By David Kuijt
Catalog or Website: Essex has an online catalog with a few illustrations at their website here. Another good website is their US retailer, Wargames Inc., whose website is www.speartorifle.com.
General Comments: Most of my Medieval armies are made up of Essex figures, and I'm very happy with them. They are sturdy, well-carved, and detailed. Some of their figures are not very animated (spearmen, pikemen, and some halberd/polearm figures). This isn't a disadvantage in my eyes for spearmen and pikemen -- I want formed troops to be formed in regular ranks, and the Essex figures are well suited to that role. Even when they are in similar static poses, the figures are often varied poses. One man will have a slightly different stance, hand position on his weapon, and helmet, and so on. They also have troops in more active poses appropriate for loose-order troops like Auxilia or Psiloi.
Some images (many WA, NA, HSA ranges) are direct scans of the miniatures.
| Part # | Type and Pose Variety | Weapons and Armour | Grade | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOAT1 | n/a | n/a | A | Dark ages boat, suitable for Vikings, Saxons, Germans, Dacian, and many others. Lap-strake construction, with furled sail. Very nice. The rowers (not pictured) are also very nice. The image shows the boat run up on a sandy beach as a DBA Camp. The coiled rope that runs from the deck to the pulley is something I added. |
| Midianite Arab | ||||
| BS24 | 1 | bow | B | Camel with one rider. Single-piece casting. This is a nice enough figure, although it is very disappointing as a "command pack". Use it as a single-rider camel and you will be satisfied, though. |
| BS25 | 1 | bow | B | Camel with two riders. This is BS24 with an additional rider that fits on the rear. Nice enough. |
| BS119 | 2 | javelin, helmet | B | Sea People wagon with two warriors with Pelset-style headresses. Four oxen are included. |
| Ancient Chinese Barbarians | ||||
| CHO19 | 1 | bow | A | Two-horse light chariot with driver and archer. More pictures from different angles are here and here. |
| CHO20 | 3 | javelins and shield | A | Assorted javelinmen with shield. Another image is here. |
| CHO21 | 3 | bow | A | Assorted archers. Another image is here. |
| CHO22 | 3 | daggeraxe | A | Assorted daggeraxe men. Two of the three poses are shown. |
| Huns | ||||
| HU1 | 2 | bow, sword | B+ | Hun horse archer firing. Separate rider. |
| HU3 | 2 | bow, sword | B+ | Hun horse archer holding sword. Separate rider. |
| HU4 | 2 | round shield, cloak, javelins | B+ | Hun horse archer with spear and shield. Separate rider. Another view is here. |
| Parthians | ||||
| PA1 | 1 | fully armoured rider, armoured horse, lance | B | Parthian Cataphract. Two cataphract horse poses -- all of RO42, PA1, PA5, and SA2 use the same horses. One rider pose. Cloth-covered body armour, open-face helm, cloak. |
| PA2 | 1 | bow, sword | B | Parthian horse archer. Seperate rider and horse; multiple horse poses. Single rider pose firing sideways. No hat. |
| PA3 | 1 | kontos, armour | B+ | Cataphract camels. Separate rider. One rider pose, one camel pose. Another view is here. A back view is here. |
| Early Armenians | ||||
| PA4 | 1 | bow | B | Armenian horse archer. Seperate rider and horse; multiple horse poses. Distinctive armenian hat. |
| PA5 | 1 | fully armoured rider, armoured horse, lance | B | Armenian Cataphract. Two cataphract horse poses -- all of RO42, PA1, PA5, and SA2 use the same horses. One rider pose. Fully mailed, baggy pants, open-face helm. |
| Sassanids | ||||
| SA2 | 1 | fully armoured rider, armoured horse, lance | B | Sassanid Cataphract. Two cataphract horse poses -- all of RO42, PA1, PA5, and SA2 use the same horses. One rider pose. Cloth-covered body armour, cloak. |
| SA7 | 1 | shield, spear | B | Levy spearman. Static position; only one pose. Nothing great, nothing bad. Another view is here |
| MPA--Thracians | ||||
| MPA5 | 3 | javelins and shield | B+ | Assorted javelinmen. Tunic, two javelins, and a thureophoroi type shield. Active poses. |
| MPA--Skythian | ||||
| MPA16 | 1 | bow | B | Scythian horsebow. Single-piece casting, firing forward. |
| MPA16c | 2 | armour, javelin, bow, shield, sword | B+ | Scythian heavy cavalry. Two-piece castings. Very nice. Note that the shields are flat; the lamellar detail on the shields is not on the original figure. Another image is here. |
| MPA16d | 3 | bow | A | Scythian foot archers. Three poses; two firing and one running with axe. The guy running with the axe is especially nice, and would do well as an Alan. |
| MPA16e | 3 | javelin, shield, sword | A | Scythian foot javelinmen. three poses; two throwing javelins and one running with shield slung (very active, very nice). Other images are here, here, and here. |
| MPA--Seleucids | ||||
| MPA92 | 2 (4) | bow | B+ | Arab archer. Nice enough, if a little static. Two body poses (one standing, one kneeling), with two variations each (with and without cloak). Additional views are here, and here. |
| MPA--Kappadokians | ||||
| MPA130 | 2 | javelin, shield, sword | B+ | Kappadokian foot. two similar poses throwing javelins. I could wish for a bit more variety of pose. Another image is here. |
| MPA -- Maccabees | ||||
| MPA134 | 2 | javelin, bow | B+ | Light cavalry. Simple tunic and cloak. Other images are here and here. |
| Romans | ||||
| RO31 | 1 | mail, helmet, sword, bow | A | Western auxiliary archer. This is a bowman in mail with a simple helmet. Although this figure is nice, there is only one pose, which disappoints me. Another view is here. |
| RO42 | 1 | fully armoured rider, armoured horse, lance | B | Catafractarii SHC. Two cataphract horse poses -- all of RO42, PA1, PA5, and SA2 use the same horses. One rider pose. |
