This is one of the first of the Napoleonic sets for Zvezda's Art of Tactic game system. From the dates chosen it is clear they are focusing on the Russian campaign of 1812, as these figures represent French line infantry for the final few years of the Empire from that date.

The figures all wear the regulation 'Bardin' uniform introduced early in 1812, so while not all French infantry wore this uniform during that year it would have been very common. They have the short-tailed coatee with the 'plastron' square lapels, gaiters that reach to below the knee, and the shako with later-period badge of an eagle over a semi-circle. These are fusiliers (rather than grenadiers or lights) as they have a single shoulder belt which supports both the cartridge pouch and, at the front, a bayonet scabbard. The pouch has the rolled forage cap neatly stowed underneath, and the knapsack is the 1812 pattern with the slightly different arrangement of straps. Everything here is perfectly correct as per regulations, although in reality there might have been many deviations from the regulations such as the wearing of trousers over the breeches/gaiters, and the shako worn with a cover.

As a game piece this is representative of units, so there are very few figures and very few poses. Such poses as there are however are all very lifelike and perfectly appropriate to the subject. The men are all completely natural and beautifully sculpted, both in general form and in the finer details of their uniforms and equipment. All have some assembly required (see sprue image), which helps to make the most of the poses and avoid unwanted plastic. In any case there is no extraneous plastic here, nor is there any flash at all.

The one down side is the bases, because each figure has been given a large, deep and perfectly square base on which to stand (see box illustration here). This is doubtless fine for the game, but anyone wanting to use these in other areas of modelling or gaming will find the bases are best substituted, which is an annoyance.

These are lovely models, and beautifully produced in all respects. However they offer nothing new in terms of poses, and provide some difficulties for those wishing to use them for anything other than the Zvezda game, so the utility of this set is quite limited.