The Great Bugout

I have spent some time studying the Korean War as of late, since it can be argued that this particular conflict provided most of lessons that should have been learned when it comes to post-1945 conflicts. As a small project after a modeling hiatus I decided to depict two US GIs as they encounter some of the havoc and carnage, including a frozen comrade right in front of them, that occurred during "The Great Bugout", i. e. the massive UN retreat from North Korea that took place after China entered the conflict during the winter of 1950-51.

The figures are from Dragon's US Battle of the Bulge Airborne Troops, but with Tamiya weapons, one Hornet head and one Verlinden head crowned by a Soviet-style fur cap that the BAR gunner might have picked up to replace his own headgear. The same soldier has also managed to liberate a Nagant revolver just in case the BAR runs out of ammunition. The hills of North Korea were, by all accounts, very cold, windy and nasty in general, and this has been reproduced by plaster of paris, baking soda and some odds and ends that were placed into the plaster before it settled. The mold did bulge a bit while settling, so the base isn't the exact rectangle I hoped for, but it will have to do. Some of the photos of the vignette were taken with flash, some without, with the former perhaps simulating the dazzle of illumination rounds overhead.