The native peoples of North America were tribal in organisation and war parties often raided their neighbours for one reason or another. The arrival of European settlers provided another target for raids, but also a threat that required defence. Many warriors agreed or were compelled to fight in the various wars between the white man in the eighteenth century - wars which culminated in the revolution begun in 1775. Some sided with the colonists while others, notably much of the Iroquois Confederacy, fought for the crown.

Clearly these warriors did not fight in formation like the Europeans, so a large number of individual poses is a requirement for a set like this, and Italeri have done well with 16 very different figures. Those with muskets are inevitably fairly static but the rest have plenty of life and energy about them. The man kneeling firing his musket has his weight well back and the barrel pointed well up, which would suggest he has just fired his piece. The man holding up a scalp is a particularly bloodthirsty and appropriate choice, but all the poses are well done, and all would work well in the midst of battle - there is no one here just eating, drinking or smoking a pipe!

The dress of these figures is appropriate but varied, which is fine as they are not supposed to represent just one tribe or community. Many have the classic look of a loin cloth, leggings and Mohawk haircut, while others have a different style including European garments. The weapons are a good mix of muskets, knives, tomahawks, ball-headed war clubs and a couple of 'gunstock' clubs with the large spike. One notable absentee is the bow, a traditional weapon for centuries but one that was largely replaced by the firearm by the later part of the century.

The figures have well-defined detail and are properly proportioned. As with the American Infantry there seems to be much variation in terms of the quality of the sprue - some sprues are completely clean while others have considerable amounts of flash. One box sometimes has examples of both, and there is no way to know whether any particular box contains good or poor figures except by opening it. This is a real disappointment from a company of Italeri's standing. One man has a separate musket but this fits securely and causes no problems. The set consists of three identical sprues - a departure from the previous Italeri format of one 'doubled' sprue - but this can cause problems in terms of having disproportionately large numbers of some unusual poses. However in this case all the poses justify multiple instances, so the format is fine.

Basically this is an excellent set that has been well done. Our only concern is with the height of these figures. At 25 mm (1.8 metres) they seem very tall for natives of the eighteenth century, but we have not found any firm evidence of the proper height of these people. Although labelled as for the Revolutionary War it could in truth be used for any of the wars in North America in that century and in particular the French and Indian War. A very useful set that has been well done - a welcome return to form for this somewhat erratic manufacturer.