• Customizer

    They did ‘kinda’ exist… but the problem is that the Red Army used the term in a much broader sense. “Spetsnaz” is the Russian term for special purpose troops. Even today, it doesn’t refer to a specific group like the SAS or SEALs or anything like that, but everything from naval commandos to police emergency response teams. Every branch of the service had spetsnaz troops of somekind during WWII, even the NKVD. NKVD spetsnaz troops were called Osnaz. The Spetznatz was originally a special NKVD unit called OMSBON (Independent Motorized Brigade for Special Operations). They were formed in 1941 during the Battle for Moscow, and their members were recruited from athletes and sportsmen. They were highly trained in a special form of martial arts called Borvovye Sambo fighting, and were also skilled in the use of demolitions. I think for the purpose of creating some cool minis to represent “elite forces” of Russians the term could be used. (info found off web - various sources - but seemed correct after cross-referencing).


  • The Soveit Armed Forces first formed Spetsnaz in 1949. Sure the term has more a general meaning than SAS or Rangers, but the word spetsnaz did not have much meaning in world war 2, especailly in refering to units that were comparable to the US Rangers or Airborne. theiry certainly was noting that was called “naval spetsnaz”, Russian marine units were called naval infantry.

  • Customizer

    Every branch had it’s Special Forces, or elite. The Spetsnaz.  This is more of a linguistics matter rather than a historical one.  The word itself had the same meaning during WWII, this is a fact.


  • OK, so… Naval Infantry…

    Whether or not they were officially called Spetsnaz or whether elite units within them were called Spetznaz, there certainly was a very large NI establishment within the USSR armed forces, 350,000 by at least some accounts, within which was quite a few “special” troops, including both amphibious specialists and paratroopers.

  • Customizer

    Looking forward to seeing the new minis.  :-D


  • We should be seeing something real soon.

  • Customizer

    I’m looking forward to seeing the Osnaz minis in particular…  :wink:

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