I'd say the spear is also very useful in a morale term. You feel a lot safer with a long weapon. If you are untrained, the scary aspect of fighting is very important.
I thought this too! The spear is such a primal, instinctive weapon because it's corresponding so much with our impetus to attack safely with as least danger as possible. Think about attacking a bear with an axe or a spear
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just named the two most effective melee weapons ever made. IMO. armor cant save you from a mace, and a spear as reach for days. its gross to think how simple both of these weapons are for how effective they are.
eli dennison I'd personally say that something like a kopis sword in close combat would be the most effective, not too long but still has some reach but if you are in formation I'd say a long pike would be the best weapon
Maces were cheap and effective, but gambesons and plate armour could do well against them as blunt force isn't much to them unless it is massive enough.
I train in saber. let me tell you this. my friend uses the Swedish axe. I forget the name. but its as tall as me and I'm 6 foot. and I hate. I mean HATE fighting that thing. its absolutely the worst thing to fight. coupled with the fact that he's a lefty. well. ya
dillan mcdaniel Yeah, good axe or polearm (or poleaxe, omfg) wielders are a nightmare. My sparring partner is not very tall (neither am I) and the only way he is getting close to me when I am using a polearm is when he does as well and he is a hell of a lot better than I am. Polearms are vicious in Buhurt.
I think he's getting at the fact that we tend to think of cavemen as essentially retards, when the truth is they were probably smarter than what is considered average today. As for your snark about someone's concern over offending a caveman, well, they are our ancestors, after all. There's little more dishonerable than disparaging your ancestors, the people to whom you owe your life.
"...anyone can use a club." When I was in middle school, a classmate suffered a concussion from a club he was wielding when he pull it back to swing it forward; he somehow struck himself in the side of his head as he swung the club forward. I would say there is at least one human being on this planet who can't use a club.
+Captain SkullFace Getting past a defence & getting in a solid blow, not be put off balance or leave yourself open to attack is not easy with any weapon. A short, unbalanced weapon even more so :|
+StarSeed Thats the point of it, you hit harder, because it is heavier, that way you can get through armor. Blunt force trauma can only be done efficiently through heavy weight. And by "Through Armor" (Which is often very difficult to do) I mean just harm the wearer with out having to pierce through it. Even with armor on your hand will still get broken if hit by a heavy weapon, because there is too much inertia. And on that point; one handed weapons have better range of motion, and once in motion of then stay in motion easier through rapid swinging and circling.
Maces are actually hard as shit to use. You have to actually be able to angle and time a wide swinging weight to hit where you want it to. Have you ever tried to drive in a stake with a mallet? It's surprisingly difficult to aim since the inertia of the swing caused by the weight distribution offsets your balance. There's also the fact that maces require a lot of space to arc a powerful swing, making them useless and harmful to one's own allies in a large scale formation since you're going to smack everyone on your side before you hit anyone on the opposition.
If I had to go into a duel with zero training and only one weapon, I'd take a polehammer or poleaxe. One with a decently long point, so it could basically just be a Spear+. ...plus, I just love polearms. So underrated, I'd take a nice polehammer or Halberd over a sword any day.
If in this scenario you have no training you might as well take a very very big weapon if your opponent doesn’t have training for the scenario either. Something like a Scottish Claymore or Zweihander would work wonders. A pole hammer or pole axe demands a lot of skill from the user to use its Swiss Army knife arsenal effectively, you aren’t feinting a stab and transitioning into an overhead hammer slam when your opponent tries to block with no training. If you are strong and armament dumb take something big and dumb
The art of unscrewing the pommel is too dangerous and genocidal for the low folk to know, so its secrets have traditionally been reserved for the more distinguished knights, after years of proving they are capable of wielding this terrible power.
So to translate this into "pleb speak". The spear was basically the historical version of the Kalashnikov Assault Rifle. Cheap to make, easy to maintain, easy to use, and easy to replace.
Richard Joyce Guns are for those who fight, blades are near useless in 21th century. I was criticizing exactly the OP comparing two qualitatively different weapons. I could have said "Except the spear doesn't runs out of ammo." but apparently it does loses sharpness, while the AK lasts practically forever. Again, you cannot qualitatively compare two completely different weapons.
+Guardia Rossa IIRC there was a guy who got a kill with a longbow during WWII, but yeah things like spears aren't used in warfare anymore for a reason.
Hey, Skall... I hate to make on of these sorts of messages, but you kinda helped me through a bit of a rough patch in my life, I was dealing pretty damn badly with depression and all that crappy stuff and your videos didn't cease to cheer me up :) For that, I thank you with as much gratitude as I can. Please, keep doing what you're doing, your videos and everything are amazing!
I've had a period of feeling really down too, couldn't even be bothered to play games or zap around on TV, so just pretty much sticked to a few channels on youtube that I knew I liked already.. and that really helps giving you some relief and reliable safety in having something that you know you like and can cheer you up. Seems a bit silly, but I understand completely.
Bayonets are technically there, but they're mostly used for morale or prisoners, not to mention due to the shortness of rifles, bayonets are now more focused on knives instead of spears. You may see bayonets used to do more civil things as well, such as open cans and serve as a swiss army knife for the men who employ them, but actual bayonet combat is rare/unheard of
I believe the last recorded use of a bayonet being used in modern war that im aware of was in Afghanistan, a couple of Brit squaddies ran out of ammo in an intense firefight with the taliban so they fixed bayonets and charged at the fuckers, the Taliban we taken back in awe and were soon in full retreat when the saw a bunch of raging British lads coming at them with what was essentially sharp spears.
Obviously the best weapons for a low skilled user to survive a duel is to have two shields, double the defense, people. Get two spiked shields and just defend waiting for your opportunity to strike. Also put a shield on your back to have a triple defense for all those scummy cheaters that want to stab you in the back. seriously though, spear is probably the best.
I like this idea... or maybe a suit of armor that is so large you can't actually move but you have at least 1 foot of wiggle room in any direction inside the suit to avoid any damage!
Totally agree, Military's around the world still train in one on one bayonet training (short spear) and police forces use batons and riot shields. These weapons in the hands of a nube are potent, in the hands of an expert are very deadly and in mass formations win battles. Like you said theses weapons are easy to train people on because there use is heavily involved with large muscle group movement that your body has conditioned since you were born. Now you are just putting a weapon in your hand with some tactical training it does not take long to become an expert. Nice video!
Banzaiactual It's kind of sad; the US military is no longer going to be teaching bayonet tactics in standard curriculum, so in essence that's the end of our spear. But yeah, a baton and a riot shield are still common here, and pretty easy to pick up. And I totally agree, in the hands of masters in formation, these weapons and tactics win battles.
Crossbow or Composite recurve bow.....That is basically all you need if they have shitty armor to win a battle before they even get close oh and a falchion/arming sword and buckler because you need to be able to recover if you fuck up and let them get to close
***** Thus why many archers had falchions in the hundred year war, but you have to admit would you wan't to use a bow when a enemy has a sword/axe/mace 10 meters away and I like my bucklers on the large side
***** Yes just as musket infantry would reload as pike men or cavalry are less than fifty meters away from them them, you could but it would be strategically retarded for most commanders to advise as such as it was inefficient and the ground would be covered quickly by the enemy and lead to high casualties
***** I know, but if you need some kind of missile troops,and fast, crossbows are as good as it gets. I mean I know you are the expert, but it still seems less complicated than using a musket or something.
Javelins are actually really hard to use, I've tossed a few. I was pathetic at it. I agree that crossbows are the best low skill medieval ranged weapon
Spears are still, hands down, the simplest weapon to use. You can train and equip a spearman pretty quickly and cheaply, and while a master spearman will take time, a few months training can easily produce a pretty good fighting unit for cheap with spears. Maces and Clubs with a Board are, admittedly, weapons which even a person with little or no experience in melee combat can use with some effectiveness, but they should be typically backup, and not a primary weapon (unless the idea is raiding, looting and ransoming, in which case it's the combo to use). Any accurate depiction of raiders or conscript levies from Late Antiquity onward will show them wielding spears, with strapped shields on their back and maces at their sides. Spears are also used in the present day - in the form of bayonets. While not quite the same, the basic bayonet drill isn't too far off from spear drill.
Herald of Chaos I think the last bayonet charge was in the Korean War and homeboy ended up getting the Medal of Honor for it. As a vet, the bayonet training is just a confidence building tool and to make you more comfortable with violence.
