Accurate Miniature Equivalents for Custom Painting your 1940 E&P

Hi, I wanted to share the table I built for my A&A 1940 2nd Edition game board. I also built the model airplanes. The two pictures are my grandfathers in WW2, one was an airplane mechanic stationed in England and the other was a tank commander in the 3rd Armored Division Spearhead. Those are their flags adjacent to their photos.

8deda8fc-f6b8-43e6-9244-515ed6b20f70-IMG_20220605_065218765_HDR.jpg

5229b8b8-8f23-4334-be86-461082dedcd2-IMG_20220619_074454796 (002).jpg

Nice work @ari236

@Playing-Kid said in My First Custom Map:

You can use Gimp as a great free software to make your maps

And I agree with Gimp. That’s the tool I used for working on my map files.

Thank you both so much, I feel a lot better about painting now.  :-D

IL didnt you say you know or saw a picture of people war gaming on a banquet room floor or bigger and the guys would make attack and defend shots from many feet away for naval battles ?

Well sorta of. They would roll a huge d12 for atomic bomb hits and people were going bonkers. That was for The War Game: World War Two

Thank you for the positive feedback! I forgot to say that in the previous post, and it’s very important that I do. It’s very encouraging and motivating to get good feedback, and we certainly appreciate it. The above mentioned four Essex class carriers are complete, a long with several other ships of the US Navy, so its time to update the thread. Just ships by FOlewnik in this post. More aircraft are almost done but I haven’t put magnets in them yet (so not really done), so no aircraft pictures this post.

We’ll start with the two “odd men out” of the HBG sculpt Baltimore Class Heavy Cruisers. Why “odd men out”? Because in the below picture we have on the left, the USS Unnamed Baltimore Class Cruiser Wearing Measure 31a, Design 9C, and on the right is the USS Columbus (CA 74), which wasn’t commissioned until June 8, 1945. The cruiser with the long name is wearing a design that was never used, but was taken from a period design found at https://www.wikiwand.com/en/World_War_II_US_Navy_dazzle_camouflage_measures_31,_32_and_33:_cruisers. The USS Columbus is wearing a Measure 12 Modified designed by FOlewnik to match the pieces we’ll be using for the US Atlantic fleet. These will get aircraft added, but at the time of the photographs the decals on the wings of the aircraft were drying.
DSC_0510a.jpg
DSC_0511a.jpg
DSC_0512a.jpg
Pattern_sheet,_MS-31a_9C_for_Baltimore_class.jpg

Next up are some metal destroyers from GHQ. Below on the left, the very brave USS Johnston (DD-557) painted in MS-3_/6D as it looked when it was “Sunk by Japanese Warships off Samar October 25 1944,” and next to it is USS Van Valkenburgh (DD-656) painted in camouflage Measure 31, Design 9d. All Wartime photos taken from Navsource.org, a great resource for US Navy history buffs.
DSC_0514a.jpg
DSC_0515a.jpg
DSC_0516a.jpg

Below, the real USS Johnston shortly before her final battle, and the official design sheet:
DSC_0516a0555715.jpg
Pattern_sheet,_MS-31-32-33_6D_for_Fletcher_class.jpg

A great wartime picture of the USS Van Valkenburgh, which is the same on both sides:
DSC_0516a0565603.jpg

Now on to these two. From GHQ, USS The Sullivans (DD-537) painted in Measure 1, and the HBG sculpt light cruiser USS Marblehead (CL-12) who always wore Measure 2 throughout the war. If I can get FOlewnik to put the Shamrock on the first stack of The Sullivans when he puts the scout aircraft on the Marblehead, as seen in the below wartime photograph, I’ll come back and edit the post.
DSC_0520a.jpg
DSC_0522a.jpg
DSC_0519a.jpg
DSC_0520a0553740.jpg
DSC_0520a0401208.jpg

The post previous to this post showed four Essex Class sculpts from HBG getting prepped and started with a base coat. Those are now completed and I had too much fun playing with them and the aircraft (that are complete so far) while I was taking photographs. I’m pretty sure I didn’t make any wooshing sea or aircraft noises or FOlewnik would have laughed at me. I was tempted though, and here’s why:
DSC_0524a.jpg
DSC_0525a.jpg
DSC_0526a.jpg
Above we have the first of the Long Hull Essex Class, USS Ticonderoga (CV-14) on the left looking as she did after her April 1945 refit from suffering a Kamikaze Attack on January 21, 1945, and USS Bunker Hill (CV-17) on the right. The Bunker Hill is wearing Measure 33, Design 6A, of which Navsource says, “Her port side camouflage pattern was the most intricate design applied to any carrier.” One glance can confirm that!
DSC_0526a021772.jpg

The final two Essex Class carriers are the USS Essex (CV-9) herself, and the USS Bennington (CV-20). The Essex is wearing a unique pattern, Measure 32v6, Design 10D, adapted from a destroyer pattern specifically for the long hulled Essex. The Bennington is painted in Measure 32, Design 17A.
DSC_0527a.jpg
DSC_0528a.jpg
DSC_0529a.jpg
DSC_0529aPattern_sheet,_MS_32a_17A_for_Essex_class.jpg
DSC_0529aUSS_Essex_(CV-9)_in_MS_32_6-10D_camouflage.jpg

Finally, some group pictures just for fun:
DSC_0531a.jpg
DSC_0532a.jpg
DSC_0533a.jpg
DSC_0534a.jpg
Thank you for checking out the post! If you liked it, please click the little heart. I’m trying to figure out why our post is only rated with a 2 when it seems it should be a bit higher if the other likes are any indication.

let me know if you want to see the rest…

Battle Markers - Units - Sea - US - close up.jpg
Battle Markers - Units - Land - Germany - 2.jpg

Oops. We’re playing a game tonight. My son noticed there’s no number 50.  :-o
LOL -I know what I’m fixing when this game is done. Guess I just didn’t want my age on the score chart.  :roll: