Union Cavalry

I’ll start with the mounted cavalry. We have 5 poses and eleven figures, one each of a preposterously flamboyant officer and a bugler, and 3 each three poses with firearms as opposed to charging with sabers, that is excellent. Sadly, all are looking to the side, which spoils the visual effect of an advancing unit unless some forward-facing troops from another set are included. This may be a minor concern; I’ve gotten a couple copies of this set, and one wasn’t as crisp and detailed as the others. I’m not sure if that was mere misfortune (all my other IMEX sets have been fantastic) or perhaps indicative of an issue with this particular mold. I’d like to lean towards the former, but it is something to keep in mind. We also have some dismounted cavalry. These are great, though the poses are limited and a couple are less than perfect for wargaming. There are 4 poses, with two figures each of 2 poses of decidedly non-combat actions that could serve as parts of a diorama, vignette, or whatever. I’ve not come up with a way to include them: one fellow is carrying a saddle, the other has a pitchfork full of hay. The two combat poses are really good. We have a cavalryman firing a pistol (three figures) and a trooper advancing with a pistol with the carbine stock (five figures). Supplementary to those are two infantry poses that could easily be re-imagined as cavalry, 2 figures standing/firing and 3 figures kneeling/firing. Given the limited number of good dismounted cavalry poses available elsewhere, the variety is very welcome. I have to admit, some of the mounted pieces looked mediocre to me until painted. Once that was done, I was immediately much happier with them. They hold up well to handling, too. This set gets my recommendation, though it is important to note that I value the dismounted cavalry contribution as greater than that of the mounted component. It adds nice variety though, and the mounted cavalry poses are valuable. Little of this set would be considered a waste in my book. After painting and basing, it fits in well with the following sets I use: Italeri Set 6012 “Union Infantry with Zouaves,” Italeri Set 6013 “Union Cavalry,” Italeri Set 6038 “Union Artillery,” Italeri Set 6014 “Confederate Infantry,” Italeri Set 6011 “Confederate Cavalry,” IMEX Set 505 “Union Infantry,” IMEX Set 501 “Union Artillery,” IMEX Set 506 “Confederate Infantry,” IMEX Set 502 “Confederate Artillery,” and IMEX Set 504 “Confederate Cavalry.”