Cold Wars has come and gone and the word is that it was a good one. Lots of great games and new stuff to buy. We said it before, we'll say it again... Life is good....
I thought that we would be through with the pirate topic from a few months ago but then what do I know ... Baxter came back from the show with a U-Haul trailer full of goodies. Literally.
"Whatcha got in the big box?" I asked.
"Boat," states he, "Biiiig boat."
Now Baxter is not one to be given to exaggeration, but I did find it hard to believe that there was only one boat in this packing crate. There was ... He unwrapped this monster, and there it was. Old Glory's new 44 Gun Frigate.
One word can sum up my impression: WOW.
The hull casting itself is 26" long and 9" at the widest point. The basic hull is in two castings, an upper and lower deck. In addition, there is the stern castle, the top of which will stand about 7" above the game table. WOW. Also you get a bag of white metal castings for deck fittings and railings. Saving the best for last, it comes with all of the great Old Glory deck guns and gun crews. All you need add are a few musketmen and other assorted swabs and you're ready to go. The quality of the resin and white metal has improved over the first example. The price for the set is $250.00 which I think is a pretty darned good deal.
For those of you who don't quite wish to rule the high seas, Old Glory has also come out with a 10 gun Brigantine. This one is "only" 15 1/2" long and has a single bank of guns. Like it's larger relation, it comes with all deck fittings and guns, but curiously, no gunners. This does, however, keep the price down to a modest $75.00. The white metal casing are good, but the mermaid figurehead in the ship we examined was a little fuzzy. It might look better after being primed. All in all, it is a pretty good deal.
The show also yielded about 15 new bags of pirate era figures from Old Glory. Everything from colonial troops and civilians through cannibals. They scale out at 27M which makes them compatible with other manufacturers, and while there is a little more flash, the prices seem to run about a buck a fig. For $0.50 a fig savings, I don't mind trimming a little flash with the ol' Xacto. Take a look at these next time you're in your local shop. I think that you'll be impressed.
Also at Cold Wars, Old Glory released their Pirate Village line of buildings. They are of a foam cast resin material, similar to the Hudson & Allen line. At present there are five different building including a church, several shops and warehouses, and a residences. The title Pirate Village is a little misleading as I could see these used in any number of eras from 1500 on through the Spanish Civil War/World War II. All of the roofs are removable and with a little sanding and prep time, look quite nice. The prices run from $35.00 to $45.00 and for those of you (like me) who have neither the time nor the talent to scratch build, these are fantastic.
Also new at the show were the West Wind Productions Berlin or Bust 25mm World War II figures. Distributed in this country by Old Glory, these figures scale out at 26M on the Barrett scale which allows them to scale out all right with the existing Battle Honors and 1st Corp. What makes them stand apart for their competition is that they have both heavy machine guns (MG-42, Brownings, etc.) and flame throwers for most nationalities. The detail is good and the lead/pewter that they are cast in is soft enough to make flash and mold lines easily removable. Vehicles should be premiering at Historicon.
The final line on the menu are the new Dixon League of Augsburg figures for their Grand Alliance line. Sizing in at 25M, there are, at present, 13 different figures broken down into groups of field command, firing line, advancing, and one casualty figure. With the exception of the officer, ensign, and the dead guy, there are at least 15 head variants per figure so you can build quite a diverse unit. These castings are up to the usual high standards of quality and detail we have come to expect from Dixon. If this is your era, you can't go wrong with these figures.
Back to Dispatch June 2000 Table of Contents
Back to Dispatch List of Issues
Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List
© Copyright 2000 by HMGS Mid-South
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