Mortar

Here's the Warlord mortar, with partial crew. I bought the kit primarily for ladle crewman, that I was going to use for the diorama contest. I also previously posted the head gunner as a spyglass-using pirate. Here is the mortar itself, with the remaining crew. I especially like the mop guy, I expect he'll see plenty of use as a civilian bystander in skirmish games. Someone has to clean up the blood after all the swashes have been buckled...

Better pictures

So much better...

a proper cannon

Plastic from Wargames Factory.

Artillery crew

A brief respite from the Tatars... German gunner made from Warlord body with WGF Spanish Succession arms. Standing peasant laborer is WGF Persian with WGF Spanish Succession arms. Crouching peasant is all TAG.

Cossack assortment

Just a few more Cossacks to fill in the corners of my army. All are TAG metals, except the spearmen which are kitbashed plastics. Also, at the bottom there's a crappy picture of my whole Cossack force so far. In Pike & Shotte this army totals 518 points.

Cossack artillery

Yeah, it's not the biggest gun ever. But don't be fooled.

A well-positioned, expertly-handled piece can be quite effective, and without the logistical hassle of the bigger ones.

Oh, sure, a giant cannon may look imposing, but once the action starts, no amount of size can compensate for the complacent sloppiness or incompetence that such a big gun often inspires. And that's assuming the unwieldy piece has even been brought up in time to participate in the encounter...

In conclusion: it's not the size, it's how you use it.