John Brown's Painted G1940 Set - by Spitfire38

To all of the players, customizers, and fans of Axis and Allies;

John Brown, a frequenter of this site that many of you are familiar with, has commissioned me to paint his Global 1940, 2nd Edition, set. He has done extensive research on all of the different schemes and features he wants for his pieces, and it’s my job to bring these pieces to life! This thread will contain all of the photos of the finished products once they are completed, and will be a place for discussion with John, myself, and fellow players.

Please feel free to pitch in your comments, suggestions, and findings!

Happy Browsing!

Spitfire38

John has requested that we begin with the Japanese forces. I have begun work, and will be sharing all of the photos once they are completed. As you can see, John has a mix of HBG and OOB pieces. There are Vals, Tonys, Oscars, Kates, Ritas, Bettys, Zeros, and Topsy Turvy transports. They make for a diverse and intimidating force of contention in the Pacific! So, without further ado…

JAPANESE AIR FORCE
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Flat Green Scheme

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Khaki Scheme

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Mainland Striped Camouflage Scheme

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Guacamole Scheme

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White Zero Scheme

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JAPANESE NAVY

The Japanese navy was a long and hard task, due to the size of the fleet as well as the schemes chosen. However, I am very happy with how they turned out; it is my best naval work to date. There’s nothing better than a mighty fleet to rule the seas! John has a mix of HBG and OOB pieces, with a lot of historically recognizable ships in the carriers, battleships, and cruisers.
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IJN Disruptor Camouflage
[Task Force, Aircraft Carriers, Battleships, Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines, Transports]

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Wood and Steel Scheme
[Task Force, Aircraft Carriers, Battleships, Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines]

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JAPANESE INFANTRYMEN

Ships and planes are nice, but there’s no replacement for boots on the ground! With these fierce soldiers, you can command the Pacific from the Dutch East Indies to Pearl Harbor. The main infantry are OOB, while there are 4 HBG paratroopers from one of their Japanese sets.

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Island Drab Uniform
[Standard Infantrymen]

[Paratroopers]

Parade Formation

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JAPANESE GROUND FORCES

The metal clanking of treads and the roar of diesel engines characterizes this latest batch of forces for the front. There are Chi-Ha and Ha-Go tanks, Ho-Ha mechanized infantry, Type 94 trucks, AAA to defend the skies, and artillery to support the advance of the infantry!

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Mainland Camo
[Armor, Mechanized Infantry, Trucks, Artillery, AAA]

Parade Formation

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@CWO:

Impressive work!  I take it that “guacamole scheme” wasn’t an official WWII Japanese term for this particular paint job?  :lol:

Yeah, the Japanese never made it all the way to Mexico, so I doubt “guacamole” was the official denotation ;) Coincidentally, “guacamole” is the name of the paint color that I used. It must be a good descriptor!

Thanks guys!

My personal favorite are the planes in the flat green scheme - when I get around to painting my own (a long time from now), I’ll definitely use that scheme for many of them. It’s so iconic, and it has a lot of contrast between the roundel and the fuselage.

Reserved post for German troops.

Reserved post for American troops.

American P40 Warhawks
The terror of the skies… The plane in the back mid has the stars and bars, while the others have the standard early war USAF roundel. The teeth and eyes on the nose of the plane are hand-painted.

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UNITED KINGDOM EUROPE AIR FORCE

The RAF’s performance in the Battle of Britain is perhaps the decisive event of the European Theater that blunted the tip of the Luftwaffe. These planes will certainly wreak havoc on the Axis navies when they see a game board!

It turns out that decals are more visible on dark backgrounds, which is disappointing. Beyond that, I am very happy with the way that these color schemes worked out!
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Striped Desert Scheme

[Stirling, Lancaster, Halifax, C47 Skytrain, Barracuda, Mosquito, Swordfish, Hurricane, Spitfire]

Night Raider Scheme

Traditional European Striped Scheme

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UNITED KINGDOM EUROPE NAVY

The British navy. Though it is often destined to be destroyed on G1, these ships will serve the Crown with distinction when they enter play. While the disruptor camo of the Pacific pieces was more difficult to paint, there is a subtlety about gray that works well in the English Channel. I kept the yellow and white tips of the carriers to keep them associated with the UK even though they lack the wooden decks of the Pacific navy.
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Atlantic Ocean Gray
[Aircraft Carriers (2), Battleships (2), Cruisers (2), Destroyers, Submarines, Transports]

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UNITED KINGDOM EUROPE INFANTRYMEN

The British infantrymen saw lots of combat with memorable appearances in North Africa, the Italian campaign, Arnhem, and the assault on Normandy. Known for their exemplary training and marksmanship, they were a force to be reckoned with!

