Battle of Sidi Bou Zid, 1/35

[Nikola Topalov]

Hi all,

For my first shot at making a diorama, I will try to depict the German Afrika Korps (DAK) units just before the battle of Sidi Bou Zid which took place in Tunisia in 1943. 

"In February 1943, Tunisia witnessed some of the fiercest fighting then taking place in WWII. Allied forces were advancing on the Axis troops from both east and west, while the Italians and Germans clung tenaciously on.
Sidi Bou Zid was a small village in the vast expanse of the desert. Normally it was an obscure place, but it sat near the end of the Faïd pass, one of the routes through the mountains dividing Tunisia.
The allies held the village. The axis wanted it back".

This is also the time when I will be painting figures for the first time.

Since I am currently building Tamiya's big and very complex 1/32 De Havilland Mosquito, this will be a side project which means it will take some more time.

Some of the stuff I plan to use:

 

And some yellow sand which I "borrowed" from the corrida in Ronda during my vacation in Spain.  A souvenir which will be built in the diorama. 

 

Some reference photos for the terrain:

 

[Nikola Topalov]

Exploring the initial composition with main elements - Tiger I, Panzer IV and a tent (with two rocks which I also brought form Spain):

 

[Nikola Topalov]

Exploring the position of the tent and the radio operator:

 

[Nikola Topalov]

Testing regular tile grout filler as a potential base material:

[Nikola Topalov]

Little progress...

The colors will not be exactly like this in the end as I will have to connect elements with similar tones, especially stones, both large and small. They were gathered from various places and in the end they have to work together tonally and be convincing. And here I have to stop more or less until I finish the tanks to a certain point.

I need the tanks so I can position them properly amd press them nicely into the base while it still hasn't fully hardened, so that they have "weight" effect in the end. I can make track marks with tracks alone, like I did next to the tent, but since I'm working on the lower surface all at once, then it makes more sense to wait for the tanks.

The base will then receive various paint layers,, filters, dry brushing and washes for full effect.