Painting Soviets for 1981

This weekend, I've decided to break out of my East German/Danish painting rut and do something different. Quite a few posts ago, I said I'd (try to) stop going off on tangents and stick to finishing units that I actually need. In an effort not to wander too far afield from that effort, I've chosen something that I will certainly need, though that need is somewhat in the future, as I've still got quite a few East Germans to finish, as well as some Poles. I'm doing Soviets this weekend!!

I've already talked about doing some VDV troops (Soviet airborne), but operations in the LANDJUT area would almost certainly have involved at least some Soviet ground troops. The seizure of the Kiel Canal was a priority that was reasonably high up the Soviet "to do" list and while the VDV would quite likely have been used in the initial operation, they couldn't have held out for long without heavier support. So, at least some armor and mechanized infantry would had to have been committed as a support/relief force.

So, how to paint Soviets? Firstly, like all my painting, this isn't the real Soviet Army. It's MY Soviet Army, so certain wargaming realities must be accounted for; primarily, easing tabletop identification at a distance. Soviet troops, like all armies, wore different uniforms at different times of the year and in different periods of the Cold War, as well as different types of Soviet troops wearing different uniforms. My scenario begins on March 30th, which in northern Europe is still quite cold. Snow in northern Germany in late March and into April is common. 

What I'm getting at is that I should be portraying winter uniforms. But those aren't the ones I like!  I like this:

The brown summer uniform! This photo would appear to have been taken in the late 1960's or possibly the very early 1970's. The right-hand figure carrying an RPK dates this to no earlier than 1961, but Soviet military color photography in the early to mid 1960's was relatively rare, so it's very likely to be a bit later. In any case, for mechanized infantry, I like the uniform and it helps me differentiate my Soviets from my other Warsaw Pact troops. To get close to that particular shade of darkish brown, I make a 50/50 mix of two Vallejo paints: Game Color Charred Brown (045) and Model Color US Field Drab (873). It looks pretty close to the correct shade to my eyes:

For the helmets, I use Vallejo Russian Uniform (924).

For VDV troops, I've already touched on the blue beret (see my post of May 4, 2014), but for the uniform, I like the look of this:

Again, it wasn't their only uniform, but it's the one I like. I use Vallejo Reflective Green (890) with tiny patches of Model Masters Sand: 

Let's be honest, at 3mm, there's only so much you can do to represent a camouflage uniform. That macro lens does come in handy from time to time, doesn't it?

For vehicles, the Soviets used a fairly dark green, which, like all paints, faded due to sun, wind, rain, etc, but I've chosen to go with the darker shade, again for purposes of differentiation. Vallejo 894 used to be called Russian Green, but the name has been changed to Camouflage Dark Olive Green. Whatever they call it, it's an extremely good match for recently painted Soviet vehicles: 

I then apply the usual wash of thinned black enamel and finish off by dry brushing with Russian Uniform, then paint any obvious details and add "bling". In this case, in addition to white dots for vehicle numbers and silver for searchlight lenses/headlights, there are dots of Vallejo Deep Red (926) to represent Soviet stars on the turret sides. 

And here's a company of T-64A's that I've finished:

You'll notice that I put one digit of the vehicle number on each of the left-side turret stowage boxes. When I was looking at T-64 images on the Internet, I was struck by these two:

On the right-hand side, the number is all on the single box, as it's larger:

I plan on doing a regiment with two battalions of T-64A's:

And one battalion of T-64B's:

(It's honestly not easy telling the real things apart!) As well as the requisite support units, ie: a motor rifle battalion (tracked), antiaircraft and reconnaissance companies, and a field artillery battalion. 

That's all for this post. More as projects progress (or as I think of other drivel to drone on about). 

East German/Polish/Soviet organization (and my 100th post)!!!

First things first. This is my 100th post!! Yay!!!

Ok, let's get down to business. This weekend, I've spent my time texturing and flocking some bases (I try to stay ahead of my useage rate), which isn't terribly photogenic. That being the case, I thought I'd talk a bit about East German, Polish, and Soviet military structure as it pertained to the LANDJUT area of operations. 

East Germany was divided roughly in half into two military districts; District V in the north and District III in the south. Along with elements of the East German Army (the National Volksarmee - "NVA"), about 60% of all Soviet troops in East Germany (Group of Soviet Forces Germany - "GSFG") were also stationed in District V:

which itself was subdivided into northern and southern zones and, as my 1981 campaign deals with operations in LANDJUT, we'll concern ourselves only with District V's northern zone. (As an aside to the above maps, the 3rd Shock Army wasn't called that after the mid to late 1950's, when the name was changed to the 3rd Assault Army. In the late 1960's or early 1970's, the name was changed again to the 3rd Red Banner of the Soviet Union Combined Arms Army, which is what it remained until the unit was dissolved in 1991). 

