Truth be told I’m already mostly done with the whole reinforced platoon, but here is my first 100% put-it-in-the-box complete squad for my 509th paratroopers.

They proved quite easy to paint. I blasted through the full base platoon in a weekend and finished up the supporting elements across a week. Now I have everything based and just need to finish the rims. Time has worked against me but I should have it all together in time for a post next week.

I intentionally built this squad to represent any of the American squad types presented in the base Chain of Command V2 book. That’s why there’s both a BAR (the single man on the red base) and a full LMG team.

I have enough of both to flex the force between the paratroopers, standard infantry, or armored rifle platoons. While the inspiration is the 509th paras, I wanted the ability to use the platoon across multiple settings as I pleased and experiment with the large variety that exists between the differing American force structures. It’s quite impressive and Chain of Command is the exact game where you see these differences come out.

The BAR based platoons end up feeling more mobile and able to move quickly across the battlefield. The more LMG based platoons still have that same mobility but the LMG allows you to setup stronger fields of fire which opens a different set of options to you as a player. It’s genuinely interesting.

By now you’ve likely noticed the colors on the bases. I use base size and color to help quickly identify the models. Red bases (which I now see I need to go over again–I hate painting red) indicate machine guns and BARs. Blue bases are Junior Leaders, with the olive green being Senior Leaders. My mortars and other “support” weapons will be yellow rimmed.

And yes, I do love that my Senior Leader gets a doggo. It’s a fun detail and helps him stand out on the battlefield even more.

I’m really happy with how these came together. The uniforms were done by airbrushing a base color, then dry brushing up, which really helped to distinguish all the details, like the pouches, which are the same base color as the rest of the uniform. The remainder was a simple process of going down a color path: brown, green, flesh tone, metal. I finished with a quick pure tan highlight of the arm straps and a dry brush on the helmets to make the details pop. Boom, easy. Just enough for interest and the group looks great on table.

This gentleman is a good example. The highlights on his pants and pouches look almost intentional but they’re really not. Drybrushing remains the best shortcut in modern miniature painting by far.

A final example. I realize now I forgot one other quick step: I did a T highlight on their faces using a lighter version of the skin tone. That’s where you highlight the nose, cheeks, and chin. It looks garish at first but once the wash dries it really comes together and makes faces pop with ease. Huge improvement over my old faces.

More to come on these boys. The only big part of the project left remaining is the Shermans, which I should have done over this weekend if everything times right. Life has been a bit hectic lately, so getting even this squad 100% complete is something of a relief and accomplishment. Little wins, dear reader. Little wins.

Small scale victories, you might say.

I’ll see myself out.