Warlord Games

The men of the Kriegsmarine were often asked to do more than serve at sea. U-Boat and ship crews could be found in land actions in many theatres, wearing their trademark blue sailor’s uniforms or the grey-blue U-Boat leathers as they took the fight to the enemy. The German Navy (or Kriegsmarine) had the peculiar battle honour of being involved in the first action of WW2 and also its last. Infantry units of the navy, equipped with Wehrmacht weaponry and wearing their trademark dark blue uniforms and steel helmets, assaulted the Polish port of Danzig in the opening action of the war and, five years later, flew into the maelstrom of Berlin, landing in parks and on lakes using seaplanes or any other available transport aircraft. This time they were equipped with panzerfausts in an attempt to stave off the avenging Russian armour. They formed at least three divisions and some regular army officers were placed in the units to give them the value of their experience. They frequently fought under their usual officer, so a unit could be led by a Korvettenkapitän or U-Boat commander. They fought in Poland, Narvik, Russia, Dieppe, Arnhem, many of the cut off German garrisoned ports, as well as Holland and Berlin. The Welsh 53rd Division fought them regularly in Holland and found them full of fight, giving them the nickname of the "Blue Devils".

Blitzkrieg HQ German officers were capable and often experienced leaders. Junior officers were trained to undertake the role of their own immediate superiors, enabling them to use their initiative to take control of situations when necessary. Blitzkrieg Medium Machine Gun Team The Germans were equipped with two excellent machine guns in the MG34 and rapid-firing MG42 – known to Allied troops as ‘Hitler’s Buzz Saw’ because of its distinctive noise, or ‘Spandau’. Unlike other armies, the Germans used the same machine gun both as a squad weapon from its bipod and as a tripod-mounted support weapon. The tripod mount provided a much more stable firing platform and made it easier to keep up a sustained fire using a belt feed. Blitzkrieg Medium Mortar Team The standard German medium mortar of the war was the 80mm Granatwerfer 34. It was a very effective and accurate weapon that could provide longer range, on-call fire support. It had a maximum range of 2,400 metres and could maintain a rate of fire of 15–20 rounds per minute.

Marrying the obsolete but reliable chassis of the Czech-built Pz 38(t) tank and the captured Soviet 76.2mm PaK 36(r) L/51 anti-tank gun, the Marder (Marten) provided the Wehrmacht with a potent self-propelled gun. These captured Soviet weapons were rechambered to accept German 75mm PaK 40 ammunition and avoid supply issues. As the war progressed, the main guns were replaced with the PaK 40 anti-tank guns. This box set contains:

• A 1/56th scale hard plastic Marder III tank destroyer
• Bolt Action stat cards
• Full-colour waterslide decal sheet
• Vehicle damage markers
• An instruction leaflet

Deployed on both the Western and Eastern fronts, the Marder III also saw action in North Africa where it was one of the few German options to counter the heavily armoured British Matilda infantry tanks. This vehicle can also be used in games of Achtung Panzer!, the game of close-quarters tank-on-tank combat. Its rules can be found in the Achtung Panzer! rulebook.

Amongst the most feared tanks in the Second World War, the mere mention of the name 'Tiger' was enough to cause panic amongst Allied armoured formations. The Tiger was hurried into action on the Russian front as a response to the heavier Soviet tanks that had caught the Wehrmacht unawares. Its massive square body and rounded turret was an intimidating sight to enemy tankers. The armour was tremendously thick and made of quality steel, making it largely invulnerable, at least frontally, to anti-tank fire. Its potent 88mm gun was a deadly weapon, effective against enemy tanks up to three kilometres and also firing a lethal high explosive shell. This vehicle can also be used in games of Achtung Panzer!, the game of close-quarters tank-on-tank combat. Its rules can be found in the Achtung Panzer! rulebook.

This Bolt Action set contains 1 x German Heer HQ (Winter), 1 x German Heer MMG Team (Winter) and 1 x German Heer Medium Mortar Team (Winter). German Heer HQ (Winter) German officers were capable and often experienced leaders. Junior officers were trained to undertake the role own immediate superiors, enabling them to use their intuition to take control of situations when necessary. An officer unit consists of the man himself and can include up to 2 other men acting as his immediate attendants. Because of the high quality of the majority of German officers, the Bolt Action rules rate them as regular or veteran. German Heer (Winter) Medium Machine Gun Known as "Hitler's Buzzsaw" on account of its high rate of fire.  The MG42 fired 1250 rounds/minute, more than twice that of the British Vickers Machine Gun and American Browning.  Add this tremendous firepower to your Germans and give your infantry some much-needed support. Unlike other armies, the Germans used the same machine gun both as a squad weapon and as a tripod-mounted support weapon. The tripod mount provided a much more stable firing platform and made it easier to keep up a continuous fire using a belt feed. German Heer (Winter) Medium Mortar Team The Standard medium mortar for the Germans in WW2 was the Granatwerfer 34. It was a very effective and accurate weapon that could provide long range, on call fire support. It's crew could carry it in 3 pieces: base plate, tube and bipod. With enough ammunition it could maintain a rate of fire of around 15 to 20 rounds per minute out to a maximum range of 2,400 meters.