| RO 44 | 2 | mail, helmet | B | Roman artillerymen. Two poses, both shown. Nice, although they aren't really wearing appropriate armour for Middle Imperial or Late Imperial period. |
| Palmyran | ||||
| RO58 | 1 | bow, sword | B+ | Horse archer. Separate rider; horses (as usual for Essex when separate) have multiple poses. A back view is here. |
| RO59 | 1 | bow | B+ | Foot archer. One pose, sadly. |
| RO60 | 1 | spear, shield, armour | B+ | Camelry. A back view is here. |
| Ancients Gallic/Briton | ||||
| AGB1a | n/a | shield, helmet, sword | A+ | Two-horse chariot with chieftain. An excellent set. Chariot, two ponies (and not the usual oversize medieval conversion that are common with Essex mounted figures -- these are nice pony size), an active driver, and a more static General (as is only appropriate for this stand). A very nice set. |
| AGB11 | 2 | shield, mail, helmet, spear | B+ | Gallic heavy cavalry, with mail, shield and helmet. A nice figure, as usual with Essex. The horse is perhaps too large; a medieval destrier rather than the appropriate smaller size for the Gallic Wars. The two poses are head variations only; the body is in the same pose with the same shield. More views are here and here. |
| Useful Ancients/Visigoths | ||||
| AA1 | ? | round shield, cloak, javelins | B | Light or medium cavalry. This is the generic Dark Ages cavalry figure, appropriate for Visigoths and many other armies. Another view is here |
| Welsh | ||||
| WA1 (WA4?) | lots | round shield, cloak, spear | B | Welsh Spearmen Medium Infantry (assorted poses). These figures come from a DBA Welsh Army pack and weren't marked; I'm not certain that the pictures shown are WA1 or WA4. |
| WA 3 | 3 poses | longbow, cloak | B | Welsh Archers (assorted poses). Two more images are here and here. This code mixes very well with MID31 Welsh Archer. |
| WA4 (WA1?) | lots | round shield, cloak, javelin | B | Welsh Javelinmen (assorted poses). These figures come from a DBA Welsh Army pack and weren't marked; I'm not certain that the pictures shown are WA4 or WA1. The shields are slightly different from the other pack, but they would mix well together. |
| WA6 | 1 pose | round shield, cloak, javelin, (mail?) | B | Welsh heavy cavalry, javelin and shield. Separate mounts. |
| Later Frankish/Breton/Norman | ||||
| NA1 | 1 pose | round shield, cloak, sword | B | Mounted General figure. Kite shield, mail. |
| NA2 | 1 pose | round shield, cloak, sword | B | Frankish Medium Infantry. Round shield, spear, cloak. This is a nice figure, but a little frustrating that it has no variations in the pack at all. |
| NA4 | 1 pose | round shield, cloak, javelin | B | "Franks Medium cavalry". One pose only, javelin down at the side. Single-piece casting with horse. |
| NA5 | 1 pose | round shield, mail, helmet, spear | B | "Franks Heavy cavalry". One pose only, waving the spear in the air. One-piece casting of horse and rider together. |
| Scots/Irish | ||||
| SIA3/4 | 3 or more | javelin, varied shields | B | Both SIA3 and SIA4 are described as Scots/Irish warband infantry. They have round or oval-wicker-looking shields. Both SIA3 and SIA4 are described the same way in the catalog, so I was not able to tell which bag was which in Jason's DBA army. The figures in each bag are different, and mix together very well. |
| Early Saxon, Frisian, etc. | ||||
| SXA3 | 5 | round shield, mail, helmet, spear or sword or axe | B+ | "Noble warriors heavy infantry (assorted)." Nice figs. One kneeling pose not shown. |
| SXA4 | 5 | round shield, javelin or axe | B | "Noble warriors medium infantry (assorted)." Some have helmets or phrygian caps; no armour. |
| SXA5 | 3 | spear or sword; round shield | B | Peasant Spearmen (assorted). No armour. |
| SXA6 | varied | bow | B | Assorted archers. Unarmoured; some reloading. |
| Byzantine | ||||
| BZA15 | 1 | mail hauberk, helmet, bow | ? | Kataphraktoi heavy cavalry with bow (Thematic Byzantine range). Firing to the side. Helmet with tassle. Scans by Mike Campbell. |
| BZA23a | 1 | mail hauberk, helmet, lance | A | Tagmatic Kataphraktoi heavy cavalry with lance and kite shield (Nikephorian Byzantine range). Nice figure. The same figure (with an armoured horse) is available as BZA23. My pack included two different horse poses. Another image is here. |
| BZA24 | 1 | mail hauberk, helmet, bow | ? | Tagmatic kataphraktoi extra-heavy cavalry with bow (Nikephorian Byzantine range). Holding a bow (not firing). Scans by Mike Campbell. |
| Asiatic Hordes | ||||
| HSA1 | 1 | helmet, lamellar hauberk, lance, bow. | A | Alan heavy cavalry. Image of the back is here. |
| HSA2 | 1 | small shield, javelin or short lance, bow. | ? | Alan horse archer. Figure striking down with javelin. Fur-rimmed cap, thigh-length coat. Scans by Mike Campbell. |
| HSA3 | 1 | helmet, cloth hauberk, small shield, spear, bow. | A | Bulgar heavy cavalry. Static position, riding with spear upright. Shorter spear than HSA1, HSA6, HSA11, but longer than a javelin. Image of the back is here. |
| HSA4 | 1 | bow | ? | Bulgar horse archer. Unarmoured, firing bow to the side. Fur-rimmed cap, thigh-length coat. Scans by Mike Campbell. |
| HSA5 | 1 | bow | B+ | Pecheneg Horse Archer. Light horse bow, shooting to the side. 1 pose, 1 horse pose. Long robe, bowcase, scimitar, no shield, fur cap or hat. Bearded. |
| HSA6 | 1 | lamellar armour, helmet with camail, small shield, lance and bow. | ? | Khazar heavy cavalry. Spear upright. Image of the back is here. |
| HSA7 | 2 | bow | B+ | Slav foot archer. Firing. Two poses, one (shown) with cloak. |
| HSA9 | 3 | Shield, two javelins | B | Slav javelinmen. Three poses were in my bag: one active with round shield, one passive (standing) with round shield, and one standing with rectangular shield (not shown in image). |
