Reiters

Reiters were pistol-armed cavalry used in Germany in the 16th and early 17th century.  Their role in WHFB is performed by the Pistoliers, but the real Reiters were hardly young noblemen awaiting induction into the Knightly Orders.  Most were professional soldiers of various (and frequently dubious) backgrounds who were often all too willing to hire themselves out to the highest bidder.  Among their employers were the Kingdom of Poland and later the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, who used them (and the Pancerni) to support the Winged Hussars.  There is no reason to think that the Tzarina would not hire any such horsemen available to bulk up her army in times of war (which in Kislev is most of the time!).  In WHFB terms, I'd rate these guys as Fast Cavalry, with light armor, pistols and swords. 

This unit is kit-bashed in the extreme.  Except for the commander in the middle, who is an old Citadel figure, the rest have the original Kislev Horse Archer legs.  Their torsos, heads, arms, weapons, and equipment are a mix of the Empire Free Company/Militia box, the Mordheim accessory sprue, the Mordheim Kislev accessory sprue, the Pistoliers/Outrider box, the old Empire Soldiers box, the old Empire Handgunners/Crossbowmen box, the Empire plastic Great Cannon kit, the Empire Knightly Orders box, and the Empire Archers/Huntsmen box. 

They are based on a piece of the WHFB basing kit, but the borders (they don't give you enough corner pieces :<) are made from Plastruct MS-819, .08 cm x .187 cm.   Although the grass and other terrain effects are almost the same as my other units, these guys have a little less snow mixed with the grass and a couple of non-frozen bushes/clumps of grass, to reinforce that these guys are from further south than other units in the army.

OK - time for some close-ups!

As I said, the commander is an old Citadel figure which I bought on eBay years ago, thinking I might use him for something someday.  I added a 40K White Scars shield, to give what is otherwise a very Western European looking figure a more "Eastern" feel, which I thought was appropriate.

I like the musician a lot.  His torso is from the Empire Militia/Free Company box and his head is from the Knights of the White Wolf sprue that comes in the Knightly Orders box, meaning this fellow is most likely a devotee of Ulric.  That is appropriate as his livery is the all blue scheme used by soldiers of Middenland.  Perhaps this fellow is a deserter, perhaps a discharged veteran with no prospects other than to ply the soldier's trade.  He has a holstered pistol from the Mordheim sprue.  His arms are from the old Soldiers box.  The right arm is just one off the plastic arms, but the left arm holding the horn is actual a pewter bit that was included in the original version of the Soldier's box.

The standard bearer was made using a head, torso and arms from the Militia/Free Company box (the arm holding the flag is the one holding the hatchet).   The banner is regular white paper with a flag printed on it via a laser printer.  The flag is folded in half and glued together with some slightly diluted white glue, though I use a little super glue to hold the flag to the banner pole, which is simply a metal rod.

This fellow has a torso from the Militia/Free Company box and a sword from the Mordheim accessory sprue.  His head is plastic and from the Soldiers box, but his arms and the small firearm (which could be a carbine or caliver), as well as the pouch on his right side are metal and from the old accessories in the old Empire Handgunners/Crossbowmen box.

This fellow has a torso from the Empire Artillery box, arms from the old Empire Soldier box, and a head from the new Empire Archers box (specifically from the "Huntsman" sprue to give him a more "Eastern" look).  He has holstered on his a horse a firearm from the new Pistolier/Outrider box.  The old pattern figs are a bit smaller than the new, so for this guy that weapon is probably a caliver or carbine, rather than a pistol.

This trooper has a head from the Knights of the White Wolf accessory sprue and arms and a torso from the Militia/Free Company box.  His pistol comes from the Kislevite Mordheim accessory sprue.  His scabbard comes from the Mordheim Accessory sprue.

The upper body of the final trooper is made entirely from the old Empire Soldiers box and is painted in the livery of the Ostermark, which is probably a good source of mercenaries given its proximity to Kislev.  He also has a holstered pistol from the Mordheim Accessory sprue. 

Hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed making them!