Brittish soldiers used a bayonetcharge in Afghanistan... www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/9571522/Soldier-who-led-Afghanistan-bayonet-charge-into-hail-of-bullets-honoured.html
I was among the first BCT classes in the U.S. Army in 2010 to not have any bayonet training whatsoever: The Army concluded it was obsolete, because a thrust with your rifle's muzzle hits pretty damn hard enough and can cause a really bad piercing/puncture wound to unarmored flesh.
@@HamuraiC-137 I dunno, I think training how to hit with your rifle muzzle can inspire the same level of aggression and confidence as a conventional bayonet could. I do think bayonets should still be regularly issued/used downrange though, because since they are large knives, they have a lot of utility.
@@thememorablenovelist5876 probably spears are better for well trained military but for disorderd ranks of pesantry some club with a point end might be an effective alrounder. They whould probably lose horribly vs any form of phalanx etc. I'm not saying it's the best weapon but it is possible for poorly trained pesants to beat armoured knights with it. If It was well trained infantry id say spear, pike or halberds are superb and well rounded.
BUT! The Goedendag doesn't have quite the reach of a Spear, nor does it's length allow the efficient use of a shield. The Goedendag was pretty much just a cheap, mass produced militia weapon. It proved to be quite effective against frankish cavalry though, which says a lot. In that scenario, every logic person would prefer the length of a real Spear or even better; a specialized anti-cavalry Pike. It's just a lot safer to not risk getting caught by a Horse's Hooves or a Knight's weaponry.
There's a noted duel from the 17th Century, between Sir William Petty and Sir Alan Broderick -- when the latter challenged Petty to fight, Petty declared that -- due to his short-sightedness -- the duel should take place in a dark cellar, and for weapons he chose great carpenter's axes, which neither could fairly wield as a decent weapon. Sir Alan withdrew his challenge, as it'd basically become too silly at that point -- and if I'm ever challenged to a duel, that's the way I'm going. (References "The Life of Sir William Petty, 1623-1687".)
Dude, youre amazing. I found your videos today and they are INSANELY interesting and thought provoking. when you make vids like these it really makes me wonder what percentage of men fighting would actually have the courage to stay composed and actually KILL their enemy without instant remorse. Nice work!
The1Rausch I think you have not Skill in the big art 'english'. xD Anyway, I personally think the battle-spear is actually superior to a Mistgabel (how the heck is this thing even called in English? :D) in terms of easy usage. The Mistgabel is way too off-balanced to fight with as far as i have experienced.
IanDresarie my denglish is kamelopedia. Keepo. :) im sorry for the "misconvenience" ... Actually the battle-spear has far less Alltagstauglichkeit compared to the Mistgabel in a random medieval context. And if you, as a poor farmer boy has managed to kill an enemy with the mistgabel ... just imagine the chills ... "This is Neptun. Fear my Trident!" Priceless... ;)
The Crossbow was made for those who could not use a longbow because a long bow requires alot of upper body strengh and alot of training , so the crossbow was built to point and shoot , mostly women and children were using them because the lack of good soldiers
dany helie The crossbow was *banned* because it enabled untrained peasants to kill armored knights, but it's not clear that it was *made* for that purpose.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossbow en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infantry_in_the_Middle_Ages : (Cost and recruitement article) This can be open to quite a big debate , but clearly the therms Commoners and peasants desing a group of persons...(Men,womens, children.. by children i mean like a teenager), wich if you need to rely on them you are clearly in big trouble. So if there is a seige at your gate and you are under effective, you will clearly arms everyone you possibly can, its not mentioned the therm ''women'' but its just logic since the lower class dosent mean anything for the upper class so yea..they will sacrifice anyone they can to save theyr rich fat ass. And theres the fact that children soldiers are used in war since the dawn of time
dany helie What do you say is a teenager in the Middle Ages? A boy was an adult at his 15th year in many cultures, peasants were usually even quicker of age at around 12. There are no teenagers.
dany helie could any random person probably aim and fire a crossbow? sure, point and click, but then you have to consider actually using the thing in prolonged warfare. reloading it, maintaining it, repairing it when it no doubt broke...crossbows were sort of fancy for their time...and definitely more complex than a mace etc to use. good luck finding an able bodied person who couldn't whack someone in the noggin with a mace..
As far as medieval ranged weapons go, I'd probably say the crossbow is the most noob friendly. Only thing more basic to use that I can think of is darts or some javelin type deal, but those still require training to be effective or accurate with. For the most part, with a crossbow, you just need to know how to charge the thing, really. Aiming is much easier than most other ranged weapons other than a gun, especially given that you can sit on it for a while.
I believe the crossbow was specifically made so French farmers and workers could go to battle and be effective. But still not as effective as the English longbowman.
DoktorKebab I know, I've bloody tried to fire one. It took me about a minute to fully pulled it back and the force when I fired the shot was really straining.
+Casper Christensen Actually yeah, a single person using a spear would need far more training and skill than one out of a thousand in a wall of needles, all they need to learn is to not drop it.
What pisses me off about the mount and blade games is how shit the spears are. They are super easy to block (because they usually have only one attack, the forward thrust) and when someone gets to close it becomes completely useless so people just switch to their sword at that point. I like to use them on horseback because they actually work quite well like that, but I hope they fix the ground combat somehow for Bannerlord. I know this doesn't really have much to do with the video, but whatever. Just something that had to be said.
stevenisminecraft Yeah, it's in development now. I've seen the dev blogs. Everything is being improved. And yeah I agree the spear (well most of the polearms in general in M&B) aren't that effective, mainly because they mostly rely on the speed bonus mechanic to increase damage. But speaking of M&B, I'm sure Skall would enjoy it, aside from some....not so slight annoyances. Pity I ahven't found a mod to bring the singleplayer type thing into multiplayer....
Don't get me started on those bayonets in Napoleonic Wars, where stabbing someone in the neck with a spear or cleaving the head of an enemy with a two-handed axe can be shrugged off whereas being tapped with the side of a bayonet causes your entire body to instantly implode and sends your soul shrieking through the land of Shadow.
The only time if I was on the ground with a spear in mount and blade (if I had no choice) is if I was with a group of troops that also had spears. One spear-man is meh, but it's hard to parry 5 or more of the suckers trying to stick you at once. Just as long as they stay fairly close together that is.
It stands to reason that wielding a spear in two hands gives you more combat options than a shield-and-spear combination, but Mount and Blade does take it to a ridiculous level. If you have a shield or are on horseback, you can only stab away, even if swinging the thing should still be easy enough. Can anyone think of why it was made like this in the game?
A crossbow, one of the reasons they were banned was that people without a proper training were able to defeat on the battlefield highly trained combatants.
@@sameerthakur720 wasn't meant to be historically accurate. It purposely exaggerated and "mythologized" the Spartans, imitating the style of the comic books. They knew what they were doing
@@megabug1010 I know, but a lot of guys believe that's the way the battle went. The actual figures of the number of Persians are also exaggerated, even by historians like Herodotus (though, I doubt that he saw 300).😀
Actually spear and shield is really bad when out of formation, and especially against sword and shield. Maybe if you have the shield strapped to your weaker hand, but still hold the spear with both, and only let the weaker hand off of the spear if you need to actively block with the shield? Spears are generally superior, but with a shield they have more potential but way more skill/a formation to realize it.
a very common stereotype about crossbow that it is easy to use, but noone thinks about the painful reloading, yes it is way more easy to aim with crossb than with a bow but in most cases crossbow becomes exactly the most unforgiving weapon if you miss the shot.
Keep firearms melee! unscrew the barrel and throw at the unsuspecting opponent, to end him rightly. P.S. You can also pin someone down with a firing pin.
+oiioioioi “vengefullizard96” lad Plus usually a hook opposite the axe head, for yanking heavy cavalry out of the saddle. Heavy cavalry minus horse equals slightly crunchier, extra-slow infantry.
+James the damage dealers were projectiles, not infantry or cavalry. Cavalry are for quick repositioning, and infantry hold objectives. They rarely actually kill anyone. Its all about crossbows, bows, slings, and such.
When someone laughs at the spear, remind them that the Spartans used them. If the Spartans liked a weapon then you know it has value. Plus, it just ruins a mounted man's day.