| HSA10 | 1 | helmet, mail hauberk, round shield, javelin | A | Slav medium cavalry. Nice figure, if a little static. Image of the back is here. |
| HSA11 | 1 | helmet, lamellar and mail hauberk, small shield, lance, bow? | A | Avar heavy cavalry. Horse has a furry saddleblanket (HSA11a is the same, but the horse has lamellar armour). Image of the back is here. |
| HSA12 | 1 | bow | ? | Avar horse archers. Firing to the side, no armour, bare-headed. Scans by Mike Campbell. |
| HSA13 | 3 | varies | A | Mounted command suitable for all asiatic hordes. Three poses; one has a spear and horsetail(?) banner. One is a direct convserion of HSA11, with the long spear turned into a sword. In a scan by Mike Campbell here one of the figures (center) is slightly different from my pack; I received the figure with a long tunic, helmet with camail, bowcase and short spear shown here instead. The one I got is really nice -- A+. There's a back view here. |
| Mongol | ||||
| MOA 5 | 2 | bow, sword, quiver, bowcase | B | Mongol horsebow. One pose firing forward (one-piece casting), one firing slightly left of forward (two-piece casting). The carving is of the usual high quality for Essex figs, but I find the poses a little stilted, and as usual the Essex horses look like Medieval destriers, not nomad ponies. My only real complaint is that these figs don't look dirty enough. Still, on balance they are fine figures. The one-piece casting wears a helmet with mail neck protection; he wears tighter-fitting pants rather than mongol baggy pants stuffed into boots, and his tartar coat is knee length (i.e., too short). Another image is here. |
| MOA 7 | 2 | bow, sword, quiver, bowcase, spear, small round shield | A | Dismounted Mongols. Nice figures. One has lamellar armour; the other a heavy cloth or leather coat. |
| MOA 8 | 2 | bow, sword, quiver, bowcase, spear, large rectangular shield | A | Dismounted Mongols with Pavise. Nice figures. One has lamellar armour; the other a heavy cloth or leather coat. Perfect for the Mongol invasion of Japan. |
| RNN7 | 3+ | bow, sword | B | Tartar bowmen. Although these figures are putatively from Essex' Renaissance range, they are very good for dismounted Turco-Mongol steppe nomads from the Mongol invasions of 1240 or even earlier. Another view is here |
| Ancient Equipment | ||||
| XEQ11 | n/a | n/a | A | One cubit bolt engine. These are small bolt throwers, very nice. The crew shown are RO 44 Artillerymen. |
| XEQ12 | n/a | n/a | A- | 30-mina stone or bolt thrower. This type of torsion-powered siege engine was used for nearly two thousand years, from Alexander the Great to Tamurlane. This is a really nice miniature, with one problem -- the wound sinew bundles that grip the bow arms wind in one direction only. That is an error -- they should wind one way above the bow arm, and the other way below the bow arm. It is a common error, however -- even medieval illustrations of the mechanism are often incorrect. Note that the bolt and the cord are add-ons (brass wire and string) not part of the original miniature. They're easy to add, though. Side view. |
| Medieval | ||||
| MID25 | varied | spear, medium armour | B+ | Ass. Hobilars (M/Hvy Cav Lance) no shield. Match up well with MID72. Spears rather than lances, medium armour (aketon, mail, brigandine; open faced helm). Separate horses. |
| MID30 | varied | longbow, medium armour | B+ | Ass. Medium bowmen, ass. helmets. Mostly firing figures, some reloading. Medium armour in general (brigandine and/or mail, some with simple helmets). |
| MID31 | 1 | longbow, cloak | B+ | Welsh longbow. This bag was a disappointment to me. The figure is very nice, but there is only one pose. For irregular troops such as the Welsh bowmen, a single pose in a bag is ludicrous. Unless you are buying a lot of bow, I suggest you buy code WA3 (Welsh bow) instead -- that code has three poses, and are equipped absolutely the same as MID31. MID31 mixes perfectly with WA3. |
| MID34 | varied | long spear & shield, medium armour | B+ | Medium inf, ass. helms, long spear, large shield. Static postures. |
| MID36 | varied | long spear & shield, medium armour | B+ | Heavy inf, ass. helms, long spear, large round shield. Varied figures (my bag had 5 different armour/costume variations on 8 figures), medium armour, similar static postures. These are exactly the same figures as MID37, but with a large round shield rather than a heater shield. Nice figures. Look at the image below at MID37 for a better picture of the details of these figures. |
| MID37 | varied | long spear & shield, medium armour | B+ | Heavy inf, ass. helms, long spear, large shield. Varied figures, medium armour, similar static postures. Same figures as MID36, but these have heater shields. |
| MID38 | 1 | short spear, kite shield, no armour | B+ | Medium infantry with a short spear. Only one pose, which I find quite disappointing. Rear view is here |
| MID51 | varied | short spear and shield, medium armour | B+ | Asst Light/Medium spearmen, various dress, large shield. Armour is brigandine mostly, with simple helmets. Mostly similar static postures (one guy raising his shield and spear in an active pose) |
| MID55 | 1 | crossbow, medium armour | B+ | Light/Medium Crossbowmen, Kettle helm. One figure type only, brigandine and kettle helm, firing. This figure also appears as part of MID56 (assorted crossbow) pack. |
| MID56 | lots | crossbow, medium armour | C+ | Light/Medium Crossbowmen, pointed helm. Seem to be varied figures, all firing, medium or light armour. I'm not absolutely certain that the picture matches the product code here, but I think they match. The mold lines on these figures are a little pronounced, as shown (and a little exaggerated) here. |
