The Blitzkrieg Miniatures 222 Scout Car.

As many of you know, from various podcasts and articles on this site, I love wheeled vehicles. A lot! As an avid German player I own, and regularly use, several of Warlord's excellent resin 222 kit. While I am a fan of that kit, when I started working the vehicles for my Chinese (Battle For Shanghai) army, I wanted to add something a little different while still adding a 222 to my force. I decided to give Blitzkrieg Miniatures' resin model a try.

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Bolt Action - Thinking Objectively

Hello, everyone!

Seamus, the Weekend General, here with an objective discussion on... well... objectives!

One thing that is often underrated in games of Bolt Action is objective markers. Of the 12 missions in the main rulebook, 5 missions call for objective markers of some sort, in quantity from 1 to 5 in a game. In my nearly four years of Bolt Action I've seen dice used as objective markers, I've seen colored beads used (some crafty ones with an Allied star or Balkenkreuz, too), I've seen flags, I've seen printed objective markers such as those made by Historique, poker chips, and many other variations. The ones that really stick in my mind, though, are ones that fit in with the table and especially those that are themed for the army. It's a great way to add character to your objective games and get your army "into" the table. One of the big events in Chicagoland, Operation Sting, actually goes so far as to require each person have a themed objective marker for one particular mission. How well the marker matches the theme of your army is factored into your overall points for the tournament as well. One year I did the equipment containers from Foundry Miniatures for my Fallschirmjager. This year, I did up this little number for my Commandos... a British officer with a map and some tea. The table was hand made from plasticard and for a first attempt at 28mm furniture wasn't bad, though I know I can do better.

Recently, I was turned on to some generic objective markers being made by a local business called Mercenary Miniatures. I knew these guys from their commission paint work in the past, and have even been lucky enough to roll dice with them at various points. They had brought early prototypes of the objective markers to a game and I was pretty impressed, so pressed them for a set to check out myself. They showed up in the mail a few days later and with kid-at-Christmas interest I set in.

Right off the bat, I noticed that the resin they used was different than what I'm used to with tanks. It's a bright white resin, and very smooth in the flat areas. At first I was somewhat concerned that it would be brittle but even dropping one and trying to break another they held up well. There are a few air bubbles here and there, but nothing that couldn't be fixed with just a little Green Stuff after I had given them the standard bath in warm, soapy water.

A quick prime with some Krylon black, and I was ready to paint. I have to say, they painted up pretty quickly and easily! I waffled on whether to do the tarps in Splittermuster, or perhaps Plane Tree, but in the end I opted for a more generic green color, as may be found in most armies. This, for me, makes the objective markers a little more universal so that they don't look out of place with any of my armies (a real boon, given the glacial pace at which I complete projects). If you're only using them for one army, doing an army-specific pattern such as a nation's unique camouflage would go that extra little bit to really set them off.

I'm on the fence about whether or not to add some tufts of grass to the base, but I figured all the feet trampling around the supply cache would get rid of any grass so I'm not sure. Maybe some static grass? We'll see how I feel as I get them on the table a few times.

All in all, though, I am pretty happy with the results. These objectives run for only $10 US each, or the set for $25 US. That's not bad at all, and for me it's worth the price of admission for something a little more scenic in my Bolt Action games requiring objectives. I suppose that means this was a subjective discussion, then.

Edit: I've since heard from the guys at Mercenary Miniatures. They had sent me prototypes, and for production runs will be using a more standard resin as you can see in this pic. I'll definitely be picking up some of these as well, both to compare and because it'll be nice to have a few more for games that might need them.

Seamus, often going by the nom de guerre “Weekend General,” is a long-time wargamer and sometime contributor to various podcasts and online forums, based in Chicago. Occasionally dabbling in other miniatures games, it is Bolt Action that really captures his interest.

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games Finnish 75 PSTK/40 Anti-Tank Gun

Hi everyone, after a work induced hiatus I've returned. Some time ago I started collecting Finns, that journey has been long and arduous and thoroughly enjoyable. My most recent acquisition however was the Warlord Games Finnish Pak40 medium anti-tank gun.

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games IS-3

The IS-3 is arguably the most advanced tank of WW2 and is one of the last tanks developed during the war to see the battlefield. Though it might have seen action as part of Soviet forces in Manchuria after the German capitulation, it is not even clear if this beast of a tank ever saw actual combat during World War Two. Warlord Games makes a resin model for this tank, and as a lover of big tanks, I was excited to get my grubby paws on one!