The East German 5th Army was assigned to the thrust into LANDJUT and was made up of the 8th Motor Rifle Division and the 9th Armored Division (which didn't have "Heinz Hoffmann" appended to its name until after his death in 1985). In addition to its front-line divisions, East Germany had a further five motor rifle divisions that were kept in a reserve status, but which would've been called to active duty prior to the outbreak of any hostilities. The unit dedicated to the northern zone of District V (and to the 5th Army) was the 20th Motor Rifle Division. The 9th would've been equipped with T-55's, as well as about one battalion's worth of T-72's. The armored elements of the 8th would've had only T-55's and the 20th a mixture of T-54's and T-55's and probably even a few T-34/85M's. Reserve divisions would also have been more likely to use at least some obsolete APC's as well as some infantry that was motorized (ie, truck-transported), as opposed to mechanized. 

Supporting the East Germans (or vice-versa) would've been the "2nd Guards Red Banner of the Soviet Union Tank Army". You can see why it was always referred to by its short form: the 2nd Guards Tank Army. To be fair, the majority of these Soviet troops would have been committed to the seizure of Hamburg and the subsequent push on to the North Sea, but at least a few units would likely have been diverted into the advance up the Jutland Peninsula to seize the Kiel Canal, particularly the airborne (the VDV; likely elements of the 7th Guards Airborne Division based at Kaunas, Lithuania) and possibly a few naval infantry units, in addition to any ground troops. 

In the early 1980s, the 2nd Guards Tank Army consisted of the 16th Guards Armored Division, 21st Motor Rifle Division, 94th Guards Motor Rifle Division, and 207th Motor Rifle Division. In early 1981, all of the 16th and the armored elements of the 21st, 94th, and 207th would've been equipped with mostly T-64A's. In the 16th, there would've been a healthy minority of T-64B's and the three motor rifle units only would have been not quite half T-62's. 

Behind East Germany, in the second echelon, was the Polish People's Army (the "LWP"). It was the largest non-Soviet Warsaw Pact army, but a decade of weak economic conditions in Poland had left its army less modern than that of East Germany. A large portion of the Polish Army was stationed in the south of the country, earmarked to support the Soviet/Czech push into central and southern West Germany. Likewise, the bulk of the Soviet Northern Forces Group ("NFG") was in southern Poland. 

The force which would've been involved in LANDJUT, apart from the airborne and marines, was the Polish 1st Army, comprised of the 8th, 12th, and 15th Motor Rifle Divisions and the 16th and 20th Armored Divisions. The 16th and 20th would've been equipped with a majority of T-55's, with a few companies of T-72's. The armored elements of the motor rifle divisions would've had T-55's, with a few T-54's mixed in. Like the East Germans, some T-34/85M's would also have been seen. The majority of the 1st Army would've been thrown into the assault on Hamburg, but at least part, if not all of the 12th Motor Rifle Division in particular would likely have been diverted to bolster the forces pushing into LANDJUT, as it was to assume the far northern flank position during the advance of the 1st Army. 

And finally, behind Poland lay the Western Military Districts of the Soviet Union, which would have held major reinforcements for the ground offensive into Western Europe. For the purposes of LANDJUT, the northern portions of these districts would be present-day Kaliningrad, Lithuania, and northern Belarus. Large reserves were held just inside the Soviet Union to provide a strong third wave of units, generally equipped with quite modern matériel. This is where the vast bulk of Soviet T-72's and most of the then still fairly rare T-80's and T-80B's were held in readiness. 

This is all obviously the short and simplified version of an ORBAT that otherwise would be far too long and overly complex for a wargaming blog. In my wargaming, I strive for historical accuracy, until it begins to bog everything down with minutiae. At that point, I switch to "historical plausibility" and begin using a simplified version. 

I hope this has provided a coherent overview. More from me during the coming week!

Up-gunning my East Germans: T-72

In 1981, the vast majority of front line East German armored units would have been equipped with more modern versions of the T-55. Reserve units likely would've had T-54A's and older models of the T-55. Quite probably, a few antiquated T-34/85M's could've been found in training/reserve units. 

East Germany had only two panzer divisions (not counting the armor assigned to motor rifle units), which always received modernized equipment first, so that's where the T-72's began to appear in the late 1970's. By 1981, several companies worth would likely have been operational, the vast majority in the 9th Armored Division, which would've been part of the thrust across the North German Plain. 

