But it makes very little sense nonetheless why Lancers (and Gendarmes) should emphasize butchering infantry (in a period where pikes and halberds pretty much stop any cavalry charge dead regardless of power) and make themselves vulnerable to older cavalry types in the process. The ultimate evolution of the heavy cavalryman defeated by his outdated predecessors (feudal and chivalric knights) just because he decided not to carry a shield? That's pretty silly. No wonder the knights went out of fashion.