Malitania AK47 R

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

And hot off the production line just before Christmas, my scratchbuilt Malinke style mosque as a 7x7inch objective/base...

[Colonel Kilgore]

That is very nice, Neil. And plenty of room on top to place your troops - lovely 

Presumably it's based on a real-world prototype?

Simon

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

indeed...  I discovered this on the interweb - Samatiguila, on the Ivory Coast, part of the Malinke/Mandinka culture.

[Colonel Kilgore]

That's wonderful, Neil. They've copied your model very nicely 

Simon

[Leman (Andy)]

A very nice model indeed.

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

Contemplating another building objective... a former French Foreign Legion desert blockhouse/outpost on a rocky crag... crumbling walls, sandbags, barbed wire, a barrack block, watch/signalling tower and artillery emplacement all packed into a 7" x 7" footprint...

I like a challenge!

Neil

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

W.I.P. shot of my next objective (and a tall one at 6" high, Martin), a Sahel region 'Bordj' - a watchtower designed to police caravan routes. They were often strategically situated on rocky outcrops and made excellent fortified positions for Govt. and rebels alike. Many were adopted as outposts by the Foreign Legion during the French Colonial period and some continued as arms caches, depots and supply points for army and police after independence. Others reverted to civilian use or were robbed for their building materials...
Not much scope on the restricted 8" x 8" footprint except for a couple of ancillary buildings but I hope to squeeze in gate, stone walls, possibly a bit of barbed wire, sandbags and an artillery emplacement/sangar. Access to the tower will be by stone/brick steps...
Designed to fit neatly inside a Christmas panettone box!

[Colonel Kilgore]

That tower would look good in a Sudan game too, Neil

Simon

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

Absolutely, the Sahel encompasses that desert fringe right across Africa from the Atlantic Coast to the Red Sea. Watching a doc on Chad it struck me how similar the scenery was there with Mali, Niger etc. Just as well the Mahdi never had access to Toyotas!

Neil

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

Another template - this time a desert village comprising 4 adobe buildings in the Sahel style. Almost finished apart from a few details and homely touches to give them a lived-in look...

Neil

[Colonel Kilgore]

Very nice, Neil - you're getting rather good at these 

I particularly like the rainwater channels, which are an additional dimension relative to what we are used to seeing in other such models.

Simon

[martin goddard]

Good job there Neil.



martin

[Moggy]

Very nice collection you are building up there.

Derek

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

A couple of days on and the Sahel 'bordj' / outpost is nearly there... some small details to paint up, some highlighting and then set dressing with scatter and vegetation. One of the additional bits and bobs is a tube in the watchtower ramparts to take a flagpole which can be swapped out for whoever is occupying the outpost at the time...

Neil

[Colonel Kilgore]

I like it!

Simon