Slitherine

Here's a preview of some of the poses for the upcoming Arkebusiers zu Pferd (horse arquebusiers) for our Central European/Imperial Thirty Years War range. Sculpted by Mike Broadbent.

As usual, every effort has been made to portray these specifically as Germans/Imperials from the early-mid war period.

Coming next in this range will be the infantry! The artillery, these Arkebusiers, and heavy/medium Horse with pistols are a bit further out.

Like the rest of the range so far, these look great. Do you think they will be available for order by say early November? I need 180 late Tercio foot, 24 Cuirrassiers and now 36 of these! Would like to bundle them all up for Xmas allowing plenty of time for postage. Any chance the artillery may be ready also?

Cheers...............Geoff

I think that will not be a problem -- here's a "best guess" timetable:

Infantry: two weeks for casting and delivery, three weeks for delivery to painter and paintups: late August

Artillery, Arkebusiers zu Pferd, Medium and light pistoliers: three weeks cast-up and delivery to me, five weeks from delivery to caster to final delivery of production castings to me, three weeks for delivery to painter until paintups are ready: late September to early October

By the way, anyone notice a similarity between my avatar and these previewed models?

Looking further down the road....

Next to be made will be the high command and dragoons, which have not yet been started. Then probably some Polish light cavalry, which can be used as light horse in several TYW armies and which we will eventually extend into a Polish range for the wars with Gustavus. (This will mean earlier Hussars with the wing on the saddle, and the earlier style armour. Hope this doesn't disappoint gamers! But there are a million late 17th century Polish lines out there. I should point out however that we intend to make models for the Spanish in the TYW before the Poles, so that the allied army of Nordlingen can be fielded.)

The light-heavy pistol cavalry and arkebusiers zu pferd are almost all in zischagge helmet, but we're going to do headswaps to give them floppy hats, and another swap to give them typical English three barred helmets, so they can be used for the ECW. (That's a simple swap so can be done right away, but we are focusing on the TYW at first -- so infantry in English-cut dress will not come til much later).

The Kurassiere we market now have the zischagge, as this helmet really is emblematic of German and Northern European horse in the TYW. They will also be getting a headswap to represent Kurassiere in closed helmetns of the barred and Totenkopf varieties.

I WANT THEM NOW!!!!!!

Great news. Just a question, are the heavy/medium horse with pistols going to be a look meant to mix with the arquebusiers as bandolier reiter?

Lovely stuff can't wait to get some, now have you been looking at the thread on Muscovite Cavalry, hint!!!

khurasan_miniatures wrote: Then probably some Polish light cavalry, which can be used as light horse in several TYW armies and which we will eventually extend into a Polish range for the wars with Gustavus. (This will mean earlier Hussars with the wing on the saddle, and the earlier style armour. Hope this doesn't disappoint gamers! But there are a million late 17th century Polish lines out there.

May I recommend a trip to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zaglobastavern/ where, among others Ryszart Brzezinski and Radek Sikora can sometimes be found to give the best and latest tips on Polish fashion.

geoff wrote:Just a question, are the heavy/medium horse with pistols going to be a look meant to mix with the arquebusiers as bandolier reiter?

Sorry, not sure I understand the question.

khurasan_miniatures wrote:

geoff wrote:Just a question, are the heavy/medium horse with pistols going to be a look meant to mix with the arquebusiers as bandolier reiter?

Sorry, not sure I understand the question.

I meant to say are the Medium and light pistoliers that you mention and the aquebusiers all suitable for use as Bandolier Reiter in the TYW German armies?

Cheers......Geoff

geoff wrote:

khurasan_miniatures wrote:

geoff wrote:Just a question, are the heavy/medium horse with pistols going to be a look meant to mix with the arquebusiers as bandolier reiter?

Sorry, not sure I understand the question.

I meant to say are the Medium and light pistoliers that you mention and the aquebusiers all suitable for use as Bandolier Reiter in the TYW German armies?

Cheers......Geoff

Well, the Arkebusiers zu Pferd are suitable for the troop type called "Bandolier Reiter" in the list. That's what they are, actually. (They were very rarely called Bandoliere Reiter.)

The pistoliers are meant to represent Swedish and later German pistol cavalry without a long firearm, lighter than the fully armoured Kurassiere (although sometimes still called Kurassiere). We'll probably convert the breast platedpistoliers to make "Harkebusiers," who would often have some form of arm protection as well. Piccolomini's cavalry at Lutzen were technically Harkebusiers, though they may well have worn armour approaching the heaviness of Kurassiere.

khurasan_miniatures wrote:

geoff wrote:

khurasan_miniatures wrote: Sorry, not sure I understand the question.

I meant to say are the Medium and light pistoliers that you mention and the aquebusiers all suitable for use as Bandolier Reiter in the TYW German armies?

Cheers......Geoff

Well, the Arkebusiers zu Pferd are suitable for the troop type called "Bandolier Reiter" in the list. That's what they are, actually. (They were very rarely called Bandoliere Reiter.)

The pistoliers are meant to represent Swedish and later German pistol cavalry without a long firearm, lighter than the fully armoured Kurassiere (although sometimes still called Kurassiere). We'll probably convert the breast platedpistoliers to make "Harkebusiers," who would often have some form of arm protection as well. Piccolomini's cavalry at Lutzen were technically Harkebusiers, though they may well have worn armour approaching the heaviness of Kurassiere.

Thanks for that. The Arkebusiers will do nicely and since they all have a carbine obviously portrayed will do perfectly for my legions of Bandolier Reiter

Glad to hear it Geoff! In addition to the poses shown, there are also three poses of men with weapons in reserve (meant for second ranks but they can certainly be mixed in with the shooters if you use them in a single rank), a standard bearer and an heavy cavalry officer holding up a warhammer.

The shooting men are breakwaist so you get even more pose variety out of that (the men with weapons up and command are one piece castings).

The key here is that the floppy hats are typical Central European early/mid war, with tall conical crown and wide brim, and the helmets are virtually all zischagge, so they have the right look for Germans (or other Central/Northern European nations) in the war. I know it's a bit limiting to make models with a specific set of troops in mind, and probably a smarter business move to make generic mid 17th century, but I really wanted to offer models with the right flavour for such battles as White Mountain, First Breitenfeld, Lutzen and Nordlingen.

Th Kurassiere have proven very popular so far so there are lots more models coming for the Germans, and in due course the line will expand to include other combattants too, some of which can be simple swaps, like head swaps to the infantry to make Spanish tercios (and I may have Mike make the pants even puffier! ), head swaps to the cavalry to make English in their simple functional three barred pot, etc.

Update -- these have gone off to the caster, as have the pistoliers in breast and backplate and the unarmoured pistoliers. The latter two sets are for horsemen from the Thirty Years War lighter than full-blown Kurassiers, such as lighter German Horse or Swedish/Finnish horse.

The front rankers in the mounted arquebusiers, and all of the troopers in the pistolier units, are breakwaist so that they can be posed shooting ahead, and for more pose flexibility. Each set of 12 will come with a standardbearer and an officer (who looks rather sinister holding up his warhammer). I'm keenly awaiting them from the caster!

Just a short historical note on Piccolomini's fellows. Turns out the regiment was a mixed rather than a "pure" unit, already in it's Arkebusier days it had a couple of cuirassier companies and after being reclassified as a Kürassier regiment it kept that organisation. A 1635 offer to supply the regiment with new armour includes 1000 sets of Arkebusier armour and 300 sets for cuirassiers and officers of mounted arquebusiers.