up soon. Currently on the paint table are some 28mm WW2 Tanks and more WW1 ships can't beat a bit of variety !
Friday, 6 November 2015
1/2400 WW1 WTJ Naval - From Box to Table
Painting and Basing Tutorial
I have had a while off the bloggosphere recently but the cogs here at Yarkshire Gamer have not stopped turning, by jiminy no.
I have discussed the merits of the WTJ ships previously on this blog and if you are a regular reader you will know I am a fan. The latest batch of ships arrived recently and the order contained my first two capital ships from the firm, I did do a basing tutorial a while back but with these wonderful new ships I thought I would do a new up to date tutorial. Paints are Vallejo unless otherwise stated.
The two ships we have here are HMS Queen Mary which was a slightly modified Lion Class Battlecruiser, a ship not made by GHQ and SMS Hindenberg the last of the Derfflinger Class again a WTJ only release.
If you like the look of the WTJ stuff they are available from HERE and no I'm not on commission !
In their basic form the WTJ ships look like some form of Alien off spring, you can't really see the detail at this stage but this is of course straight out of the box.
Stage one with these ships is a good soak in soapy water, this cleans any contaminants from the surface of the ship. Its probably the most important step too as an unwashed ship can mean paint flaking at later stages and that would be heartbreaking.
Once our models have been thoroughly dried its time to crack on, firstly I fix the ship to its base. I use MDF bases from ERM, for Capital ships they are 120 x 40 mm which is the correct size for my WW1 Naval Rules which I promise one day I will get round to putting on the blog.
Once fixed I use a pre mixed DIY filler and a scalpel to sculpt some textured sea around the ship. I leave a small flat tab at the bottom of the base.
Once dry the ship is undercoated using a Matt Black Primer, I use one from Halfords which for none UK residents is a Car Parts Store. I then paint the sea area with Miniature Paints No 24, Navy Blue.
Next up is the painting of the sea, on the left the first stage, this is a heavy dry brush ( ie I don't remove that much paint off before dragging the brush across the surface) with 930 Dark Blue followed by a lighter dry brush of 904 Dark Blue Grey on the right.
The bases are finished off with a light all over dry brush of 820 Off White just to pick out the wave tops, next up I paint in, using the same colour the Bow and Prop wakes.
That's the sea done so its time to start on the ships themselves, I use 992 Neutral Grey applied along the belt and all over the superstructure as shown by Queen Mary, I then drybrush the whole of the ship with 990 Light Grey, I also use this colour to hand paint the ship name on the flat tab at the rear of the base. I have moved over to Light Grey from White for the name, I prefer the more subtle look of the Lt Grey.
The most difficult stage is next, painting the decks, you need to be careful not to cover up the detail on the decks or to let the paint overflow down the side of the ships. I have used 912 Tan Yellow for the deck, Hindenberg has had its decks washed with Army Painters Strong Tone to give it some depth.
I then take each ship and do some individual detailing to finish them off. Hindenburg has had her turret tops painted black and then toned down with a light dry brush of neutral grey. I have also added the turret ring with a base of Light Grey over painted with Off White. A fine application of Army Painters Dark Tone has been applied on the casemates and funnels just to bring out the detail. The lifeboats have been painted in their natural colours. For a final touch I have painted the anchor chains with Citadel Tin Bitz and highlighted with 863 Gun metal grey.
The same treatment has been given to Queen Mary, I have darkened her upper decks with 875 Beige Brown and used slightly more of the Dark Tone on her, mostly due to the torpedo nets.
It would be wrong of me not to put up a comparison shot with the GHQ version, they are slightly different ships but it gives you an idea.
And the same for the Queen Mary up against a GHQ Lion.
Just for the hell of it, all four ships together.
I have had a while off the bloggosphere recently but the cogs here at Yarkshire Gamer have not stopped turning, by jiminy no.
I have discussed the merits of the WTJ ships previously on this blog and if you are a regular reader you will know I am a fan. The latest batch of ships arrived recently and the order contained my first two capital ships from the firm, I did do a basing tutorial a while back but with these wonderful new ships I thought I would do a new up to date tutorial. Paints are Vallejo unless otherwise stated.
The two ships we have here are HMS Queen Mary which was a slightly modified Lion Class Battlecruiser, a ship not made by GHQ and SMS Hindenberg the last of the Derfflinger Class again a WTJ only release.
If you like the look of the WTJ stuff they are available from HERE and no I'm not on commission !
In their basic form the WTJ ships look like some form of Alien off spring, you can't really see the detail at this stage but this is of course straight out of the box.
Stage one with these ships is a good soak in soapy water, this cleans any contaminants from the surface of the ship. Its probably the most important step too as an unwashed ship can mean paint flaking at later stages and that would be heartbreaking.
Once our models have been thoroughly dried its time to crack on, firstly I fix the ship to its base. I use MDF bases from ERM, for Capital ships they are 120 x 40 mm which is the correct size for my WW1 Naval Rules which I promise one day I will get round to putting on the blog.
Once fixed I use a pre mixed DIY filler and a scalpel to sculpt some textured sea around the ship. I leave a small flat tab at the bottom of the base.
Once dry the ship is undercoated using a Matt Black Primer, I use one from Halfords which for none UK residents is a Car Parts Store. I then paint the sea area with Miniature Paints No 24, Navy Blue.
Next up is the painting of the sea, on the left the first stage, this is a heavy dry brush ( ie I don't remove that much paint off before dragging the brush across the surface) with 930 Dark Blue followed by a lighter dry brush of 904 Dark Blue Grey on the right.
The bases are finished off with a light all over dry brush of 820 Off White just to pick out the wave tops, next up I paint in, using the same colour the Bow and Prop wakes.
That's the sea done so its time to start on the ships themselves, I use 992 Neutral Grey applied along the belt and all over the superstructure as shown by Queen Mary, I then drybrush the whole of the ship with 990 Light Grey, I also use this colour to hand paint the ship name on the flat tab at the rear of the base. I have moved over to Light Grey from White for the name, I prefer the more subtle look of the Lt Grey.
Next up are two progressively lighter drybrushes both in terms of the colour, 883 Silver Grey first and then 820 Off White, but also in amount of paint applied. The effect between the two colours is quite subtle but I feel that its worth it on these larger ship models.
I then take each ship and do some individual detailing to finish them off. Hindenburg has had her turret tops painted black and then toned down with a light dry brush of neutral grey. I have also added the turret ring with a base of Light Grey over painted with Off White. A fine application of Army Painters Dark Tone has been applied on the casemates and funnels just to bring out the detail. The lifeboats have been painted in their natural colours. For a final touch I have painted the anchor chains with Citadel Tin Bitz and highlighted with 863 Gun metal grey.
It would be wrong of me not to put up a comparison shot with the GHQ version, they are slightly different ships but it gives you an idea.
Just for the hell of it, all four ships together.
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