This was my first time trying a mottled scheme for infantry uniforms and I really like how it turned out. I will be applying these to my own pieces, as well as an altered blotch scheme to John’s US Marines in the Pacific.
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European Olive Drab
[Normal Infantrymen]

[Commandos]

[Paratroopers]

Mottled Amoeba Scheme
[Normal Infantrymen]

[Commandos]

[Paratroopers]

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UNITED KINGDOM EUROPE GROUND FORCES

While there may not be many photos of the pieces, do not underestimate the British ground forces. They proved tenacious in the protracted conflict against Rommel in North Africa - look closely enough and you might see the dust and dirt on the desert-worn pieces!
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Hedgerow Green Scheme
[Churchill, Matilda, Valentine, Priest, Kangaroo, 25 Pounder Artillery, Anti-aircraft]

Desert Stripe Scheme
[Churchill, Matilda, Valentine, Priest, Kangaroo, 25 Pounder Artillery, Anti-aircraft]

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UNITED KINGDOM PACIFIC AIR FORCE

This air force was quite extensive! I don’t know much about the history of the RAF in the Pacific, but they were certainly active against the Japanese at various points. John incorporated some neat sculpts into these forces, my favorite being the Halifax and the Hurricane. I was really hoping that the Hurricane would make it to us, and thanks to Historical Board Gaming, it has! The gray and green scheme was a historically accurate scheme, and will certainly be making it onto my personal pieces when I get around to painting them.
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Mottled Blue Scheme and Gray Green Scheme

_[Strategic Bombers: Stirling, Lancaster, Halifax]

[Transports: C47 Skytrain]

[Tactical Bombers: Barracuda, Mosquito]

[Fighters: Swordfish, Hurricane, Spitfire]_

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UNITED KINGDOM PACIFIC NAVY

The British navy… it’s finally here. Known for its ability to project naval power, the UK Pacific navy is a very formidable force to stand up against the Japanese. I’m excited to see these pieces make it onto the board. I have a soft spot for wooden decks, so I was glad when John chose a wooden deck scheme.

Deepwater Disruptor Camouflage
[Aircraft Carriers (2), Battleships (2), Cruisers (2), Destroyers, Submarines, Transports]

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UNITED KINGDOM PACIFIC INFANTRYMEN

Some of the most amazing stories of World War II come from the exploits of British infantrymen in the jungles of the Far East. Think long range patrols in Burma, the whole scale surrender of Singapore, and others.

These pieces are a pretty standard khaki in line with the sculpt and British uniform standards. On my personal pieces I like to include a few different skin tones to incorporate the Territorials that the British included in their ranks (Ghurkas anybody?). I forgot to ask John about that though - perhaps in a future nation or set!
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Far East Khaki
[Normal Infantrymen]

[Commandos]

[Paratroopers]

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UNITED KINGDOM PACIFIC GROUND FORCES

I like the dark tones of this green camo, and the new HBG sculpts were so fun to paint. The detail in the Valentines is incredible, and the profile of the Churchill leaves no room for error - the heavy tanks have arrived!
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Double Green Jungle Stripe Camouflage
[Churchill, Matilda, Valentine, Priest, Kangaroo, 25 Pounder Artillery, Anti-aircraft]

Reserved post for Russian troops.

Reserved post for Italian troops.

CHINESE FLYING TIGERS

The Flying Tigers was a group of American pilots who volunteered to fly against the Japanese to defend China prior to the American entry into the war. Trained in Burma, these pilots were fearsome opponents to the Japanese. They came to be characterized by the shark’s teeth painted onto the nose of the plane.

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CHINESE INFANTRY and ARTILLERY

The Chinese fighting against the Japanese consisted of both Communist soldiers under Mao Zedong and the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-Shek. This unlikely alliance managed to exact a heavy cost from the Japanese on the Chinese mainland. These fearsome men are depicted below in a Nationalist uniform.

Nationalist Uniform

ANZAC AIR FORCE

The ANZAC air force played their part in fighting the Axis powers in the Pacific Theater. To this end they fought with Boomerangs, PV-1s, Bristol Beauforts, and Topsy Turvy transport planes. The greens and browns of the ANZAC make for a nice contrast with their distinctive roundel. How nice they’ll look facing off against the Japanese Zeros around the Dutch East Indies!
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Flat Green Scheme

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Blotted Camo

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Sky Camo

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ANZAC NAVY

The ANZAC navy has their own sculpts now in the 2nd Edition of Axis and Allies Global 1940. John requested a three tone disruptor camo. Keeping in line with the blues, whites, and grays of the ANZAC forces, I gave them a camo that will keep them from enemy detection until the right moment!
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Tritone Camo
[Aircraft Carriers, Battleships, Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines, Transports]

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ANZAC INFANTRYMEN

The ANZAC infantrymen, or Diggers, were heroes in the South Pacific. Their sculpt depicts them with their distinctive hat and their packs, ready for battle! I enjoyed painting these very much.
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Dusty Drab
_[Normal Infantrymen[/i]

Paratroopers

[Commandos]

_[Complete[/i]

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ANZAC GROUND FORCES

While they don’t make it off of the ANZAC islands much, they can sure look good while they hang out in the Pacific! I particularly like the Kangaroo mechanized infantry sculpt in this camo scheme.
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Bush Camo
[Armor, Mechanized Infantry, Artillery, AAA]

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