Foundry

25mm Pirates and
Darkest Africa (figures)

Reviewed By David Barnes

Review of Foundry latest releases of 25mm figures in their Darkest Africa and Cutthroats (pirates) ranges available from The Foundry Ltd., Huberts Lane, off Doyl Road, St. Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 1RG, Channel Islands, GB

Napoleon is supposed to have said at Waterloo, "More men! More men! What do you think I can Make them?" He should have employed The Foundry and their designers. Here they come agame more bold bad pirates and more items for Darkest Africa, including guns, warchiefs and speam characters. Also a mixed pack of weapons for the Africans. More interesting figures with which to devel your hobby or extend it. I will list the packs sent, comment on the figures and draw some of them.

Darkest Africa

DA52 African tribal war chiefs. Ladies first. A woman in a high head dress and monkey tail apron and cow's tail garters below the knee a la Zulu. She also has a necklace of lion's teeth. She's shouting naturally, and has an upraised right arm with an open hand to take whatever you want to put in it - spear sceptre, medicine fetish - whatever. Next a Baluchi looking character, pointing with his left hand is holding upright, a broad bladed spear. Little beard and an amulet hanging round his neck. Nex dreadlocks, skin swathed over loin cloth gent rasing his bangled left arm. He holds a musket in his right hand, butt grounded. A calabash on his right hip - as a powder flask? Van Dyck beard. Next, yelling with a read headdress and grass skirt fore and aft. Running- left hand up to take a shield, right hand ol for a weapon. Next a sculpted hairdo and braided long bear. Teeth necklace, loincloth with a mini "tutu" round his waist. Anklets and a very nasty looking sickle-like weapon with extra blades raised in his right hand. Don't ask him the way to anywhere Stanley! A shouting plumed hairdo with right hand raised. Hairy apron at the front, cow's tail at the back. Teeth necklace and little pointed beard - bangles at each wrist. "Well, does Jbia feather suit me then?" Finally, for this pack, arms raised, basket-like fez with a hackle of feathers on top front. Arms wide - right hand open, shouting - "The fish was this big I tell you." Necklace with medallion. Front and rear aprons of fur. Legs astride with heavy anklets.

DA56 African tribal spearmen characters. First, a "pineapple" of feathers on top of his head. Tribal scar marking his chest, stomach, shoulder blades, arms and face! Loin cloth, shouting, trotting forward, right hand open, left up, could take a shield. Then a simple figure wearing looted pith helmet. Spear in right hand, point uppermost on the tip of which is stuck an explorees head? Loin cloth, shouting, "No road the Nile this way!" Next a sculpted hair do - single plume on top, beard. Naked. Slung short sword one shoulder baldrick. Open right hand for an under arm thrust. Then open handed loin cloth wearer European jacket on which shows stab tears front and back. Left hand could take shield. Next, loin cloth swathed in over the left shoulder skins. Right arm raised for a throw - open handed. Next, a pygmy character if I mistake me not. Simple loin cloth, left hand can take a shield, right hand open in pronation to take a weapon. Necklace is a couple of claws on a string. Finally, scarred face, lion skin cape with tail, canine teeth necklace, loin cloth. Right hand open and raised. Bunch of tight plumes atop his hat. Left hand placed to take a shield. A great bunch to bring variety to your tabletop tropical jungles.

DA71 Askari mountain gun and crew. Barrel, wheels and carriage. Kneeling figure in fez and shorts only, with rammer. Squatting figure with hands to ears, in loin cloth. Fezzed figure pulling lanyard wearing a sarong. Spare man with fez, slung musket and ammo pouches, breeches and tunic with rolled up sleeves. All these guys have bare feet!

DA80 Zanzibar cannon and crew. Chunky carriage, mortar length barrel and solid "wooden" wheels. Gun captain shading eyes, low crowned fez, two gourds slung on his left hip, pouch on right, portefire in right hand, sandals. Rammer, turban, galebia and bolero jacket, curved knife sheathed at his left front, bearded. Turbaned gent carrying large powder barrel - it is to be hoped, at a distance from sparks caused by discharge. Affican "spare man" squatting in loincloth, pointing.

DA46M Mixed pack of weapons. These are mostly knobkerries with some guardless swords and dime spears - of a Masai type. A large stabbing blade and a small ferrule type at the other end. Foundry recommend florists wire for spears - easy to flatten an end and make a blade. They will send you a bit if you ask for it so you may try it out - much safer than piano wire. 28 knobkenies, 3 spears, 12 swords.

