The German army's real edge was often its sergeants. The Wehrmacht built its tactics around Auftragstaktik — "mission command" — in which a leader was told what to achieve and left to work out how, trusted to seize the moment without waiting for orders from above. That philosophy demanded first-rate junior leaders, and the German NCO corps, long and hard trained, delivered them; a good Unteroffizier could hold a shattered position together or turn a local success into a breakthrough on his own judgment. The MP 40 in this NCO's hands marks him as one of those section leaders, carrying the close-range firepower — and the responsibility — of the men who actually ran the fighting.

The figure runs forward with the MP 40, greatcoat streaming, steel helmet low, driving his section on. Group him with the kneeling MP40 Grenadier and the Grenadier Directing with StG 44, against his opposite number in the same decentralized style of command, the American Company Officer.

W. Britain model 25232. 1/30 scale (approximately 60mm), matte-painted metal. Single foot figure on a sculpted groundwork base. Boxed.