German Tank Colours

Hi All,

I've been asked a fair bit recently about which paints I used on the King Tigers and Sturmtigers that I finished last week, so I thought I'd put it all down in writing for everyone.

Well, unfortunately it's as not as easy as just listing one paint for each colour, as I've recently taken to mixing paints to achieve the desired colours I want, and that's exactly what I've done with both the King Tigers and Sturmtigers.

I use Vallejo paints, mostly Vallejo Model Colour (VMC) and some Vallejo Game Colour (VGC).

As a reference, the Mobelwagons in the top photo behind the Sturmtigers were painted with non-mixed paints, these being Iraqi Sand, Reflective Green, and Chocolate Brown. You can see the difference in vibrancy, especially in the Dunkelgelb, between the mixed and non-mixed paints. There's no right or wrong when choosing paints, just personal preference.

• For the Dunkelgelb (Dark Yellow) I mixed the following...

Iraqi Sand (VMC 70.819)

Brown Sand (VMC 70.876)

Moon Yellow (VGC 72.005)

Now I don't have a precise mix ratio as I like to add paint until I'm happy with the colour, but as a rough guide it would be approximately 50/30/20. I add the Moon Yellow to brighten up the mix a bit, so that the Dunkelgelb doesn't look to drab and dreary. 

If I want the Dunkelgelb to not appear so stark, I'll substitute Middlestone (VMC 70.882) instead of the Brown Sand, as I did with the PzIV's below.

• For the Olivgrün (Olive green) I mixed the following..,

Olive Green (VMC 70.967)

Russian Green (VMC 70.894

Once again there's no precise ration, but it's approximately 70/30. I like the tint of the Olive Green, but it's far too light to be used by itself, so the Russian Green is added to darken it up a bit. Any darker green can be used for this I guess, I tried Russian Green first and liked the result.

• For the Rotbraun (Red-Brown) I mixed the following....

Red Leather (VMC 70.818)

Cavalry Brown (VMC 70.982)

Scarlett Red (VGC 72.012)

As before, the approximate ratio is 50/30/20. The Red Leather and Cavalry Brown make a decent red-brown mix, but is a bit too light for my liking, hence the addition of the Scarlett Red. It darkens the mix but still keeps the mix between red and brown to a nice ratio. 

A few more tips and tricks that I use...

A- I airbrush all these paints. You can brush them on, and many painters get great results doing so, but for me I prefer the speed and ease of the airbrush. 

B- I wash each tank after airbrushing, usually with Nuln Oil Shade from Citadel (Games Workshop). I don't thin it down, but I carefully observe each tank and use a brush to remove any excess wash, watching to make sure it doesn't pool anywhere it shouldn't. 

C- I then drybrush each tank using Pale Sand (VMC 70.837). I use a medium sized broad headed brush and go fairly lightly over the tank. As well as picking out the edges the drybrush will dampen the Olivgrün and Rotbraun slightly, tying the different paints together.

D- Decals! I run a slight drybrush over the finished decals also so that they wont appear so shiny. This can be with the Pale Sand or any other Dunkelgelb type colour.

Well I hope this little guide is of some help to you guys out there. If you have questions don't hesitate to ask! :)

Cheers.

Mat.

  

List writing and tournaments

Hi guys, Griddon here. In the wash up from Breakout and in subsequent games and list building activities I've started to wonder a bit about my approach. I thought I'd muse the subject for public consumption ;)

Breakout was our first tourney and running it gave us a good opportunity to stand back and watch some of the games. I think until now Mat and I have been comfortable in our own small meta pushing round pretty historically accurate and fluffy lists while learning the game and having some laughs. After Breakout I realised that this approach probably wouldn't wash in the FoW tourney scene unless I liked getting walloped in every game. (And believe me, I don't! :) )

Beginner with a Panzer Co...

Hi Folks,

DiceHex here with some excuses for not finishing my Normandy Table! I got pretty distracted by my first FoW army project!

I have a background in 40k and other GW games, and I became pretty exited at the prospect of trying a painting project which was very different to what I was used to. I bit the bullet, after months of talk, and purchased a fairly balanced panzer company.

The Germans are go!

Griddon here. I finally did it. I decided on a list and I'm sticking with it. Thought I'd share my final list with you guys and a quick sneak peak of how the painting is going.

So the list I have decided upon is from Fortress Europe. It's designed as an  Eastern front list to suit my terrain table.

HQ - 2 Panzer IV H
Combat - 4 Panzer IV H
Combat - 4 Panzer IV H
Support - 4 Brummbar
Support - Panzergrenadiers, 1 x Panzerfaust, 6 x MG + Transports
Support - 3 Pumas
Support - 3 Nebelwerfer 41s with Pak38

Review: The Plastic Soldier Company 15mm Panzer IV

Alrighty then! Griddon here and I'm pretty excited to give you a review of 'The Plastic Soldier Company' 15mm Panzer IVs.

I hadn't heard much about this company until a few weeks ago when I listened the guys on the WWPD podcast talk about the T34s the company makes. They gave the kit a pretty positive review. (I can't remember the episode number but maybe one of the guys will chime in below and help us out!) When I went looking I found out that they also made PzIVs. My German project needs at least ten PzIVs so I figured I'd give them a go. Straight off the bat, they are a solid value proposition. Delivered to my door by the fantastic Irresistible Force here in Australia for $30 AUD per box.

Each box comes with five injection moulded plastic sprues with one Panzer IV per sprue. The Plastic Soldier Company have been very smart about how they went about making this kit and the box is capable of making four variants of this popular tank.. The PzIV Ausf F1, PzIV Ausf F2, PzIV Ausf G and the PzIV Ausf H. I'll be making the PzIV H for my late war force but that leaves me with five kits and I hope to use them for an upcoming mid war army.

The sprue