Being a biased, amateurish, and opinionized column to inform MWANers of new products. By Hal Thinglum - Royal Oak Miniatures, 1013 W. 12 Mile Road., Royal Oak, Michigan, 48073: Fred Bultman is a long-time MWANer and painter of wargames buildings (810-546-678 1). You've read mention of his work previously within this column and I am pleased to mention his work again. I sent Fred eleven ECW/TYW-type buildings from TCS a short time ago - perhaps a month or so and just got them back tonight. What can I say that isn't going to sound like "gushing praise" - I am exceedingly pleased with Fred's work. For $80.00, I received what are to me, the best painted buildings I've seen! Six of the buildings are smaller ones (including a windmill); four are large; while the last is a large (5" X 5") enclosed English manor. My favorite? Has to be the enclosed English manor; Fred terrained the courtyard beautifully! Colors are beautifully done! High-lited, shaded, the bottoms of the buildings all around have "dirt" dry-brushed on them which really increases the effectiveness of the "look". I guess I don't know what else to say about them; I would love to put them on the table along with some of my 15mm ECW regiments and take a picture for the cover of MWAN #93. I'm such a poor photographer though I think I shall give it a try. Fred offers a four page list of already painted buildings with prices or you can send him your building(s), as I do, and he'll paint them for you. When Fred received my unpainted buildings, he sent me a letter to let me know he'd received them, how much it would cost, and an approximate time for painting. He also remarked that he really liked the TCS buildings and was surprised that more people don't use them. Hey, I have to agree 100% with him! These are really great buildings in 15mm. Give both Fred and TCS a chance. I know you won't be disappointed! Until a short time ago, there was no way that I would send my wargames buildings out to be painted as I felt that I couldn't afford it. Well, I've changed my mind on this. I am, at best, an average wargames figure painter and my ability to paint buildings is lower than that. I painted all of my 25mm SYW buildings and they look OK, but next to Fred's work, they look pathetic I'm afraid. I've been leaning toward feeling that this is my hobby and a great source of enjoyment to me. Because of that, I'm going to continue to have my buildings painted for me because they just look so much better than I could ever do, and if I have to cut back on other hobby purchases to be able to afford them, so be it. Thanks very much for a quality job, Fred! By Len Brewer - SCENIC EFFECTS INC - STALINGRAD 1943 RED OCTOBER FACTORY - Scenic Effects Inc., PO Box 70332, Point Richmond, CA 94807 is well-known in the hobby for the building sets they produce. If you are into WWII gaming, you owe it to yourself to take a serious look at this factory which can be used for either 20mm or 25nim gaming. It consists of a base measuring 23 " X 16" and five wall sections. The model is made of polyurethane resin, which can be carved, drilled or sanded to fit. They recommend using a white glue for glueing the wall sections to the base. I did add some pieces of florist wire to the wall section going into the base for more support. The detail is very good. Included in this model you can see the buried machinery on the factory floor; the rail line going into the factory; offices which have been sandbagged; shell holes; rifle pits; and trenches. This can be a game that sets up with no other terrain. The replay of this model is high. This will be a challenge to both the attacker and defender. You can add your own sandbags and other terrain pieces to make it even better if you wish. Cost of this beauty is $75.00. Highly recommended and congratulations to Scenic Effects for this outstanding model! By Hal Thinglum - GLADIATOR GAMES 15MM ECW RANGE - Regal Miniatures, 1116 Broadway, Polk City, IA 50226 (515-984-6470) is carrying the new Gladiator Games 15mm ECW line. Being immersed in the ECW, as I am, I had to see them. This is an extensive line for Gladiator and they report they will be. following with dismounted dragoons, Scots, Irish, Artillery and crew. There are 29 packs of figures selling at $4.25 for 10 foot/5 horse while $2.75 brings you five foot command or three mounted command or three mounted Generals. These are "larger" sized 15mm figures at about 16mm from the top of the stand to the hat brim. They won't, in my opinion, "fit" in with figure lines like Essex if you want to mix them in the same unit, however, they will look fine within their own units and I plan on having six foot regiments and three horse regiments of these little dandies in my ECW project. First of all, there are three mounted Generals all of which are in different poses w/two differently posed horses. Foot command is well provided for with three packs including "early" command in helmets and then hats, and "later" or New Model foot command in helmets. Foot command, as I mentioned, have five figures and they consist of two flag bearers, one druinmer, and an officer and sergeant. I would have liked to see command packs include two drummers as I only use one standard bearer per regiment. Flags are cast on. There are eight packs of musketeers (at ease in hat, firing/rest in helmet/hat, marching