I sorted out a few sets of Revell Thirty Years War Swedish Cavalry that I got off eBay a while ago into the units I wanted for my English Civil War armies. The armies will be organised along the lines of the Pike and Shot rules of Neil Thomas's One Hour Wargames book. I may tweak the rules a little more, but the major change is to replace the unit "Swordsmen" with Artillery. This represents the fact that artillery was becoming more common during the 1600s, and ECW forces rarely employed men armed exclusively with sword and shield; close combat was conducted by push of pike, small swords called tucks, and the butt of a heavy Musket, used like a club.
The photos posted below show the respective cavalry units I intend to create. They, like all of my cavalry units, are being fielded in groups of 5 figures on a 10cm by 5cm base for uniformity purposes.
The sword wielding men are standard cavalry, lacking ranged attacks, but getting good bonuses for charging in and hacking down their opponents. The cavalry armed with pistols, or those dismounted using carbines form the second unit type, Reiters. These were slower, more disciplined horsemen who used multiple pistol volleys to damage enemy infantry, and then charge home in a controlled manner.
One of these Reiters will be represented by dismounted Dragoons, a type of mounted infantryman that became more important as the Civil War progressed. Their carbine fire could severely disrupt a cavalry charge, especially if they fired from behind hedgerows or other forms of cover.
Colour scheme wise, I am going to use red, brown and white for Royalist horse, and green and yellow for Parliamentarian cavalry. Red and yellow/orange sashes, and different helmets/hats will further distinguish the two sides.
The other units will be mounted on circular bases depicting Commanders; Prince Rupert and Oliver Cromwell respectively. These will form nice display pieces, but may be used in wargaming if I put a leadership / morale feature in the One Hour Wargames rules. All of the figures used are Revell. Prince Rupert's dogs, whilst not an accurate reflection of the breed he had, are purely representative, and are found in the Revell Conquistadors set.
Once these are all finished, I can see many bitterly contested cavalry actions on a tabletop in the near future! Huzzah!
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