The T-72 was a much more capable and modern tank than was the T-55 and likely would have given a much less dismal account of itself against NATO forces:

I plan on doing one battalion's worth and this week I've finished my first company:

Two more companies and a battalion command stand and I'm done!!

What more can I say?

Tragedy

Warsaw Pact self-propelled artillery

Like all armies, those of the Warsaw Pact included self-propelled artillery, the most common being the 2S1 Gvozdika 122mm:

Gvozdika is Russian for "carnation". The next most common was the 152mm 2S3 Akatsiya, which is Russian for "acacia" (naming artillery after plants seems a bit odd to me):

All WarPac armies were chronically short of self-propelled artillery, and indeed most types of tracked vehicles, throughout the Cold War, but the shortage became critical in the early 1980's, so for my East Germans (and all other WarPac forces I do), I'll be relying more heavily on towed artillery, as was the case in reality. However, I do want a couple of self-propelled batteries, because I like the look of them, if for no other reason. Therefore, here's my East German 2S1 battery, with command and FAO:

The battery commander would've ridden a 1V14:

The FAO could've been mounted in either a 1V13 (externally almost identical to a 1V14) or a 1V18:

The Soviets would very likely have used the 1V13, but given the severe shortage of tracked vehicles in 1981, it's probable that the East Germans would've used a 1V18 instead. 

As you can perhaps see, I went a bit heavier on the "muck" I added to the tracks and the bottom half of the vehicle than I have in the past. In my defense, I'll just say that if you never been in or around tracked vehicles that have been in the field for even a relatively short period, you really cannot overdo the filth you add to your miniatures. This Czech 2S1 would be typical during a rainy period in Northern Europe:

And this one is typical of a drier period:

In both the above photos, you can see that the particulate spray from the moving tracks absolutely peppers the lower part of the vehicle, most heavily aft.

I do still need to do three stands of ammunition supply vehicles, but O8 doesn't make the AT-T tractors I need:

and, as usual, I'm out of the alternative, in this case URAL 375D's, so I'll have to order more. Ok, that's this weekend shot. More next time.  

A battery of East German Uragans

In my post of July 5, 2014 ("More East German Artillery"), I finished a battery of East German BM-21 Grad 122mm multiple rocket launchers. Today, I've got their big brother, the BM-27 Uragan (Russian for "hurricane") 220mm launcher. Because the rocket is quite a bit larger, though still unguided, the Uragan has a reputation for giving targets a real pounding!

You'll see in the above photo that the end of each of the launch tubes has a reddish primer/cap, just like the Grad, one of which is just ahead of the Uragan in the photo.

As with the Grad, the Uragan usually operates in a battalion of batteries and each launcher can fire off all 16 of its rockets in just 20 seconds and hit targets up to 22 miles (35 km) away. While not capable of pinpoint precision, they can saturate an area with reasonable accuracy. 

One of their prime uses is to pin an enemy force in place and cut off their avenue of rapid retreat by sowing minefields almost instantly behind and around the enemy. Each rocket can carry 312 PFM-1 mines:

(The Cyrillic "Y" denotes that this is an inert training mine). Each launcher can therefore throw 4992 mines down range, giving each battery a capability of 29,952 and the whole battalion 89,856!! All of which can be in the air within 20 seconds!! A skilled crew can emplace or deplace a launcher vehicle in just 3 mins. That's all pretty damned impressive. 

And here's my battery:

The six launcher vehicles, a 1V18 forward observer vehicle, and the battery commander in a UAZ-469. 

A little bit more artillery for my East Germans and I'll be satisfied. More from me next post. 

An East German Hind D

I bought four Mi-24 Hind D's from Picoarmor and this weekend I've been wiling away my time by working on my first East German gunship, so here's what I'm trying to replicate, East German Hind D's:

And here's a Polish one:

After looking at quite a lot of images of Hinds on the Internet, I find that the undersides of many are painted a garish, almost electric blue (like the above Polish one), which I decidedly dislike the look of. However, many others are painted a pale greyish blue, which looks much better (to me anyway). Of a number of East German paint schemes that I looked at, I like this one (from Wings Palette) the best:

So, with that in mind, here's my rendition:

Tough to get a decent photo of the little bugger! I still need to glue some bushes here and there on the stand. Those tiny East German decals are not as bad to get positioned as I had envisioned them being. 

As you'll no doubt notice, the rotor discs have been glazed with spray matt varnish. I do it intentionally, as once you get these little things on the tabletop and you're looking down onto them, they've proven to be pretty damned hard to see. I find that the glazed rotor discs are very helpful in improving their visibility and thus in helping me keep track of my helicopters and the effect really doesn't detract from the model, though it does give most overly anally-retentive wargamers an absolute apoplexy! 

More from me shortly!