Monday, October 24, 2016

Soviet 307th Rifle Division Headquarters & Headquarters Company: RAPID FIRE

The first "unit" completed as part of my RAPID FIRE Ponyri Station project is the Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) of the Soviet 307th Rifle Division.  In RAPID FIRE terms, this is a 10 figure unit along with a transport section (per the USSR Soviet Forces Handbook issued to US Troops in 1946, I have also used the Nafziger Order of Battle for a Soviet Rifle Division and Regiment in Summer, 1943.).

Command Group and Staff poring over the battle maps along with security.
 One of my favorite aspects of Rapid Fire is that I get to tinker with "real world" Orders of Battle in order to produce forces for a game.  In this case, Ponyri Station and the fight for Point 253, the 1st May Collective, and Ponyri itself.

Comrades we attack here at dawn.  Let's use 4, no, 5 battalions of artillery against this strongpoint!
 Now that the Division HQs is done, I can focus more on the Rifle Regiments themselves, each with 2 full battalions!  After that I'll work on the tank units and finally the guns of the Soviet god of war!
Pyotr Pig-ski, commander of submachine gun troops would like a vote.  Rifleman Davidovich clearly doesn't recognize him.  "Where are your mold lines, comrade?"
The phone relay station for the Division HQs.  Call now!  Operators are standing by to deny your request for support, comrade!
 The table got messed up when assembling it as some of the spray paint nicked off but I thought that actually looked really cool - the metal field desk table with chipped paint.  I thought it gave it character.
Unload these boxes from the truck.  When you're done, load all of them back up.  After that, rest, then unload them again comrade!  


The entire HQs and HQs Company.  10 figures
Finally, the Division HQs travels in style in their Zis-3 truck section (5 trucks or so in RF speak).  For the life of my I could not figure out where the Soviets got their air defense units from because in the lowly Rifle Division, I could not find much.  Anyways, the transport section for the Division Main HQs is complete as well.  (Bob McKenzie's Ponyri Station Scenario for Command Decision has the units at Regt and Division loaded with AAA support.)

Surprisingly, this is Krylon "light olive" washed with "agrax earthshade" and drybrushed first with a 50/50 mix of reflective green/khaki, then just khaki.  It looks like a dirty jalopy.  In other words - PERFECT!

my daughter dropped him and the suspension broke, so I put some shrubs on there to hide the issues with the rear suspension.  We couldn't let the Division Commander walk, could we?



Next up?  Well have to finish some more VDV but otherwise the HQs and HQs company for the 1019th Infantry Regiment must be completed!

20 comments:

  1. Looking forward to seeing rapid fire againb. Some wonderful models there.

    When are you trying Rapid Fire MOdern :)

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    1. Not soon enough Darren! The "able archer" supplement is awesome and comprehensive.

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  2. Hi Steven,
    Looking great so far. That is quite a project.
    Is RF your "go-to" rules for larger WWII actions?
    I've seen many battle reports for RF and Spearhead, and could never pick one over the other. I have experience of Command Decision (2 I think), but I find it too complex for my tastes now. I got FiveCore's Brigade Commander, but it looks like it may also have too much for me to remember. I want to enjoy the carnage, I mean game, not flip through rules.
    Regards,
    John

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    1. John,
      If youre talking about BIG battles, i think Rapid Fire wins hands down as it gives you the best of both worlds, plenty of fighting with a good, clean turn sequence and a good ability to handle lots of troops on the table. Im an OOB nerd at heart so the ability to use real TOEs is very appealing to me.

      There are some complications to RF but mostly in the way the rules are written, not necessarily in the rules themselves if that makes any sense.

      RF was never my favorite set of rules but their suitability for large battles is instantly apparent. They are a big win over 1:4 rules where a stand is a platoon like GHQ or FFT or Spearhead. RF still gives you a feeling of tactical granularity while maneuvering big units and the results are realistic. My own thoughts are that RF is o e of the best out there for "big games" to refight battles.

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  3. Excellent progress, great paint jobs and great subjects. You know how much I love the peripherals of war: the trucks the command posts, the logistics. This is all modelling and painting that I can tip my hat to! :-)

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    1. Thank you David. I will take a screen shot of this hard-earned David F compliment! ;)

      I think you and i are alike in that department. It's fun researching the unit and its many support functions. I cannot wait to get the rest of the lads painted up.

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  4. I like the look of these.

    We only played the original Rapidfire a short while when it came out but had some good games and I liked the ability to field multiple whole battalions as well support units and fimish a game.

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    1. Thank you Ross! Thats what im liking more and more about RF. That it can handle "big" units easily. I also think it plays pretty quickly now.

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  5. Love your command posts, absolutly superb!

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  6. Great looking stands mate. I use the same scrub technique to hide faults on my stands.

    I've played Bobs Kursk games with Al and Dave Russell in CD3. The AA assets did not count for much as I remember, once I rolled into Ponyri Station.

    Good times and a surprising win for me!

    Keep up the good fight!

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    1. Paul,
      You may or may not know this but the Ponyri Station inspiration came from your game with Al. Same with covering the truck suspension defect. Im a Plastic Warrior fan at heart!

      Ill probably model the AA at the regimental level just to give the fly boys something to sweat about.

      Model on!

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  7. Great stuff mate - Those Command stands are the bomb!

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    1. Thanks Paul! Hoping their infantry desant look just as good

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  8. Great work. The vehicles look particularly well done.

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