This is completely off topic but a thought occurred to me while watching this video. Why is captain America's shield always depicted as a strap shield? That would be virtually impossible to get off your forearm without breaking a wrist if you attempted to throw it. A center grip wouldn't be MUCH better I assume but it only has one attachment point and you can release it pretty smoothly
If you look, it seems to have two loose straps and he holds the one near the edge of the shield. It could easily slide off his arm if he lets his grip go.
Basically Assault/Battle rifles are the equivalent of spears. Swords would be like pistols. Though some exceptions exist. Like Nodachi, Nagamaki, Dandao, Dadao, Greatsword, Zweihander, etc., which are battlefield weapons.
Well, yes but no. If you compare the AK platform to let's say AR, there are lots of things harder to do: -to switch the fire selector on AK you have to let go of the grip unlike AR (also AK has no ambi controls) -mag change is harder (you need to rock the mag and not just put it in the mag well all the way up) -have you seen how to adjust the front sight on AK? It requires at least two special tools to adjust And you probably meant AKM, as an actual AK-47 is hard af to get
Halberd... no contest. It's long, can thrust and can swipe very effectively, has plenty of range and works exactly the same as the spear... but with more options.
Enourmousletters Well it required greater skill to master but you can still use it as a regular spear, it's just better for survival since you can cut with it too which is useful in certain situations.
***** Depends on a lot of things. Spears aren't about quick stabs anyways, they're all about full power strikes. If you want to put even a dent in somebodies body armor you have to do a strong thrust. Kinda like a shot put in a way you have to focus on brute strength which is probably why it was one of the earlier weapons back in primitive society because people lacked the knowledge in complex combat techniques. Even against an unarmored foe, a quick stab won't do much without enough force applied to it. As such if a spear is used with maximum force, you are better off using a halberd.
That argument doesn't really make sense. Having a heavier weapon would mean that the readying time would be longer regardless of whether you make a quick stab or a powerful thrust... Leaving you open to being countered.
"The bedrock of Oda strength was the ashigaru, or common spearmen!" You can recruit 200 each unit and they can deal lots of damage to cavalry and are also perfect to trap enemies.
+FuckYouGoogle Dude. There is no practical difference between a Japanese naginata and a European glaive. Additionally, Asian swords (the kilij, tulwar, shamshir, and other swords of similar design, which don't include katana) were considered the best cutting swords by British military accounts.
***** There's really no point in arguing looks, as they're completely subjective. In terms of functionality, the two weapons are so similar as to hardly even be different weapons.
Because defending yourself on the street with a spear or other war weapon is not practical, a sword on the other you can, easily, carry everywhere. Most treatise I've seen are for civilian. One of the common combo was sword and buckler for personnal defense.
Also they really didn't care about the Peasant foot soldiers so they did not worry about training them. But Knights were professional warriors so they had to learn more skills and be able to study their art.
ähm. Hollywood focuses on the sword, medieval duels are different all over europe all over medieval age. And what makes you think it is "suitable" for a duel? It's appearance? And which movie-character made that stupid quote about "learning potential"? It is bullshit
Jan Plewa in single combat when you aren't wearing armor the sword is the best weapon. If you know what your doing. Also a sword unlike any other weapon besides knives can be worn comfortably all day long and not cause alot of looks.
Because a sword was often considered the noble's weapon, and since largely only nobles were literate back in those days, the treatises focused on sword combat. The most popular weapon set up for the average person during the period of the long sword was in the 1 handed sword and buckler. Yet very few treatises of this weapon exist compared to the long sword due to which type of people would typically be using it.
I think you nailed it. When I saw the title I thought of a spear or mace. Leaning towards the spear before you also included a shield with the mace. A mace with the combination of a shield is a fantastic combo. Shields improve upon dramatically the fall backs of a mace. A downside of the mace is it has slow recovery time and requires a solid hit. With only a mace this can be sketchy as it leaves you open to followup if your attack doesn't connect. And also mace attacks can be pretty predictable and telegraphed. BUT by adding a shield you are able to turtle up and protect your front and side from passive poke and harasment while also hiding the start of your strike. Waiting behind the safety of your shield for the perfect moment to land a solid hit.
I'm sure butt-spikes could be adapted for the purpose. The "apples" Achaemenid Persians used as counterweights would probably be a good starting point...
I'd personally go with either a pitchfork or a trident as the 'noob tube of melee combat'. You take the best parts of the spear (good reach, easy maintenance, and replaceability) but also add the ability to 'catch' another weapon, and disarm your opponent between the multiple tips. Also, the multiple tips give you a little more leeway in terms of accuracy; you can get away with not having the best aim, because you've got a wider effective area with each thrust. However, the Naginata is another good spear contender. As a Kendo practitioner, you can fight against a Naginata with a Katana/Shinai, but you A) need to know a special main stance to be able to cover your legs, B) as you said, are stuck in a sort of defensive position, which is not what Kendo trains you to think in terms of, and C) Naginata are good for both thrusting and slashing, which makes them more versatile than just a stick with a point...even if that point is made of metal.
I personally think a war hammer would be the most noob friendly weapon besides maybe a halberd because on a halberd there is a axe blade top spike and crows beak
Dixie got rekt gaming the problem with a war hammer is that if you miss you're screwed. For a newb, the axe part of the halberd would probably just make it slightly harder to use than the average spear. It is a viable option, i just think the spear would be a little more user-friendly.
Dixie got rekt gaming Throwing a complete noob into a duel with a war hammer? The moment they missed their first swing it would be game over. The time it takes to pull the hammer or halberd back up to defend would be too long. Especially if you're dueling with somebody skilled.
I agree with you on tridents. Good point about the extra room for error. I'd have to stop you at naginata though. I see you point about it's ease and it is pretty versatile but it's blade presents it as a slashing weapon and being able to use it as quickly and effectively as it requires may be difficult.
The reason I would go with a pitchfork over a trident is one word: BARBS. Traditionally, tridents have barbs because they're hunting tools and need to hold onto fish. Imagine if you capture an opponent's sword between two of the points: if the opponent grabs the sword higher up with a free hand and twists, the barbs will catch and you can't back out of the bind. You've just gotten disarmed. With a pitchfork you can simply pull back to retract the bind because the spikes are smooth.
Outstanding video subject Skall, thank you! DO YOU have any thoughts on making a weapon such as a spear, or a mace harder to grab by your opponent? I'm assuming the opponent does not have substantial hand protection. I envision small blades, or short sharp spikes along the shaft, near the fighting end.
i knew you'd mention mace as soon as i saw the video title. i personally would give my unskilled fighters both the spear, maybe on their back, then the mace on their right hip with the shield on their arm, and then a long sword on their left hip. probably have some medium strength yet still light-ish armor, like a brigandine or maybe just a gambeson with a bit of ring armor. something that they could sprint away in for at least a short distance.
Would say the spear has a low skill floor and a high skill ceiling, most ancient Chinese warriors are often depicted to be very skilled with the spear or pole weapons.
+Eiensakura There are frequent wars between dynasties and against border invaders, so Chinese warrior basically fight in battles only, and the famous ones are always those who fight in wars. Although from time to time there are some 1 v.s. 1 going on when 2 sides of the army send only their generals to go in a duel in front of both armies, but you still got a battle to fight afterwards. There is no tradition that encourages duel, unlike the west has the custom of Chivalry, or trail by combat. Dueling and challenging people to a duel is illegal most of the time in Chinese history. That's why a war-favored weapon gained more importance in the eyes of warriors, and they practice that a lot more than those weapon that's good for single combat.
+Eiensakura If you think about it a spear can do almost everything a staff can do, plus many things a sword can do, and then has its own specialized techniques as well. About the only disadvantages I can think of for using a spear are that you cannot wear it as easily as a sword or carry it as discreetly as a staff.
As an inexperienced weapon noob, I would definitely want a shield (with straps because my grip isn't strong). As for the weapon, that mace looks too heavy for my scrawny arms. I think I would go with a rapier. Hide behind my shield and jab like a madman. I'm definitely not gonna win by skill or strength, so focusing on speed is my only shot at surviving. Whatever the fastest historical weapon is, that's what I want. And a big-ass shield. I'm dead meat without one of those.
If we are talking 1v1 like the video. Give me a crossbow. Not hard to hit a target at close range, and even if I miss it has a bit of bulk to it for me to whack em with.
yu nofun Depending on how big and thick my shield is, and how powerful your crossbow is, I might be able to duck down and block it. Unless your arrows can go through a shield like butter, I can at least protect my heart and brain, so it won't be an instant kill.