| MID64 | 2 | javelin and shield, no armour | B+ | Asst javelinmen, round shield. Two figure types: one running and one throwing. Both very active poses. |
| MID65 | 2 | javelin and sword, no armour | B+ | Asst shieldless javelinmen. Two poses, one standing with javelin on hip, one throwing (wearing a cloak). |
| MID71 | lots | no weapons, medium armour | B+ | Assorted artillerymen shown arrayed around MFPE1 Bombard. (Note that the cannonballs are scratch-built.) Varied figures and postures. Two bucketmen, two with rammers, etc. Good figures. Some unarmoured, some in brigandine and kettle helm. |
| MID72 | 2 | spear, medium armour | B+ | Shieldless Medium Cav. Two types of figures. One-piece castings with horse, unlike many Essex mounted figs. Medium armour (quilted aketon or brigandine). Good figures for sergeants. |
| MID73 | lots | bill, light/medium armour | B+ | Asst lt/md billman Varied figures; light armour; three ranges of postures (one with bill horizontal, one active striding (shown), one passive striding). |
| MID74 | varied | bill, medium armour | B+ | Asst heavy billman. Varied figures; medium armour; similar static postures. I like these figs quite a bit -- static postures seems appropriate for massed heavy billmen. |
| MID75 | varied | pike, medium armour | B+ | Assorted pikemen (lowland). Varied figures; medium armour; upright pikes; similar (static) postures. I'll replace the crude scan once I've painted the figs. |
| MID 76 | 6 | mail, assorted helmets and weapons | B+ | Assorted dismounted knights 1200-1275. Nice figures. My one complaint is that there are too many guys with maces - half the poses hold maces. Still, nice figures. |
| MID80/80A | 2 | lance, mail, Spanish round shield | B+ | Ass. Kn. 1150-1300. Two poses, separate castings from their mounts. The roundshields have the distinctive rope tassels found on shields in Spain. Note that the hornblower in the image is not part of the pack; also note that one of the horses shown has been substituted; pack MID80 comes with cloth barded horses (as the figure on the right of the image); pack MID80A comes with unbarded horses (left). |
| MID84 | 2 | javelin, adarga shield, sword | B-/C | Ass. Ginetes. (Jinetes are Spanish/Grenadine light cavalry). Separate horses. Good casting quality. One pose active (stabbing to the side) one passive (facing forward); both without armour, turban, or hat, wearing a short-sleeved tunic. Nicely cast figures. A back view is shown here. A scan of both rider poses is here. These figures aren't appropriate for later (14th-15th century) Spanish jinetes, when they would be wearing more armour and have longer spears; they also don't work for Grenadine (Moslem) jinetes, who would have turbans and longer robes. Pictures of modified figure with turban, facecloth, and long lance: Front and Back. |
| MID85 | 1 (2) | javelin/short spear, round shield with tassels | B- | Assorted spearmen. Good casting quality; poses are nearly identical (head position varies). No armour; bare heads, calf-length short-sleeve tunic. These are the figures that the Essex Grenadine DBA army uses for Grenadine militia spear, which was why I bought them. I was disappointed -- the two poses are nearly identical, not "assorted" at all. Grenadine militia spear should have beards and a variety of headgear, from helmets to turbans or hats. The circular shields with tassels are only appropriate very early on; later militia spear would have large square shields or kidney-shaped smaller ones. |
| MID88 | 2 | javelin, bow + quiver, sword, quilted armour, round shield | B | Turcopoles. Separate horses. Quite nice. A back view is here. |
| MID96 | similar | long spear and buckler | B | Asst lt/md long spearmen, small round shield. The buckler is separate, which allows for more variety in the figures. Pikes upright, static similar postures. One or two has a helmet, otherwise unarmoured and in simple tunics. |
| Casualties | ||||
| CIA3 | 4 or more | mail, surcoat, helmet | A | Casualties. Assorted knights 1200-1275. Very nice. |
| CIA8 | 4 or more | n/a | A | Casualties. Six barded horses. Nice. |
| Medieval Equipment | ||||
| MFPE1 | n/a | n/a | B+ | Ground-emplaced bombard. Gunner figures shown with the bombard are MID71. |
| MFPE5 | n/a | n/a | B+ | Organ gun. A multiple-barrelled gun on a two-wheeled carriage with gun shield. Crewmen are MID71 figures. Another image. |
| MFPE8 | n/a | n/a | B+ | Bombard in emplacement with swivel pavise. Another ground-emplaced bombard, but with a swivelling siege pavise to protect from enemy arrows. A really nice casting; four parts. |
| MFPE13 | varied | none | B+ | Serfs with Baggage (6). Varied figures and postures, most walking with burdens. One is seeding or feeding livestock from a seed bag -- very useful for a pastoral scene or in association with pigs/goats/sheep. |
| MFPE 16 | 3+ | none | A | Praying monks. Nice figures. I'm uncertain about the code for these guys (the online catalog doesn't show the MFPE subrange); I'll get the info asap. |
| Medieval/Early Renaissance | ||||
| MER 1a | 1 | lance, shield, and sword | A | Mounted Knight 1360-1390, assorted bascinets. Excellent figure. A back view of the figure is here. |
| MER 1-5 | ?? | lance and sword | A | Essex Mounted Knight figures are all really excellent. I can't identify them by part number in this review because I got mine as part of a DBA army, so I got a variety without identifying original part numbers. The image is representative only, in bascinet and jupon with a heart-shaped shield; many other helmets and shields appear in my bags. Some are gesturing with axe or mace. |
| MER 7 | 1 | lance, white harness | A | Mounted knight 1400-1430, full plate, great helm, lance. Nice figure. As with many Essex knights, the broad posture of the lance hand makes fitting the figures three-to-a-base a little awkward. |
