The new editor (good luck Mike!) passed me some figures to review from The Foundry. The 3 packs of Mark Copplestone's 28mm Prussian Seven Years War Hussars are all up to The Foundry's usual high standard. Copplestone was the force behind Guernsey Foundry before it merged with Wargames Foundry. His recent work for The Foundry includes the 28mm US Cavalry and Plains Indians as well as the expanding Seven Years War line. The packs sent for review were: four mounted troopers and horses; four mounted command and horses; eight hussar troopers and command on foot.

The four mounted troopers are all wearing militron hats, braided dolman, and calf-length boots. A nice touch by The Foundry was casting the pelisse separate, allowing for customizing and ease of painting. The troopers have their sabers drawn, though in slightly different positions, and appear ready to give some poor Frenchmen a thrashing. Each figure is cast in two pieces, split at the waist, to allow variation of the poses. The facial detail is simply amazing. Copplestone is highly skilled at making each figure look individual through facial expression and head position. The hussars bushy mustaches and long hair are well done. Detailing is crisp and animation is very good -- these should paint up easily. The sense of movement missing in many mounted figures is nicely rendered in these castings. In particular, one hussar has the cords from his militron blowing in the wind. The figures are cleanest cast I have ever seen, almost completely free of flash.

While I am very impressed, I do have a few negative comments. First, the horses are not as well sculpted as the riders. There is no sense of movement -- the animation is not as good as the riders. They are similar in size and style to Old Glory horses. And while I'm on about size, why do miniature company insist that our cav units ride Shetland ponies? I know hussars rode smaller horses, but these look a bit too small. Another complaint I have is that there are only two poses included in the troopers pack, so variation is going to be a problem for gamers building larger units. Also, the troopers' sabers were very thick, looking more like a fantasy-type scimitar. But at least they should hold up to wargaming wear and tear.

The mounted command consists of a standard bearer, trumpeter and two officers. The figures are cast in one piece. Most of the comments for the troopers pack also pertain here. Again, the hussars are wonderfully animated and well cast. The trumpeter's cheeks are puffed out as he blows his call, very nicely done. The two officers (perhaps one is meant to be a NCO) have cockades on their militrons to distinguish them from the troopers. One has his sword drawn and is shouting an order, the other sits with his saber resting on his shoulder. The standard bearer is also in a stationary position. Minor detail on equipment like the carbine butt plate and scabbard trim help put these figures into a class of their own. My only complaint with the command group is the standard. It looks like some sort of oil drilling device, it's HUGE! Horses for the command set are in the same two poses as the troopers. So, even a small unit of eight hussars will look odd with all the duplicate horses. I like variation in the ranks, so this is a big negative in my books.

The hussars command and troopers on foot pack included one dismounted officer, five troopers advancing with carbines, one wounded and one dead trooper, and one dead horse. I didn't care for these quite as much as the mounted ones. While the detailing and casting are excellent, there were a few minor things I didn't like. Sculpting all the troopers advancing makes them look too similar, but that may be more of a personal taste. Another is Copplestone's tendency to exaggerate the size of boots on his foot figures. As with the US cavalry from the Plains Wars range, the hussars all appear to be wearing "moon boots." -- much too thick around the ankles. Like the overly hefty swords, they'll probably give you good wear on the wargames table, though. The officer is gesturing forward with sword. He is the only figure that doesn't have his pelisse cast separate. The dead and wounded castings are very well done, the wounded man resting on one elbow while the dead trooper lies (with eyes opened skyward) sprawled on his back. The dead horse's lack of size is less noticeable than that of the upright horses.

With only very minor flaws, I think these are great hussars. There aren't any better Seven Years War figures on the market than The Foundry's. They aren't cheap, (especially with the price increases) but quality seldom is.