Jerome's Corner

By Mike Gilbert
(The Westphalian Under the Xmas Tree)

HO, HO, HO-well, we'll be well into 1995 by the time you read this, but right now I am resting under the old tree waiting for Santa to deliver my well deserved goodies. Mostly video cartridges / computer games, and some eclectic things I won't even try to describe-but no wargame stuff. I get that for myself.

But what would I like Santa to be working on in '95? In the world of 15s a lot of stuff has disappeared-that's the old Minifig line I'm referring to, of course-it will be interesting to see what they do to replace this extensive line that was the dominant one for decades. We do have the Old Glory/ AB, etc., lines that have nicely attempted to fill the gap. With a few notable exceptions, they've carried on very well and have done so with a lot of spirit. What they need to do is complete some of the lines they've started, and to make all of us happy, do some rolling stock -wagons, limbers, and the like. Gee, if you're going to do Hessian cavalry (where the bag gives you the regiment at a 1 to 1 scale), why don't you do my Westphalian cavalry guys-the lights with the lances?

An interesting aside here: during the Christmas season when I clean some rarely touched areas of the house I make several interesting discoveries-the one most likely to interest our rabid readers was a bunch of Hinchcliffe 15mm figures. Hey, I'd forgotten these even existed. These guys are like Old Glory, Minifigs, and Freikorps in style-quite a mix-and they are really very good, equal to the best of the stuff currently available. This was never an extensive line in the U.S. to my knowledge, and I don't think anyone carries it now. I'm not even sure if it is still being produced in England. Since I'm writing this on my old Laptop, one hundred and twenty miles away from my extensive research files-with the bloodshot New Year's Day eyes of our esteemed elder Editor observing my every word -I must admit that I can't be certain if they are even offered in the British magazines. These are lost classics and should be brought back from obscurity.

Otherwise the 15-18-20mm scale has been quiet save for the reduction in the variety of figures that are available, due to the loss of and cutbacks in many lines. A nice exception to this was the reintroduction of the old Hinton Hunt (sort of) 20mm figures by David Clayton (see his ad)-this old line has some of the best and most interesting figures ever done in an Old Glory style-you can get sappers. One of my personal favorites is a Carabineer in a busby, kneeling and firing-one of the top figures ever done in any scale. Most of the action has shifted to the 8-lOmm figures, dominated by the high quality of Adler on the smaller end of the scale.

The real renaissance has come in the 25+mm scale as noted in previous reviews in EE&L, with Bicorn Miniatures. Produced in the U.S. by a dedicated gamer and collector-and with great casting skill-this British line is one of the finest. We do continue to recommend Pharaohs Arms, some real surprises there for your various armies. Check the Sourcebook in issue #9 for a complete listing of stuff somebody (most likely your spouse) doesn't think you should buy.

I do think I'd like to see cannons that cost less than a new Honda. I really think we could do that in 15mm-or smaller scales. So, I'll keep watching to see and I'll be ready to pass the word on to you if anyone comes up with anything in '95.

In rules, it's been nice to see the acceleration of the idea of command and control being accepted in a variety of rule systems along with many other concepts that we have long championed. Now, let's see realistic deployment times and distances, too. But a good job was done by all the rule mongers-I do recommend you turn your attention to Houserules Napoleonic (Brian Stokes-see his ad. I don't get any kickbacks, but I keep trying.) and Brian's erratic newsletter. You'll find some fine discussions about real - read historical - gaming problems. Not quite as good as our magazine here, or that of our English friends, but...you gotta get it.

As many of you know, years of wild living, art, and computers led to me having carpal tunnel surgery done on both my wrists. You'd be surprised how many people have this problem- even just painting the little guys may do you in. Personally, I thought my production was slowing down a lot, but I never realized how bad things had gotten until the operations were done-although throwing my glasses across the room by accident was the final clue that I needed help. The problem was gone as soon as the surgery was over. The sore palms and grip will take a while to come back up to speed, but if you feel that numbness creeping into your hands and arms when you paint or type, it isn't writer's cramp and it won't go away.

On the lighter side, we'd all like to thank you for your continued support and we're glad that you've been enjoying EE&L. We're always glad to hear from you and we even answer whatever questions we can in our copious spare time-it's nice to be able to tell our masters that you like us. I'd like to promise you more exciting articles, awesome research, color, color, more color, EZ read type for the older games, Napoleonic naughty bits, and things even I can't imagine. Of course, I might be lying, but I'm not the Merry Monarch for nothing. Happy New Year one and all!