Here’s something different! Following New Vanguard coverage of Far Eastern siege weapons we now get the fighting ships of the same period, and it makes fascinating reading. There’s a lot more to the naval side than just “Chinese junks” – everything from war canoes to man-powered paddlewheel-driven battleships, as well as the sailing ships. And their armaments are astonishing: catapults, Greek fire, cannon, even weighted “beaks” on poles which were pivoted to fall on an enemy’s deck – not to hold them close enough for boarding but to hold them far enough away to prevent being boarded while showering them with arrows. There were even mine-layers designed to split in half, one half with the explosives being left behind while the crewed half made its escape!

Plenty of contemporary sketches are reproduced here, and ably reconstructed in the colour plates. This is a treasure trove of ideas for diorama modellers, either small scale showing sea or river actions or larger scale with just a part of a ship and some of its crew.

Highly recommended!