diff --git a/CHANGELOG.rst b/CHANGELOG.rst
index c8a4fd3e90..52bfcd00a5 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.rst
+++ b/CHANGELOG.rst
@@ -1,3 +1,19 @@
+3.29.0
+======
+December 19, 2023
+
+Features
+--------
+* Add support for Python 3.9 through 3.12, drop support for 3.7 (PYTHON-1283)
+* Removal of dependency on six module (PR 1172)
+* Raise explicit exception when deserializing a vector with a subtype that isn’t a constant size (PYTHON-1371)
+
+Others
+------
+* Remove outdated Python pre-3.7 references (PR 1186)
+* Remove backup(.bak) files (PR 1185)
+* Fix doc typo in add_callbacks (PR 1177)
+
 3.28.0
 ======
 June 5, 2023
diff --git a/benchmarks/base.py b/benchmarks/base.py
index 47a03bbd68..2000b4069f 100644
--- a/benchmarks/base.py
+++ b/benchmarks/base.py
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
     have_libev = True
     supported_reactors.append(LibevConnection)
-except ImportError as exc:
+except cassandra.DependencyException as exc:
     pass
 
 have_asyncio = False
diff --git a/cassandra/__init__.py b/cassandra/__init__.py
index 49c50ef844..9c3898298a 100644
--- a/cassandra/__init__.py
+++ b/cassandra/__init__.py
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ def emit(self, record):
 
 logging.getLogger('cassandra').addHandler(NullHandler())
 
-__version_info__ = (3, 28, 2)
+__version_info__ = (3, 29, 0)
 __version__ = '.'.join(map(str, __version_info__))
 
 
@@ -735,6 +735,7 @@ class OperationType(Enum):
     Read = 0
     Write = 1
 
+
 class RateLimitReached(ConfigurationException):
     '''
     Rate limit was exceeded for a partition affected by the request.
@@ -747,3 +748,26 @@ def __init__(self, op_type=None, rejected_by_coordinator=False):
         self.rejected_by_coordinator = rejected_by_coordinator
         message = f"[request_error_rate_limit_reached OpType={op_type.name} RejectedByCoordinator={rejected_by_coordinator}]"
         Exception.__init__(self, message)
+
+
+class DependencyException(Exception):
+    """
+    Specific exception class for handling issues with driver dependencies
+    """
+
+    excs = []
+    """
+    A sequence of child exceptions
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, msg, excs=[]):
+        complete_msg = msg
+        if excs:
+            complete_msg += ("\nThe following exceptions were observed: \n - " + '\n - '.join(str(e) for e in excs))
+        Exception.__init__(self, complete_msg)
+
+class VectorDeserializationFailure(DriverException):
+    """
+    The driver was unable to deserialize a given vector
+    """
+    pass
diff --git a/cassandra/cluster.py b/cassandra/cluster.py
index 14c3074e85..55a0d9f44a 100644
--- a/cassandra/cluster.py
+++ b/cassandra/cluster.py
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@
 from collections.abc import Mapping
 from concurrent.futures import ThreadPoolExecutor, FIRST_COMPLETED, wait as wait_futures
 from copy import copy
-from functools import partial, wraps
+from functools import partial, reduce, wraps
 from itertools import groupby, count, chain
 import json
 import logging
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@
 from cassandra import (ConsistencyLevel, AuthenticationFailed, InvalidRequest,
                        OperationTimedOut, UnsupportedOperation,
                        SchemaTargetType, DriverException, ProtocolVersion,
-                       UnresolvableContactPoints)
+                       UnresolvableContactPoints, DependencyException)
 from cassandra.auth import _proxy_execute_key, PlainTextAuthProvider
 from cassandra.connection import (ConnectionException, ConnectionShutdown,
                                   ConnectionHeartbeat, ProtocolVersionUnsupported,
@@ -113,6 +113,19 @@
 except ImportError:
     from cassandra.util import WeakSet  # NOQA
 
+def _is_gevent_monkey_patched():
+    if 'gevent.monkey' not in sys.modules:
+        return False
+    import gevent.socket
+    return socket.socket is gevent.socket.socket
+
+def _try_gevent_import():
+    if _is_gevent_monkey_patched():
+        from cassandra.io.geventreactor import GeventConnection
+        return (GeventConnection,None)
+    else:
+        return (None,None)
+
 def _is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
     if 'eventlet.patcher' not in sys.modules:
         return False
@@ -124,28 +137,46 @@ def _is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
         # TODO: remove it when eventlet issue would be fixed
         return False
 