Very true. It would still be my choice on the off chance that my opponent didn't pick a shield or somehow can't deal with me swinging away after I fired :p
Axe/Hatchet, sharp, cheap useful as a tool, bad range but you could help that with a shield and if you dont quite have edge alignment most are also hammers so if you don't slice straight you get a mace or hammer that does decent amount of damage to your opponent.
Yeah, no, if you don't have edge alignment, you plink off to the side. Your axe is not going to suddenly transform into a mace mid-swing, nor is it to automatically turn around to the blunt part.
Can someone tell me, is possible to use this kind of speer with a shield ? or would should be the speer shorter if I want to use it with a shield ? Thanks for the answers.
+Batman The Fourth Although they could still be extremely long-- at least if you were formation fighting. Granted you won't be using a pike or something, but a long spear could still be used in formation alongside a shield. The Greek Hoplites did such practices.
Spot on, totally untrained people were used to operate the artillery and contributed 25-50% of the killing, which is equivalent to aces you find one in a hundred.
Your list is pretty good. However I think another question to tackle is 'which takes the least time to be proficient with' which again I'd say the spear, but then the mace goes out because there's only so much you can do with that.
i'm a newbie spearman in a norman battle re-enactment group call historia normannis and in my experience two-handed spears suck for one on one fighting, a man-at-arms(i.e. guy with a shield and one handed weapon like a sword or even a long knife) can just charge you down and win. but in a something like a line-battle or big group fight a spear is a much better weapon.
urbanmyths95 I agree. Long thrusting spears work well in groups, but they would be nearly useless in a duel. You only get one thrust, and then the enemy is on top of you.
urbanmyths95 Yeah now that you mentioned it, I heard/found out that spears with a triangle shape (rather than a leaf shape) were used to grab the shield like a hook, pull it than pierce the person (spartans did that I heard, not sure about others)
I've been watching your videos for a while now and greatly enjoy your insights. If you're up to it, I'd love to see a video about the practical purposes of differing blade-to-hilt-length ratios in European swords. I'm just starting to get into European swords after spending a while learning and practicing with katanas. So I'm accustomed to a 27-29 inch blade with a 10-12 inch hilt. What I see most commonly with European swords is arming or Viking swords that are roughly 30 inch blade length and a 7 inch hilt, which I'm finding it difficult to half-sword with. Alternatively, the typical longsword 10-12 inch hilt with a 37-45 inch blade, which I'm finding cumbersome. Is there a type of European sword that meets me in the middle somewhere? Or is there something I'm not understanding?
Yes. Half-swording with a katana is a bit different and the difference in hilt length is throwing me off. Hence my inquiries. I don't have any real teachers for this like I do with the katana.
I'll try my best to explain it. When I have a longer hilt, I'm used to gripping it with about a fist of space between my hands and I find it easier to parry/counter simultaneously. When I do that on a shorter European sword, I'm obviously gripping the pommel and I don't feel like my grip or leverage is as good. When half-swording, I was taught it as a short range and controlled thrust. If I understand correctly, half-swording with a European sword is more of a wrestling technique. So I either need to find a broadsword with dimensions I'm accustomed to or I'm doing something wrong in the transition.
That answers that then. I've found claymores a little awkward in their size in the couple of times that I've tried them out. I stand at 5'10 so I don't know if that's normal or not. Maybe I should just give myself more time to get accustomed to a blade that's 35 inches or longer?
I'm not sure why longswords feel cumbersome, they weigh around the same as a Katana. It's probably because katanas have longer handles and shorter blades, so the balance is different. From personal experience katanas are also the most forgiving swords to use (other than lack of reach), I couldn't say about whether it is normal for claymores to feel awkward in their size, suit me just fine but I'm 6'4, I assume it's just because you're used to handling a smaller blade. I would suggest maybe putting some extra time in the gym if you are struggling, but you will probably get used to it in time anyway.
Brawny Buck I also am an akido guy, but found out my name lineage was begun as a general and helped introduce the hand and a half sword...better known as a basterd sword... typically 32...to 35 inch blade with 9 inch handles... slower then a curved blade... but with these types of swords u use them as a fulcrum point style swing... reverse swings from right.. behind ur head to the left side attack and so on... also... up cuts are utilized. .. western martial arts is amazing when seeing it done properly. .. and a samurai vs a knight... during that time period would most likely result in both dieing. A wound at that time with out antibiotics was lethal, even if u won the dual. My research on this has been more interesting then I would have guessed at the beginning and the true techniques r astounding
I would say the Kanabo (tetsubō) is a pretty brutal and forgiving weapon. it takes the forgivingness of a mace, but stacks on the additional force and reach of a longsword. It doesn't quite match the reach of a spear, but it's a solid, easy to use weapon without really any training. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanab%C5%8D
survivingzgamer Deadliest Warrior used a fictitious Kanabo, mind. That show is entertaining, but hardly good for historical accuracy. Historical Kanabo's were closer in size to a European Mace.
The problem with the Kanabo is that it takes a while to recover from a missed attack, so knowing how to feint and when to commit to an attack are esential to its proper use. Also, the levering motions used to attack with it are rather unique and not intuitive, whitch would be a problem in a no-training scenario.
Martin Alonso it depends. There were versions that were made of iron, instead of just being iron studded, that would certainly be hard to recover from, but the wooden versions would be much more forgiving in that regard, and could still be choked up on if necessary (i believe the picture on the link I posted had a fairly generous haft). I'm not saying it's perfect, but no weapon is for someone with no training. But it would likely be easier than a bladed weapon, and even a mace which, for best effect, requires a specific whipping motion and proper judgement of its relatively short range and even smaller point of percussion.
Certainly 100% iron and iron studded versions would behave quite differently, with the later being more or less a stilized nail-bat. I agree, some training, however minimal, is always necessary.
I think this is an awesome video that gives good food for thought. I agree with the video that in general the most basic weapons to use in close combat would be spear or mace and shield. However, efficacy in this case is very much dependent on yourself, the terrain, the number of defendants and the number of assailants. There is a huge difference between fight on a street corner and a battle of many hundreds where men stand shoulder to shoulder. The choice of weapon in a duel was often a personal choice (at least for defendant). If I were to have a significantly slower opponent, I would choose a shield and a short sword. If I were to face a fast but weaker opponent would use a shield with either mace or a short sword. When you don't have time/experience - use the club or mace it will often beat the blade.
I'd say the spear is also very useful in a morale term. You feel a lot safer with a long weapon. If you are untrained, the scary aspect of fighting is very important.
And when you are in formation, with all the other troops lined up spears pointing at the enemy lines you feel safer than home
I thought this too! The spear is such a primal, instinctive weapon because it's corresponding so much with our impetus to attack safely with as least danger as possible.
Think about attacking a bear with an axe or a spear
@@MrHeadBudd dear god i would be scared with an axe
A bow with punch lll is better
@@MrHeadBudd Imagine attacking a bear with a club
A true master spearman can do some really powerful techniques, though. Such as unscrewing the tip and throwing it vigorously at his opponent.
That would certainly end them rightly
lmfao I fuckin love this
... This joke is going to be under every video now, doesn't it?
+MrAliquam yup
Spearheads aren't screwed on though... I'm sure butt-spikes could be adapted however.
A pointy stick
A heavy stick
No further innovation until the accidental discovery of gunpowder.
Somebody was ahead of their time.
There probably was further innovation , the people probably died before they got to pass on the knowledge
don't forget bow and crossbows, these devices can shoot pointy sticks at great distance xD
The modern equivalent to the pointy stik is the bayonet
Spychopat Still pointy stick than. Technically guns are also points balls.
In legend, it said that every weapon came from THE STICK
1:50 I mean thrusting a spear is quite literally a straight forward attack.
Shut
L
I love these replies
Bad
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just named the two most effective melee weapons ever made. IMO.
armor cant save you from a mace, and a spear as reach for days.
its gross to think how simple both of these weapons are for how effective they are.
eli dennison I'd personally say that something like a kopis sword in close combat would be the most effective, not too long but still has some reach but if you are in formation I'd say a long pike would be the best weapon
halberd are op
Wouldn't you just switch your grip based on the circumstances? It's not like your hands are tied to the shaft.
This conversation seems oddly sexual.
Maces were cheap and effective, but gambesons and plate armour could do well against them as blunt force isn't much to them unless it is massive enough.