in helmet/hat, firing w/o rest, at ready, and then a "skirmish" line of mixed poses. The pike are cast with pikes and there are five packs in back/breast armor, buff coats, etc. The pikes are standing, marching, and "at ready". There is a single pack of "poorly equipped" pike, which I like very much. These could be used to represent some of the "county" regiments which were poorly equipped. As with the foot, there are three horse command with officer, standard bearer, and bugler; one pack of Cuirassier, and six packs of troopers including another interesting one - "levy" or early cavalryman, again, poorly equipped. A pack of mounted dragoons closes up the line thus far. There are two to three different poses per pack and I find the figures have a lot of character and are well detailed. Poses are attractive and as you can tell, the line is extensive. I hadn't seen the Gladiator Games figures before and come away being quite impressed. Highly recommended! I am looking forward to future releases! I might add that Darryl Sheldon of Regal Miniatures provided a prompt mail order service for me. Thanks, Darryl! By Hal Thinglum - COLONIAL CONNECTION RELEASES - Colonial Connection, 226 Wareham's Point, Williamsburg, VA 23185 (757-229-1499) announces they have taken over distribution of MUSEUM MINIATURES 15mm Pewter lines (42 different 15min periods); Eric Grosfils of The Colonial Connection reports that they hope to be putting out an American catalog as soon as possible. Eric sent along several 15mm Museum Miniatures items for mention within this column including a catapult and medieval wagon with wooden wheels and four medieval attendants. These are the same figures used in Museum Miniatures' artillery packs and they are the "large" 15mm figures. The wagon is very well done and although I don't have a listing or price, I would have to say that it is some sort of hand pushed wagon with a spear in on what is the front (if it is being pushed forward) and a section on top of it which would appear as though it is to function as "cover" (it has a notch in the middle of it) for a "firing" figure. The catapult is excellently done and well detailed. Prices not available. I can vouch for the Museum Miniatures 15mm ECW line as I had a number of their figures several years ago. The cavalry is especially well done in my opinion. Will be glad to see these figures again! Eric also announces they are producing a new line of flags (FOREMOST FLAGS) available in 6mrn to 25mm. 25mm flags are $1.30 each and include a metal flagpole and cast tassel while all other sizes are .30 each. Eric is offering a special service in that their ACW Confederate Battle Flag, National Colo, and US Cavalry standard can be "customized" to include regimental names, battle honors, and unit names. This is done at no extra cost. Eric included four War of 1812 flags and four beautiful standards from the War of the Roses in 25mm. Beautiful color flags! Don't forget the 25mm Hinchliffe/Foremost lines are available from The Colonial Connection. If you are into Napoleonics, check out their 28/30mm artillery and crews. I had these many years ago and they are outstanding figures for dioramas or wargaming! By Hal Thinglum - "KING'S MEN GROW" ECW NOVEL - I just found out about this four-volume series on the English Civil War by Nicholas Carter; the series is called "The Shadow on the Crown". The first two books in the series are called "TURNCOAT'S DRUM" and "THE STORMING PARTY". Now I really enjoy reading historical novels, perhaps more so than straight historical books as I love to be entertained and find that a well-written historical novel will inspire me toward a period and I also usually tearn more about the period via this means. This is definitely the case with "KING'S MEN GROW." It covers 1643 and the siege of Gloucester and the Battle of Newbury. As is the case with most historical novels. the characters include both historical and fictional personalities on both sides of the conflict. Descriptions of the siege and Battle of Newbury are very well done; one really obtains a flavor for the period and the type of warfare which was conducted. As I was reading it, I kept pulling out my ECW 25mm file of Redoubt, Dixon, Front Rank, and Hinchliffe (Colonial Connection) figures and thinking of skirmish type approaches! It is an inspiring book. Published by Macmillan and cost is $32.95 for the hard cover 421 page book. The first two books are in paperback and I am going to call my local book store and ask them to obtain the other three volumes for me. I've personally found that as far as historical novels are concerned, they do not necessarily have to cover a period which I am in interested in to hold my interest. I mean, I've never had any interest in sailing ships, yet, I greatly enjoyed the "Hornblower" novels and I'll bet many of us are the same. Highly recommended! By Hal Thinglum - OSPREY "MEN-AT-ARMS" SERIES TITLES - We are all aware of how valuable the OSPREY books can be, especially if they concern a period of which we know very little. Whenever I've become interested in a period, I try to find some Osprey books on the topic because they provide a wonderful overview. I was reading through the titles one night several weeks ago and happened to see two on the Thirty Years War and one on the Poles (1569-1696). As chance would have it, I'd just decided shortly before that to branch off into the TYW from the ECW and had managed to find a TYW reference which mentioned that the Poles and Cossacks were involved in the TYW. So, while at THE EMPEROR'S HEADQUARTERS in Chicago one day, I found all three! First of all #188 "POLISH ARMIES 1569-1692 (2) by Richard Brzezinski covers the military history, tactics of the period, composition of the Polish Armies, standards, and of course, the beautiful color plates we've become used to (by Angus McBride). Excellent booklet! 