Surprisingly, there are more wargame figures available for the Colonial Era, including the Sudan campaigns, than one would suspect. In many cases, these figures must be ordered by mail, so this may account for the fact that many people are not aware of the figures. As this article is not intended to be a critical review of the figures, I felt that the easiest way to present information about the figures was through a comparison chart. Please note that I have only listed manufacturers who make Egyptian and/or Mahdist figures in addition to British. Because of this restriction, several manufacturers who produce only British figures which may be applicable to the Sudan campaigns have been omitted. The following notes will aid you in interpreting the chart. Scale and Manufacturer are fairly selfexplanatory. I'd like to note, however, that the Scruby/ Tom Cox figures listed under 20/25mm are actually sold as 30mm figures by Jack, though their small size now makes them closer to today's larger 25mm figures. The abbreviation used for Figures Available are as follows: Brit = British, Egy Egyptians and Sudanese, Ansar = Mahdists, F-W Hadendowah "FuzzyWuzzy" tribesmen, and Equip = Artillery and Machine Guns. Approximate cost must be interpreted as just that, approximate. This portion of the chart is intended primarily for comparison only. In many cases the figures are available only in packs and the individual price has been arrived at by dividing the pack price by the number of figures per pack. The prices marked with stars (*) are based on Pound Sterling prices and have been converted using the rate of $1.50 = 1 Pound. In most cases these prices will seem quite a bit lower than the U.S. prices, but by the time you add overseas shipping charges and the possibility of import duty, the prices become more equalized. The Relative Size portion of the chart was included primarily for the 20/25mm figures as there is a wide difference of opinion among manufacturers as to exactly how tall a 20/25mm figure should be. I've compared the figures to each other and have rated those which are of average or mid-range height with a "0". The taller, bigger figures have been given a " + " and the smaller shorter figures a I would like to state at this time that, even though there is a noticeable size difference between some of the figures, this should not be your only reason for not purchasing some of them. Personally, I have units from all of these manufacturers in my 20/25mm Colonial armies. SCALE MANUFACTURER BRIT EGY ANSAR F-W EQUIP FOOT MTD RELATIVE SIZE 40mm Scruby X X X X X $1.50 $4.00 0 30mm Clydecast X - X - -- .50* N/A 0 Scruby X X X X X .60 1.20 0 Suren X X X X X 1.50* 3.50* 0 20/25mm Essex X X X X - .85 1.90 + Hinchliffe X - - X X .70 1.50 + Hinton-Hunt X X - X - .35* .70* -- Iron Brigade X X X X - .50 N/A 0 Jacklex X X X X X .30* .60* -- Lyzard's Grin X - X X X .50 .90 0 Mini-Figs X X X X X .67 1.33 0 Phoenix X - X X - .65 1.00 -- Scruby X X X - X .50 1.00 -- Scruby/Tom Cox X X - - - .60 1.20 + Tradition X - X X - .50* 1.10* 0 15mm Gallia X X X X X .18* .35* 0 Mike's Models X X X X X .25 .55 0 Peter Laing X X X X X .15* .30* 0 9mm Scruby X X X X X .25 .50 0 5mm Heroics & Ros X - X X X .05* .12* 0 I have not included one manufacturer on the chart Barry Minot 25mm, as I fear that they have gone out of business. This is too bad as Minot produced some very nice figures in several poses quite different from the more common firing and advancing poses offered by other manufacturers. In the rumor department, I have heard that Hinchliffe is planning a new range of 25mm figures to commemorate the Gordon Relief Expedition. The old rumor of Mini-Figs producing a 15mm Colonial line has again surfaced, but has not been confirmed. Finally, Ral- Partha has definitely committed themselves to add Sudan Campaigns figures to their very well-received 25mm Colonial Range. They are presently in the initial design stages