North Africa - Recon!

These are the first figures and vehicles for my Flames of War mid-war British North Africa armored company. As you can tell from the unit symbols on the fenders, I've decided to paint them up as members of the British 7th Armored Division - the Desert Rats. After seeing re-runs of "The Rat Patrol" on TV as a kid I couldn't resist.

Since most of my force will be armor, which is quick to paint up, I decided to start with one of the more difficult to paint units. This is a scout platoon consisting of two patrols of three universal carriers. They can be armed anywhere from a single Bren gun all the way up to a Bren gun and a .50 cal MG or Boys anti-tank rifle. I've painted them up generically for now so I can keep my options open. These are considered a divisional support asset and therefore can be used with most of the British armored TO&Es from North Africa. They're classified as recon so will be useful to prevent ambushes against my armor and are an excellent anti-infantry asset with their armor and MGs.

I used the technique of tearing a piece of blister sponge packing material up and using it as a brush to show paint chipping on the decals. Since the unit markings were painted over the base color I made the assumption that when they chipped the sand color underneath would show through. I think I like the effect and will most likely use this more in the future.

A platoon can have up to three patrols, but since we're playing our North Africa campaign at 850 points per player, I decided that two patrols would be more than enough at that point level. I can always paint up three more later if I decide I want them. Up next will be some of the tanks for the company.