4235 "THE ARMY OF GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS (1) INFANTRY and #262 (2) CAVALRY, both by Richard Brzezinski and illustrated by Richard Hook, were invaluable to me in obtaining some basic information about the Thirty Years War. Starting with a chronology of the TYW, Richard discusses the military background of the Swedes, conscripts, mercenaries (helpful information in putting together a wargames army), weapons, uniforms, organization, tactics, and flags. Very helpful sources! By Hal Thinglum - SUN-RAY SCENICS - I'd seen this company's products at THE EMPEROR'S HEADQUARTERS for some time and to be honest, wasn't impressed with the colors. However, I was looking for a means to terrain my North-West Frontier metal bases and couldn't find any suitable medium so I picked up a pack of "Ground Turf' Product #6110 Medium Green, "Fine" Grade from SUN-RAY SCENICS ($6.00). I mentioned within the last few issues that I used "Lake Michigan" fine sand that a friend had given me and dropped the sand over the GEO-HEX "Desert" colored paint letting it dry. Then I put white ELMER'S glue in spots on the sand and poured on the SUN-RAY ground turf letting it set overnight I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was very effective. The color, to me, is just right; not too bright, not too dark. My NWF bases now look, at least to me, as though they could either be in "grass" or "sand" Recommended! By David Barnes - "A TEENAGER'S WAR" - by Ron Tucker; foreword by Lt. Gen. Sir Napie Crookenden, KCB, DSO, OBE, DL. Published by Spellmount (16.99 pds), 1994 (ISBN 1-873376-27-8). " was always lucky - I could easily have landed 100 yards away and sunk straight to the bottom with 8 pounds of equipment to pull me down. 192 of my friends did, almost one-third of the 9th Parachute Regiment wiped out in a few minutes..." Joining the Gordon Highlanders at 16 years of age, concealing his age Tucker responded to Winston Churchill's general appeal and joined the new Para regiment. He was dropped on "Sword Beach" on D-Day 6th June, 1944. Injured in that fighting, he was back again, fighting in the Ardennes. A sergeant at 19 he married his childhood sweetheart and now has two children and six grandchildren and lives in MiddleTrough.. This is a clearly told and exciting true story. Makes one think "What would I have done if ... " By David Barnes - "THE DUKE" - by Philip Guedalla, Wordsworth Military Library (4.99 pds) (ISBP 1 85326 6795)~ 1997 edition. Originally published in 1931, this book uses the massive 34 volumes of Wellington's correspondence and traces the whole of his life from boyhood to death. A lot of the book is taken up with the Peninsular and Waterloo Campaigns of course. I have read a lot of lives of Wellington, including C. V. Wedgewood's two volume work, Creevey's remarks on the great man, and G.R. Cleig's rather worshipful memoir. This is an interesting and clearly written book, and, if it deals summarily with some events, throws interesting lights on a man who can stand with Alfred The Great and Winston Churchill as one who saved Britain in a dark hour, along with a few thousand men who just tried to do the duties he outlined for them. "Caesar threw a bridge across the Rhine." Did he do it by himself.? (Barthold Brecht). By Hal Thinglurn - BANASIK FLAG SHEETS - Orv Banasik, 3165 26th Ave., Marion, Iowa, 52302 sent his newest flag release for the American Civil War, #38 New York flags (12) and Massachusetts (12) flags. These are available in 6 ($2.25), 10(#3.25), 15 ($4.50), 20($4.50), and 25mm ($4.50). For New York, there are flags for NY City/State, City of New York, NY Artillery, 20th NY, 52nd NY, and 37th NY. Massachusetts has different State flags and US National flags. Very nice indeed; beautiful colors and easy to mount with white glue and they look most effective! Highly recommended. By Hal Thinglum - CALIVER BOOKS/PARTIZAN PRESS ECW PUBLICATIONS - CALIVER BOOKS/PARTIZAN PRESS, 816-818 London Rd., Leigh-on-Sea, Essex SS9 3NH (0 1702- 73986) is well known for their extensive listing of English Civil War publications. I had long been interested in their series of wargames scenarios on the ECW and ordered three of them from their "Forlorn Hope Guide to.." series being The First Battle of Newbury 1643, The Battle of Hopton Heath (both by David Frampton and Peter Garnham; 5 pds each), and Naseby Fight (by Barry Denton; 5.99 pds). There are more that I am hoping to obtain in the future, They are MWAN-sized publications ranging from 59 to 80 pages long. They start out by defining the types of forces used during the period (ECW), provide additional rules of play for FORLORN HOPE (ECW rules), provide information on both armies including order of battle, an account of the battle as well as diagrams, a painting guide