Appart from the fact that you can simply thrust with a spear, a skilled polearm fighter is still a nightmare in a 1vs1 scenario.
I train in saber. let me tell you this. my friend uses the Swedish axe. I forget the name. but its as tall as me and I'm 6 foot. and I hate. I mean HATE fighting that thing. its absolutely the worst thing to fight. coupled with the fact that he's a lefty. well. ya
dillan mcdaniel Yeah, good axe or polearm (or poleaxe, omfg) wielders are a nightmare. My sparring partner is not very tall (neither am I) and the only way he is getting close to me when I am using a polearm is when he does as well and he is a hell of a lot better than I am. Polearms are vicious in Buhurt.
Just end em rightly with a pommel.
But how.can I throw the pommel?
Aren't sabres one handed? Just throw it with the other hand and end em rightly.
"There's more to it than just hitting like a cave man... Stereotypical caveman."
Yeah, we don't want to offend the cavemen! 😂👍
Unga bunga ooga chunga
Should be cavePERSON, if he corrected from spearman to spearperson :)
That's what I thought too!
@@aaahah9931 The translation is take care of the shower. (I’m not kidding)
I think he's getting at the fact that we tend to think of cavemen as essentially retards, when the truth is they were probably smarter than what is considered average today.
As for your snark about someone's concern over offending a caveman, well, they are our ancestors, after all.
There's little more dishonerable than disparaging your ancestors, the people to whom you owe your life.
The spear is the embodiment of the idea of “always cheat, always win. The only unfair fight is the one that you lose”.
"...anyone can use a club." When I was in middle school, a classmate suffered a concussion from a club he was wielding when he pull it back to swing it forward; he somehow struck himself in the side of his head as he swung the club forward. I would say there is at least one human being on this planet who can't use a club.
Wow. I hope that he does better when he gets into high school, although that might take a while
Darwin Awards moment
i dont think it gets any easier then a mace.... just swing at their face until there's no face left to swing at....
+Captain SkullFace
Getting past a defence & getting in a solid blow, not be put off balance or leave yourself open to attack is not easy with any weapon. A short, unbalanced weapon even more so :|
+Captain SkullFace Damn, the more I think about it the more conflicted I am. Cool subject.
+Captain SkullFace Anything heavy takes a lot more skill. Mace is way too heavy in the one handed category. Too much inertia.
+StarSeed Thats the point of it, you hit harder, because it is heavier, that way you can get through armor. Blunt force trauma can only be done efficiently through heavy weight.
And by "Through Armor" (Which is often very difficult to do) I mean just harm the wearer with out having to pierce through it. Even with armor on your hand will still get broken if hit by a heavy weapon, because there is too much inertia. And on that point; one handed weapons have better range of motion, and once in motion of then stay in motion easier through rapid swinging and circling.
Maces are actually hard as shit to use. You have to actually be able to angle and time a wide swinging weight to hit where you want it to. Have you ever tried to drive in a stake with a mallet? It's surprisingly difficult to aim since the inertia of the swing caused by the weight distribution offsets your balance.
There's also the fact that maces require a lot of space to arc a powerful swing, making them useless and harmful to one's own allies in a large scale formation since you're going to smack everyone on your side before you hit anyone on the opposition.
If I had to go into a duel with zero training and only one weapon, I'd take a polehammer or poleaxe. One with a decently long point, so it could basically just be a Spear+.
...plus, I just love polearms. So underrated, I'd take a nice polehammer or Halberd over a sword any day.
I have a little practice with a popsicle sword i made so i would use a dagger and a longsword
Spear can parry a poleaxe quite well tho.
If in this scenario you have no training you might as well take a very very big weapon if your opponent doesn’t have training for the scenario either. Something like a Scottish Claymore or Zweihander would work wonders. A pole hammer or pole axe demands a lot of skill from the user to use its Swiss Army knife arsenal effectively, you aren’t feinting a stab and transitioning into an overhead hammer slam when your opponent tries to block with no training. If you are strong and armament dumb take something big and dumb
I’d probably use a yanyuedao or a glaive
club
but a mace and spear doesn't have a pommel. whats the point in winning if you havent ended him rightly?
Screw a pommel onto the mace to end him rightly
The mace is basically one big pommel so I think it counts.
The art of unscrewing the pommel is too dangerous and genocidal for the low folk to know, so its secrets have traditionally been reserved for the more distinguished knights, after years of proving they are capable of wielding this terrible power.
this is why we need pommel pouches
You give laughs, my friend. Great laughs. I find this problem with the lightsaber as well.
So to translate this into "pleb speak".
The spear was basically the historical version of the Kalashnikov Assault Rifle.
Cheap to make, easy to maintain, easy to use, and easy to replace.
+kala captain "Yes, yes, just like tha- OH GOD NO NOT THE GUY BESIDE YOU WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT YOU IDIOT!?"
+ShadowFalcon All right... except the spear doesn't shoots 600 7.62 rounds per minute.
Richard Joyce Guns are for those who fight, blades are near useless in 21th century.
I was criticizing exactly the OP comparing two qualitatively different weapons. I could have said "Except the spear doesn't runs out of ammo." but apparently it does loses sharpness, while the AK lasts practically forever. Again, you cannot qualitatively compare two completely different weapons.
Dude grow yourself a beard.
+Guardia Rossa IIRC there was a guy who got a kill with a longbow during WWII, but yeah things like spears aren't used in warfare anymore for a reason.
Hey, Skall... I hate to make on of these sorts of messages, but you kinda helped me through a bit of a rough patch in my life, I was dealing pretty damn badly with depression and all that crappy stuff and your videos didn't cease to cheer me up :) For that, I thank you with as much gratitude as I can. Please, keep doing what you're doing, your videos and everything are amazing!
Verlux Jaeger Glad to know that the videos had a positive effect!
I've had a period of feeling really down too, couldn't even be bothered to play games or zap around on TV, so just pretty much sticked to a few channels on youtube that I knew I liked already.. and that really helps giving you some relief and reliable safety in having something that you know you like and can cheer you up.
Seems a bit silly, but I understand completely.
„Everyone instinctively knows how to thrust with a pointy object“
May this be a dick joke?
Easy. I didn't need to watch this video, as I already know that the only (and easiest ) way to End Him Rightly is to throw a pommel at him
i was going to make a joke about ending him rightly, but it looks like everyone else beat me to it
5:44 - I'm glad you stopped to correct yourself, or you'd have offended the many cavemen in your audience.
Ooga Booga Oingo Boingo
Lemmy S. Kelton stop being so insensitive dude, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great to the power of great grandfather was a caveman.
Yeah seriously what was that all about? lol
#CavemenLivesMatter
CountArtha i was about to flame him in ooga booga language
Just use 2 shields, no skill required.
Bruh this aint dark souls
@@paulludwigewaldvonkleist4039 I think this be dark souls
Dual shielding
*Captain America has entered the chat*
And how will u atack? Or see opponent? Noob will die fast.
"Anyone instinctively understands how to thrust with a pointy object."
I didn't come here for your smut talk, Skallagrim!
Does a long chainsaw count as a melee weapon?
I guess.
+Sauron Yes, unless you throw it or it's enchanted
It's called a chainsword
With the added bonus of being able to 'end them rightly' but unscrewing the fuel cap and throwing it at your opponent!
I guess that if you are on a duel and your enemy intestines become entangled on your chainsaw, this would hardly be a problem for you.
What a cool channel. Wow! TH-cam suggestions aren't always nonsense :)
isn't spear still used in modern combat?
as a form of bayonette. u just replace the stick with assault riffle.
prob early* modern combat. not many armies nowadays use bayonets.
Hey, is that Es? Your profile picture looks Es to me
paddlesaddlelad , No many do still use bayonets. It's put on for close quarters fighting in case the rifle jams.
Bayonets are technically there, but they're mostly used for morale or prisoners, not to mention due to the shortness of rifles, bayonets are now more focused on knives instead of spears. You may see bayonets used to do more civil things as well, such as open cans and serve as a swiss army knife for the men who employ them, but actual bayonet combat is rare/unheard of
I believe the last recorded use of a bayonet being used in modern war that im aware of was in Afghanistan, a couple of Brit squaddies ran out of ammo in an intense firefight with the taliban so they fixed bayonets and charged at the fuckers, the Taliban we taken back in awe and were soon in full retreat when the saw a bunch of raging British lads coming at them with what was essentially sharp spears.
