Yesterday, I received a massive haul of miniature plastic from Amazon. The Stalingrad 2-player set from Bolt Action. Wow, there is a ton of toy soldiers in this box. Here is what Warlord Games includes.

• Ruined MDF factory
• Barmaley Fountain
• 5 resin craters/shellholes
• 3 resin barricades/rubble
• 3m of barbed wire
• Sd.Kfz 139 Marder III
• T34/76
• Soviet Sniper team
• 56 plastic Soviet infantry
• 42 plastic German Army infantry

Also included were a couple rule and scenario books, build instructions and some unit cards to ease play, some decal sheets and damaged vehicle markers.

The contents of the box were as advertised. Although the sprews were not bundled together and my German and Soviet troops were thoroughly mixed together. The resin pieces were nicely covered in bubble wrap for protection. The MDF securely covered the bottom of the box. My biggest complaint came from the items in the box not fitting tightly. Part of the mixing of factions but it also caused several torsos for the German winter troops to fall from the sprew and just be loose in the box. I was a little annoyed that there were 6 sets of winter Germans but 4 sets of Winter Soviets and 2 sets of regular.

One of my favorite parts of Warlord Games models is the clearly labeled sprew. Each section had German Infantry (winter) or Soviet Weapons clearly stamped into the sprew. Something very consistent across all Warlord Games lines. Compared to a Games Workshop or Atomic Mass Games this is really helpful when leaving a project and returning to it weeks or months later.

Best Parts of the Box

Terrain. The MDF ruined buildings are way more sturdy than you would think. The resin barricades are nice, and the fountain is cool. I wish there was a little more elevation or platforms in the buildings.

The scenario book is nice and unexpected. The scenarios are designed to be used with the box and is a nice touch.

Worst Parts of the Box

German unit variety, no HQ’s or MMGs, or Flamethrowers. A huge miss here that I think really hurts the new player. Especially the lack of a machine gun when that is a German special rule.

Soviet Winter/Summer split. I get having all German units as winter garb, but the Soviets should have followed suit instead of being split.

Building instructions. I play a ton of Games Workshop, and their instructions are typically easy to follow. These were not especially for the infantry.

Packing quality. The items need to be secure in the box. They just do.

Who is This Box For

While typing this review, I have to say this is my biggest question mark. It is not good for the New Hobbyist; the instructions are far from clear and instead of saying piece one glues to piece two etc it gives you a sprew with torsos legs, arms and weapons and says glue together. I think someone brand new to the hobby would really struggle with this product. It kinda seems designed that way as well because it is a battlefield in a box and the included scenarios are very simple.

The Stalingrad box set is also not good for new players. On the Bolt Action website, you are encouraged to build a platoon with MMGs, Snipers, Anti Tank teams, mortars etc. This box doesn’t include any of those. No artillery, no HQs it is just infantry. I think this is a real miss for Warlord because it seems like this is a box that is designed to be open and play for two players.

Stalingrad is also not a great box for returning veterans of Bolt Action. Generally you buy two boxes of 30 troops each, a tank and the weapons teams when you are starting out. I have I think only needed more than 60 infantry twice playing Bolt Action. One was a simulation of D-Day on a 20ft long table with 10 players and 3,000+ models. The other time a friend wanted to do a Thin Red Line style game where half the Soviets didn’t have guns and they simply rushed the German entrenched lines. Long story short, most seasoned players don’t need gobs of riflemen.

Verdict

I have a tough time recommending this box to anyone. If you want the MDF buildings and could use the troops or have someone split them, go for it. If you are really into Stalingrad, by all means. Otherwise, I would have to suggest a pass. There are better options for your money. Even the terrain, you can just go on Etsy and buy what you need fully painted for less.