for uniforms and flags and end up with their sources. Very helpful and interesting information. I am very pleased that I obtained them. Highly recommended! I also ordered a "Old Map of Suffolk 1610" by John Speede which is an "antiqued parchment replica". I quote "As well as showing towns, villages and boundaries as they were during the reign of Elizabeth I, he portrayed the first 'aerial views' of many cities, and embellished his work with a wealth of heraldic detail, decoration, illustrations of battles and royal portraits which elevate his craft into an elaborate work of art." 2.95 pounds each; there are approximately 75 different maps, most of them concerned with England. Measuring 14" X 18" it would be quite useful for wargames campaigns, which is why I ordered one to see what it would be like! Would also look quite nice framed. Write to them and ask for a listing of the various maps. By Hal Thinglum - TERRY SIRK PAINTING SERVICE - Terry Sirk, 9770 Church Hill Rd, Mercersburg, PA 17236 has been a professional wargames figure painter for many years, to my knowledge. I sent him a unit of 12 mounted Scots Dragoons and 13 dismounted from the ECW in 15mm. Turnaround time was excellent as I sent them out on 12-9-97 and received them back 12-31-97. Very good indeed! Of the figures, there were two standards (one mounted and one dismounted) and they were painted at no extra cost. Figures were done, in my opinion, above wargames standard and I was very pleased with them. I especially liked the way Terry did the horses with shading and high-lighting. I requested the "2nd class" painting job at $2.20/foot; $2.75/mounted. "I st Class" would have been $2.75/$3.80. Nicely done; thanks, Terry! By Hal Thinglurn - FIGHTING SAIL 1/2000 SCALE SAILING SHIPS - DIVISION AFTER DIVISION, 167 10 Bradbe Rd., Fisherville, KY 40023 (502-267-8146) sent some beautiful little Men o' War metal ship models for mention within MWAN; 74 and 100 gun ships. You get three of each for $7.95. They come with cast metal masts/sails and each has two additional small sails for front and back (stern and bow, I don't know!). Very nicely detailed for this scale and a welcome addition for 1/2000 sailing ship gamers. Roger Dispel of DIVISION AFTER DIVISION informs us that these are reintroduced "Valient" ships and "Valient also plans to re-release the Spanish Main, Ancients and Space Fleet early in 1998" and that "all molds are being remade". He also adds that "Claymore Games (of Clash fame-Keith Sullivan and Charles Stoll) are writing a large fleet action rule set which will be released at LITTLE WARS to compliment the line." Check his add in page six, I believe, for a full listing of the ships. Something which I found interesting, looking at the ad, is that he also offers "floating batteries" and "land fortifications" which I have always found neat! Some good stuff'. By Hal Thinglum - GUERNSEY FOUNDRY 25MM SEVEN YEARS WAR RELEASES GUERNSEY FOUNDRY, THE FOUNDRY LTD. Huberts Ln., Doyle Rd. St Peter Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands,GY1 1RG UK (0 1481-71424 1) just released the first of their SYW 25mm Prussian Hussars and they are something to behold. I don't have a listing or prices. There are two packs: Command and troopers. The command pack has officer, standard bearer, trumpeter, and, I assume, an NCO, while the trooper pack features four differently poses enlisted men. All of the figures come in three parts: lower body, upper body (from the waist up), and Pelisse (did I spell that correctly?) and require glueing. However, even I, managed to glue them together with super glue without any difficulty. The figures are extremely animated and fierce looking! The horses are all trotting and very well done, as one would expect from GUERNSEY FOUNDRY. Because the top and bottom sections of the bodies are separate, you can achieve some great modeling results. REDOUBT MINIATURES has been doing this for some time with their lines and has been quite successful at it! The Hussar Standard Bearer is carrying a very nicely done pole (w/o standard). I am looking forward to ordering and additional 16 troopers to add to my current SYW collection. Beautifully done and highly recommended! Looking at these Hussars, I am reminded of the movie - I think this is the title - "THE DUELISTS", the story of two French Napoleonic Hussars who continue a duel throughout the Napoleonic Wars. The wearing of the Pelisse in this fashion, hanging over the left shoulder, was, I suppose, quite a "fashion statement" for the time, but it would appear, wouldn't it, that wearing it as such would impede your physical movements; however, I suppose it was "fashion before comfort" for those dashing young Hussars! Lately when I look at the 25mm figures being released today, I can't help but automatically think of how great they would be for skirmish games and these new releases certainly brought that to mind again. OK, you don't want to start a whole new period, but you love that new figure line. Hey, do some skirmish gaming with them mounted individually. Buy thirty or forty; have them professionally painted and terrained for you; and you have not only a game for your tabletop, but you have beautiful figures which you can place on your bookcase or other place of honor! Oh, they also sent along several 25mm Renaissance figures though no