Having received a representative grouping of ACW figures from Alliance Miniatures, I was surprised to find that there are 71 different packs or figures listed in their catalog. It is amazing how many companies are now making extensive ACW lines in 15mm and it would be fair to say that Alliance's foot castings rate right up there among the better figures. While this line lacks the many specialty figures of Freikorps' ACW line, it does cover the generic Union and Confederate infantry types, with the added pleasure of some nice zouaves, artillerists, cavalry, generals, guns, and limbers. in contrast with some other well known lines, Alliances' figures are a bit stockier than either Stone Mountain or Freikorps castings. I'd say that the line is more akin to Essex and Naismith in terms of proportion, especially the heads. I really can't say that the figures are squat or "dwarfish" because such would not be true. They are actually quite nice to look at, pretty detailed, and paint up very well. The best way to describe them is to state that Freikorps and Stone Mountain heads and headgear are a bit less "bulky". While I'm not sure that they will mix well in the same units with Freikorps or Stone Mountain, there is absolutely no problem in making separate units and placing these alongside your existing ones, since they match up well in height. Figure animation is good, the zouaves come with either kepi, turban, or fez (which looks more like a stocking cap similar to the 4th Michigan in 1861 and 1862), and weapons are accurate in proportion to bodies (no rifles that look like carbines). I do have to admit that I'm not overly fond of the cavalry figures. Prices are $3 for a pack of 12 infantry figures or .30 per individual infantry casting, $3 for 6 cavalry or limber horses or .60 for an individual figure, $1 for each artillerists and $3 for four guns. I recommend getting a catalog by writing to: Alliance Miniatures / P.0 Box 2347 / Des Moines, Iowa 50310. Back to The Zouave Vol II No. 2 Table of Contents Back to The Zouave List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1988 The American Civil War Society 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