Reviews: May 2014 Our regular, monthly round-up of what's new on the hobby scene. Enjoy!

28mm Arab Spearmen and Archers Miniatures Gripping Beast Plastics www.grippingbeast.com Reviewed by Wayne Bollands

Designed to compliment their growing range of Crusades figures for use with the Cross and Crescent ruleset by Studio Tomahawk, these eagerly anticipated miniatures were released at Salute 2014. Each box set consists of seven sprues of multi-pose Arab Warriors that can be assembled as 16 archers, 16 javelin men or 40 spearmen. There are also some extra parts to build some of the figures as horn blowers or swordsmen, allowing for the creation of command stands or similar. The figures are designed to represent any unarmored troops from the pre-Islamic period up to the 18th Century Ottoman Empire.   Each of the sprues is identical, containing five bodies in suitable ‘active' poses, five shields and a choice of eight heads. In terms of weapons, there are two arms with javelins, three with spears, two with bows and quivers and one each of a sword and horn. There are also sufficient arms to complete each figure. The range of options available means that the gamer can create some fairly unique figures. I particularly like the well-detailed heads, which range from bearded or mustached turban to veiled faces and one in a helmet. They demonstrate the commitment to produce characterful warriors rather than relying upon anonymous playing pieces. The ‘universal' nature of the robes each figure is wearing also aids in creating a certain timeless quality, which is in keeping with the wide range of geographical and historical options for the player. Included in the box are the usual very helpful plastic bases by Renedra and a leaflet that guides you through the assembly process and provides examples of completed and painted figures. It also has a repeat of the excellent Peter Dennis artwork that can be found on the box itself. As well as being an excellent piece of artwork, this could serve as a suitable colour guide once the painting stage has been reached. Once again, Gripping Beast has tried to address every potential problem that the beginner may encounter, whilst providing another layer of support for the more advanced gamer. This makes the entire box set excellent value for money and a good starting point for those just getting into the period or wishing to ‘bulk out' their other forces. Plastic figures are always useful in this regard and the company is to be commended for the range of options that they have managed to include.

28mm French Indian War Figures Galloping Major Wargames www.gallopingmajorwargames.com/ Reviewed by Roger Gerrish

Although not a regular player of 18th Century figure games, I must admit I am a bit of a fan of all versions of the Last of the Mohicans and have been recently tempted by the Muskets and Tomahawk skirmish rules, and so it was with great interest that I received some new figures to review from the expanding range of French Indian Wars figures produced by the good people at Galloping Major Wargames. The three packs for review are AAC3 ‘Settlers Defending #3: Command and Characters, AAM1 ‘Anglo-American Militia Firing Line #1' and AAM 3 Anglo-American Militia Command. First some general comments. Each pack contains six single cast figures, all of which are uniquely posed with no duplicates. A measurement from Foot to eye level shows these figures to average around 30mm in size and are modelled in the slightly bulkier ‘heroic' scale. This is no bad thing though as I think it aids painting and for skirmish gaming gives that ‘larger than life' effect. The figures are crisply sculpted, with virtually no flash or visible moulding lines. Facial expressions and hair are suitably characterful. If these figures are to be based singly then I would recommend at minimum a 25mm round or square base. Now, let's look at the packs themselves. AAC3 adds command and character figures to the already available ‘Settlers Defending' packs from Galloping Major. There are three sculpts of well dressed gentlemen in frock coats and tricorn hats sporting a mix of Flintlock pistols and swords. I particularly liked the figure carrying what appears to be the ‘Good Book' no doubt strengthening his resolve against the ungodly foes he expects to face. Two less well dressed but still formidable looking musket armed fellows are also included, and the set is rounded out by a figure of a bare-headed aproned shopkeeper carrying a formidable looking blunderbuss. All in all a very interesting pack with dynamic poses and a lot of character. I can see these been particularly popular with a gamer who requires circa eighteenth century figures for a skirmish game. AAM1 and AAM3 add the forces of the Colonial Militia to the Galloping Major FIW range. Whilst earlier releases from that company have modelled the uniformed Provincials, troops pulled from the County Militia Companies, these new figures represent examples of those militia units who fought without uniform or could alternatively represent non-uniformed Provincial troops. The command pack AAM3 shares all the good points of the previous example, and the poses are again varied and dynamic. Armed with a mix of Muskets Flintlocks and swords these well detailed figures provide plenty of variation and would again be ideal for skirmish type gaming. I particularly like a couple of the poses where the arm positions seem to suggest that a command is being given to ‘hold position' or ‘get down' a nice change from the usual aggressive sword pointing forward command figures. Finally an obligatory drummer figure is also included. The firing line pack AAM1 is universally armed with muskets and comprises of three figures aiming and firing whilst the others are in the various stages of loading their muskets. Two of the figures are kneeling which is useful when considering multi-figure basing questions. The figures are nicely detailed, the Muskets being particularly well represented with the hanging carrying straps nicely modelled. Various ‘kit' such as bedrolls, powder horns, satchels and water bottles are well defined and would be easy to paint. I can see these figures being used in both skirmish style games and also producing nicely varied multi-base units for ‘Black Powder' type games. Overall I rate these figures very highly and think they would paint up rather well. They are perfect for Skirmish gaming and would grace any game of Muskets and Tomahawks or Sharpe Practice using the ‘La Longue Carabine' supplement I very much look forward to Galloping Major's future products.

28mm World War 2 British and Norwegian Army Figures Blitzkrieg Laboratories / Gorgon Studios Reviewed by Roger Gerrish

I think it can be said that players gaming the late Second World War era are blessed with an almost limitless supply of new figures and vehicles to choose from, so it is always a pleasure when manufacturer produces some early-war ‘Blitzkrieg' period examples. One such is Gorgon Studios who in collaboration with Blitzkrieg Laboratories provide a 28mm WW2 range which features both German ‘Gebirgsjager' Alpine Troops and French Foreign Legion in cold weather gear, perfect for recreating the Norway campaign of April to May 1940. So, I was very pleased when I received for review some new examples for this range introducing the British and Norwegian armies. The four packs for review were BL-BI-01 British Riflemen in Greatcoats, BL-BI-02 British Riflemen in Jerkins, BL-NI-01 Norwegian Riflemen 1 and finally BL-NI-02 Norwegian officers and NCOs. All of these figures were sculpted by Mike Owen for Blitzkrieg Laboratories and supplied directly by Gorgon Studios. First let me give some general comments. Each pack contains 4 uniquely posed figures and a measurement from foot to eye level shows these figures to be bang on 28mm. The figures themselves are very crisply sculpted exhibiting well defined faces, hands, equipment and personal weapons. The castings themselves were virtually free of flash and the moulding lines unobtrusive and requiring very little attention. All figures reviewed would fit comfortably on 25mm sized bases. Ok, let's focus on the packs themselves, BL-BI-01 British Riflemen in Greatcoats comprises of 4 figures. Two advancing poses and two static. All the figures are armed with Short Magazine Lee-Enfield (SMLE) Mk III's. They are modeled in double-breasted greatcoat and the Mk.1/2 Brodie style helmet. Webbing appears to be the correct 1937 pattern and it is supplanted by a Mk VI Respirator chest pack. The pack also provides separately molded pieces for each figure representing the ‘Implement- Intrenching 1939' tool. As an aside this was a very unpopular piece of equipment especially for shorter soldiers as it obstructed the legs. Ironically it was soon replaced by a WW1 pattern tool. The comments on the previous pack also generally apply to BL-BI-02 British Riflemen in Jerkins again the poses are unique with two advancing and two static figures. All are wearing Pattern 37 battledress but with the addition of a ‘Leather Jerkin'. These sleeveless jerkins, made from leather off cuts and lined in wool, were initially distributed during the First World War and proved very popular with the troops as they provided some of the cold weather protection of a greatcoat but allowing greater freedom of action. Both of these packs would be perfect to portray British Infantry operating in any early war cold weather environment be it Norway or the bitter winter of the Phony War. Now for the Norwegians. Pack BL-BN-01 represents four riflemen of the Norwegian army circa-1940. The four figures are in a variety of poses both static and advancing. All are accurately armed with the standard Krag-Jørgensen M1894 rifles and wear the correct 1914 pattern tunic. Norwegian troops rarely wore head protection and as such these figures sport the distinctive stiff kepi rather than the more common soft ‘Finnmarkslue' cap, however I like Gorgon's selection of headwear which is rather distinctive and enhances these figures. Pack BL-BN-02 represents a mix of Norwegian officers and NCOs. Both the officers are suitably posed and armed with nicely rendered Colt M/1911 pistols. One wears a greatcoat whilst the other sports an officer's version of the basic tunic. The two NCO figures are rifle armed but are posed in such a way to make them distinctive from the BL-NI-01 riflemen figures. My overall assessment of these figures is very positive and I am looking forward to painting and basing a few of these in the future. In conclusion if you want to recreate the Norway 1940 campaigns then I highly recommend these figures along with the rest of the Gorgon Studio and Blitzkrieg Laboratories WW2 range.

