So this week’s News Stand is going to be a little bit truncated. I’m currently elbow deep in Broken Arrow, a game that fully releases on Thursday and lets you play with all the toys of an Ultramodern battlefield (as well as some prototypes, such as my beloved Comanche). So, as I take a break from mass deploying SOCOM’s finest in big pushes behind enemy lines (and then usually using them in scenes that would make Modern Warfare 3’s campaign look restrained), let’s quickly go over this week’s news!
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Spectre Miniatures Previews MENA Militia Leaders
First up, Spectre Miniatures has shown off another preview of the upcoming MENA Militia releases over on Patreon. This set is the Command set, giving you several experienced and charismatic fighters to control your forces. There is a good mix of figures in this collection, ranging from those carrying trophy guns pulled from the battlefield (such as the FN SCAR-H, Daniel Defence AR15 and a bullpup PKM with ammo backpack) to those more visibly commanding with all the tools of the job – megaphone, mobile phone or captured AR with M203 waved aggressively overhead.
As with the rest of the MENA Militia range, this set will be included in the monthly release for Direct Action tier Patrons, and then later released on the Spectre Miniatures store as STLs or physical products.
Austin Miniatures Prepares Death From Above On Kickstarter
Austin Miniatures is preparing to launch a new Kickstarter. Death From Above will bring you a set of modular VDV troops, designed based on their gear used during Afghanistan in the 1980s. Among the stretch goals are several other nations for the era, letting you expand your operations to include infantry from West and East Germany, Soviet Motostrelki, US Rangers and British Infantry. Based on the description, this should be similar to the last set we saw, giving you head, arms and equipment options. No current date is available for the Kickstarter, but there is a preview page you can sign up for.
(I would have posted a nice full colour group shot but alas, that is only available as a slowly rotating video on Facebook)
As an adjacent update, Red Jungle (the Weird Vietnam game that Austin Miniatures is working on alongside BattleTribe’s Matt Rendar) has also been showing off the Soviet War Wolves that will be included in the game. These feel like the next step up from Warlord’s Konflict 47’s werewolves, mostly because these guys also include some with PKMs, truly a concerning prospect for your MACV-SOG. More details when this set launches.
BobMack3d Deploys The LAV-75… Sorry, HSTV-L
BobMack3d has continued preparing for the AirLand Battle Kickstarter that is launching on July 4th. And this week, they previewed a vehicle I was not expecting to see brought to the tabletop (although, seeing as those Team Yankee players have it, it makes sense to be available). The High Survivability Test Vehicle (Lightweight) was a light tank that (in a pattern we see emerge literally every time the US Army tries to build a light tank, yes I am using the M8 AGS and M10 Booker in Broken Arrow how did you guess) was called for development, developed, ended up being too heavy for the task despite the comprises they had already made and then cancelled. The HSTV-L (also known as the RDF-LT by Team Yankee fans and the LAV-75 for Twilight 2000) is a light-weight vehicle carrying a 75mm autocannon and capable of slinging sabot and high-explosive rounds on a vehicle capable of driving at 50 MPH. It was also intended to be a lightweight tank that, along with the FAV buggy that has also been announced for this Kickstarter, would have supported the Airborne troops in Europe if the Cold War had Gone Hot before the heavy troops arrived.
It also slaps as a visual, a tank that is unique in visuals and something different for the tabletop. If you’re interested in getting one for your own table, you can sign up for the Kickstarter on its preview page.
Flank March Studios Engages At Broadside 2025
Flank March Miniatures, also preparing for its Reforger Kickstarter on 4th of July, has been out and about and showing off the figures that will be included in the Kickstarter. Last weekend at the wargaming show Broadside down in Kent, Flank March and Full Metal miniatures turned up with a small-scale skirmish using Battleground HD, showing an American Infantry platoon assaulting a Soviet position (with only one squad under player control unless something went wrong). There is a great blog post up showing the game off (detailing 5 games over 6 hours) over on the Flank March website, including the fantastic board they set up.
If you like the troops shown above, The Reforger Kickstarter launches on the 4th of July and you can sign up for the preview page right now.
Combat Octopus Prepares CommieBlocks and Covert Operators
Combat Octopus has revealed what he’s been up to outside of the latest figures he’s been working on. Turns out he’s about to launch a brand new project, and as someone who has in the past 24 hours dropped plenty of ordinance on them, having a Series 121 commie block on the table is something I am definitely looking forward to. The project, compatible with OpenLock, is going to give you a modular and easy-to-store terrain piece, including a playable interior. With 60+ tiles, there should be plenty of awesome terrain pieces coming from this setup once it’s out. If you want to sign up for updates, you can find it over on MyMiniFactory, including a link to sign up for the premarketing page.
That’s not all – for the loyalty reward, Combat Octopus has been working on a female covert operator. The Covert figure is now done, a civilian in nice clothing with a very large bag. The Overt version? Well, we’ll see what SMG she is keeping in there. More details coming soon.
Right, I’m going back to Broken Arrow, see you all next week. Don’t forget to sign up for the Patreon (details below).
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