Box to Battlefield: Bolt Action 3rd Edition Starter Set Edition
by Dave XAVIER
Give us a little introduction to yourself and your hobby history with this hobby:
I featured in the 2020 Paint All The Minis Annual and I presented another box to battlefield which was the La Haye Sainte Collectors Edition by Warlord Games. I painted over 170 Miniatures plus quite a bit of MDF and resin terrain. It was a huge project and back then I had loads of free time. Fast forward 5 years and I now have a little boy and I need to make time to hobby. I have been involved in our hobby since the very early 1990s. I was a huge fan of HeroQuest, Rogue Trader, Warhammer Fantasy Battles 4th edition and Warhammer 40k Second Edition. I have been in and out of the hobby over the years but have been on a 10 year hobby streak since returning to it again.
So what exactly are we looking at here?:
This is the Bolt Action Third Edition Starter box by Warlord Games. There are 24 US Army Infantry, 18 German Fallschirmjager Paratroopers, a US M20 Scout Car and a Ruined Farm House for terrain. All up there is 42 painted miniatures, a nice vehicle and a little bit of terrain to add to the table.
What drew you to this particular project?:
I have been a big fan of Bolt Action since the games 1st Edition. I have been collecting, painting and playing the game for over 10 years now. I really love the Battle of The Bulge campaign and already have a number of painted models for the period so this was a huge drawcard for me to purchase the box set as opposed to just buying the rules separately. I have read many books about the campaign from both the German and American perspective. I love the winter theme and its great to model snow bases, white washed vehicles and cold terrain,
Which miniatures range(s) did you use to create this force/collection and why?:
Everything you see is included in the Box Set with a few small exceptions. I have done some very subtle conversions to some of the infantry. I have made a medic for each side. The German medic has an arm from the original release Warlord Fallschirmjager kit and a US red cross decal on their helmet. I have used a few bits from other German Kits to create variety such as an alternative arm carrying ammunition. This was from the Warlord Waffen SS kit. The US medic has a scrap piece of 3d printed material as their bandage. The M20 scout car crewman is from the included US Infantry sprue and the stowage on the vehicle is from a variety of bits I had laying around. The bases for the terrain are scrap 3D printed rafts which would have been binned otherwise, one sadly has ever so slightly warped but its not very noticeable.
Did you paint all the minis for gaming? And if so, are there particular rules sets you will be using to play with them?:
These are all painted for gaming, I don't display any of my thousands of painted miniatures, yes I have painted thousands of miniatures over the years! These will predominantly be used for Bolt Action but I also like to dabble in Battlegroup, Chain of Command, Ultra Combat Normandy and my own generic solo rules I have written.
Do you have some favourite units or models in this force?:
Warlord plastics have improved immensely over the years and I pretty much like all of these models. I particularly like the 3 man MG42 squad, the medics and the crewman I made for the scout car. I have a bias for the Germans as they were fun to paint, characterful and loads more interesting than painting a uniform over and over again. If I had to pick only one model it would be the German Officer. He is loaded up with gear, carries an Assault rifle and he has a certain swagger about him
How was the experience of working on this project? How long did it take you from opening the boxes to being ready for the battlefield?:
It has taken me about 4 months averaging about 30-60 minutes a day to get this project done. The longest part was clipping and assembling the models. The painting was pretty straight forward and it was basically the only project I worked on given the very limited time I had.
What challenges came up while working to complete this project?:
The two biggest challenges for this project was making time and sticking it out. Making time I will address in the next section but I will expand upon what I mean by sticking it out. Painting World War 2, let alone any uniform army can be repetitive and monotonous. Painting the same colour over and over again can be at times a little boring but you just have to stick it out and focus on the end prize… painted miniatures!
Could you share your tips for staying focused and motivated on these large painting projects?:
I broke this project up into 4 parts and did one after the other, almost immediately moving onto the next part once what I was working on was completed. The 4 parts were:
1 Assemble and Paint the Fallschirmjager
2 Assemble and Paint the ruined farm house
3 Assemble and Paint the M20 Scout Car
4 Assemble and Paint the US Infantry
I did the Fallschirmjager first as I deliberately did not want a uniform looking force and I wanted a grizzly veteran look to them with no two figures being the same. I used a variety of uniform combinations mixed with different poses and weaponry. They are probably not historically accurate but I think mine look far better and are more representative of the Ardennes Campaign than the box art. All too often hobbyists follow the box art, I am guilty of this but this time around there was no way my Fallschirmjager were going to be painted mostly white.
I already have a M8 Greyhound for a vehicle so I decided to build the less seen M20 variant. I decided to add a miniature from the included US infantry as a crewman. This adds character to the vehicle and makes it more fun to paint. I always planned to paint the US Infantry uniformed as this is accurate to the period and made the “assembly line” painting technique come in handy to get without a doubt the most monotonous and visually repetitive part of the project done.
As time is precious to me these days, I would take whatever chance I had to just paint a little bit here and there and formed a habit. I often found once I got started painting it was hard to stop as I often found myself in the zone of hobby creativity.
Did you employ any particular painting techniques to help speed up the process of painting all the models?:
I employed the “Army Painter Method” just like I did for La Haye Sainte back in 2020. This is my go-to painting technique, essentially it is, prime, block in base colours, wash the entire model, then go over the blocked-in colours with highlights. I almost always skip a lot of detail in my painting by focusing on painting areas that will draw the eye away from what I have put little effort into. For example, I always put detail in faces by painting eyes, cheeks and lips. I don't bother highlighting jaw lines and chins, as this creates a nice unshaven look. I also pick out details like equipment buttons, etc, to draw the eye away from places I have put almost no effort into, such as shoes, belts and boot garters.
Did you use any podcasts, films or music to accompany your painting sessions?:
I always have something on in the background whilst doing a hobby session. My go-to is YouTube and Spotify. I mostly keep it hobby-related. I will usually play a lengthy YouTube video around 30 minutes in length or listen to a hobby-related Podcast, either on YouTube or Spotify. I do occasionally listen to non-hobby-related podcasts, but this is rare.
Was there any particular modelling or painting techniques you tried for the first time on this project? :
The only thing I did differently was on the US Infantry great coats, I wasn't happy with the highlights as they were quite bright so I dulled them down with a coat of The Army Painter soft shade. I also used Vallejo Diorama FX snow ground texture for the first time. It's a pretty nice product.
Any other tips for those reading at home, thinking of tackling a large project like this?:
Back in 2020, I said, “You just need to get on with it”. I still stick by this. It's easy to sit at the hobby desk and procrastinate. What I found was that you need to set small achievable goals and you need to create habits. Being a dad, I have to make time. Free time is a luxury of the past for me, and in time, I will slowly get it back, but in the meantime, I make time! Sometimes I found I had a spare 15 minutes. Instead of doom scrolling on the phone, I got 10 minutes of hobbying in. That all adds up, and as previously mentioned, this forms a habit. Getting to the hobby desk each day felt exciting and rewarding. This kept me motivated, and before I knew it, here we are… the box set was complete!