listing so I can't really tell you much other than the figures are outstanding! I guess you Renaissance gamers have something to look forward to from GUERNSEY FOUNDRY! By Hal Thinglum - "BEER AND PRETZELS SKIRMISH" WARGAMES RULES - John "Buck" Surdu, 2208 Dewberry Ln., Bryan, TX 77807 not only sent along a set of his latest wargames rules (price unknown), but also sent in an article on Game Design which appears in this issue. This is an 8 1/2" X 11" 81-page effort which is spiral bound. John reports they were intended as "an exceedingly simple set of rules for recreating 20th-Century skirmishes" though they should work well for periods from the Spanish American War to present. One turn in "BAPS equals 30 seconds; 1" = 4 meters; and the rules were written at the squad/platoon level. John reports he has had as many as 150 figures per side without slowing down the game. The game uses Averaging dice as well as four, six, and twenty sided dice. The rules themselves cover only about ten pages while there are 14 pages of optional rules (paratroopers, artillery, close air support, gliders, objectives, sighting & woods, hidden movement, opportunity fire, boats, helicopters, snipers, night fighting, and much more. John presents a total of 13 scenarios which are interesting written and worth well having even if you aren't going to play the rules. There are about 13 pages of vehicle and anti-tank weapons data and eight pages of small unit orders of battle for eleven WWII combatants, The sequence of play is as such: (1) Roll for leader points (used by the leader to give orders); (2) Place order chips: the further away a figure is from the leader, the more points it requires to give that figure an order; (3) Roll for random orders: used when leaders have given out all the order they can (i.e., they have run out of "leader points"). One rolls on a morale chart at this time and the unit's morale influences figure performance, (4) Reveal order chips; (5) Hasty fires and grenade throws; (6) Moves; (7) Hand-to-Hand Combat; and (8) Morale checks. A two sided "cheat" sheet is included with the rules. Worth a look for your skirmish gamers out there! By Hal Thinglum - ROUNDHEAD GENERAL: THE CAMPAIGNS OF SIR WILLIAM WALLER By John Adair (author of the British Public TV series "By The Sword Divided", Sutton Publishing ($44.95). Boy. books are sure expensive, aren't they! Americans have little or no knowledge of the English Civil War -- it's not something we are taught in history classes. I wonder if the English have the same thing happen to them with our American Civil War? Anyway, it's taken me several years of reading about the ECW to start getting an understanding of the conflict and to begin knowing which personalities are on which sides! This is a very interesting book covering Waller's youth, campaigns, battles, and post-ECW activities. Bill Protz, in his ECW rules written years ago, mentioned how interesting the personalities of the time period were and he was certainly correct. The more I read about the ECW and the personalities, the more I want to know about the period and the people! It is an excellent book for a wargamer interested in the ECW as it really gave me a lot of insight into what it was like. It's amazing to me the problems Waller, and others, encountered as to putting together an "army", going on campaign, then having to worry about maintaining your force intact because (1) they weren't being paid. (2) "local" regiments wouldn't leave their county; and/or (3) regiments such as the "London Trained Bands" would decide that they didn't want to take part in the campaign anymore ("Home, Home, Home", they would say!). Doesn't that sound like something that would be great fun to work into a set of campaign rules? On the one hand, you can empathize with the commander leading an army and having half of that army decide to go "home". On the other hand, there is something of the "what if they decided to give a war and nobody came?" There are many references to small skirmishes involving hundreds of soldiers-- sieges; ambushes; pitched battles; etc. An excellent read! By Hal Thinglum - REGIMENTAL COLOURS HISTORICAL MINIATURE FLAGS - Rhett Scott/Craig Martelle, 1416 Forsyth Way, Brandon, DL 33511 (813-661-0641) sent us a color catalog (available for $2) of their new wargaming flags. They state that they specialize in SYW and AWI flags, but they also offer ACW flag sets. All flags are available in 25mm (approximately nine flags/sheet for $5) and 15mm ($3.50) and custom sheets can be made upon request. What is interesting about this effort is that they have colours with a "torn" look! They also state they can hand requests for special scales such as 10mm, 20mm and larger and they can also handle 6mm. The lists are extensive, for example, for the Prussian infantry of the SYW, there are 20 sets covering 55 regiments and 12 Garrison regiments! Colours for the French, Russians, Austrians and Hungarians are also available. The color catalog is very attractive! The flag samples are beautifully done! My congratulations to Rhett and Craig for their quality efforts! All you have to do is cut them out, bend them in half, apply white Elmer's Glue with a toothpick making sure that you apply it all over the surface of one-half of the flag, set it on the flag pole, fold it over, squeeze out the excess