Intelligence Handbooks

Diving Eagles and Hitler’s Fire Brigade

by Bill Rutherford

Diving Eagles: Intelligence Handbook on German Airborne Forces
Hitler’s Fire Brigade: Intelligence Handbook on German Armoured Forces on the Eastern Front

These two guides are introductions to their respective subjects, designed for Battlefront’s Flames of War miniatures rules but quite usable on their own with other rules sets. Production values are quite high – each volume is approximately 50 pages long, book-bound, with stiff card pages. Interior color is used extensively wherever it will add value. Diving Eagles includes a five-page introduction to the Fallschirmjagers, 13 pages of heavily annotated organization diagrams down to the fireteam level, four pages of guidelines on conducting an airborne or glider assault, a four-page scenario based on the assault on Crete, and two pages of equipment notes and statistics for Flames of War. There are also a couple of pages detailing Warriors – those troops with exceptional initiative, etc., (e.g., ace command teams) to merit their own special rules. I cannot comment on the rules themselves, as I’ve not been able (yet) to obtain a copy! The organization charts are oriented towards building gaming units – with companies as the largest units detailed. Several pages of excellent color photos round out the book. This may sound like filler and nothing else but I guess I’m just a sucker for nice pictures – they’re well taken, well laid out, informatively annotated, and they do a lot to get one “in the mood”.

Amongst the color pages are a page of basic painting instructions for 15mm troops a la what you’re used to seeing in a Games Workshop publication (hey – this is a compliment!), with step-by-step annotated photos showing progressive amounts of detail added. There are two pages of color uniform notes complete with sketches, and there’s a page on painting camouflage on 15mm troops. A two-page article at the back of the book – and you know, much of the contents have the “feel” of articles, each addressing a different topic within the broader topic of Fallschirmjagers – details scratch-building and painting (complete with color plans) a German DFS230 assault glider. Finally, in case you’re not inclined to carve yourself a glider, you get two paper DFS230 glider kits printed on good quality card stock – you cut them out, glue them together, and you’re ready to go…

Hitler’s Fire Brigade is similar to Diving Eagles in overall organization; there’s a six-page introduction to the Panzer forces on the Eastern Front, 17 pages of panzer and panzergrenadier organizations (company on down), a page of interesting panzer ace rules that could be applied to other rules sets, five pages of equipment notes and Flames of War statistics, as well as fortification and engineering rules, and the previously mentioned Warrior rules. A two-page scenario “The Big Push” provides an opportunity to use many of the rules presented herein. All of the comments previously made about high production values apply here. The color section’s moved from the back of the book to the center – lots of detail shots of 15mm miniatures over several pages, with annotation, to give the reader an idea of what’s possible.

A page of detailed painting instructions takes one through the finishing of a Panzer III and should be required reading for anybody painting vehicles in this scale. There’s another page of instructions on painting 15mm troops – similar to that in Diving Eagles and just as good. Also, there are a number of vehicle profiles to illustrate the evolution of panzer camouflage on the Ostfront and the uniforms of the troops. Instead of gliders this time around, you get a back-printed page of card minefields and breaches…

If you’ve been gaming WW2 miniatures forever you will probably not find much that’s earthshaking and new in either of these books. Their value lies in the “Wow” factor. They each provide a well-written, well-illustrated introduction to their subject matter, include concrete suggestions on how to get started, and are just plain fun to read. Give (OK - loan) one of these to a prospective gaming mate and if you’ve not hooked another one, it’ll be because s/he didn’t open the book… Thanks are due to The Last Square for the review samples. These books should be available from better quality game stores; if you can’t get them locally, visit The Last Square on-line at http://www.lastsquare.com/, by phone at 800-750-4401, or by mail at 5944 Odona Rd, Madison, WI 53719. Recommended! (Can you tell?)

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