-def _is_gevent_monkey_patched():
-    if 'gevent.monkey' not in sys.modules:
-        return False
-    import gevent.socket
-    return socket.socket is gevent.socket.socket
+def _try_eventlet_import():
+    if _is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
+        from cassandra.io.eventletreactor import EventletConnection
+        return (EventletConnection,None)
+    else:
+        return (None,None)
 
+def _try_libev_import():
+    try:
+        from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
+        return (LibevConnection,None)
+    except DependencyException as e:
+        return (None, e)
 
-# default to gevent when we are monkey patched with gevent, eventlet when
-# monkey patched with eventlet, otherwise if libev is available, use that as
-# the default because it's fastest. Otherwise, use asyncore.
-if _is_gevent_monkey_patched():
-    from cassandra.io.geventreactor import GeventConnection as DefaultConnection
-elif _is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
-    from cassandra.io.eventletreactor import EventletConnection as DefaultConnection
-else:
+def _try_asyncore_import():
     try:
-        from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection as DefaultConnection  # NOQA
-    except ImportError:
-        try:
-            from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection as DefaultConnection # NOQA
-        except ImportError:
-            from cassandra.io.asyncioreactor import AsyncioConnection as DefaultConnection  # NOQA
+        from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
+        return (AsyncoreConnection,None)
+    except DependencyException as e:
+        return (None, e)
+
+def _try_asyncio_import():
+    from cassandra.io.asyncioreactor import AsyncioConnection
+    return (AsyncioConnection, None)
+
+def _connection_reduce_fn(val,import_fn):
+    (rv, excs) = val
+    # If we've already found a workable Connection class return immediately
+    if rv:
+        return val
+    (import_result, exc) = import_fn()
+    if exc:
+        excs.append(exc)
+    return (rv or import_result, excs)
+
+conn_fns = (_try_gevent_import, _try_eventlet_import, _try_libev_import, _try_asyncore_import, _try_asyncio_import)
+(conn_class, excs) = reduce(_connection_reduce_fn, conn_fns, (None,[]))
+if not conn_class:
+    raise DependencyException("Exception loading connection class dependencies", excs)
+DefaultConnection = conn_class
 
 # Forces load of utf8 encoding module to avoid deadlock that occurs
 # if code that is being imported tries to import the module in a seperate
@@ -802,9 +833,9 @@ def default_retry_policy(self, policy):
     Using ssl_options without ssl_context is deprecated and will be removed in the
     next major release.
 
-    An optional dict which will be used as kwargs for ``ssl.SSLContext.wrap_socket`` (or
-    ``ssl.wrap_socket()`` if used without ssl_context) when new sockets are created.
-    This should be used when client encryption is enabled in Cassandra.
+    An optional dict which will be used as kwargs for ``ssl.SSLContext.wrap_socket`` 
+    when new sockets are created. This should be used when client encryption is enabled 
+    in Cassandra.
 
     The following documentation only applies when ssl_options is used without ssl_context.
 
@@ -820,6 +851,12 @@ def default_retry_policy(self, policy):
     should almost always require the option ``'cert_reqs': ssl.CERT_REQUIRED``. Note also that this functionality was not built into
     Python standard library until (2.7.9, 3.2). To enable this mechanism in earlier versions, patch ``ssl.match_hostname``
     with a custom or `back-ported function <https://pypi.org/project/backports.ssl_match_hostname/>`_.
+
+    .. versionchanged:: 3.29.0
+
+    ``ssl.match_hostname`` has been deprecated since Python 3.7 (and removed in Python 3.12).  This functionality is now implemented
+    via ``ssl.SSLContext.check_hostname``.  All options specified above (including ``check_hostname``) should continue to behave in a
+    way that is consistent with prior implementations.
     """
 
     ssl_context = None
diff --git a/cassandra/connection.py b/cassandra/connection.py
index ebdfe99993..a2540a967b 100644
--- a/cassandra/connection.py
+++ b/cassandra/connection.py
@@ -752,7 +752,6 @@ class Connection(object):
     _socket = None
 
     _socket_impl = socket
-    _ssl_impl = ssl
 
     _check_hostname = False
     _product_type = None
@@ -780,7 +779,7 @@ def __init__(self, host='127.0.0.1', port=9042, authenticator=None,
         self.endpoint = host if isinstance(host, EndPoint) else DefaultEndPoint(host, port)
 
         self.authenticator = authenticator
-        self.ssl_options = ssl_options.copy() if ssl_options else None
+        self.ssl_options = ssl_options.copy() if ssl_options else {}
         self.ssl_context = ssl_context
         self.sockopts = sockopts
         self.compression = compression
@@ -800,15 +799,20 @@ def __init__(self, host='127.0.0.1', port=9042, authenticator=None,
         self._on_orphaned_stream_released = on_orphaned_stream_released
 
         if ssl_options:
-            self._check_hostname = bool(self.ssl_options.pop('check_hostname', False))
-            if self._check_hostname:
-                if not getattr(ssl, 'match_hostname', None):
-                    raise RuntimeError("ssl_options specify 'check_hostname', but ssl.match_hostname is not provided. "
-                                       "Patch or upgrade Python to use this option.")
             self.ssl_options.update(self.endpoint.ssl_options or {})
         elif self.endpoint.ssl_options:
             self.ssl_options = self.endpoint.ssl_options
 
+        # PYTHON-1331
+        #
+        # We always use SSLContext.wrap_socket() now but legacy configs may have other params that were passed to ssl.wrap_socket()...
+        # and either could have 'check_hostname'.  Remove these params into a separate map and use them to build an SSLContext if
+        # we need to do so.
+        #
+        # Note the use of pop() here; we are very deliberately removing these params from ssl_options if they're present.  After this
+        # operation ssl_options should contain only args needed for the ssl_context.wrap_socket() call.
+        if not self.ssl_context and self.ssl_options:
+            self.ssl_context = self._build_ssl_context_from_options()
 
         if protocol_version >= 3:
             self.max_request_id = min(self.max_in_flight - 1, (2 ** 15) - 1)
@@ -882,15 +886,48 @@ def factory(cls, endpoint, timeout, host_conn = None, *args, **kwargs):
         else:
             return conn
 
+    def _build_ssl_context_from_options(self):
+
+        # Extract a subset of names from self.ssl_options which apply to SSLContext creation
+        ssl_context_opt_names = ['ssl_version', 'cert_reqs', 'check_hostname', 'keyfile', 'certfile', 'ca_certs', 'ciphers']
+        opts = {k:self.ssl_options.get(k, None) for k in ssl_context_opt_names if k in self.ssl_options}
+
+        # Python >= 3.10 requires either PROTOCOL_TLS_CLIENT or PROTOCOL_TLS_SERVER so we'll get ahead of things by always
+        # being explicit
+        ssl_version = opts.get('ssl_version', None) or ssl.PROTOCOL_TLS_CLIENT
+        cert_reqs = opts.get('cert_reqs', None) or ssl.CERT_REQUIRED
+        rv = ssl.SSLContext(protocol=int(ssl_version))
+        rv.check_hostname = bool(opts.get('check_hostname', False))
+        rv.options = int(cert_reqs)
+
+        certfile = opts.get('certfile', None)
+        keyfile = opts.get('keyfile', None)
+        if certfile:
+            rv.load_cert_chain(certfile, keyfile)
+        ca_certs = opts.get('ca_certs', None)
+        if ca_certs:
+            rv.load_verify_locations(ca_certs)
+        ciphers = opts.get('ciphers', None)
+        if ciphers:
+            rv.set_ciphers(ciphers)
+
+        return rv
+
     def _wrap_socket_from_context(self):
-        ssl_options = self.ssl_options or {}
+
+        # Extract a subset of names from self.ssl_options which apply to SSLContext.wrap_socket (or at least the parts
+        # of it that don't involve building an SSLContext under the covers)
+        wrap_socket_opt_names = ['server_side', 'do_handshake_on_connect', 'suppress_ragged_eofs', 'server_hostname']
+        opts = {k:self.ssl_options.get(k, None) for k in wrap_socket_opt_names if k in self.ssl_options}
+
         # PYTHON-1186: set the server_hostname only if the SSLContext has
         # check_hostname enabled and it is not already provided by the EndPoint ssl options
-        if (self.ssl_context.check_hostname and
-                'server_hostname' not in ssl_options):
-            ssl_options = ssl_options.copy()
-            ssl_options['server_hostname'] = self.endpoint.address
-        self._socket = self.ssl_context.wrap_socket(self._socket, **ssl_options)
+        #opts['server_hostname'] = self.endpoint.address
+        if (self.ssl_context.check_hostname and 'server_hostname' not in opts):
+            server_hostname = self.endpoint.address
+            opts['server_hostname'] = server_hostname
+
+        return self.ssl_context.wrap_socket(self._socket, **opts)
 
     def _initiate_connection(self, sockaddr):
         if self.features.shard_id is not None:
@@ -904,8 +941,11 @@ def _initiate_connection(self, sockaddr):
 
         self._socket.connect(sockaddr)
 
-    def _match_hostname(self):
-        ssl.match_hostname(self._socket.getpeercert(), self.endpoint.address)
+    # PYTHON-1331
+    #
+    # Allow implementations specific to an event loop to add additional behaviours
+    def _validate_hostname(self):
+        pass
 
     def _get_socket_addresses(self):
         address, port = self.endpoint.resolve()
@@ -927,18 +967,21 @@ def _connect_socket(self):
             try:
                 self._socket = self._socket_impl.socket(af, socktype, proto)
                 if self.ssl_context:
-                    self._wrap_socket_from_context()
-                elif self.ssl_options:
-                    if not self._ssl_impl:
-                        raise RuntimeError("This version of Python was not compiled with SSL support")
-                    self._socket = self._ssl_impl.wrap_socket(self._socket, **self.ssl_options)
+                    self._socket = self._wrap_socket_from_context()
                 self._socket.settimeout(self.connect_timeout)
                 self._initiate_connection(sockaddr)
                 self._socket.settimeout(None)
+
                 local_addr = self._socket.getsockname()
                 log.debug("Connection %s: '%s' -> '%s'", id(self), local_addr, sockaddr)
+
+                # PYTHON-1331
+                #
+                # Most checking is done via the check_hostname param on the SSLContext.
+                # Subclasses can add additional behaviours via _validate_hostname() so
+                # run that here.
                 if self._check_hostname:
-                    self._match_hostname()
+                    self._validate_hostname()
                 sockerr = None
                 break
             except socket.error as err:
diff --git a/cassandra/cqltypes.py b/cassandra/cqltypes.py
index 8529897958..60b6c5ba5e 100644
--- a/cassandra/cqltypes.py
+++ b/cassandra/cqltypes.py
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@
                                float_pack, float_unpack, double_pack, double_unpack,
                                varint_pack, varint_unpack, point_be, point_le,
                                vints_pack, vints_unpack)
-from cassandra import util
+from cassandra import util, VectorDeserializationFailure
 
 _little_endian_flag = 1  # we always serialize LE
 import ipaddress
@@ -460,6 +460,7 @@ def serialize(uuid, protocol_version):
 
 class BooleanType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'boolean'
+    serial_size = 1
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -499,6 +500,7 @@ def serialize(var, protocol_version):
 
 class FloatType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'float'
+    serial_size = 4
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -511,6 +513,7 @@ def serialize(byts, protocol_version):
 
 class DoubleType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'double'
+    serial_size = 8
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -523,6 +526,7 @@ def serialize(byts, protocol_version):
 
 class LongType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'bigint'
+    serial_size = 8
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -535,6 +539,7 @@ def serialize(byts, protocol_version):
 
 class Int32Type(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'int'
+    serial_size = 4
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -647,6 +652,7 @@ class TimestampType(DateType):
 
 class TimeUUIDType(DateType):
     typename = 'timeuuid'
+    serial_size = 16
 
     def my_timestamp(self):
         return util.unix_time_from_uuid1(self.val)
@@ -693,6 +699,7 @@ def serialize(val, protocol_version):
 
 class ShortType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'smallint'
+    serial_size = 2
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -705,6 +712,7 @@ def serialize(byts, protocol_version):
 
 class TimeType(_CassandraType):
     typename = 'time'
+    serial_size = 8
 
     @staticmethod
     def deserialize(byts, protocol_version):
@@ -1419,8 +1427,11 @@ def apply_parameters(cls, params, names):
 
     @classmethod
     def deserialize(cls, byts, protocol_version):
-        indexes = (4 * x for x in range(0, cls.vector_size))
-        return [cls.subtype.deserialize(byts[idx:idx + 4], protocol_version) for idx in indexes]
+        serialized_size = getattr(cls.subtype, "serial_size", None)
+        if not serialized_size:
+            raise VectorDeserializationFailure("Cannot determine serialized size for vector with subtype %s" % cls.subtype.__name__)
+        indexes = (serialized_size * x for x in range(0, cls.vector_size))
+        return [cls.subtype.deserialize(byts[idx:idx + serialized_size], protocol_version) for idx in indexes]
 
     @classmethod
     def serialize(cls, v, protocol_version):
diff --git a/cassandra/io/asyncorereactor.py b/cassandra/io/asyncorereactor.py
index c62d7fa70e..4847fed5e0 100644
--- a/cassandra/io/asyncorereactor.py
+++ b/cassandra/io/asyncorereactor.py
@@ -30,7 +30,15 @@
 except ImportError:
     from cassandra.util import WeakSet  # noqa
 
-import asyncore
+from cassandra import DependencyException
+try:
+    import asyncore
+except ModuleNotFoundError:
+    raise DependencyException(
+        "Unable to import asyncore module.  Note that this module has been removed in Python 3.12 "
+        "so when using the driver with this version (or anything newer) you will need to use one of the "
+        "other event loop implementations."
+    )
 
 from cassandra.connection import Connection, ConnectionShutdown, NONBLOCKING, Timer, TimerManager
 
diff --git a/cassandra/io/libevreactor.py b/cassandra/io/libevreactor.py
index 02a374cc91..7495545eb9 100644
--- a/cassandra/io/libevreactor.py
+++ b/cassandra/io/libevreactor.py
@@ -21,13 +21,13 @@
 from threading import Lock, Thread
 import time
 
-
+from cassandra import DependencyException
 from cassandra.connection import (Connection, ConnectionShutdown,
                                   NONBLOCKING, Timer, TimerManager)
 try:
     import cassandra.io.libevwrapper as libev
 except ImportError:
-    raise ImportError(
+    raise DependencyException(
         "The C extension needed to use libev was not found.  This "
         "probably means that you didn't have the required build dependencies "
         "when installing the driver.  See "
diff --git a/docs/index.rst b/docs/index.rst
index ccbd8437ab..16712f0bf1 100644
--- a/docs/index.rst
+++ b/docs/index.rst
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ A Python client driver for `Scylla <https://docs.scylladb.com>`_.
 This driver works exclusively with the Cassandra Query Language v3 (CQL3)
 and Cassandra's native protocol.
 
-The driver supports Python 3.6-3.11.
+The driver supports Python 3.6-3.12.
 
 This driver is open source under the
 `Apache v2 License <http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.html>`_.
diff --git a/docs/installation.rst b/docs/installation.rst
index db70ce4be6..866741283d 100644
--- a/docs/installation.rst
+++ b/docs/installation.rst
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ Installation
 
 Supported Platforms
 -------------------
-Python versions 3.6-3.11 are supported. Both CPython (the standard Python
+Python versions 3.6-3.12 are supported. Both CPython (the standard Python
 implementation) and `PyPy <http://pypy.org>`_ are supported and tested.
 
 Linux, OSX, and Windows are supported.
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ To check if the installation was successful, you can run::
 
     python -c 'import cassandra; print cassandra.__version__'
 
-It should print something like "3.27.0".
+It should print something like "3.29.0".
 
 (*Optional*) Compression Support
 --------------------------------
@@ -182,12 +182,15 @@ dependencies, then use install-option::
     sudo pip install --install-option="--no-cython"
 
 
+Supported Event Loops
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+For Python versions before 3.12 the driver uses the ``asyncore`` module for its default
+event loop.  Other event loops such as ``libev``, ``gevent`` and ``eventlet`` are also
+available via Python modules or C extensions.  Python 3.12 has removed ``asyncore`` entirely
+so for this platform one of these other event loops must be used.
+
 libev support
 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
-The driver currently uses Python's ``asyncore`` module for its default
-event loop.  For better performance, ``libev`` is also supported through
-a C extension.
-
 If you're on Linux, you should be able to install libev
 through a package manager.  For example, on Debian/Ubuntu::
 
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 6647b6b65c..31d9cb888f 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -12,8 +12,6 @@ classifiers = [
     'Natural Language :: English',
     'Operating System :: OS Independent',
     'Programming Language :: Python',
-    'Programming Language :: Python :: 3',
-    'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7',
     'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8',
     'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9',
     'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.10',
diff --git a/test-requirements.txt b/test-requirements.txt
index 2851efc3db..4a40e69ad9 100644
--- a/test-requirements.txt
+++ b/test-requirements.txt
@@ -5,13 +5,12 @@ mock>1.1
 pytz
 sure
 pure-sasl
-twisted[tls]; python_version >= '3.5'
-twisted[tls]==19.2.1; python_version < '3.5'
-gevent>=1.0; python_version < '3.13' and platform_machine != 'i686' and platform_machine != 'win32'
-gevent==23.9.0; python_version < '3.13' and (platform_machine == 'i686' or platform_machine == 'win32')
-eventlet>=0.33.3; python_version < '3.13'
-cython
+twisted[tls]
+gevent>=1.0; platform_machine != 'i686' and platform_machine != 'win32'
+gevent==23.9.0; platform_machine == 'i686' or platform_machine == 'win32'
+eventlet>=0.33.3;
+cython>=0.20,<0.30
 packaging
-futurist; python_version >= '3.7'
-asynctest; python_version >= '3.5'
+futurist
+asynctest
 pyyaml
diff --git a/tests/__init__.py b/tests/__init__.py
index c55a6567e4..56a9759445 100644
--- a/tests/__init__.py
+++ b/tests/__init__.py
@@ -20,6 +20,8 @@
 import os
 from concurrent.futures import ThreadPoolExecutor
 
+from cassandra import DependencyException
+
 log = logging.getLogger()
 
 def is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
@@ -27,10 +29,10 @@ def is_eventlet_monkey_patched():
         return False
     try:
         import eventlet.patcher
+        return eventlet.patcher.is_monkey_patched('socket')
+    # Yet another case related to PYTHON-1364
     except AttributeError:
         return False
-    return eventlet.patcher.is_monkey_patched('socket')
-
 
 def is_gevent_monkey_patched():
     if 'gevent.monkey' not in sys.modules:
@@ -88,17 +90,18 @@ def is_monkey_patched():
 elif "asyncio" in EVENT_LOOP_MANAGER:
     from cassandra.io.asyncioreactor import AsyncioConnection
     connection_class = AsyncioConnection
-
 else:
+    log.debug("Using default event loop (libev)")
     try:
         from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
         connection_class = LibevConnection
-    except ImportError as e:
+    except DependencyException as e:
         log.debug('Could not import LibevConnection, '
                   'using connection_class=None; '
                   'failed with error:\n {}'.format(
                       repr(e)
                   ))
+        log.debug("Will attempt to set connection class at cluster initialization")
         connection_class = None
 
 
diff --git a/tests/integration/long/test_ipv6.py b/tests/integration/long/test_ipv6.py
index f4a245f704..d58bad987a 100644
--- a/tests/integration/long/test_ipv6.py
+++ b/tests/integration/long/test_ipv6.py
@@ -15,11 +15,12 @@
 import os, socket, errno
 from ccmlib import common
 
+from cassandra import DependencyException
 from cassandra.cluster import NoHostAvailable
 
 try:
     from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
-except ImportError:
+except DependencyException:
     AsyncoreConnection = None
 
 from tests import is_monkey_patched
@@ -27,7 +28,7 @@
 
 try:
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
-except ImportError:
+except DependencyException:
     LibevConnection = None
 
 
diff --git a/tests/integration/long/test_ssl.py b/tests/integration/long/test_ssl.py
index f868351fe5..070e2fe268 100644
--- a/tests/integration/long/test_ssl.py
+++ b/tests/integration/long/test_ssl.py
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@
 
 if not hasattr(ssl, 'match_hostname'):
     try:
-        from backports.ssl_match_hostname import match_hostname
+        from ssl import match_hostname
         ssl.match_hostname = match_hostname
     except ImportError:
         pass  # tests will fail
diff --git a/tests/integration/standard/test_connection.py b/tests/integration/standard/test_connection.py
index 40016b5a04..6329b0b293 100644
--- a/tests/integration/standard/test_connection.py
+++ b/tests/integration/standard/test_connection.py
@@ -23,16 +23,9 @@
 import time
 from unittest import SkipTest
 
-from cassandra import ConsistencyLevel, OperationTimedOut
+from cassandra import ConsistencyLevel, OperationTimedOut, DependencyException
 from cassandra.cluster import NoHostAvailable, ConnectionShutdown, ExecutionProfile, EXEC_PROFILE_DEFAULT
-
-try:
-    from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
-except ImportError:
-    AsyncoreConnection = None
-
 from cassandra.protocol import QueryMessage
-from cassandra.connection import Connection
 from cassandra.policies import HostFilterPolicy, RoundRobinPolicy, HostStateListener
 from cassandra.pool import HostConnectionPool
 
@@ -40,10 +33,16 @@
 from tests.integration import use_singledc, get_node, CASSANDRA_IP, local, \
     requiresmallclockgranularity, greaterthancass20, TestCluster
 
+try:
+    import cassandra.io.asyncorereactor
+    from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
+except DependencyException:
+    AsyncoreConnection = None
+
 try:
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
     import cassandra.io.libevreactor
-except ImportError:
+except DependencyException:
     LibevConnection = None
 
 
@@ -447,8 +446,7 @@ def setUp(self):
         if is_monkey_patched():
             raise unittest.SkipTest("Can't test asyncore with monkey patching")
         if AsyncoreConnection is None:
-            raise unittest.SkipTest(
-                'asyncore does not appear to be installed properly')
+            raise unittest.SkipTest('Unable to import asyncore module')
         ConnectionTests.setUp(self)
 
     def clean_global_loop(self):
diff --git a/tests/integration/standard/test_scylla_cloud.py b/tests/integration/standard/test_scylla_cloud.py
index 80af88d731..5679d959bb 100644
--- a/tests/integration/standard/test_scylla_cloud.py
+++ b/tests/integration/standard/test_scylla_cloud.py
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 from ccmlib.utils.ssl_utils import generate_ssl_stores
 from ccmlib.utils.sni_proxy import refresh_certs, start_sni_proxy, create_cloud_config, NodeInfo
 
+from cassandra import DependencyException
 from cassandra.policies import TokenAwarePolicy, RoundRobinPolicy, ConstantReconnectionPolicy
 from tests.integration import use_cluster, PROTOCOL_VERSION
 from cassandra.cluster import Cluster, TwistedConnection
@@ -15,14 +16,14 @@
 try:
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
     supported_connection_classes += [LibevConnection]
-except ImportError:
+except DependencyException:
     pass
 
 
 try:
     from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
     supported_connection_classes += [AsyncoreConnection]
-except ImportError:
+except DependencyException:
     pass
 
 #from cassandra.io.geventreactor import GeventConnection
diff --git a/tests/unit/io/test_asyncorereactor.py b/tests/unit/io/test_asyncorereactor.py
index e9fe9aa2cb..1941d0c839 100644
--- a/tests/unit/io/test_asyncorereactor.py
+++ b/tests/unit/io/test_asyncorereactor.py
@@ -15,11 +15,14 @@
 
 from mock import patch
 import socket
+
+from cassandra import DependencyException
+
 try:
     import cassandra.io.asyncorereactor as asyncorereactor
     from cassandra.io.asyncorereactor import AsyncoreConnection
     ASYNCCORE_AVAILABLE = True
-except ImportError:
+except (ImportError, DependencyException):
     ASYNCCORE_AVAILABLE = False
     AsyncoreConnection = None
 
diff --git a/tests/unit/io/test_libevreactor.py b/tests/unit/io/test_libevreactor.py
index 67ab5fc7d6..e2c04fdf8e 100644
--- a/tests/unit/io/test_libevreactor.py
+++ b/tests/unit/io/test_libevreactor.py
@@ -19,12 +19,12 @@
 
 from tests import is_monkey_patched
 from tests.unit.io.utils import ReactorTestMixin, TimerTestMixin, noop_if_monkey_patched
-
+from cassandra import DependencyException
 
 try:
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import _cleanup as libev__cleanup
     from cassandra.io.libevreactor import LibevConnection
-except ImportError:
+except (ImportError, DependencyException):
     LibevConnection = None  # noqa
 
 
diff --git a/tests/unit/test_cluster.py b/tests/unit/test_cluster.py
index 3334e650a5..24cd4047d1 100644
--- a/tests/unit/test_cluster.py
+++ b/tests/unit/test_cluster.py
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 import unittest
 
 import logging
+import socket
 
 from mock import patch, Mock
 
@@ -88,8 +89,9 @@ class ClusterTest(unittest.TestCase):
 
     def test_tuple_for_contact_points(self):
         cluster = Cluster(contact_points=[('localhost', 9045), ('127.0.0.2', 9046), '127.0.0.3'], port=9999)
+        localhost_addr = set([addr[0] for addr in [t for (_,_,_,_,t) in socket.getaddrinfo("localhost",80)]])
         for cp in cluster.endpoints_resolved:
-            if cp.address in ('::1', '127.0.0.1'):
+            if cp.address in localhost_addr:
                 self.assertEqual(cp.port, 9045)
             elif cp.address == '127.0.0.2':
                 self.assertEqual(cp.port, 9046)
diff --git a/tests/unit/test_types.py b/tests/unit/test_types.py
index a06bbd452d..5db7f087b7 100644
--- a/tests/unit/test_types.py
+++ b/tests/unit/test_types.py
@@ -16,10 +16,11 @@
 import datetime
 import tempfile
 import time
+import uuid
 from binascii import unhexlify
 
 import cassandra
-from cassandra import util
+from cassandra import util, VectorDeserializationFailure
 from cassandra.cqltypes import (
     CassandraType, DateRangeType, DateType, DecimalType,
     EmptyValue, LongType, SetType, UTF8Type,
@@ -308,15 +309,67 @@ def test_cql_quote(self):
         self.assertEqual(cql_quote('test'), "'test'")
         self.assertEqual(cql_quote(0), '0')
 
-    def test_vector_round_trip(self):
-        base = [3.4, 2.9, 41.6, 12.0]
-        ctype = parse_casstype_args("org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType, 4)")
-        base_bytes = ctype.serialize(base, 0)
-        self.assertEqual(16, len(base_bytes))
-        result = ctype.deserialize(base_bytes, 0)
-        self.assertEqual(len(base), len(result))
-        for idx in range(0,len(base)):
-            self.assertAlmostEqual(base[idx], result[idx], places=5)
+    def test_vector_round_trip_types_with_serialized_size(self):
+        # Test all the types which specify a serialized size... see PYTHON-1371 for details
+        self._round_trip_test([True, False, False, True], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.BooleanType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([3.4, 2.9, 41.6, 12.0], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([3.4, 2.9, 41.6, 12.0], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.DoubleType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([3, 2, 41, 12], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.LongType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([3, 2, 41, 12], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.Int32Type, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([uuid.uuid1(), uuid.uuid1(), uuid.uuid1(), uuid.uuid1()], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.TimeUUIDType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([3, 2, 41, 12], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.ShortType, 4)")
+        self._round_trip_test([datetime.time(1,1,1), datetime.time(2,2,2), datetime.time(3,3,3)], \
+            "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.TimeType, 3)")
+
+    def test_vector_round_trip_types_without_serialized_size(self):
+        # Test all the types which do not specify a serialized size... see PYTHON-1371 for details
+        # Varints
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test([3, 2, 41, 12], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.IntegerType, 4)")
+        # ASCII text
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test(["abc", "def", "ghi", "jkl"], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.AsciiType, 4)")
+        # UTF8 text
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test(["abc", "def", "ghi", "jkl"], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.UTF8Type, 4)")
+        # Duration (containts varints)
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test([util.Duration(1,1,1), util.Duration(2,2,2), util.Duration(3,3,3)], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.DurationType, 3)")
+        # List (of otherwise serializable type)
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test([[3.4], [2.9], [41.6], [12.0]], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.ListType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType), 4)")
+        # Set (of otherwise serializable type)
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test([set([3.4]), set([2.9]), set([41.6]), set([12.0])], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.SetType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType), 4)")
+        # Map (of otherwise serializable types)
+        with self.assertRaises(VectorDeserializationFailure):
+            self._round_trip_test([{1:3.4}, {2:2.9}, {3:41.6}, {4:12.0}], \
+                "org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.MapType \
+                    (org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.Int32Type,org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType), 4)")
+
+    def _round_trip_test(self, data, ctype_str):
+        ctype = parse_casstype_args(ctype_str)
+        data_bytes = ctype.serialize(data, 0)
+        serialized_size = getattr(ctype.subtype, "serial_size", None)
+        if serialized_size:
+            self.assertEqual(serialized_size * len(data), len(data_bytes))
+        result = ctype.deserialize(data_bytes, 0)
+        self.assertEqual(len(data), len(result))
+        for idx in range(0,len(data)):
+            self.assertAlmostEqual(data[idx], result[idx], places=5)
 
     def test_vector_cql_parameterized_type(self):
         ctype = parse_casstype_args("org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.VectorType(org.apache.cassandra.db.marshal.FloatType, 4)")