The spear, easy to use, hard to master, definitely my favorite.
Obviously the best weapons for a low skilled user to survive a duel is to have two shields, double the defense, people. Get two spiked shields and just defend waiting for your opportunity to strike. Also put a shield on your back to have a triple defense for all those scummy cheaters that want to stab you in the back.
seriously though, spear is probably the best.
Am I dumb thinking it could actually be effective, I mean in a noob vs noob duel?
TOME Julien It'd be a funny video to watch Skall probably scrutinize it.
This needs to be Done!
This does need to be done just because it would be hilarious
I like this idea... or maybe a suit of armor that is so large you can't actually move but you have at least 1 foot of wiggle room in any direction inside the suit to avoid any damage!
Totally agree, Military's around the world still train in one on one bayonet training (short spear) and police forces use batons and riot shields. These weapons in the hands of a nube are potent, in the hands of an expert are very deadly and in mass formations win battles. Like you said theses weapons are easy to train people on because there use is heavily involved with large muscle group movement that your body has conditioned since you were born. Now you are just putting a weapon in your hand with some tactical training it does not take long to become an expert. Nice video!
Banzaiactual Yes, the bayonet and riot shield plus baton are actually good examples of that.
Banzaiactual It's kind of sad; the US military is no longer going to be teaching bayonet tactics in standard curriculum, so in essence that's the end of our spear. But yeah, a baton and a riot shield are still common here, and pretty easy to pick up. And I totally agree, in the hands of masters in formation, these weapons and tactics win battles.
two maces and run in like a loonatic, the enemy can't know what you're doing XD
...and then they just stab you with their stick ^^
So the mace spinner from tabs
One of the big misconceptions it’s not automatically effective because it’s unpredictable skal made a video on this specifically
Ah I see the Skyrim tactic.
The most noob friendly weapon is a nuke. It requires no accuracy.
Goaler _1 no but it does require you to be the head of a large rick soverign nation
It requires accuracy if your name is Kim jung un
Yeah seriously, you could miss your target by several kilometers and still get the kill
Oh def if you had access to a nuke you would know how to launch it with no experience
You know how to shoot a nuke. That actually requires multiple people. Should I be scared?
Spear, mace, shield.
My choices for fighting off hordes of Orcs
+Martin Vargic You could have one specially made.
Crossbow or Composite recurve bow.....That is basically all you need if they have shitty armor to win a battle before they even get close oh and a falchion/arming sword and buckler because you need to be able to recover if you fuck up and let them get to close
***** Thus why many archers had falchions in the hundred year war, but you have to admit would you wan't to use a bow when a enemy has a sword/axe/mace 10 meters away and I like my bucklers on the large side
***** Yes just as musket infantry would reload as pike men or cavalry are less than fifty meters away from them them, you could but it would be strategically retarded for most commanders to advise as such as it was inefficient and the ground would be covered quickly by the enemy and lead to high casualties
+Infidel What he does would be near impossible with a 200lb warbow.
I would say the best weapon to use in a duel that requires little skill is using a pommel
+Private Private (awsome22355) You haven't been here very long have you?
+Private Private (awsome22355) Don't make me end you rightly.
clearly you need to bring a bag full of pommels. Maybe even bring a sling to toss them.
nothing will end em more rightly than using a pommel sling...
Aidan Taylor lol use a trebuchet armed with a bag of pommels dipped in oil n on fire
You forgot one overpowering combination - Dual Wielding Lantern Shields!
This would legitimately be a good combo if given thought and proper layout of the shields lantern themselves
What about crossbows? I mean they are no good in one on one combat, but they are a thousand times more easy to use than longbows.
+Nebojsa Galic
Still more complicated to use than simply thrusting a spear forwards.
***** I know, but if you need some kind of missile troops,and fast, crossbows are as good as it gets. I mean I know you are the expert, but it still seems less complicated than using a musket or something.
+Nebojsa Galic
You could say that a crossbow is the easiest ranged weapon (aside from javelins), but a spear is the easiest overall.
Javelins are actually really hard to use, I've tossed a few. I was pathetic at it. I agree that crossbows are the best low skill medieval ranged weapon
The sling anyone ? They aren't too difficult to use and reload
Easiest weapon to end someone rightly: An enourmous pommel
Ricardo Morales
LOL
+Jason Brown what are u laughing at
+Ricardo Morales Deez pommels.
+Ricardo Morales I think that's called a 'cannon'.
The joke is so overused .....
Spears are still, hands down, the simplest weapon to use. You can train and equip a spearman pretty quickly and cheaply, and while a master spearman will take time, a few months training can easily produce a pretty good fighting unit for cheap with spears.
Maces and Clubs with a Board are, admittedly, weapons which even a person with little or no experience in melee combat can use with some effectiveness, but they should be typically backup, and not a primary weapon (unless the idea is raiding, looting and ransoming, in which case it's the combo to use).
Any accurate depiction of raiders or conscript levies from Late Antiquity onward will show them wielding spears, with strapped shields on their back and maces at their sides.
Spears are also used in the present day - in the form of bayonets. While not quite the same, the basic bayonet drill isn't too far off from spear drill.
Herald of Chaos I think the last bayonet charge was in the Korean War and homeboy ended up getting the Medal of Honor for it. As a vet, the bayonet training is just a confidence building tool and to make you more comfortable with violence.
Brittish soldiers used a bayonetcharge in Afghanistan... www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/9571522/Soldier-who-led-Afghanistan-bayonet-charge-into-hail-of-bullets-honoured.html
That why i spam ashigaru in shogun 2
I was among the first BCT classes in the U.S. Army in 2010 to not have any bayonet training whatsoever: The Army concluded it was obsolete, because a thrust with your rifle's muzzle hits pretty damn hard enough and can cause a really bad piercing/puncture wound to unarmored flesh.
@@HamuraiC-137 I dunno, I think training how to hit with your rifle muzzle can inspire the same level of aggression and confidence as a conventional bayonet could. I do think bayonets should still be regularly issued/used downrange though, because since they are large knives, they have a lot of utility.
Goendag,: the best of both spear and club/mace
I SAID GOOD DAY SIR! *THWACK*
Its historically effective as peasants could defeat well trained armoured knights with it.
@@heptagram2108 gg but of cause it limits your range that you have bec it was noticeably shorter than even 1 handed spears but it was a good weapon
@@thememorablenovelist5876 probably spears are better for well trained military but for disorderd ranks of pesantry some club with a point end might be an effective alrounder. They whould probably lose horribly vs any form of phalanx etc. I'm not saying it's the best weapon but it is possible for poorly trained pesants to beat armoured knights with it. If It was well trained infantry id say spear, pike or halberds are superb and well rounded.
BUT!
The Goedendag doesn't have quite the reach of a Spear, nor does it's length allow the efficient use of a shield.
The Goedendag was pretty much just a cheap, mass produced militia weapon. It proved to be quite effective against frankish cavalry though, which says a lot.
In that scenario, every logic person would prefer the length of a real Spear or even better; a specialized anti-cavalry Pike. It's just a lot safer to not risk getting caught by a Horse's Hooves or a Knight's weaponry.
There's a noted duel from the 17th Century, between Sir William Petty and Sir Alan Broderick -- when the latter challenged Petty to fight, Petty declared that -- due to his short-sightedness -- the duel should take place in a dark cellar, and for weapons he chose great carpenter's axes, which neither could fairly wield as a decent weapon. Sir Alan withdrew his challenge, as it'd basically become too silly at that point -- and if I'm ever challenged to a duel, that's the way I'm going.
(References "The Life of Sir William Petty, 1623-1687".)
PaintBeforeAssembly
Noted duel that ended before it started lmao
Dude, youre amazing. I found your videos today and they are INSANELY interesting and thought provoking. when you make vids like these it really makes me wonder what percentage of men fighting would actually have the courage to stay composed and actually KILL their enemy without instant remorse. Nice work!
Can't decide between the rock and the stick.
+James Cutler Rock has range....stick doesn't run out of ammo. HMMMMM. I guess the best weapon to have is the one that's there when you need it.
+Joy Smith Hit stick to rock. If stick breaks, take rock. If stick doesn't break, take stick, pocket rock. If rock breaks, take stick.
+Joy Smith I don't know about those, but words will never hurt me.
+phoxxentswrath with stick you can make fire, keep stick.
