My initial plan for my French force was a pretty generic one. I didn't know enough about the composition or equipment used by the French, nor did anyone I know personally. Peter Pig sold French Foreign Legion infantry in their AK47 section and I had previously found the vehicles that Irishserb sold on his website. With that I started rolling onward.
I was lucky to quickly find the book Paras 11e Division Parachutiste French Paratroops Today on eBay. It must not have been a big seller for the guy, because despite only ordering (and double-checking paying) for one, I received every copy he was selling. It is a French/English book from 1989 about the 11th Para Division. Inside was a treasure-trove of pictures, explanations and most importantly: a breakdown of the platoon/squad. With this information, I decided to base my force on the 3rd Marine Parachute Regiment (3e RPIMa) and set about ordering up the figures I needed. It was 2016, but 1989 wasn't that long ago right....
While waiting I continued looking into things, following up on other sources I had. Only to find out that due to the restructuring of the French army in the late 90s, the Division became a Brigade. Still composed of it's various Regiments with their own specialties and equipment. Then in 2016, the 11th Parachute Brigade (11e BP) was swallowed up and placed in the newly reformed 3rd Armored Division (3e DB).
So what changed during all that? A lot. Beyond the hectic collection of unit acronyms that (understandably) require the original French name to follow, the 10 man squad was down to 7. The French olive Uniform F1 was no more and they wear a couple of uniforms (T3, T4 S2) based on the Central Europe (CE) camouflage patterns. These have separate designs for both temperate, desert and tropical regions. The French Foreign Legion has a webpage and a whole tab dedicated to the breakdown of ALL the uniforms they wear. Over this they also wear body armor, that can come in a brown, green or camo. These don't appear to be region specific as soldiers in the same picture often have different colors on.
In the end it dawned on me that I would have to paint camo in 15mm. This isn't a task that I was up to perform on larger models, much less on a platoon I can carry in my hands. (insert copious amounts of dread)
Equipment-wise the iconic FAMAS is on it's way out. The miniatures I ordered had the standard FAMAS F1, which thankfully is still in service along with the NATO standardized FAMAS G2. But also present is the FELIN (Integrated Infantryman Equipment and Communication) system which adds some pretty large optics and camera to the gun. The newly selected HK 416 has already started phasing out the FAMAS, so it's only a matter of time before the figures won't fit for the most recent of conflicts.
The LRAC 89mm anti-tank rocket is also largely gone from service. Being replaced by the single-use AT-4 (ABL in French service) and ERYX ATGM for use against short ranged armor threats. The MILAN is still in use for longer ranges, although it is also being replaced by their new MMP.
The FR-F1/FR-F2 armed marksman is no longer part of the squad. Instead a pair are part of the platoon command group.
Using all this information, I went about the task by doing absolutely nothing. It wasn't until February of this year (2019) that I would finally overcome my procrastination and paint them.
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| Almost there... |
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| ….almost there.... |
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| it's away! |
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The squad consists of 7 men. A 600m team, a 300m team and a squad leader. The squad leader
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The 300m Team and the Squad Leader
The two taller figures are from QRF, the shorter are Peter Pig
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**I should note that in many of the pictures from operations in Central African Republic, Mali, Ivory Coast, ect, show little uniformity to who has optics and aiming aids. Some pictures show only a few of the infantry, some almost all, and many no one has any at all. My assumption is that it more relies on what is available at the time
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The 600m Team
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(Again, there is no uniformity from what I've seen. Often the minimi LMG is equipped with the J4 too)
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MILANs
These are from QRF, but actually are from their German section
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I ended up painting two platoons worth and have a number of extra figures for weapon/vehicle crew members, mortar teams, casualties, and whatever else I might need beyond those. After shaving down the force to the modern sizes, I have a ton of extra figures left over. I need to find another country that uses the same equipment so I can put them into use.
If I were to do it all again, I would probably use QRF for the infantry. I think Peter Pig makes a better figure, but they just don't provide all the options that I needed. I can't blame them because their games down really dive into the minutia that I sought out. Their figures also look based on the late 80/90s style, while the figures sold by QRF are current. They even offer FELIN FAMAS troops. Originally QRF did not have as many pictures available, I remember buying the AT-4 troops without having seen them. Looking at them now, and having used them alongside my largely Peter Pig figures on the table, the sharper detailed Peter Pig figures don't really stand out from a wargamers perspective.
Now that Battlefront is selling French under their Team Yankee, there are more options available. They are solid figures but are also dated by their uniforms and equipment. I bought two platoons of them, so eventually I'll get around to adding an 80's French army to my current and generic UN force.
Great article on the french army.
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