Germans in Foxholes

I'm currently playing the Abbeville Chain of Command campaign. The first three scenarios of this campaign have the British attacking the Germans, while the following scenarios have the Germans attacking.

I'm currently finishing my 1940 German platoon to replace the one I'm currently using, that's not really mine, is Bill's. I'm hoping it will be ready for the next battle.

Since the Germans will be in the defensive, I thought my opponent could use some fortifications.

Trenches in the tabletop are somewhat of a problem, since you can't cut into the surface. There are basically two methods to do them, that I'm aware of. One involves elevated fortifications, very popular to represent WWI trenches. This method is quite simple.

The other method is a bit more involved and you have to cut your miniatures in half. There are great examples in John Bond Blog and in The Tactical Painter Blog.

This second method is much better in my opinion, but for some time I was reluctant to cut my miniatures in half. It's hard enough to get miniatures in Uruguay to be cutting them in half to use them in something so specific as trenches.The solution came with 3D printing.

First step was to cut the miniatures in half, but not with a knife, with a 3D editing software. Then I got two sections printed. I also added a small hole in the bottom to insert a tiny rare earth magnet. The idea is that each miniature can be individually removed as the unit sustains casualties. The only exception was the MG34, that is glued to the trench. It's usually the last figure in the LMG team to be removed, and because it's a bit fragile, it's better to remove the whole foxhole and replace it with an empty one.

I then measured the size of each foxhole using the miniatures and cut approximate shapes of magnet sheet from an old calendar. Using old sprue parts, I built an edge.

Next step was adding some volume with spackle.

When it was dry, it was covered with the mix of sand I use to base my miniatures.

Then it was just a matter of priming and painting.

Last step was to add flock and they are ready for the next battle.