| MER 8 | 1 | mace, white harness | A | Mounted knight 1400-1430, full plate, great helm, mace, axe, or sword. One pose, different weapons. Nice figure, although the position of the arm and weapon makes it a little difficult to base with other knights. |
| MER 9 | ?? | sallet, white harness | A | Mounted knight 1400-1480. Sallet, full plate. Nice figure. Several head variations. |
| MER20 | 1 | spear, mail, sallet | B+ | M/Hvy Cav shieldless (Border Horse). One type of figure -- mail hauberk, spear, open-faced sallet, 15th c. boots. |
| MER22 | some | halberd, helmet, camail, tunic or cloth-armour. | B+ | Bonnachte or Gallowglas medium/heavy axemen. These figures were included as part of an Essex DBA Welsh Army. MER22 is a good general polearm figure for Western Europe in the 14th or 15th centuries. I'm not sure how much variety there is in the pack, as only 3 figures were included in the army; those contained the two poses shown. |
| MER23 | 2 | lance, heavy armour | B+ | Ass. Mtd Lesser Man at arms/Currors Two types of figures. Heavy armour (but not full white harness), no shield, lance. On one figure the lance is separate. A bit heavily armoured for Cv; appropriate for lesser Kn. The figure illustrated was slightly modified to use in a Cv stand -- the lance with its characteristic fluting around the grip was trimmed down to make a spear. |
| MER27 | 1 | crossbow, breastplate, sallet | B+ | Asst. Mtd Crossbow. In spite of the "assorted" in the pack name, I only had one type of figure in my bag. Static pose, sallet, bevor, and breastplate. |
| MER28 | varied | bill, hauberk and helmet | B+ | Asst Med/Heavy Billmen. Medium armour (hauberk and helmet); identical poses (bills horizontal in attacking positions, right hand way back behind on shaft). Helmets vary. |
| MER29 | varied | partisan, white harness | B+ | Asst Partisan. Heavy armour (white harness with varied helmets); identical poses (partisans horizontal in attacking positions). Many figures in this group are suitable for dismounted knights. In addition to the ones shown, in my pack one came with a sallet, and one with a pigface bascinet. Incidently, does the guy second from the right remind you of anyone? Think Monty Python, and bad french accent. |
| MER36 | lots | white harness, varied weapons | A | Dismounted Knights/Men at Arms 1400-1500. Widely varied figures and weapons; heavy armour (white harness); varied postures. No shields or heraldic surcoats. There's another image of an MER36 fig painted up with gilded armour as a leader here. |
| MER36a | lots | white harness (sometimes with shield), varied weapons | A | Dismounted Knights/Men at Arms 1350-1399. Widely varied figures and weapons; heavy armour; varied postures. Many have shields or heraldic surcoats. Some have crests, as shown here. |
| MER37 | 3 | white harness | A | Mounted Command. Unarmed herald, banner-bearer and general/duke/high noble both in white harness. Very nice figs. |
| MER38 | lots | varied | B+ | Foot Command Pack. Six figures -- two drummers (one unarmoured, one in cabasset and cuirass), two flag bearers (both in white harness), two command figures (one heavily bearded in breastplate and half-armour, one younger in a cabasset). The image shows the bearded command figure and an unarmoured drummer; an image of a flagbearer from the pack is here. Another image of three figures from this pack is here, with a back view of the same figures here. Excellent figures overall, although the cabassets are too late (filed them down into something else). |
| MER40 | varied | pike, half-armour | B+ | Asst heavy Pikemen. Static poses with upright pike. Breastplate, helmet, pauldrons and knee armour. |
| MER41 | varied | pike, helmet | B+ | Asst medium Pikemen. Static poses with upright pike. Little or no armour. |
| MER42 | varied | halberd, half-armour | B+ | Asst heavy Halberd. Static poses with upright polearm. Half-armour, including pauldrons and cuisses. |
| MER43 | varied | halberd, helmet | B+ | Asst medium halberd. A variety of static poses with upright polearm. Helmet, but no armour. |
| MER45 | 1 | crossbow, sallet | B | Med. Crossbow, firing, sallet with visor, no armour. Slightly oversize (taller man, not giant). I should have purchased the assorted crossbow MER47 pack. |
| MER50a | 1 | heavy armour, lance | B+ | Gendarmes. Full plate and closed helmets; same stance, but slight differences in armour, helmets and the lances. These figures came with my Essex DBA Later Swiss Army. They represent Lorainner knights of around 1476 AD. My tentative identification is that they are from Essex pack MER50a. |
| MER75 | 1 (2) | pike | B | Renaissance pike with wide-brim hat. Two nearly identical poses with slightly different head positions (both shown in the image). These are middle 16th century figures; I was shipped them by mistake when I'd ordered MID75. I've put them up on the website just because someone might be interested, but I'm not likely to paint these guys. |
| Eastern Medieval Figures for use with EMED range | ||||
| XMED1 | 3 | mail or lamellar on unarmoured horse | A | Eastern Europe Mounted Command. A side view as the command of a Post Mongol Russian army is shown here. All on unarmoured horses, all single-piece castings, but very nice indeed. All three figures are excellent general-types. The third pose is shown here. |
| XMED2 | 4 | varies | A | Eastern Europe Dismounted Command. Heavily armoured guys in baggy pants with a musician. A view of one of the other poses is here. Views from the back are here A scan of the poses (unpainted) is here. |
| XMED4 | 2 | varies | A | Mounted Drummers and Hornblowers. Nice figures. A view from the back is here. The second pose (hornblower) is here. |
