Internet Modeler : First Look : Figures



advanced search
 

Mars 1/72 Siege Artillery of Imperial Army (Thirty Years War)

By Chris Banyai-Riepl

Overview

Between 1618 and 1648, one of the places you did not want to be was in Europe. Initially started as a conflict between Protestant and Catholic factions in the Holy Roman Empire, the war also involved politics and moved beyond the borders to involve most of Europe. A discussion of the war, even briefly, would be far outside the scope of this review, but for those who want to know more, the Wikipedia entry does a pretty good job summarizing the major points.

The Kit

Mars figure sets are typical wargaming figures, molded in a somewhat soft plastic, but with fairly crisp detailing. This set is another one from Mars' growing Thirty Years' War collection, with this one providing early siege artillery used by the Imperial Army. Because of the artillery portion, this set requires some assembly, and a small instruction sheet covers that assembly.

IMG_8860.JPG
To be clear, my area of knowledge is several hundred years after the Thirty Years' War, so I do not know exactly what type of figures are provided, but there are eighteen of them in this box. There are nine on a sprue, with two sprues included. Twelve are standing figures, with the other six designed to ride on the horses included, of which there are nine. Those same horses are also used to pull the wagon, which requires assembly. Of course, this is a siege artillery set, so there has to be the artillery, and there are two of those short-barreled pieces included. The barrels are molded solid, so the more intrepid modeler will want to drill those out for added realism.

For painting information, the only documentation provided is that on the box. The cover painting shows the uniforms to good effect, while the back of the box shows the figures themselves, assembled and painted. For those looking for more detailed information, I am sure there are some Osprey titles that detail the uniforms of the Imperial Army, including those who operated the siege artillery.

Conclusion

For those interested in the Thirty Years War, and would like to have a small representation of the many participants, the Mars line of figures makes for a great set to pick up. My thanks to Scale Model Kits for the review sample.

Digg this story!

Printable page