glue and sort of "fold" your flag with your fingers so that it looks as if it is blowing in the wind. Highly recommended! By George Dullaghan - ROYAL OAK MINIATURES and IRREGULAR MINIATURES - Hal has praised the efforts of ROYAL OAK MINIATURES(see address earlier in this column), and I want to review them as well. Although I have never met Fred Bultman, we correspond at times and he is a very teamed and good person. He paints buildings as a hobby, and for those of us who have tried this aspect of our hobby, we know how difficult it can be. Fred's buildings look better than real buildings and are something to be proud of. His prices are quite appropriate for the masterpieces he creates and at conventions, his creations are favorably commented upon. In addition, he is the only gamer I know who painted all of Louis XIV's armies and the Elizabethans while painting splendid buildings! I was hesitant to call IRREGULAR MINIATURES, 3, Apollo Street, Heslington Rd., York, YO1 5AP, UK (0 1904-67110 1) because their ad in the English glossies says "No callers please", but it dawned on me that the English say this when they mean "No visitors". Plus, all of us hate to call overseas because we are afraid our toys will never arrive. I called them and placed an order derived from reading the glossies. They were polite and took MasterCard. By airmail, my order arrived within ten days. Apparently, the British pay less for figures than we do in general, so even with phone and postage, I paid a lot less than here in the USA for 15mm figures of any imported brand. The WWI figures I obtained looked like the Nationalities they were intended to portray; the Russians looked like Russians and the British like British, including their faces and posture. Just like when I called TIN SOLDIER in the UK, I was pleased with the figures and the service! By Hal Thinglum - THE GAUNTLET - CIO Craig Martelle, 1203 English Bluffs Ct., Brandon, FL 33511 is an MWAN-sized historical miniatures publication ($6/single issue; $20/quarterly; $30 outside USA payable to Craig Martele; UK subs 9 pds payable to Mark Hannam, 2F/R 65 Walker Rd., Aberdeen, AB 11, 8DL, UK) which started in the UK and is now available within the US (by Craig) in the same fashion as LONE WARRIOR. I just received #10 (Winter 1997/98) and I can't tell you how much I am impressed. Mark and Craig are kind enough to state that the publication was influenced by MWAN in the same fashion that I am proud to admit that MWAN was fashioned after Donald Featherstone's WARGAMER'S NEWSLETTER! However, Mark and Craig have accomplished far more with their quality publication within the first ten issues than I did with MWAN - no doubt about it! There is, to me, a strong "flavor" developing with THE GAUNTLET that is most appealing. I used to say that I designed MWAN as a publication that I would love to receive. THE GAUNTLET fills that bill very well! My sincere congratulations, Mark and Craig! Craig Martelle apparently has some very strong desktop publishing skills, which make this publication visually attractive and the content matches the visual aspect. How good do I really think THE GAUNTLET is? I'd be jealous of this quality publication if (1) 1 didn't firmly believe that there is more than enough room for all of us in this wonderful activity we call historical miniatures wargaming, and, (2) if I wasn't pleased to see other talented people within the hobby make sizeable contributions! There are product reviews, letters to the editor, convention information, classifieds, and numerous articles as well as several rules sets and interesting articles. Front and back covers are in color as are the inside of the covers and Craig skillfully places many b/w illustrations throughout the text. Most highly recommended! By Hal Thinglum - A&A HUGHES PAINTING SERVICE - Alan Hughes, 2 Princess Rd., Seaham, Co. Durham, SR7 7SP, UK (0 191-581278 1) has a professional painting service which I've had the chance to use in the past and have been pleased with the painting quality. I just received two 15mm English Civil War foot regiments from Alan. Cost of painting was $1.25 figure; this price includes painting, basing (though I didn't take advantage of this feature as I wanted to base them myselo and flags/standards. Alan's paint jobs are outstanding for the price. For example, the officer's coats are outlined in another color around the bottom and the "cuts" in the sleeves are done in a contrasting color; more than I would expect for $1.25 per foot figure! The drums are done in multiple colors - not sure I am explaining this well enough; let me try another way. You know how the "strings" on the sides of the drum form a continual "V" shape around the drum with one rightside up and the next one upside down? Well, Alan paints blue, then yellow, then blue, etc. Does that make any sense? Nice black outlining. High quality painting and most highly recommended! By Hal Thinglum REDOUBT ENTERPRISES 25MM ENGLISH CIVIL WAR LINE - 49 Channel View Rd., Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN22 7LN, UK (01323-738022) and available in the USA from THE MINIATURE SERVICE CENTER (Doug Carraccio), 1525 Bridge #163, Yuba City, CA 95993. Peter Heim of REDOUBT ENTERPRISES is a long-time MWANer and personal friend, as are many of the majority of advertisers within MWAN (how's thatforan