| XMED7 | 2 | long spear, sword, javelin. | A | Almughavar, east european shieldless jav. Two poses. Cap, fur vest, no armour. Another view. |
| Hussites/Germans/Bohemians 1380-1450 | ||||
| EMED1 | 2 | lance, shield, medium armour and helmet | A | Ass. Heavy Cavalry 1380-1450. Two very different poses, separate riders and mounts. Germanic late medieval shields and lance; medium or heavy armour. Click here for the other pose. |
| EMED2 | 2 | lance, shield, medium armour and helmet | A | Ass. Heavy Cavalry 1380-1450. Two very different poses, separate riders and mounts. Germanic late medieval shields and lance; medium or heavy armour. Click here for the other pose. |
| EMED3 | 1 | crossbow, sallet, leather jerkin or brigandine | B+ | Mounted Crossbowman. Single figure; medium armour and static pose with crossbow. Separate casting from horses; various horse poses. This figure mixes very well with MER27 or EMED17 figures. |
| EMED6 | 3 | shield, kettle-hat helmet, spear | B+ | Center-ridged Eastern-European shield; dagged hood. There are three helmet varieties, but the pose is the same. Nice figure. A back view is here |
| Polish 1350-1480 | ||||
| EMED11 | 2 | lance, medium armour | A | Polish Knight 1350-1400; mail with surcoat. A back view is here. Nice. Another pose is here, and the back view is here. Nice. |
| EMED12 | 1 | lance, shield, white harness | B+ | Polish Knight 1380-1440, Jupon, Asstd. Helmets. One stance of knight in Jupon; variation in helmet crest only. Heavy armour; closed sugarloaf helmet, shield. A back view of two EMED12 figures is here. |
| EMED13 | 1 | lance, shield, white harness | B+ | Mounted Knight 1400-1480 (Polish range). A knight in full white harness and sallet. Germanic-style armour; appropriate for Germany as well. |
| EMED14a | 1 | lance, white harness | B+ | Mounted Knight 1400-1480 (Polish range). A knight in full white harness and sallet, on an armoured horse. Germanic-style armour; appropriate for Germany as well. A very similar figure to EMED13, but without a shield. A back view is here. |
| EMED15 | 1 | lance, scale armour | A | Hvy/Med Cav, shieldless, with scale armour. A back view is here. Very nice. The armour shown seems more a brigandine than scale. |
| EMED16 | 1 | lance, medium armour | A | Hvy/Med Cav, shieldless. Sallet, plate limb defenses, body armour hidden under a cloth or leather sleeveless jupon. A back view is here. Very nice. This figure would also work very well for German or Bohemian cavalry or poorer Knechte. |
| EMED17 | 1 | crossbow, hauberk, coif and helmet | B+ | Mounted Crossbowmen. Single figure, different from EMED3. Medium armour. Static pose, crossbow across saddle. Mixes well with MER27. |
| Lithuanian Cavalry | ||||
| EMED22 | 2 | long spear, shield, bow, sword | B+ | Lithuanian cavalry with lance and shield. Fur vest and hat. Two poses, separate castings from horses. Distinctive ribbed shield. Back view. |
| EMED23 | 2 | lance, large shield, long boots, armour and helmet | A | Lithuanian Boyars with lance and shield. Two poses, separate castings from horses. |
| EMED24 | 2 | bow, sword, javelin. | B+ | "Assorted horse archers with javs." Two poses (identical save for the head), one-piece castings with the horses. Fur vest and hat. Side view. |
| Russian 1300-1500 | ||||
| EMED25, EMED25a | 2 | helmet, hauberk, lance, shield | A | Assorted heavy cavalry with lance and kite-shaped shield. Two different poses with different armour as well. A view from the side is shown here. The horse shown is the armoured type (EMED 25a) also used for codes 26a, 27a, 28a, 29a; there are several different horse poses possible. The second pose is shown here on an unarmoured horse (EMED25). |
| EMED26, EMED26a | 4 | helmet, hauberk, sword, bow | A | Assorted heavy cavalry with bow. Another view of the same pose is shown here. Two basic poses (firing and resting) with two helmet variations per pose (one with the helmet protecting the back of the neck, the other with a mail or lamellar camail). Other poses with an armoured horse (EMED 26a) are shown here, and a front view, and a firing pose. |
| EMED27, EMED27a | 1 | helmet, hauberk, sword, bow, round shield | A | Heavy cavalry with lance and shield. Another view is shown here. Even though quite simple, I like this figure a lot. It would also mix well with Mamluk Egyptian or Islamic Persian cavalry from the same period. As with the other figures in this series, "27a" is the same as "27" but has an armoured horse. |
| EMED28, EMED28a | 2 | helmet, hauberk, sword, bow, round shield | A | Heavy cavalry with lance and shield. Two poses with different helmets and head posture. An image of the other pose (on an armoured horse, i.e. EMED28a) is here. |
| EMED29, EMED29a | 2 | helmet, hauberk, sword, round shield | A | Heavy cavalry with lance and shield. Two poses with different helmets and head posture. Note that the unarmoured horses in this pack have fur saddle blankets. More images are here and here. |
| EMED30 | 2 | helmet, mail coif, spear, kite shield, sword | A | Assorted spear with kite shield. A back view is here. |
| EMED31 | 2 | helmet, mail coif, bow | A | Assorted bow. Two poses, one loading and one firing (in the foreground of the image). |
| Hungarian 1300-1450 | ||||
| EMED32 | 2 | lance, bow, shield | A | Light cav with lance and shield. Distinctive Hungarian hat and long robes; cupped shield. Mixes well with EMED33. The other pose is here, with a back view here. |
| EMED33 | 2 | lance, bow, shield | A | Light cav with lance and shield. Distinctive Hungarian hat and long robes; winged shield. Mixes well with EMED32. The other pose is here, with a back view here. |