28mm Napoleonic Wars British Line Infantry Warlord Games www.fireflythegame.com/ Reviewed by Wayne Bollands

Warlord Games have continued to be innovative in their approach to the hobby. Whether it is plastic or metal figures, they provide characterful miniatures at an affordable price, especially in their boxed sets. This concept is most in evidence with their latest offerings, which come under the Black Powder Napoleonic Wars 1789-1815 banner. I have before me two 36 model hard plastic and metal sets of British Line Infantry. Rather than attempting to shoehorn two different ‘periods' of uniform and equipment into one box, Warlord have sensibly decided to provide themed boxes for both the Peninsular War and Waterloo.  What this means in practice is that, using the same basic bodies of torso, arms and legs in ‘march attack' poses with shouldered muskets, with the simple addition of a backpack and either a Belgic or flat-topped shako, you have an infantryman ready for the tabletop. Yes, that's right, only three parts to stick together, head, body and pack. Now, some gamers may say that this would create boring units of characterless ranks of similar troops but there is enough variety between the five distinct poses to not make this too obvious. Also, I would reply ‘so what?' Once they are on the tabletop, they are supposed to be part of large units of ranked infantry rather than individual heroes, which for me is highly desirable. Besides, the main characters for each unit are provided in the 6-figure command set of officer, pioneer, sergeant, drummer and two ensigns with suitable flagpoles and finials. This provides a centerpiece for every regiment, drawing the eye to them, especially if one makes use of the full-colour flags provided with the handy background guide in each box. In addition, given my oft-mentioned penchant for a ham-fisted approach to model making, the fact that I only have to assemble three parts per man means that I can rapidly put together the whole lot in about one to two hours. I can then take the rest of the time for preparing the troops for battle in terms of painting and basing rather than wasting time positioning and posing. With only the addition of a few extra metal miniatures (which Warlord will no doubt be producing), I can rapidly field a force to be reckoned with. To my mind, this is an excellent approach by Warlord and caters for both novice and veteran. As I am coming to the Napoleonic period as a relative ‘newbie', I want to get on with playing games of Black Powder rather than sticking my fingers together in a poorly ventilated room! As you can tell, I am a supporter of the ‘Warlord way' for ‘massed ranks' style games. These boxed sets show why they have managed to make such a positive impact on the hobby and have no doubt encouraged many to game new periods. Price, presentation and product are the main tenets of the manufacturing business and Warlord win on all three counts. As they continue to aim to have ‘all of wargaming under one roof', I hope that they are able to carry on supporting the Black Powder rules with similar fare in the future.