admission of "Conflict of Interest" as pertains to me "reviewing" wargames products?) - not unusual, I would think, for a small hobby in which the majority of us have been involved twenty or more years (it's a small world afterall) and manufacturers who always start out as "wargamers" first, and then someone who becomes a manufacturer. . I remember when Peter first started with out an extensive 25mm line of Peninsular War figures. I was very impressed with the extent of the line and wrote to him expressing my feelings and an interest in the figures. We started writing back and forth and that was years ago! Anyway - Peter!!!!!!! How can you sleep at night having sent a spineless" creature, such as myself, all of these beautiful "toys"? You've obviously read of my 15mm English Civil War project which has been growing steadily! What sort of perverse pleasure do you derive from literally "pushing" me into another scale for a period I already have? Let me just start out by saying you will not find a better line of 25mm ECW figures; well, let's try again! If you consider the completeness of the line, you won't find a better line of 25mm figures - period! REDOUBT ENTERPRISES has set the standard, in my opinion, for other manufacturers. They are, I believe, joined by GUERNSEY FOUNDRY with their 25mm SYW line. I have seen some of the DIXON ECW line and feel that DIXON's quality is right up there with REDOUBT as pertains to the ECW, however, REDOUBT gets the nod because of the extensiveness of their line. These are "large" 25mm figures, measuring 28mm from the top of the base to the figure's eye level, and as such, I don't see them "mixing" with any other manufacturer (FRONT RANK, DIXON, WARGAMES FOUNDRY) for this period. Is that a minus? Personally, I think it is, as I love to have a choice of figures from a variety of manufacturers in my wargames annies, or at least select items from other manufacturers. However, this line is extensive enough to provide us with what we need for the period! Not only are there 140 regular "foot" figures for the Royalists and Parliamentarians as well as 38 horse and 9 gunners, there are Lowland Scots (22), Highland Scots (23), Irish (12), and Scots Horse (8); not to mention "Clubmen". This doesn't even include figures from the famous REDOUBT "extras" they provide in each of their lines. Some of these include guns/limbers, three different groups of dismounted Dragoons, mounted Generals, minister, monk, three different packs of "Wild Highlanders" each containing ten figures with separate torsos/legs allowing you to create many different figure combinations, camp followers, Scots Frame gun w/crew, mortar w/crew, field hospital, plough set, Gibbet set, "Forlorn Hope" set (8 Dragoons w/petard), Court Martial (table/chairs/seven figures), "Punishment" set (four figures in stocks/chains, wagons, and civilians! I don't know how many different figures that would make total. There are foot giving fire, at the present, advancing w/musket across body, priming pan, blowing match, ramming down shot, kneeling at ready, and advancing marching. Pikemen are armored or unarmored at the charge, thrusting, held at 45 degrees, upright and angled. An interesting group of pike are the "rear tankers" shoving, pushing, and leaning backwards while in a "mass" melee. I must admit to being sort of partial to the dismounted Dragoons after reading many accounts of small sieges against castles/complexes. Can you put yourself in this situation for a few minutes? Your commanding officer, a fine gentleman who, by the way, won't be going with you, is asking for volunteers to run across two hundred feet of open ground carrying a heavy petard; stand by the castle gate while a group of unfriendly people are dropping large heavy rocks on your head; affix the petard to the gate ("Whatt do yea meane, yea forgotte the nailes") and ignite it (Whoe hath the matche?") hoping that it won't explode in your face; and then run back before the blooming thing blows up! Foot figures are .60 pence; horses .90 and 1. 10 pds. They also offer four different sets of ECW flags and standards for English and Scots (5.50 pds per sheet; 12 per sheet). There is also a 17th Century Coach and "four" with Barnes' excellent drawings of this range in MWAN #87 (pg 66). Detail and animation is outstanding! There are many separate heads (about 14 for the foot, for example). You will not find a better line of 25mm. ECW! Highly recommended; my congratulations, Peter! So, Peter, what do I do? Small collection of six or so large regiments of foot (six figures/stand; minimum of six/seven stands per regiment) and a like number of horse units (3 horse/stand with four to six stands per regiment or all horse mounted individually?) along with several guns, mounted and dismounted Dragoons mounted individually? I think I've seen this movie before! I'll let you know next issue, fellow MWANers, but what would you do? By the way, please note how cleverly I was able to scan in the REDOUBT illustrations; Craig Martelle, eat your heart out! By Hal Thinglum - FRONTLINE WARGAMING PRODUCTS - Frontline Wargaming, Gibraltar Farm, Ham Lane, Gillingham, Kent, ME7 3JJ, UK (01634-832189) has a number of interesting products for the wargamer. I recently obtained the following items: From their 25mm WWII range, IC8 Barricade (3.25 pounds), which