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Bolt Action - Trenchworx M4A1 76mm Sherman Review

Hello, everyone! Seamus here with a review for your perusal. I recently picked up a resin kit from Trenchworx, grabbing a M4A1 76mm Sherman to add to my nascent U.S. armored platoon. This is my second Trenchworx kit, but one that I really paid attention to as I built it after tearing through the Jagdpanther kit with reckless glee without taking pictures.

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games British Airborne Polsten Gun

I've had a Canadian Para army for a few years now, but outside of a running at the infamous Field of Dreams/Face-off tournament, it has sadly gotten very little game time. I can't really pinpoint why the desire to pull them back out always seems to fade in the face of playing Hungarians or Germans instead, but I am attempting to play a 'regular' Canadian force at Cancon next year and when this model came out from Warlord Games, I couldn't resist including one to my Paras. While it has taken me a long time to build it and get it painted (due to a hobby lull), it's finally done and I can't wait to get it on the table soon.

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Bolt Action - Review: Rubicon Model's Sdkfz 250/1 Alte kit

Sometime ago I got my hands on one of Rubicon Models new Sdkfz 250/1 kit but due to starting a new job and other commitments, I'd been too bogged down to get the time to throw it together. Well no more excuses! Over the weekend I finally managed to put together this great little kit and decided to share with you my experience and boy, what an experience it was!

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games Plastic Mark V Sherman

I recently decided I needed some armour support for my Canadian Kangaroo army list and what better way to do that then to add in a Sherman? As a fan of plastic kits, I knew I had to try out the Warlord Games Sherman V and I recently picked one up as a prize from the All Over October event I attended in Melbourne. The Sherman V is also known as the Sherman M4A4 and is the lend-lease version of the Sherman used by Great Britain.

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games LVT Buffalo

The Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT) is a beast and I love it. It is among one of the largest vehicles you will see on the table and is a real centerpiece for an army. Today I will review the LVT Buffalo from Warlord Games and discuss it in game. I will only be speaking about the use of the LVT with Commonwealth forces this time, as the entry differs slightly from those available to the US.

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Bolt Action - Review: Knights of Dice 28mm MDF Church

By Patch,
At a recent event I attended I was lucky enough to win the new Knights of Dice  (KoD) Church and I was greatly pleased after having picked up some of their desert buildings earlier this year. The church is part of a new range titled 'Letters Home' of unpainted pre cut MDF flat pack buildings. I will now take you through my impressions on assembly, painting and finally play-ability on the table for the Church.

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Bolt Action - Sitting Down with Die Waffenkammer

By Seamus

It’s a great time to be a wargamer. As Bolt Action players we have several different manufacturers to choose from when we’re looking for our tanks. Warlord has come into its own recently with better casting, Rubicon is picking up the pace in their offering, and places like Blitzkrieg Miniatures are selling through local distributors now. What about the “Little Guys” though? Followers of the Bolt Action Alliance should be more than familiar with Mad Bob Miniatures through the Hungarian and French armies we all know and love on these pages. Trenchworx, recently interviewed by our own Hauptmann Pittman, is beginning to pick up traction too. There is also Company B, Army Group North, and a few others.

Here, though, we are going to take a look at Die Waffenkammer, a one man operation based in Canada but with global reach. Jeff, of Die Waffenkammer, is busily slaving away to make some of the best resin kits on the market. I hit Jeff with a game of 20 questions, and thought I’d share the highlights so you could get to know him a little better. Interspersed among the questions are pics of some JTFM kits done by the community.


We’ll take for granted that you know about the wait time on delivery (which can really be worth it) and focus on the history and quality here instead. We’ll also take for granted that you’ve read Patch’s article about prepping and painting resin kits (found here, if you haven’t seen it).

Here we go!

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games' Atlantik Wall Terrain Set

I LOVE great looking terrain on a tabletop. There is nothing better in my mind than playing a close game against a good opponent on a table covered with beautiful scenery with fully painted models. It is the perfect combination. 

The problem is that I am stupidly busy and that I am a legendarily slow painter. This means that I am constantly battling my age-old nemesis… time… to get armies to the point that I feel comfortable putting them on the table. This leaves little time to build and paint terrain… This is why I am such a big fan of Gale Force Nine’s “Battlefield In A Box” range. Pre-painted, good looking durable terrain? Yes please! 

Over the years, Warlord Games has also released several excellent limited runs of pre-painted terrain like their “Battle Ready North African House” and this… Their “Atlantik Wall Terrain Set.”

