Bolt Action - 11th Armoured Division showcase

Hello everyone and welcome back to the channel and a showcase video all about a recently completed Bolt Action project - an 11th Armoured Division list using the British and Canadian D-Day Sectors book by Warlord Games.
The project was inspired by a gift sent to me and it all went from there! It is quite a relative small list that is certainly focused on the armoured side with a fair few tanks and vehicles backed up one infantry section.
In the video I will show you all of the bits and pieces that make up the platoon and how I approached each individual part. The full list is as follows;
HQ - Humber Scout Car
2 x Sherman V
1 x Sherman VC Firefly
1 x Late war British infantry section
1 x Halftrack transport
1 x Cromwell cruiser tank
If you enjoyed the video, please give it a like and consider subscribing to the channel for more gaming goodness!
I'm also on;
Instagram: on_point@hq
Twitter: @point_hq
You can also join our Facebook group - / onpointhq
Credits;
First Time Experience - Nate Blaze

[@TheGreatMim]

Excellent job, funnily enough I started with the same vehicle. I wanted it for Joe Vandeleur and my Operation Market Garden plans. Representing the XXX Corps, I went with EasyArmy unit Guards Division Battlegroup. Unfortunately it doesn’t actually feature this vehicle, but would it be Ok to shoehorn it in if I count the points?

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy, much appreciated! I would imagine it would be quite easy to add it to any list as long as your opponent was aware and happy for you to run it that way. At the end of the day it's meant to be a fun game and I certainly wouldn't have any issue with it 😀

[@danbuman8422]

Wonderful army Ste! I particularly like the halftrack. Great work!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Dan! I was really happy with the halftrack (despite constantly snapping the machine gun barrel) and the canopy certainly gives it an individual look 😀

[@rich_john]

Great work. Love weathering just the right balance.....I've got my armoured recon platoon nearly done, but mine is based on 2 daimler armoured cars. Looking forward to using it, but for holding ground I think I'll go for 2 squads of infantry. 👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Rich and definitely agree about the weathering, its very easy to go way overboard with it. I'll be adding a second unit of infantry eventually, possibly Royal Engineers, as I don't think this list would perform well in its current state 😀

[@rich_john]

@@OnPointHQ would be good for taking ground, less so for keeping it👍

[@stevesandford1437]

Steve, you ALWAYS get the perfect balance between a mini or model that will function as a tabletop 'playing piece' and enough detail to make them VERY CLOSE to 'showcase standard' military models that would very likely place in a modelling/painting competition... (I'm sure half the skill in doing that is knowing when to STOP faffing about!!!) As a modeller/collector in 28mm though NOT a gamer, I'd be REALLY HAPPY to have work of this quality on my display shelves. Also and as usual you ALWAYS give your viewers info and tips as to how you research available sources in order to achieve the 'match perfect' results you present with the mins and models. A PERSONAL FAVOURITE???? Though loving what you've done with the 'Firefly', (which looks like an altogether 'bigger brother' to the 75mm Mk 5s) I'd probably go for the M3 Half-track!!! The addition of the canopy is EXACTLY the kind of modification a crew in the field might add or cobble together... Again, that MODELER/HISTORIAN's attention to detail and accuracy. Top Quality kit, Mate!!! xx SF

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Steve, much appreciated as always buddy! I think you're spot on when you mention knowing when to stop as I think is what can make or break a good model. Too much can certainly become overly busy and easily detract from what you were originally intending. Of all the vehicles from this project I probably spent the longest on the half track! I knew that I wanted it to look a bit different but couldn't settle on what and then it was deciding what height the canopy was going to be. Lots of advice from the FB certainly helped and I was proper chuffed with the overall result. Overall it wasn't too difficult but getting to a place where I was happy with the build was the difficult part! 😀

[@stevesandford1437]

@@OnPointHQ ONE of the reasons I favour 'historic' modelling as opposed to 'fantasy' or 'Sci-Fi' stuff, (though I've no problem with people who enjoy that!) is that THE RESEARCH will draw you towards investigating real history... In your own posts your genuine enthusiasm and passion for history shines through! It's really entertaining!!! Thanks for the reply!!! REALLY look forward to your posts! xx SF

[@MiniatureRealms]

Another awesome looking army mate.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Stu, much appreciated buddy! A very enjoyable project to work on and something I'm definitely going to be adding more too soon. Really enjoying these smaller Bolt Action lists 😀

[@theenigmaticgamer]

Well done Ste. I love the detail you include in your work. The bases look excellent as indeed does the whole project. Inspirational!

