17. Old Glory 15mm SYW French Infantry There are three new bags of French infantry: SYF-1 Musketeers w/o Turnbacks,all in various advancing poses; SYF-2 Musketeers w/Front Turnbacks, all in various march attack poses; and SYF-3 Musketeers w/Front and Back Turnbacks, also in advancing poses (including a wounded pose with man being knocked backwards off his feet!). All three packs included assorted command figures including oMcers, standard bearers, exquisite drummers, NCO's, special wounded figures, and grenadiers. Mind you though, none of the grenadiers have bearskins and they are only distinguishable by their moustaches! There are no plans to add grenadiers in bearskins, according to Old Glory, unless enough people write or call and ask, nay, demand them (sorry about the editorial dramatics). As usual, you get 100 figures per bag for $18.50, which is a fairly good bargain. Available from Emperor's Headquarters and other dealers of miniatures.

18. Old Glory 25mm Austrian & Prussian Personalities Usually I like anything that Old Glory makes, but these two packs are a big disappointment. SYWP-15 includes Alte Fritz, Zieten, Seydlitz (wearing front and back cuirassplate ?), Marshall Kielh, Ferdinand of Brunswick and the Old Dessauer with hands folded in prayer as at Kesselsdorf (nice pose). Frederick is too small and out of proportion with the rest of the Prussian Old Glory line, and lhe horses are too big for the riders. SYWA-16 includes the Austrian generals Prince Charles of Lorraine, von Browne, Daun, O'Donnell, Loudon and Baron Kheul (why an obscurity like Kheul and not Nadasdy or Hadik?). Except for Browne and O'Donnell, who both have oversized arms pointing into the air, the Austrian generals are better animated and proponioned than their Prussian counterparts.

19. Old Glory 25mm Austrian and Prussian Cavalry All the Prussian dragoons, cuirassiers and hussar packs are now available as well as the Austrian dragoons. Each set includes two bags, one of command figures and one of regular troopers. You get 10 figures per bag for $21.00. In general, the animation is good and the proportions look good. My one complaint is too many cavalrymen waving swords wildly over their heads, rather than resting them on their shoulders. Have you ever tried to wave a saber over your head'! Heavy, isn't it?

You will have to cut off most of the waving swords and replace them with soldered pin swords, or else the sabers will break off. The hussar sabers are hopelessly wrapped around the head of the rider, making most of the figures unusable without heavy conversion. The Prussian hussars also have standard bearers, which are a bit odd, since they did not have them during the SYW. The Dragoon mounted drummers are very well done as are most of the command figures. I would love to see some kettle drummers added to Ws range. All in all, the cavalry are a mixed bag and I would recommend that you examine them in person before ordering.

20. Firing Line Miniatures 25mm French & Indian War Figures Steve Philips introduced a small lineup of rangers and courir de bois for the F&I Wars. They come with separate heads and are nicely sculpted in a style reminiscent of the late Dave Alsop, i.e. slender, but correctly proportioned. These figures sold out at the recent SYWA convention and merit a close look. Contact Steve at (520) 749-0703 or send a FAX to (520) 299-0141; or send inquiries to 4761 N. Bear Canyon, Tucson, AZ 85749.

21. Guernsey Foundry 25mm SYW Figures. This new company started by Brian Ansell (who started Wargames Foundry) is preparing to release a huge range of 25mm SYW Prussians, eventually to be followed by Austrians and Russians. The Prussian releases will include three groups: the first in proper parade ground kit, the second will appear more banle-worn and will be suitable for Garrison regiments and the better frei corps units, and the third group will be a rather tattered, individualistic bunch suitable for garrison, militia and having more casual poses. Later, they will add character models including sutlers, preacher, company clerk, etc followed by grenadiers and fusiliers. Brian and company have a keen interest in the kleine krieg or skirmish warfare of the SYW and we are likely to see some dismounted hussars and dragoons as well as numerous other skirmish types. Write to the Guernsey Foundry, La Guelle, Mont Arrive, St Peter Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands, Great Britain. Phone 01481-714241 or FAX 01481 -714905.

This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com