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Bolt Action - Taking The Crossroads: A Closer Look At Bolt Action's Second Edition

For months we, as members of the Bolt Action community, have been subjected to rumour, hearsay and the occasional innuendo about how our great game would change in its second edition.  Leaks of earlier test copies and hints dropped by those who had tried trial versions of the game muddied the waters further. For example a few weeks back, the gentlemen over at Beasts of War recorded an introduction to Bolt Action Second Edition video that was based on an earlier playtest version of the game, meaning it contained a few glaring rules errors when compared to BA's final form. Add change induced hysteria being broadcast loudly by certain members of our online community to the mix and things get even more confusing.

As the great Chuck D says "Don't Believe The Hype!" Make the decision yourself. In my last article, I encouraged folks to kick the tires so to speak and try the game themselves. Wanting to take my own advice, I did the same. Although I have played several "learning the system" games, now that I have gotten my sea legs, I wanted to play a game with the express purpose of recording what has changed and what the implication of these changes might be, for us the players.

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Bolt Action - Review: A look inside Warlord Games' Band of Brothers Starter Set

Today I received my Warlord Games Band of Brothers WWII Starter Set and after spending some time going through it, I wanted to share my thoughts with the community.

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Bolt Action - Review: Warlord Games' Ersatz Panther

During a secret German offensive through the Ardennes towards the end of WW2 (The Battle of the Bulge), Otto Skorzeny daringly dressed his infiltrating German soldiers as Allied troops, with varying degrees of success. His plan was called Operation Greif, or “Griffin,” and the rumours of its existence caused widespread paranoia in Allied troops across the region. In part one of this series, I discussed how I was converting and reequipping US infantry models to turn my existing greatcoat American army into a German infiltration force. As a lover of big tanks, I will be looking at one of the most unlikely infiltration vehicles of all time, Warlord Games’ Ersatz Panther.

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Bolt Action - Review: Knights of Dice Desert Building

Hello again team, for this review I am taking a look at an MDF building kit produced by Knights Of Dice as part of their 28mm desert range. The particular one I am looking at today is called Desert Residence 2 from their Tabula Rasa range and is made from 3mm MDF. This is the first kit produced by Knights Of Dice that I have ever built so I thought it was a good chance to do a review for you guys. The Tabula Rasa range is promoted on the website as follows - 'A range of simple shapes and shells designed for the scratch builders and terrain enthusiast to improve upon, these kits include no instructions so we suggest dry-fitting all the parts before applying glue. Add some bits from your 'bits box' and you can transform these buildings into something only limited by your imagination'

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Bolt Action - Review: Rubicon Models M5A1 Stuart/M5A1 Recce Kit

By Garratt


As far as plastic kits go, we have come to expect Rubicon to produce high quality, easy to construct vehicles. Does the M5A1 Stuart / M5A1 Recce kit live up to the name?

The box states that it allows the choice to build either a mid or late production M5A1 (Stuart VI) with 37mm gun or for those who like a lower profile, the M5A1 (Stuart VI) Reece / Kangaroo.

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Bolt Action - Review: Rubicon Models SU-85/122 kit

I recently got my grubby little mitts on one of the new Rubicon Models SU-85/122 kit and all I can say is, wow! Not enough to go on for making a decision on if you want one of these kits for yourself?


Okay, then I will delve into this gorgeous kit in detail, but be prepared because this is one of the best kits I have seen for World War II yet. Rubicon has been delivering great kits for nearly 2 years now, and in keeping with their previous entries, this kit gives you the option to make two different vehicles, the Soviet SU-85 Tank Destroyer or the Soviet SU-122 Assault Gun.

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Bolt Action - Blitzkrieg Wolverine vs Rubicon Achillies

Back in February 2015, I attended my first ever Bolt Action event. Is was called BAMF and it was a 750 point event where I met some incredible and lasting friends. Bryan showed up with his incredible French to show everyone what the gold standard was. Anf showed up with a multiple vehicle list and freaked me right out! And the LRDG were in the house strong with Old Man Morin running the floor and Lachlan and Dave throwing dice like a couple of furious honchos. At that event I was lucky enough to to win the prize I had my eye on all day, namely the Blitzkrieg Wolverine. 18 months later, and the Rubicon M10/M36 has crossed my desk. So as opposed to doing a straight up review of the Rubicon kit I thought I'd pit the two models against each other and see what's what.

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Bolt Action - Review: Historique Pin Markers

By Casey


Hey guys, Casey here with a review of Historique’s line of pin markers and objective markers. ​I take a lot of pins…I mean A LOT. Players use everything from bottle caps, buttons, glass beads, spent shell casings, bones of past opponents, and the ubiquitous D6 die. I personally like a clean table, when markers start stacking up, it can get a bit chaotic if you are using multiples types of pin markers. I have seen dice acting as pin markers swept up at the end of the turn as well. In my quest for a better pin marker I came across Rob Prince and his company Historique.

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