+Legend_Warp combine it with rock, you can make flaming fire stone axe, did i just type flaming fire stone axe???
I often find things get hard when someone gets a hold of my shaft.
Mistgabel. Every armoured Soldier knew : be aware of the Mistgabel ...
The1Rausch Fear the Mistgabel, the Fackel and the Spieß
The Löffel is not what you should fear, only the mouth behind the Löffel. ô.Ô
Yes I am mir Leid. I mean the Mund, which is the real danger when encountering the Löffel.
The1Rausch I think you have not Skill in the big art 'english'. xD
Anyway, I personally think the battle-spear is actually superior to a Mistgabel (how the heck is this thing even called in English? :D) in terms of easy usage. The Mistgabel is way too off-balanced to fight with as far as i have experienced.
IanDresarie my denglish is kamelopedia. Keepo. :) im sorry for the "misconvenience" ... Actually the battle-spear has far less Alltagstauglichkeit compared to the Mistgabel in a random medieval context. And if you, as a poor farmer boy has managed to kill an enemy with the mistgabel ... just imagine the chills ... "This is Neptun. Fear my Trident!" Priceless... ;)
The Crossbow was made for those who could not use a longbow because a long bow requires alot of upper body strengh and alot of training , so the crossbow was built to point and shoot , mostly women and children were using them because the lack of good soldiers
dany helie I've never seen evidence of crossbows being used by women and children in the Middle Ages or Renaissance. Do you have any sources?
dany helie The crossbow was *banned* because it enabled untrained peasants to kill armored knights, but it's not clear that it was *made* for that purpose.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossbow
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infantry_in_the_Middle_Ages : (Cost and recruitement article)
This can be open to quite a big debate , but clearly the therms Commoners and peasants desing a group of persons...(Men,womens, children.. by children i mean like a teenager), wich if you need to rely on them you are clearly in big trouble. So if there is a seige at your gate and you are under effective, you will clearly arms everyone you possibly can, its not mentioned the therm ''women'' but its just logic since the lower class dosent mean anything for the upper class so yea..they will sacrifice anyone they can to save theyr rich fat ass. And theres the fact that children soldiers are used in war since the dawn of time
dany helie What do you say is a teenager in the Middle Ages? A boy was an adult at his 15th year in many cultures, peasants were usually even quicker of age at around 12. There are no teenagers.
dany helie could any random person probably aim and fire a crossbow? sure, point and click, but then you have to consider actually using the thing in prolonged warfare. reloading it, maintaining it, repairing it when it no doubt broke...crossbows were sort of fancy for their time...and definitely more complex than a mace etc to use. good luck finding an able bodied person who couldn't whack someone in the noggin with a mace..
"The Thrust is the most Straight Forward attack"
Am I the only one who finds that funny?
Felipe Pereira
Hopefully.
***** why? :(
I mean to do a thrust you move the spear "straight forward". it has a double meaning :( i think it was funny :(
Felipe Pereira That was bad and you should feel bad
Felipe Pereira Because it sounded like a poor sexual joke
Felipe Pereira Yes yes you are
"The thrust is the most straight forward" unintentional pun, lol
As far as medieval ranged weapons go, I'd probably say the crossbow is the most noob friendly.
Only thing more basic to use that I can think of is darts or some javelin type deal, but those still require training to be effective or accurate with.
For the most part, with a crossbow, you just need to know how to charge the thing, really. Aiming is much easier than most other ranged weapons other than a gun, especially given that you can sit on it for a while.
+Martin Vargic end him rightly.
love your name
I believe the crossbow was specifically made so French farmers and workers could go to battle and be effective. But still not as effective as the English longbowman.
Khorne the Blood God
True, but the longbow required a helluva lot more training. As did most archery, though especially the longbow. Things were huge.
DoktorKebab I know, I've bloody tried to fire one. It took me about a minute to fully pulled it back and the force when I fired the shot was really straining.
Proves that Xin Zhao is noob champion.
dude.. i laughed so hard lol
+Noobfest Greco Ever seen a kung fu movie where a master uses a spear? Just because its easy to learn doesnt mean mastering it is.
+Casper Christensen Actually yeah, a single person using a spear would need far more training and skill than one out of a thousand in a wall of needles, all they need to learn is to not drop it.
+Noobfest Greco made my day mister
+Bumudan Banane np mate :P
What pisses me off about the mount and blade games is how shit the spears are. They are super easy to block (because they usually have only one attack, the forward thrust) and when someone gets to close it becomes completely useless so people just switch to their sword at that point. I like to use them on horseback because they actually work quite well like that, but I hope they fix the ground combat somehow for Bannerlord. I know this doesn't really have much to do with the video, but whatever. Just something that had to be said.
1. I totally agree
2. I fucking love mount and blade
3. THERES A NEW ONE COMING OUT?!
stevenisminecraft
Yeah, it's in development now. I've seen the dev blogs. Everything is being improved. And yeah I agree the spear (well most of the polearms in general in M&B) aren't that effective, mainly because they mostly rely on the speed bonus mechanic to increase damage. But speaking of M&B, I'm sure Skall would enjoy it, aside from some....not so slight annoyances. Pity I ahven't found a mod to bring the singleplayer type thing into multiplayer....
Don't get me started on those bayonets in Napoleonic Wars, where stabbing someone in the neck with a spear or cleaving the head of an enemy with a two-handed axe can be shrugged off whereas being tapped with the side of a bayonet causes your entire body to instantly implode and sends your soul shrieking through the land of Shadow.
The only time if I was on the ground with a spear in mount and blade (if I had no choice) is if I was with a group of troops that also had spears. One spear-man is meh, but it's hard to parry 5 or more of the suckers trying to stick you at once. Just as long as they stay fairly close together that is.
It stands to reason that wielding a spear in two hands gives you more combat options than a shield-and-spear combination, but Mount and Blade does take it to a ridiculous level. If you have a shield or are on horseback, you can only stab away, even if swinging the thing should still be easy enough. Can anyone think of why it was made like this in the game?
Which one scales better with dex?
Katana
try great scythe
the iron katana has S scaling, but you have to kill Alonne knights for it
Higher Being ew filthy casual
you only need to level your Dex to 10 but don't ever tell anyone you leveled your dex
I believe the one meant for Dex is the curved sword
He sound like he's about to assemble the minions for a meeting about stealing the moon
r/ rare insults
A crossbow, one of the reasons they were banned was that people without a proper training were able to defeat on the battlefield highly trained combatants.
in a war/battlefield, he did mention it was about 1v1 melee duel
Hoplite life. Shield+Spear OP. Pls fix 0/10
And definitely no armour, because they had to show their abs. I know this from the historically accurate documentary, 300.😀
Also badass capes
@@sameerthakur720 wasn't meant to be historically accurate. It purposely exaggerated and "mythologized" the Spartans, imitating the style of the comic books. They knew what they were doing
@@megabug1010 I know, but a lot of guys believe that's the way the battle went. The actual figures of the number of Persians are also exaggerated, even by historians like Herodotus (though, I doubt that he saw 300).😀
Actually spear and shield is really bad when out of formation, and especially against sword and shield. Maybe if you have the shield strapped to your weaker hand, but still hold the spear with both, and only let the weaker hand off of the spear if you need to actively block with the shield? Spears are generally superior, but with a shield they have more potential but way more skill/a formation to realize it.
a very common stereotype about crossbow that it is easy to use, but noone thinks about the painful reloading, yes it is way more easy to aim with crossb than with a bow but in most cases crossbow becomes exactly the most unforgiving weapon if you miss the shot.
Hurdalık Cini that's why bows rock the world!
+Hurdalık Cini
that's why you get repeating crossbows lol with explosive tips
Just realized if Skallagrim lost the facial hair he would kinda look like Steve Carell.
Stop
I think he could even nail the voice.
No.
It would’ve cost you 0 cents to not have said this
@@josealfonso8370 it cost me zero cents to say it.
Keep firearms melee! unscrew the barrel and throw at the unsuspecting opponent, to end him rightly.
P.S. You can also pin someone down with a firing pin.
None of my opponents have been unsuspecting, which is so unfair.
Cypeq snack them in the helmet visor with the stock when your out of ammo. Try to achieve a concussion.
Why throw the barrel? A loaded magazine flies so much better and they've got good weight to them
Graham Lopez yes and if you are using a Tediore weapon it will explode on impact dealing massive damage.