of no less than 25 different packs of figures for the early campaigns (including Hicks Pasha!) up through the Gordon Relief Expedition. The preliminary release date for this range will be the summer of 1984. In conclusion, I'd like to say that there is quite a selection of figures available to the wargamer for playing games of the Sudan Campaigns. They may not be as convenient to obtain as, say Napoleonic or Ancient figures, but they are out there if you're willing to put out a little effort to get them. Best of luck in your painting and gaming! If you cannot find some of the figures listed in this article at your local hobby or game shop, here is a list of addresses to write to: CLYDECAST 10 Midlothian Drive Glasgow G413RASCOTLAND ESSEX c/o Wargames 1410 Promanade Bank Center Richardson TX 75080 GALLIA REPRODUCTIONS c/o Modeler's Mart 760 N. Indian Rocks Rd. Belleair Bluffs FL 3350 HEROICS & ROS c/o Soldier World P.O. Box 175 Shrewsbury PA 17361 HINCHLIFFE c/o Soldier World P.O. Box 175 Shrewsbury PA 17361 HINCHILIFFE River Road, Taplow Maidenhead, Berkshire SL6 OBE ENGLAND IRON BRIGADE 2417 Gladstone Terrace Oklahoma City OK 73120 JACKLEX c/o The Model Shop 190-194 Station Street Harrow, Middlesex ENGLAND LYZARD'S GRIN P.O. Box 14522 Oklahoma City OK 73113 MIKE'S MODELS P.O. Box 1141 Denville NJ 07834 MINI-FIGS P.O. Box P Pine Plains NY 12567 PETER LAING c/o Soldier World P.O. Box 175 Shrewsbury PA 17361 PHOENIX c/o Boyd Models 11065 Condor Ave. Fountain Valley CA 92708 JACK SCRUBY P.O. Box 1658 Cambria CA 93428 EDWARD SUREN "Willie Figures" 8-9 Hall Street Long Melford, Nr. Sudbury ENGLAND TRADITION 5 Shephard Street Mayfair, London W1 ENGLAND Figure Photos Top left: Clydecast 25mm, Top right: Scruby/Cox 30mm Bottom left: Suren 30mm, Bottom right: Essex 25mm Top left: Hinchliffe 25mm, Top right: Phoenix 25mm Middle left: Tradition 25mm, Middle right: Minifigs 25mm Bottom left: Falcon 25mm, Bottom right: Lizard's Grin 25mm Top left: Jack Lex 20mm, Top right: Mike's Models 15mm Middle left: Gallia 15mm, Middle right: Peter Laing 15mm Bottom left: Scruby 9mm, Bottom right: Ros Heroics 5mm ERRATA AND ADDENDA TO REVIEW ARTICLES IN VOL V NO 2 Wargame Figures for the Sudan Campaigns Page 9: The upper left photo should be captioned "Clydecast 30mm". Page 10: Upper left photo should be captioned "Hinton-Hunt 20mm". The lower left photo should not have been included, as Falcon does not offer any figures for the Sudan Wars. The chart should be amended to include MiniFigs and Naismith 15mm figures and Peter Gilder 25mm figures. The MiniFigs figures are reviewed this issue. Watch future issues for reviews of the Naismith and Peter Gilder figures. Page 11: The English address listed for Hinchliffe is actually the address for Hinton-Hunt, use the U.S. address for Hinchliffe. I am sorry for the omission of photographs of many of the manufacturer's figures. Samples of all were sent in and were photographed. Perhaps they can be run in a later issue. More Sudan The Sudan: Introduction: The Mahdi The Sudan: First British Involvement 1884-85 The Sudan: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Map The Sudan: Illustration: Troop Types of Hicks' Expedition (slow: 139K) Sudan War Bibliography Lynn Bodin: Bio of Theme Editor for Sudan Whalers on the Nile: Sudan Transport Boats Wargame Figures for the Sudan Colonial Era Wargame Rules Overview Sudan Part II: The Khalifa Takes Control, 1885 Sudan Part II: The Invasion of Egypt, 1889 Sudan Part II: The Dongala Expedition, 1896 Sudan Part II: Advance to Omdurman, 1897 Sudan Part II: Battle of Omdurman, 1898 Mahdist Armies: Introduction Mahdist Armies: Early Battles and Uniforms 1883-1885 Mahdist Armies: Later Battles and Uniforms 1889-1898 Back to Table of Contents -- Courier Vol. V #2 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1984 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. 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