Making an Air Raid Shelter

To use up oddment bits in the box of cardboard and foamboard, I decided to make an air raid shelter ...

Basic core of the structure  made with foamboard on a cardboard base...

adjusted height a bit and tried to cut a sloped edge ....

Brick paper added, and some concrete flooring paper added as well

Supports for the earth covering sloped sides...

sides added ...

wood filler used to smooth over the top....

ground surface added, using an off-cut of green cloth and scatter added as needed ... a couple of close ups...

fits in nicely with the radar installation setup...

Down at Malachi's Cove ....

continued form the previous post ....

Cynthia, Falconer and the german air men had arrived at Sopley farm, not far from their pick-up point at Malachi's cove. Cynthia and the Falconer considered their options. Across the moor by foot to the cove or down the road by van and smash through the road block perhaps? Would their pick-up be there on time ? Plans made they set off, it was still dark .....

Cynthia took the air men and set off across the moor, a roving patrol passed them by some distance away

Cynthia and the air men had made it across the moor; meanwhile Falconer was driving the lorry across the moor towards the coastal road...

They crossed a field as the lorry approached the check-point near the junction with the coastal road ...

Falconer got out of the lorry, leaving the engine running (to create distraction noise); while he talked to the home guard men manning the road block...

While Falconer was at the road block, Cynthia and the air men crossed the road (after a motorbike/sidecar passed by)

They were soon across the next field and getting near the coast; Cynthia waited by the fence as a two man patrol passed by ....

Falconer, once through the road block headed off to safety down the coast road. As Cynthia got ready to make the signal, the patrol came back - she ducked down behind the tank trap; the patrol stopped looked around then carried on .....

As the home guard patrol moved on, Cynthia signalled out to sea

The inflatables from the waiting U-boat headed towards the signal ...

With the inflatables on their way in, Cynthia headed back inland; as she crossed the fence she fell and let out a cry. A roving patrol nearby came over to investigate....

The wire had been cut by a couple of the U-boat crew and the air men starting making their way through. Cynthia got up but the patrol had reached her - Halt ! she didn't, shots were fired ...they soon captured her.

The shooting attracted another roving patrol, they could just see men moving by the barbed wire...

One of the airmen fired at them, the patrol returned fire and the air man went down; the patrol then opened fire on the rest of the airmen and the U-boat crewmen as they were getting into the inflatables..

Another german airman was hit and dropped to the ground; however the inflatables made their way out to sea paddling furiously; the patrol was on the beach firing at them, but missed .....

After what seemed an age the inflatables reached the waiting U-boat - they had got there (with the critical air recon photos).  Once on board the captain issued the order Dive ! Dive ! Dive !...

Just in time the U-boat slipped under the waves, as a coastal patrol boat approached ....

the patrol boat didn't see them; the U-boat set course for France....

The search is on ...

Patrols have been doubled near the coast...

Calling HQ: all clear on coast road ....

A few scouts help in the search ....

Calling HQ: Sopley farm checked, nothing seen so far on Sorbiton Heath.....

Down at Malachi's cove the home guard patrol the low cliff ....

Warehouses ...

 Mulling over a possible game set in the environs of a harbour I realised I was short of suitable dockside buildings. A couple more warehouses were needed.

I bought a Gaugemaster OO/HO warehouse kit,  I made it up into two warehouses, filling in the missing walls/roofs with cardboard pieces. While I was in building mode I decided to extend a low relief building into one the same width as the warehouses.

The initial build ...

I photocopied the front of the low relief building and made up some image files to print, so that I could have a similar brick sheet and the front elevation to cut up as needed.  The 2nd phase of the build with the roofs added, warehouse fronts painted and the printed paper sheets cut up and stuck on as needed.

Finished off front ...

and back ....

British: 20mm Naval Landing Party & 28mm Generals/VIP

Slowly getting through some of the items for future games ... 

Some 20mm British Naval Landing party figures from Elheim Miniatures

28mm British  staff officers and VIP....