Cutthroats

Cut1 Teach and his pals. That's Edward Teach, "Blackbeard" to you and me. The pack holds eight figures, two of them ladies - ones who would do more than attack you with a long nail file!! Teach has an "under and over" pistol in his right hand and a cutlass in his left. His belt holds thr-ee more single shot pistols. His many pointed beard is clearly shown and his head sports a rather flat tricome. I have no list so I'm just describing what's in the pack. One lady has a necklace over her open necked blouse - a very large sash, a small pistol in her left hand and a large bladed cutlass in her right. Her hair is drawn back in a big scarf tied at the back of her head. The second lady has clubbed hair. She wears breeches and a belted sleeveless jacket over a blouse. Round her neck is a bandana. Her right hand is on her hip just behind a large horse pistol, her left hand is on the hilt of her sheathed cutlass. A fairly sedate pose. Next is a pirate with a drum! A gaunt mustachioed face, breeches and bare legs and feet. He has a scarf round his head and earrings. Next a "gentleman" in a bag wig, cravat, omate waistcoat and long jacket. A thrusting sword in his right hand and a small pistol in his left. He has a well modeled unpleasant face. Stede Bonnet probably. Next a long haired rather Indian featured pirate (Queequeg?), large sash with a pistol in it under a full skirted coat. A small musketoon in his right hand held at the small of the butt. Bucket topped boots. Lastly, another well armed, well dressed gentleman of the sea in a tricome. A pistol in either hand, one in his sash and a cutlass by his side. He also has a full skirted coat, breeches, and buckled shoes.

Cut2 Henry Morgan's crew. There is included Henry himself, Monkeyman, Lady Marmalade, Drummer Boy, Trumpeter and Another. (I wonder if that's the famous AX Other? - plays a lot of cricket too.) Someone has, had fun with all these packs and the designer has the skill to create different types whilst not making them at all grotesque. Henry is dressed in the height of fashion and could safely double as an over-gunned ECW general. He has a pistol in his left hand, a sword on a baldrick on his left hip and another pistol on his right. A plumed hat on his head. Monkeyman is obvious as he has one on his left shoulder! A cutlass in his right hand, point grounded, and two pistols stuck in his sash. Lady Marmalade has a patch over one eye. Left foot pointed in a balletic way, pistol in her right hand, light cutlass in her left. A necklace and decolletage is a nod in the direction of femininity. Drummer boy is a small character, with a drum almost as big as he is. He would double as a Vendean lad. The trumpeter has a very elegant instrument, blowing. In his left hand is a pistol. Another Vendean possible. There are actually two A.N Others. One has a bald head and wears a bolero over his bare torso. He has baggy trousers and bucket topped boots. In his left hand, butt on his left hip, he has a musketoon. The other A.N. Other is a well dressed gent in a full skirted coat waving a cutlass in his right hand, pistol in his left. The face is harsi with high cheek bones.

Cut3 Cutthroat characters. This is an exciting group of diverse figures that can be pressed into service in other eras and areas besides pirates. First, a clubbed musket swinger could also double as a Garibak "redshirt." Bare feet could be painted with shoes or hidden in "long grass." Next, a turbaned pirate with tulwar (sword) and jezail long musket would grace any NWF scenario. Another figure with fez - cutlass musketoon and bolero could also double in India. A figure with turban swathed fez, tulwar, bagg, trousers and long knife in his cumberbund is also a double duty candidate. Another figure with bucket boots, long hair under a large curly brimmed hat holding a whip in his left hand and with a pistol stuck in his sash could also do duty in ECW or 30YW. A guy in a stocking cap. with a blunderbuss could be a Peninsular Spanish guerrillero. Finally, a knife throwing expert - one poised in his right hand for throwing and two more in quick-draw sheaths on his chest, could companion the chap above. Both are dressed similarly. An extremely good pack.

Freepack Two man assault gun team. These are unavailable unless one buys 6 packs of Cutthroat, Rather like a Chinese jingal, only a short, one pounder style weapon. One chap holding it, looking considerably less apprehensive than I would. The other fellow with a Swedish style barbute helmet is holding the portefire in his right hand and sensibly leaning away from any resultant explosion. Sword in his left hand. Good for blowing in doors or defending narrow passages.

Cut12 Pirate musketmen I. Eight men with very serviceable muskets, four are "at the ready," one is firing, and two are advancing, and one appears in the colour adverts as "Nasty Jon Thomas" who wears plumed slouch hat and has a shot pouch and a cutlass. One other has a cartridge box - none of the other have visible reserves of ammunition. All have bare feet and wide breeches. All have marvelously different and characterful faces. The pirate musketmen will be drafted into my Risorgimento setup as "Picciotti." Foundry Mexicans already do duty in that unit! As one has come to expect, the detail in these castings is as, crisp they just cry out to be painted. The modeling and animation is superb.

More Barnes Reviews

Back to MWAN #100 Table of Contents
Back to MWAN List of Issues
Back to MagWeb Magazine List
© Copyright 1999 Hal Thinglum
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