German Noble

"To Hrothgar was given such glory of war, &ensp;such honor of combat, that all his kin &ensp;obeyed him gladly till great grew his band of youthful comrades."&mdash; Beowulf, trans Grummere

Overall strategy
Consisting of German tribal chieftains, it is clear that German Nobles are a cut above their followers. These proud warriors don't just own horses, but are rich enough to afford the finest arms and armour and as such, can furnish a shock cavalry component whereso needed. Just don't expect to have their services for cheap, and do not expect them to perform well against enemy light cavalry - for while these warriors are clearly superior to most Corral-tyle units, their riding skills don't measure well in combat against other mounted units.

So as a result, these units are often best used by their employers - chiefly, the European nations - for punishing enemy infantry, such as Norse Vikingr or Levy Crossbowmen. Against other factions such as the Turks, however, they will suffer greatly, due to their attack debuff against light cavalry. Thus, the appeal of this unit will vary depending on what civ you are playing. While this unit is clearly a godsend for factions with very poor cavalry, such as the Britons or the Norse, for other factions such as the Byzantines or the Poles, the use of this unit is rather moot, especially since they can get equally good cavalry or better, albeit at a slower rate. The only real draw for this unit is that it can be recruited in enemy territory from a Mercenary Quarters, so long as the building can survive long enough without being knocked down by attrition.

History
The first distinct Germanic tribes emerged around 100 BCE in northern Germany, and are usually thought to have migrated south from Scandinavia. From there, the tribes continued to expand, coming in contact with the Celts of Gaul in the west, and Slavic tribes to the east.

To the rest of the world, the Germanic tribes inhabited a region known as Germania, Latin for "Land of the Germans".The Roman Empire had plans to expand its borders into the wild lands of Germania, but with their defeat at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, a decision was made by the Roman Emperor Augustus to consolidate the boundaries along the Rhine River, leaving most of Germania free, wild, and untamed. Migrating pressures over the following centuries saw frequent efforts of Germanic tribes trying to enter the Roman Empire.

During the time of the later Empire, the Germans were both buffers against outside invasions and oftentimes allies, enemies, or both - with some tribes aiding Rome and some tribes invading. In 410 CE, some Germanic tribes assisted the Visigoths under Alaric I in sacking the city of Rome. It was a blow to the Western Empire, but didn't have the importance that it once would have as the capital had moved to Ravenna in 402 CE. But in 476 CE, dissatisfied German mercenaries led by Odoacer captured Ravenna and deposed Emperor Romulus Augustulus. By that time Rome was being attacked or saved almost exclusively by barbarian armies. Since Odoacer refused to assume the title of Emperor, this date is generally considered to be the official end of the Western Roman Empire.