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Keith, very kind of you! Alongside kitbashing, I think adding small details like weathering or stowage is another of my favourite parts of the hobby. I mean it would be really easy to just build as is straight from the box but I always like to have armies that are individual to me 😀

[@dariostabletopminatures]

7:15 Great Sherman! Got myself an Easy 8 with Brad Pitt on it from Italieri. Building it soon!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Dario! The ones that I used for this project were the Sherman Troop from Warlord Games. Really lovely kits to assemble. I really enjoyed the weathering on these and was able to add quite a lot of detail 😃👍

[@smoothbrush4722]

Nice army, i like the Cromwell, the firefly the most, nice that you didn't over wash the figures.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Lucian, I think this is probably the first Cromwell I've built at any scale but it was a great kit to work on. Definitely agree, that's certainly going to be my approach painting infantry from now on 😀

[@BootsontheTable]

Brilliant Ste. Great looking vehicles…. Germans next?

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Dom! Those Shermans were really enjoyable to put work on. I think so yeah, looking at a few theatre selectors from the Western Desert and Soft Underbelly books but nothing decided yet 😀

[@Salty_Sassenach]

Great project 👍 Is the tank an A34 Comet in the b & w photo??? Would love to do a similar project with British winter troops etc

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you! Yes you're spot on, that is a Comet in the pictures in the introduction. I think a winter version of this list would be really pretty interesting to model 😀

[@lesliebeilby-tipping6854]

Its the dancing hands again tonight. Lovely Humber scout car, we never put as much stowage on the vehicles as you see in the wartime photographs. Are you going to add the transfers to the arms of the infantry? No cork on the vehicle bases for this force. Well done Ste, see these at Crack Con?

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Leslie! Definitely agree, I would love to add that amount of stowage to a tank at this scale for the sheer realism! I think I'm taking a German force to Crack Con but I shall certainly see. Eventually I want to add unit markings, it's just a case of tracking down the right ones 😀

[@davidramauge1686]

I understood the number of véhicules is limited in the BA rules... No?

[@OnPointHQ]

Hi David, yes you're correct. Each Bolt Action army is built using an individual theatre selector. These are based around both different periods of the war but also a specific campaign or battle. Each theatre selector will normally allow a single tank, armoured car, tank destroyer etc with usually more transport options. This can differ between nations and theatre selectors. There is also the Tank War supplement that allows you to field a lot more tanks and vehicles 😀

[@Icubanick1993]

Since I didn't see anyone else mention it, what paints and colors did you use? I love the olive green of the tanks and the infantry uniforms

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you! The base colour for the tanks is Vallejo Olive Drab followed by a dirty black/brown wash and then a couple of layers of drybrushing. For the uniforms I use Vallejo English Uniform, add a darker wash to the recesses only and then highlight again with English Uniform. A few people have asked me to make a video about how I paint British infantry so this is something I'm definitely looking at 😀

[@scalemodelinc.6077]

Really great looking unit there Ste, figures and vehicles look great!

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Corey, much appreciated! I'm definitely a fan of these smaller Bolt Action projects as I can focus on a good mix of both infantry and vehicles which always keeps it interesting 😀

[@BrushQuill]

Lovely looking force Ste. I know what you mean about getting carired away and forgetting to film lol

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Cal! Yup, I was going to break this down into another four video series but I really flew through the first three quarters so there wasn't much point after that! A really enjoyable project though 😀

[@theministryofminiatures]

Great looking army! Well done.

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you, I really enjoyed working on this project, especially the vehicles, lots of scope for weathering and stowage. It was also good researching the history of the 11th Armoured Division 😀

[@raypetrie1158]

Great selection of armoured vehicles of the 11th armoured division, but you missed out the bren gun carriers, which were used in the recce platoons

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Ray! I'm planning to expand on this project soon and will definitely be adding some Bren Carriers 😃

[@raypetrie1158]

It will be good to see the bren carriers. My Dad was a bren gunner in 9 (Scout) Platoon ' G' Company 8th Rifle Brigade part of 11th Armoured Division.