consists of four separate resin pieces built up with barrels, boxes, furniture, and oil drums. Should look very effective in my 25mm WWII skirmish Eastern Front gaming! Also got some 25mm stone walls consisting of 25W1 straight section (5" long for 1.60 pounds); 25W2 straight w/small gate (1.55 pounds); 25W3 straight w/four bar gate (1.50 pds); 25W4 comer (1.00 pd); 25W5 ruined straight (1.55 pds); and 25W6 buttress end (0.60 pence). FM5 is a plank bridge 6" long (3.65 pds) which has two separate side rails and is quite good! Again, will suit my WWII Eastern Front, but could be used for any period of history, I would think. IC7 sand bagged position (3.95 pds) is from the 25mm WWII range and is a 3" X 5 1/2" structure built up with sand bags. In 20mm, I received FF4 sandbag and timber machine gun position and trench w/separate roof (4.65 pds) which is a large 5" X 11" with a zig-zag trench with the machine gun position in the middle with a roof. Very effective and attractive! Quality items and nicely designed/cast! Highly recommended. Check them out and request a listing; many interesting/useful items! By Hal Thinglum - ESSEX 15MM RENAISSANCE COACH AND FOUR - Essex has released a Renaissance Coach & four horses w/driver and rider ($12.99) which I picked up for use with my 15mm ECW project figuring that it could be used as "The King's Coach" for wargames! Beautiful little model! Assembly was easy, even for me, and it looks great! , They also have the same thing for the Napoleonic period along with a Napoleonic general for the same price. Nice to have these little extras on the tabletop, I always think. Highly recommended! By Hal Thinglum - CHEVAL DESIGN STUDIOS 15mm THIRTY YEARS WAR LINE Cheval Design Studios, 165 Charles Street, Vestal, NY 13850 (607-785-5486) has a Thirty Years War range in 15mm which is quite interesting. There are six packs of figures (each for $10.95): horse musketeers (18 figures in three poses); horse (18 figures/3 poses); pike (50 figures/3 poses); musketeers (50 figures/6 poses); foot command & characters (30 figures/8 poses); and mounted command (16 figures/4 poses). I have a pack of the mounted command which provides you with a Dragoon drummer (4), trumpeter (4), and two differently posed (one w/sword up and the other w/sword by right leg) officers. There are differently posed horses in the pack. I'm surprised that they included the Dragoon drummer instead of a mounted standard bearer. I'm glad to get the Dragoon's drummer, but I would assume a mounted standard bearer would be more handy as we usually like to have standard bearers with our mounted regiments. Quality is good; they remind me very much of the MATCHLOCK MINIATURES 15mm ECW range which I always liked. I plan to get some more to build up a TYW army in 15mm. By Hal Thinglum - MR GAJ0 PAINTED ARMIES - George Johnson (MR GAJO), 930 Mellish Drive, Lapeer, Michigan 48446, is a long-time friend and supporter of MWAN. Besides that, he is perhaps one of the nicest men I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and he is certainly the most honest and trusting! For many years, he has been purchasing second hand painted armies, rebasing them, and selling them and you can obtain a listing of these by writing to the above address. For the last several years, he has established a "farm" of painters, given them little toy soldiers, and set them to work painting! The result are the GAJO Painted Armies you see advertised to MWAN and other publications. How good are these painted figures? George sent me about twenty painted 15mm Napoleonic figures (cavalry, infantry and guns) and one 25mm OLD GLORY Highlander. Excellent work and I would have to judge them as "above wargames quality" beyond a doubt. Certainly several steps above my painting abilities for sure! When I get time, I'm going to mount them on bases, terrain them, and bring them to work to place on my cabinet for display. George guarantees that you will be satisfied with his products and his trusty nature is legendary. Very highly recommended! By Hal Thinglum - RUBBERMAID STORAGE BOXES - You've probably noticed these plastic boxes in any of a number of stores (Venture, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc) in the "storage box" area. For some years, I've been using them to store my 25mm SYW collection of perhaps 4,000 figures. The boxes are labeled as seven US gallons and measure 14" X 23" X 5 3/4" deep. My SYW foot regiments are 37 figures strong, including a mounted officer on the command stand, and I can keep twelve regiments (12 X 3 7) 444 figures in one box. I then mount the boxes four high and put them under my wargames table so they are out of the way. I don't remember the cost, but they are well worth it. I do, I admit, waste some of the space as I wouldn't need them to be 5 3/4" deep, but that's the way they come. I have also purchased some of the deeper ones and use them to store 25mm trees. Very handy. Take a look at the plastic boxes in your town's discount store; you'll be very likely to find something you can really use for storage of your wargames armies and/or accessories! Back to MWAN #92 Table of Contents Back to MWAN List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1998 Hal Thinglum This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. 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