| EMED34 | 1 | full plate, lance, shield | A | Hungarian Knight with distinctive Hungarian/Serbian shield, ca. 1430-1450. All of EMED 34, 35, 36 mix very well together, and also mix well with EMED 1, EMED 2, and the MER range covering unshielded knights of around c.1450. An image of a group of mixed knights is shown here. |
| EMED35 | 1 | full plate, lance, shield | A | Hungarian Knight with distinctive Hungarian/Serbian shield, ca. 1430-1450. All of EMED 34, 35, 36 mix very well together, and also mix well with EMED 1, EMED 2, and the MER range covering unshielded knights of around c.1450. |
| EMED36 | 1 | full plate, sword, shield | A | Hungarian Knight with distinctive Hungarian/Serbian shield, ca. 1430-1450. All of EMED 34, 35, 36 mix very well together, and also mix well with EMED 1, EMED 2, and the MER range covering unshielded knights of around c.1450. |
| EMED40, EMED41 | 1 | heavy armour, spear, shield | A- | Heavy spearman. One pose per code. EMED40 has a square shield with a "bite" out of the lower left corner. EMED41 has a square shield with a vertical ridge in the center of the shield. They mix well together, and also mix well with the German/Hussite shields of EMED6. Such a mixed group is shown here. A back image of EMED40 is here, a back image of EMED41 is here. |
| EMED42 | 2 | bow, padded gambeson | A | Archers, assorted heads. My pack only had two types of heads. The lack of pose variety is disappointing, but the figures are nice enough. A back view is here. |
| Persian 1350-1500 | ||||
| EMED59 | lots | lance, bow, shield, heavy armour | B+ | Islamic Persian heavy cavalry (lance, bow, shield). All figures similar, but with nice variety of armour (some lamellar, some mail). |
| EMED60 | 2 | bow, hauberk, helmet, camail, shield | B+ | Islamic Persian horse archer. Two poses; both 1-piece castings with horse. Nice figs. Second pose. |
| EMED62 | 3 | sword, armour | B+ | Islamic Persian Mounted Command. Very nice: a trumpeter (unarmoured), general, and a noble (both armoured with swords). One small cavil: my noble (non-general; not illustrated) had a cancerous growth on his temple; it was easier to paint it as a bandage (previous battle wound) than to try and carve it off. |
| EMED63 | 3 | bow, hauberk, helmet, camail, shield | A | Dismounted horse bow. Very nice figures; one in lamellar armour, one in mail, and one with a brigandine of some sort. Scans of the unpainted figures are here. Suitable for several other armies in this period beyond Persian (e.g., Timurid, Golden Horde, Post-Mongol Russian). |
| Ottoman Turks | ||||
| RNO1 | 1 | bow, scimitar | B+ | Arab bow, firing from a standing position. These are nice figures, and painted up well too, but I was a little disappointed because of the lack of variety in the pack. The Ottoman armies use non-Janissary bow as skirmishers (Psiloi), and this pack is poorly suited to that use because of the lack of variety and the static poses. I'm trying to find some other turbaned foot bow to mix with these figs, as they are really quite nice. I just wish there were three or four poses per pack, rather than one. |
| RNO3 | 1 | blow, sword | B+ | Janissary bow, firing. One pose per pack. Since the Janissaries were a state-created, trained, outfitted and paid regular unit, having a block of the same poses seems more reasonable to me than for the irregular skirmisher "arab bow" RNO1 figures. Another view. |
| RNO18 | 1+1 | spear, shield | B+ | Ottoman Turk mounted command. One general, two Qapukulu guard cavalry identical with the RNO19 figs. Nice figs. No horse-tail banner figure, which is sort of a disappointment; I may try to build one from scratch. The general is a one-piece figure; the two guards are two-piece (separate rider from horse). |
| RNO19 | 1 | spear, shield | B+ | Qapukulu guard cavalry. All figures identical -- turbaned, holding a spear upright. Nice figs, and for well-trained regular troops I don't mind not having a lot of figure variety. I may bend some of their arms to get some small variety in position, although different horse poses will probably take care of that. Separate horses (with varied poses). |
| RNO20 | 1 | spear, round shield, heavy armour, bow, sword | B+ | Feudal Sipahis. All figures very similar -- there is a slight difference in head position but otherwise they are identical. Heavy armour. Separate horses (with varied poses). |
| RNO20a | 1 | spear, round shield, heavy armour, bow, sword | A | Feudal Sipahis, armoured horse. Riders are the same as RNO20, in heavy armour. I'm really pleased with this figure, maybe because the paintjob (based upon the cover of the Osprey Ottoman Turks book) turned out well. Side view. |
| RNO22 | 2 | spear, bow, sword, no armour. | B+ | Light horse with lance and bow. Figures in similar costume to RNO25/26, and mix well with them in light-horse units. (An RNO25 figure is shown in the background of the image.) Turban, no visible armour, lance, bow. Separate horses (with varied poses). Front view. |
| RNO24 | 1 | lance, bow, shield, heavy armour | B+ | Sipahis cavalry. All riders identical, separately-cast (varied) mounts. Mail hauberk and sternum plackart, helm, camail, round shield. Nice figs, but need to be combined with other figs for variety. |
| RNO25 | 1 | bow | B+ | Akinjis light horse archers, firing forward. All figures identical, one-piece with mounts. Turban, no armour. Nice figs, but need to be mixed with other horse archers for variety. |
| RNO26 | 1 | bow | B+ | Akinjis light horse archers, firing sideways. All figures identical, separate from horses. Some variety in horses. Essentially the same figure as RNO25, but firing to the side and with horse variety. Turban, no armour. Nice figs, but need to be mixed with other horse archers for variety. Mix very well with MOG6. Here is a view of another of the same fig from the back. |