[@liberator2408]

Great video, just subbed

[@OnPointHQ]

That's awesome, thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video, this was a really interesting project to work on and and Shermans were particularly enjoyable. I'll be doing a follow up video about the additions I'm planning to make 😀

[@aledroberts6580]

Ste they look awesome and great use of stowage and a few ideas I may nick for my 15mm :). How do you do you headlights ? As minor details like that make a massive difference to the overall model ?

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Aled! I think most of the techniques that I use at this scale could definitely translate to 15mm. For the headlights I use Vallejo Dark Blue applied with a 000 brush. Sometimes they get slightly obscured by the weathering pigments but it brings a sense of realism to it 😀

[@aledroberts6580]

@@OnPointHQ thanks Ste I will give it a go:)

[@ModellingforAdvantage]

Nice to see these guys. They look great.

[@OnPointHQ]

That's awesome cheers! A thoroughly enjoyable project from start to finish and with it being a fairly small platoon it allowed me the time to really concentrate on it 😀

[@basicminiaturepainting]

They all look superb ste

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Justin, much appreciated! I'm really pretty happy with how the infantry turned our as I hadn't painted British uniforms for years 😀

[@patneale8837]

Cracking job Ste...

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Pat, much appreciated! I've already started adding some more units to this so another update video will definitely be made 😀

[@Paul1970]

Very nice paint job, sir!

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Paul! A few people have asked me how I paint the British infantry uniforms so I'm definitely considering making a video on the technique that I use 😀

[@darrinstanaway8943]

Mate awesome looking job so far for the project 👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Darrin, much appreciated buddy! This was really enjoyable to work on and the Shermans were super kits to paint and detail. Definitely have plans to add more and will certainly showcase the new additions in a video 😀

[@darrinstanaway8943]

Enjoy your channel just subscribed recently but you have some good content 👍

[@basement1908]

Slayer and mud!!! That's awesome Ste 👌 Thanks for sharing 👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Steve,it is indeed a wonderful combination! Very happy with this project and I will definitely be adding more units to the platoon 😀

[@josephvanuxem9671]

Awesome

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Joseph! I really enjoyed putting this project together and I'm aiming to add a few more bits and pieces to it later this year 😃👍

[@oldschoolfrp2326]

Nice, the bocage debris on the cutters immediately places these in Normandy without being overdone

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you! I wasn't sure if the clump foliage and mud combination would dry or work properly but I was really chuffed with how it turned out. Definitely something I'll be using on future Normandy projects 😀

[@lionheart3916]

Great work ste that’s a fantastic force you have.I really like the scout car and the Sherman’s

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy! The Shermans were definitely a lot of fun to put together and I really enjoyed sourcing reference photographs for the weathering and stowage. Always adds to a project 😀

[@FrostRare]

Omg the dozer blades with the mud clumped up is an incredible touch.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Gabriel! I knew when I first added the dozer blades that I wanted to add some type of mud to them but wasn't sure how to actually do it. The clump foliage and mud was a really simple way of doing it and it looks fairly authentic 😀

[@d.p.mdavepaintsminis5811]

Amazing mate and tanks with stowage and dirt just make them look balls deep in it ! 👍👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Dave, much appreciated mate! I think sometimes with adding mud and stowage it's very easy to add too much that detracts from the vehicle itself. Very happy with these though 😀

[@granapriego]

Great work Ste.

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Anthony, much appreciated! This was a really enjoyable project to work on and I'll certainly be expanding on it 😀

[@stacypierce3335]

Very nice

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Stacy, very kind of you! I really enjoyed working on this and I'm already expanding it with a few new units and ideas 😀

[@samabrahams7687]

The tanks look fantastic real nice attention to detail wish i could do them to that standard. Very nice indeed sir.

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Sam! I have always found that when adding details to a tank or an armoured vehicle, it is all about getting the right balance. Too much mud, weathering or stowage can detract from the overall look 😀

[@vonketteringham]

Great looking project 👍👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Fraser! You don't get a lot of British veterans for 1500 points......I'll definitely be expanding this to 2000 points soon 😀

[@TheEccentricMan]

Great work as always Ste!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Ken, much appreciated! I think I started planning this around the same time as your Canadian project. Always good to see others working on similar projects 😀