Alliance

15mm Hussites and
Later Imperials Figures

Reviewed by Tom Downs

Alliance Miniatures has released a line of 15mm figures entitled "Hussites and Later Imperials." These figures, combined with the European figures from the Ottoman Turk range, will allow the devotee of the Late Middle Ages to build any army west of the Rhine and south of Warsaw.

The line consists of eight foot entries, three mounted entries, and, of course, a war wagon. Most of the entries in the line include multiple different figures. Notably absent are command figures and the wagon-mounted bombard which is required by all known Hussite army lists. Alliance has told this reviewer that the latter gap will be filled in the next expansion of the line.

HSCO1, Hussite cavalry, includes one unarmored lancer with a pavise shaped shield and kettle helmet and one heavy lancer with aketon/mail shirt, visorless bascinet and heater shield. HSCO2, mounted crossbow- man, is equipped in a fashion similar to the armored lancer (minus the shield). The six figures in HSCO3, Men-at-Arms, are all portrayed in full plate which are quite appropriate to the second half of the 15th Century. Each figure in the pack submitted for review has different headgear. Three of them wear a version of the sallet which was popular during this period but two of them wear variations of the pointed visor which was popular in Central Europe fifty years earlier and one wears the great helm which was used even before that. These three figures look odd on horses armored in full Italian-style plate. light handgunners. One crossbowman wears "street clothes" and kettle helmet; he is clearly a militiaman who picked up a helmet along the way. The other has the professional look similar to the heavy handgunners -- aketon and mail shirt. Incidentally, the crossbow must be cut away from the body of the casting and bent into the correct position, a delicate operation indeed. The two figures of HS05, German halberdiers, are well- armored indeed. They wear waist-length plate, enclosed helmets and leg protection. All in all, they look more like dismounted knights than typical 'C' class heavy infantry. HS06, medium pikemen, wears the aketon-mail shirt combination which was popular during the 15th Century. The angle at which he holds his weapon is not great enough to ensure that it would clear the heads of the rank preceding it; some care would have to be taken in basing the figures. H507, heavy pikes, was not submitted for review. H508, dismounted men-at-arms, consists of two figures in late- 15th Century plate with two-handed sword per Phil Barker.

The war wagon (REQ05), on the other hand, is a thing of beauty. The individual boards are nicely scribed and one side (the disengaged side) comes in three pieces so that the model may be assembled with the ladder into the wagon in position. Assembly of the model must be rated as moderately difficult; the inclusion of a line drawing of the finished model would have facilitated the project.

The figures (except for the war wagon) are flash-free. They are a true 15mm and are well-proportioned accordingly. The chain mail is not always well enough defined and the detail on the men-at-arms' horse armor is not quite what one would have liked, but by and large the detail is well sculpted and the figures nicely animated. The Hussite wagon soldiers are a particularly nasty-looking bunch.

With the couple of exceptions noted above, they are nice-looking figures which, aside from the Hussites, could be used for the Hungarians or Poles of the 15th Century, for the Imperialist army of Maximilian or even as the Christian Auxiliaries which typically formed an important part of an Ottoman Turk army.

They may be ordered from Alliance Miniatures, P.O. Box 2347, Des Moines, Iowa 50310.

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