| Mogul Indian | ||||
| MOG4a | 1 | spear, round shield, bow, sword, medium armour | A | Cavalry. Single pose; separate horses; also separate bowcases and swords (need to be glued into position). This figure is perhaps a little hard to paint because of a high amount of detail, but I really like it. Combines well with RNO20, RNO24, EMED59 to make a varied batch of Islamic cavalry. |
| MOG6 | lots | bow, sword | B+ | Horse archers. Varied postures and horses (some are one-piece molds firing forwards; others are two-piece with separate horses, reloading or firing sideways). Turbans, no armour. A good, varied pack. Also mix well with RNO25/26. |
| MOG8 | some | bow | B | Unarmoured Moghul foot bow. Two basic positions, with some variety in heads (beard or not) and clothing (some figs are wearing a mu-mu). Most of the figures are nearly naked (wearing a turban and loincloth), so they don't morph well into other Islamic turbaned bow skirmishers, which was my initial hope. Another image of the figs is here. |
| MOG9 | 4 | javelin, some few with shield. No armour. | B | Varied poses, all active. Mostly wearing loincloth and turban. |
| MOGE18 | 1+2 | Elephant, mahout, and general. No armour. | B+ | Elephant, one mahout with helmet, a palanquin, and a seated general. Quite nice. Another image. The foot javelin accompanying the elephant are MOG9 figures. |
| MOGE20 | 1+2 | Elephant, mahout, and 4 javelinmen. No armour. | B+ | Elephant, one mahout with helmet, and four unarmoured riders with javelin in identical poses, loincloth and turban. The elephant is nice. I wish the javelin guys were a little more varied. It would look strange with four guys on top all identical, all looking left, so I only put two on and gave one of them a beard. Another image. The foot javelin accompanying the elephant are MOG9 figures. |
| Crusades | ||||
| CRU1 | 1 | spear, mail hauberk, round shield | B+ | Arab mailed cavalry. Turban, mail hauberk. Only one rider pose; varied horses. Nice figs, but some significant flash on one of the horses. |
| CRU9 | 2 | crossbow, sword | B+ | Arab crossbow. Turban, robes, pants. One pose is bearded, the other is not. An image of the other pose is here. |
| CRU10 | 4 | sword, shield | B+ | Assorted Arab swordsmen. A nice pack with some good variety and active poses. More images are here and here. |
| CRU27 | 2 | crossbow, sword | B+ | Assorted Seljuq crossbowmen. No turban, robes, pants. Not very assorted; the two poses are quite similar. |
| CRU33 | 3 | spear, sword, round shield | B+ | Assorted Cuman spear/javelin. Nice enough figures, if a bit static. Another image is here. |
| CRU45 | 1 | helmet, camail, long robes, kite shield | B+ | Mameluke heavy cavalry. Helmet, camail, heavy robes could cover body armour. All figures identical, separate horses. |
| CRU46 | 2 | bow, helmet and camail | B+ | Mameluke heavy horse archer. Helmet, camail, heavy robes could cover body armour. Two poses, both similar (firing forward, 1-piece molds with horse) but not identical. Other pose. Nice figs. No shield. Back view. |
January 16, 2002. MPA134 (Maccabee Light Horse, used as Arabo-Aramaean Light Horse in my armies) finally made it to the review; also BS119 (Sea People Wagons).
August 30, 2001. Results of my Arab and Palmyran army production; codes MPA92, CRU10, PA3, RO58, RO59, RO60 with images.
October 3, 2000. Images and codes for AGB1a and AGB11 (Gauls and Brits)
August 30, 2000. Images and codes for the following: SA7 (Sassanid Levy spear), EMED32, EMED33, EMED42 (15th c. Hungarian).
June 12, 2000. Images and codes for the following: EMED34, EMED35, EMED36, EMED40, EMED41. All 15th century Hungarian figs.
June 8, 2000. Images for the following codes: XMED1 (4 pics), XMED 4 (1), EMED23 (1), HSA1 (2 pics), HSA3 (2), HSA6 (2), HSA10 (2), HSA11 (2), and HSA13 (3).
January 17, 2000. Images for XMED4 and a mystery Later Polish mounted figure (possibly EMED11).
January 3, 2000. more than 30 new images, covering EMED 6, 11, 15, 16, 25-31, XMED 1,2; MPA 5, 130; HSA7, and BOAT 1.
December 30, 1999. Images and descriptions for CRU33 (Cuman spear) and Chinese Early Northern Barbarians (CHO18, 19, 20, 21).
December 3, 1999. I've started painting my Post-Mongol Russian army; until it is finished I've put scans up in place of the images that will be added later. New codes: XMED1, XMED2, EMED25a, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, and EMED63.
November 24, 1999. new codes and images: MPA16c, MPA16d, MPA16e, (all Scythians); RO31 (EIR auxiliary archer) and BYZ23a (later Byzantine cavalry with lance).
October 26, 1999. new codes: HU1, HU3, HU4, PA1, PA2, PA4, PA5, MOA7, MOA8, MPA16, RO42, SA2, BS24, BS25. Elements of a Parthian/Armenian morph, foot for a Mongol army, elements of a Hun army, and Midianite Arab Camels.
July 26, 1999. new codes: XEQ11, RO44, EMED14a, MER1, MID88. Plus more images for EMED12, MER38, WA3.
July 9, 1999. new codes: MID31, MID76, MER7, MER8, MER9, EMED13.
July 9, 1999. new codes: MID31, MID76, MER7, MER8, MER9, EMED13.
July 1, 1999. 1 new code added: RNN7 Tartar Bow. Two images.
June 18, 1999. 1 new code added: AA1 Dark Ages Cav. Two images.
May 27, 1999. 2 medieval dead/wounded codes: CIA3 and CIA8.
May 20, 1999. 5 new codes added: XMED7, EMED22 and 24, MID65, and MID80.
April 9, 1999. MOA 5 (mongol horsebow) added; two images.
Mar 31, 1999. CRU 9 and CRU27 added (arabic crossbowmen); three images.
Feb 13, 1999. Two new pictures of the unmodified MID84 Jinete; some reduction to the text for that figure.
January 27, 1999. Split off the whole Essex review into a separate page to reduce loading time for users.
The author may be contacted at kuijt@umiacs.umd.edu Please do not use any pictures or text from this page without permission.
