1. www.magweb.com I don't want to get too mushy here, but MagWeb is a treat for gamers eyes. While not everything is colonial, duh, there were tips for painting, shading, layering and basing that I found very useful and copied from Renaissance Ink, 335 Torrance Ave., Vestal, NY 13850.

While online two weeks ago, I thought I would look at Lone Warrior for kicks, since I get the US edition. Well, folks this is the English version and boy did I find some great stuff (again?). Some of this I must have seen before but I can't remember and my old issues are packed and moved? I think. Issues 114 - "Staff Problems", and "Chance Cards"; and 115 - "Pulling it Together, Mini-Campaign Ideas Across History" were really great articles full of useful ideas.

Actually, if you have access to the web try searching Yahoo for military miniatures there are some other pretty interesting articles, pictures and other stuff to read and contact people about.

2. Guernsey Foundry figures, available in the US from Pendragon Miniatures. See Review. If you are writing them directly they have a new address which means a new production facility and probably better service - Guernsey Foundry, Hubert's Lane, Off Doyle Road, St. Peter Port, Gurnsey, GY1 1RG, Channel Islands, Great Britain.

3. Articles of War Ltd. 8806 Bronx Avenue, Skokie, IL 60077-1896, (847) 674-7445. Their latest flyer, List 9, is Victorian Campaigns and American Campaigns. A total of 180 books, 111 are of interest to us. Some of the best include: Victorian Military Campaigns, Bond; The Washing of the Spears, Morris; West African Resistance, Crowder; Kitcheners Sword Arm, Hunter; and toooo many more to list.

Also listed is the latest book to be reprinted in their series America in the China Relief Expedition by BG AS Daggett. This is the American history of operations during the Boxer Rebellion of 1900 in China. Originally published in 1903, this book is one of the most important sources of American operations during the relief of the Peking Legations. The author commanded the 14th Infantry Regiment during these operations. The book begins with the Boxer uprising and the siege of the Foreign Legations. It then covers the gathering of the Allied relief forces including the US 9th and 14th Infantry and the 6th Cavalry, which were landed at Taku. The march to Peking and the battle at Yangtsun are thoroughly covered. There are 29 photos and 4 maps with the 279 pages of text. The pre-publication price is $34.95 until 21 April. I called Bob Ruman and asked if he would extend it another month for readers of the Heliograph. So when you call make sure that you tell them the pre-publication price was extended for Heliograph readers or your price will be $39.95. If you are interested in the Boxer Rebellion this maybe a must have for your collection.

4. Wargames, Box 278 Route 40 East, Tridelphia, WV 26059. Their latest flyer contained no colonial stuff as usual.

5. Miniature Service Center, 1525 Bridge St., Yuba City CA 95993. Still have their 15 percent discount available on all orders. Nothing specifically new for colonials.

6. Barnes and Nobles, 1-800-the-book. The latest catalog contains lots of good military history books. There are two videos of interest to us: "The Battle of Rorke's Drift" dramatized reenactments with commentary by Ian Knight $24.95; and "Zulu" at $14.95 this is a good price.

7. Miniature Wargames. March 1997, #166. A typically interesting issue but nothing colonial, almost excepting the Sioux War article.

8. Caliver Books and Partizan Press, 816-818 London Road, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex SS9 3NH. Their latest catalogue W lists over 150 colonial period titles and this doesn't include European or Franco-Prussian, lots of great titles. I missed it the first time through the catalog but not the second.

It seems that Colonial Conquest is no more. It has been replaced by The Age of Empires covering all conflicts 1820-1939. The magazine will now include ACW, Crimean, Franco-Prussian plus others and colonial. I assume the subscription rate is the same as Colonial Conquest. This means that The Heliograph is the sole remaining colonial gamers magazine/newsletter.

9. Clash of Empires is a new newsletter edited by Keith Frye, 33 Ridge Road, Bloomingdale, NJ 07403. I have the premier issue and I am impressed by the whole issue. It takes getting used to the red ink but it works. The centerfold, get your minds out of the gutter, is a classy map of Rome in 1849, on the other hand the inside cover map leaves something to be desired. There are three articles plus reviews that are well worth the sub cost of $10 for a four issue (1 year) sub.

10. Old Glory See review of Sons of the Desert 25mm French Foreign Legion range below. The Cold Wars catalog also list 15mm colonial for the Zulu War.

11. Wargames Illustrated. February 1997 #113. There are two articles on Plains Indians, one by Mark Copplestone, figure designer for Guernsey Foundry Plains Indians and other figures, great ideas for painting here. There is a Zulu War scenario "Beating the Odds, Sergeant Booth VC" by Dave Orton. This is an interesting little scenario with rules. The rules are very short and will not satisfy some, but will work for this scenario quite well. Can someone tell me if WI has died or if they are just on extended vaction.

12. Soldiers Small Book, from the Victorian Military Society. Lots of good information for those living in Great Britain. This comes as part of the annual dues for the society as does Soldiers of the Queen well worth the $35, if you can afford it.

13. On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terrace, Hopewell NJ 08525, 609-466-2329. Has several worthwhile books-- German Artillery 1864-1910, by Wetzig. Forty-eight pages with over 100 b/w photos/illustrations $10.00. Field Marshall Roberts' Forty-one Years in India, printed 1898, $25.00. This is a great book, the price is a good deal and it is fill with personal experiences on the frontier. This is a must have for anyone interested in the Northwest Frontier. 14. Military Illustrated. It has been too many years since I got a copy and from the listing of articles in the back I may have toquit my sub to WI and the Courier for this. Every issue has at least one article on the colonial period and this issue has "Defending the Homeland" by Ian Castle. Volunteer units with the British Army in the Zulu War with several rare photographs. The article is short, but the photos and descriptions make up for what's not in the text.

15. Game Tech, PO Box 247, Springport, MI 49284. GT is the official supplier of Spa kce 1889 airship miniatures. I have no idea what the scale of the ships are, the price is in line with something on the scale of 1:1200 or even 1:600. They list ships for Great Britain (6), Germany (3), US (3), Irish Fenians (1), Mars (9), Russia (1) and Belgium (1). Write for details.

16. El Dorado, US subs - Paul Walsh, 227 Sunnybrook Rd., Springfield, PA 19064. Volume VII no. 4 is typically jampacked with great information on South and Central American military history. This issue contains pages of book reviews and the following articles: Brazilian army uniforms ca. 1865, Chilean and Peruvian uniforms 1837-39, Montonero Guerilla uniforms 1975-79, Armored fighting vehicles in Latin America (part 4) and numerous short articles. If you have any interest in this area of the colonial period this is a must have journal.

17. 19th Century Miniatures, 13595 Green St. Grand Haven, MI 49417, (616) 846-4764. I picked up their catalog at Cold Wars. There are no new figures to report on. However, if you are looking for Conniosseur figures these folks, I understand, have bought out Chris Gilders business. They have lots of Sudan and Zulu War figures at $1.00 each per foot and $1.45 for a horse. So if you need these Connoisseur figures call these nice folks.