A Pair of 88's

This was my last official submission to the Analogue Painting Challenge and for me it was something of a 'belt and braces' entry as I have already reached my target (or I will when the bonus round points are added). I have literally run out of units to paint both for my WWII North Africa project and my Punic War project...I guess I'll just have to get online and treat myself! My last entry is something of a mish-mash of vehicles and guns from different manufacturers that sort of makes a cohesive unit but frankly doesn't conform to any army list.

First up are two Flak 88 Anti-Aircraft guns deployed in an anti tank role. The Germans were quick to realise that their powerful Flak gun could not only hit aircraft at high altitude but it also gave them incredible hitting power over very long distances horizontally. High velocity combined with flat trajectory and a wide flat landscape made these guns absolutely lethal in the desert. The preferred tactic was to set up the guns in prepared positions and draw British tanks into range by using their own tanks as bait. These guns have a few 'kill rings' painted on their barrels to show that they have already been effective in a previous battle. 

Supporting the 88's are two groups of additional Artillery crew. I couldn't fit the guns and crew on my normal sized base (at this scale I use small FOW bases) so I decided to mount the crews separately. The 88's are from Heroics and Ros while all the Artillerymen are by GHQ. 

I have also painted a command stand consisting of a commander and radio operator next to a Kubelwagon. Also present are two Kfz15's, a Kfz 17 radio car and an SdKfz 7 half-tracked truck.

Five Vehicles, two artillery pieces and sixteen infantry figures netted me a final 20 points to add to my total. And that's me done for this years Challenge. Its been great fun but utterly exhausting!