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to ReviewsIrregular have recently released a new Catalogue, entirely devoted to 25mm figures, and the latest addition to activities in this scale are ranges of Malburians and Mohicans. Presently, the Malburians comprise 15 Foot figures and 11 Horse, covering Line Infantry and Grenadiers, Line cavalry, Horse Grenadiers and Dragoons. We are promised Dismounted Dragoons and Gunners in the near future.The Range is advertised as being Suitable for any Nation, with the right paint job. The figures I have seen are finely detailed and cleanly cast.
LM1 Line Infantry advancing with musket shouldered. A nicely cast figure in collarless greatcoat with neck-cloth and loosely pinned tricorn. His cartridge pouch is on his right hip, supported by a broad shoulder belt. A waistbelt carries scabbarded hanger and bayonet. The figure is somewhat hunch-shouldered, perhaps indicating that he is feeling like one of the Duke of York's men of lyric renown.
LM2 Line Infantry advancing, musket at ready. This figure is dressed and accoutred as LM1 advancing with his musket at low-port. Again the bayonet is scabbarded, and on this figure in particular, I would have preferred it fixed. Nevertheless another fine casting.
LM5 Line Infantry loading musket. Another line infantryman, this time in a good workmanlike pose ramming home his musket. This would make a fine compliment to a line of firing figures. The range offers standing and kneeling firing. One can easily imagine a fine three rank assemblage of kneeling then standing firing, with this fellow bringing up the third rank.
LM1 Grenadier advancing with musket shouldered. A figure very similar to LM1, but wearing a Mitre cap and no neck-cloth. Variants of all the Grenadier figures are available in Fur-caps for use with those nations who favoured this headgear.
LM12 NCO. with halberd. A very businesslike looking NCO advancing menacingly with a nicely scaled halberd. This figure evinces more coat detail and naturally, carries no cartridge-pouch.
LM14 Drummer. A rather beefy looking drummer, no callow youth, this. The sleeves of his greatcoat are heavily decorated and his drum is suspended in the usual way from a broad baldrick.
LM15 Officer with sword or spontoon. A richly dressed officer, in great-coat and thigh-boots, displaying his broad sash in a commanding pose. My sample has a finely cast small-sword, rested nonchalantly on the ground.
LM16 Line Horse in Tricorn A fine cavalryman with shouldered sabre. He is dressed in great-coat and cavalry-boots and wearing a tricorn. Others in the range retain lobster-pots and breastplate, or tricorn and breastplate. The rider has crossbelts suspending his scabbard to the left and carbine to the right; not entirely suitable for one of Marlborough's troopers without carving off the carbine. Hopefully Irregular can be persuaded to add figures without carbines in the near future.
LM21 Dragoon in Tricorn. A very attractive figure indeed, sitting holding his carbine resting on his right knee. Again, de-barred from Marlborough's Army by the very prominent carbine, but wonderfully evocative of those Dragoons for whom the long fire-arm was still the primary weapon. Dragoons in stocking caps are also available.
My only criticism of the infantry is the lack of fixed bayonets on certain figures, which I believe would have given them a much more war-like appearance. Apart from awaiting cavalrymen without carbines, the mounted men, I'm afraid are fine men indeed, but, are mounted on horses that are far too small for the military mounts of the time. Yes, some cavalry were shabbily mounted, and the horses provided would do well for these. It is a criticism of wargames figures in general, that to save metal (and hence cost to the customer) horses are consistently cast too small. I look forward to some bigger beefier horses being available one day... whether I'll be able to afford them is a different matter.
In all, a very attractive range. The boys at Irregular assure us that most figures have slight variants to give a more human feel. Now, I haven't seen the variants, but if they are up to the usual high standard that Irregular have set themselves, they will be full of interest and add immeasurably to the appearance of a finished unit. I hate nothing more than little regiments of soldier dolls, all in exactly the same pose and all looking as if they just left an expensive outfitters, rather than just turned out of camp. The weapons on these figures are very carefully carved and truly in scale, the figures themselves are of human proportion. They are not perhaps, the currently fashionable characatures with dramatically over-sized (and clumsy) weapons, but much more life-like... dare I say it, like models of soldiers.
These figures sell at 40p for infantry or 90p for mounted, inc. the horse. Battalion packs of 24 infantry or 8 mounted figures are available at £6.50, or 100 man packs at £28.00 (a considerable saving !). They are available from: