The Reiter or Schwarzreiter (Black Riders) were a specialized cavalry type that fought across Europe from the 16th to 17th century. Wearing 3/4 blackened armour and equipped with multiple pistols they either delivered rotating volleys or used a close range volley before closing into hand to hand.
It would be amazing if WGA made this as a kit. As mentioned the Reiter were seen for most of two centuries and served in German, Polish, Swedish, Russian, and other armies.
(Distinctive armour and arms.)
Other uses? Well they certainly lend themselves to Turnip28 conversions. And they do seem to be the inspiration for Empire "Pistoliers."
These guys are still in AOS and surely will see a renaissance (see what I did there?) when The Old World Fantasy Battles Redux comes out.
Well, I am currently very interested in Pike and Shot warfare and they would certainly be great for an Conquistador themed Roguetrader Warband I am planning
The Dark or the Devil's Riders as we French used to call them during the Wars of Religion could be a nice addition to any historical AND fantasy army. A MUST-HAVE.
Thirty six or so Pistoliers romping around the battlefield (harassing, misdirecting, getting in opportunistic flank and rear charges) would be awesome.
I particularly found the section on tactics illuminating.
Here wheeling Reiter formations effectively pin/slow an enemy Infantry formation and force it into close order making it more vulnerable to Infantry musket fire and cannon.
Recently repaired some of my 5th edition elven steeds. Pin down the length of the tail, pour oodles of superglue into the body, slot in the tail and press the wire against the inside of the back. Haven't failed me yet, and I took them to a few games already.
Prices can be a bit weird on the second hand market. Some things people are still buying a lot for AoS get influenced by GW brainwashing ("I'm selling it for half retail, that has to be a good deal!"). Then theres this bunch of primarily plastic in the middle that people got tons of during 7th and late 6th that actually goes for sane prices. Plastic pistoliers are definitely in that bracket. And then you have the old 5th and early 6th primarily metal stuff with 90s charm and thick layers of nostalgia (and paint) that suddenly explodes in price again - with the exception of a few that were recognized as actually kinda ugly and still bought in decent numbers because of gameplay realities, like the 5th edition Morathi on foot.
These are a great idea. The historical players should lap them up, and the crowd still playing WHFB could be a good market.
It might be possible to do a combo kit with Conquistador cavalry? Cortez and Pizarro would need more swords than pistols, and the heads are notably different, but the Conquistador kit itself was designed for European use as well.