It's funny how the MG-42 would still have a high rate of fire if barrels were to be thrown.
Do you have any videos talking about the halberd?
oiioioioi lad I want to see his own take on the weapon. He knows more than my imagination does.
+oiioioioi “vengefullizard96” lad Plus usually a hook opposite the axe head, for yanking heavy cavalry out of the saddle. Heavy cavalry minus horse equals slightly crunchier, extra-slow infantry.
Nathan Rasmussen That sounds so badass.
"You are now a crunchy snack!"
+James the damage dealers were projectiles, not infantry or cavalry. Cavalry are for quick repositioning, and infantry hold objectives. They rarely actually kill anyone. Its all about crossbows, bows, slings, and such.
When someone laughs at the spear, remind them that the Spartans used them. If the Spartans liked a weapon then you know it has value. Plus, it just ruins a mounted man's day.
Since Mace (modern baton) and Shield is basically still in use today, it speaks for itself on its simple effectiveness.
This is completely off topic but a thought occurred to me while watching this video. Why is captain America's shield always depicted as a strap shield? That would be virtually impossible to get off your forearm without breaking a wrist if you attempted to throw it. A center grip wouldn't be MUCH better I assume but it only has one attachment point and you can release it pretty smoothly
Oh damn you...I hope I won't remember this when watching AoU and Cap 3...
He usually throw it like frisbee in the movies.
Gil gamesh noooooooooo wtf
I think he is super fast and takes it off first.
If you look, it seems to have two loose straps and he holds the one near the edge of the shield. It could easily slide off his arm if he lets his grip go.
I saw the title and thought instantly: Spear.
The spear is the melee equivalent of the AK47.
Basically Assault/Battle rifles are the equivalent of spears.
Swords would be like pistols. Though some exceptions exist. Like Nodachi, Nagamaki, Dandao, Dadao, Greatsword, Zweihander, etc., which are battlefield weapons.
Tong Lu Noone uses it doe
@@saudakar9004 Well obviously not now because they have ak47s.
Well, yes but no. If you compare the AK platform to let's say AR, there are lots of things harder to do:
-to switch the fire selector on AK you have to let go of the grip unlike AR (also AK has no ambi controls)
-mag change is harder (you need to rock the mag and not just put it in the mag well all the way up)
-have you seen how to adjust the front sight on AK? It requires at least two special tools to adjust
And you probably meant AKM, as an actual AK-47 is hard af to get
No rifle
The biggest disadvantage of these weapons remains...
You can't end them rightly.
NOphion Trollbringer get a spear that you can unscrew the tip
It's amazing how this is still an ongoing meme
Ozzmand as for the mace, just throw the whole thing at them
OBJECTION
The mace head is a really big pummel on a stick!
4:06 lesson 1
Compliments! You're ready to war!
Wow, that's a huge spear! I usually think of them as being about half of that size.
Halberd... no contest. It's long, can thrust and can swipe very effectively, has plenty of range and works exactly the same as the spear... but with more options.
It's much more expensive to make and required greater skill, but if you could get one yeah its basically a Spear+
Enourmousletters Well it required greater skill to master but you can still use it as a regular spear, it's just better for survival since you can cut with it too which is useful in certain situations.
***** Depends on a lot of things. Spears aren't about quick stabs anyways, they're all about full power strikes. If you want to put even a dent in somebodies body armor you have to do a strong thrust.
Kinda like a shot put in a way you have to focus on brute strength which is probably why it was one of the earlier weapons back in primitive society because people lacked the knowledge in complex combat techniques.
Even against an unarmored foe, a quick stab won't do much without enough force applied to it. As such if a spear is used with maximum force, you are better off using a halberd.
That argument doesn't really make sense. Having a heavier weapon would mean that the readying time would be longer regardless of whether you make a quick stab or a powerful thrust... Leaving you open to being countered.
Chris Daley I'm not here to argue i'm here to state an opinion. You seem to be worked up by my opinion.
"The bedrock of Oda strength was the ashigaru, or common spearmen!" You can recruit 200 each unit and they can deal lots of damage to cavalry and are also perfect to trap enemies.
not going to lie I love spears and pole arms. Really really want a Naginata
oiioioioi lad I'm Italian actually :P
+FuckYouGoogle Dude. There is no practical difference between a Japanese naginata and a European glaive.
Additionally, Asian swords (the kilij, tulwar, shamshir, and other swords of similar design, which don't include katana) were considered the best cutting swords by British military accounts.
Noah Weisbrod that and I think we should all be able to like what we like.
***** not in my opinion but to each his own
***** There's really no point in arguing looks, as they're completely subjective. In terms of functionality, the two weapons are so similar as to hardly even be different weapons.
which historical weapons require the most skill to use??
+Kari Närhi
I'd say probably any kind of flexible weapon (long-chained flail, chain whip, three-section staff, etc).
+Kari Närhi Pommels.
+Kari Närhi definitely a sling
+Skallagrim Indeed, any kind of non-rigid weapon... Especially an urumi. Look it up if you don't know what it is, självmordsvapen deluxe ^^
+Tony424 End Him Rightly!
Everyone understands how to thrust with a pointy object
Phrasing
"-concidering you can ThRuSt VeRy QuIcKlY wItH tHiS"
You forgot about the dark sword, casul
the dark sword is actually hard, in comparison to the fucking spears from dark souls 2 and their hitboxes
Git gud noob, u suk
Tru casul weapon, lothric knight straight sword
But honestly, the sellsword blades are one of the best weapons in the game and you get them right at the start
4:45 I believe the term you are looking for is the "argive grip." Hope I helped .D.
Skall,
why do Medieval treatises focus on the sword? Because it's suitable for duel? Because it has the greatest potential for learning?
Because defending yourself on the street with a spear or other war weapon is not practical, a sword on the other you can, easily, carry everywhere. Most treatise I've seen are for civilian. One of the common combo was sword and buckler for personnal defense.
Also they really didn't care about the Peasant foot soldiers so they did not worry about training them. But Knights were professional warriors so they had to learn more skills and be able to study their art.
ähm. Hollywood focuses on the sword, medieval duels are different all over europe all over medieval age. And what makes you think it is "suitable" for a duel? It's appearance?
And which movie-character made that stupid quote about "learning potential"? It is bullshit
Jan Plewa in single combat when you aren't wearing armor the sword is the best weapon. If you know what your doing. Also a sword unlike any other weapon besides knives can be worn comfortably all day long and not cause alot of looks.
Because a sword was often considered the noble's weapon, and since largely only nobles were literate back in those days, the treatises focused on sword combat. The most popular weapon set up for the average person during the period of the long sword was in the 1 handed sword and buckler. Yet very few treatises of this weapon exist compared to the long sword due to which type of people would typically be using it.
I think you nailed it. When I saw the title I thought of a spear or mace. Leaning towards the spear before you also included a shield with the mace. A mace with the combination of a shield is a fantastic combo. Shields improve upon dramatically the fall backs of a mace.
A downside of the mace is it has slow recovery time and requires a solid hit. With only a mace this can be sketchy as it leaves you open to followup if your attack doesn't connect. And also mace attacks can be pretty predictable and telegraphed.
BUT by adding a shield you are able to turtle up and protect your front and side from passive poke and harasment while also hiding the start of your strike.
Waiting behind the safety of your shield for the perfect moment to land a solid hit.
Can you use the pommel on the spear to end the duel rightly?
I'm sure butt-spikes could be adapted for the purpose. The "apples" Achaemenid Persians used as counterweights would probably be a good starting point...
You can never go wrong with a long pointy stick.
I'd personally go with either a pitchfork or a trident as the 'noob tube of melee combat'. You take the best parts of the spear (good reach, easy maintenance, and replaceability) but also add the ability to 'catch' another weapon, and disarm your opponent between the multiple tips. Also, the multiple tips give you a little more leeway in terms of accuracy; you can get away with not having the best aim, because you've got a wider effective area with each thrust.
However, the Naginata is another good spear contender. As a Kendo practitioner, you can fight against a Naginata with a Katana/Shinai, but you A) need to know a special main stance to be able to cover your legs, B) as you said, are stuck in a sort of defensive position, which is not what Kendo trains you to think in terms of, and C) Naginata are good for both thrusting and slashing, which makes them more versatile than just a stick with a point...even if that point is made of metal.
I personally think a war hammer would be the most noob friendly weapon besides maybe a halberd because on a halberd there is a axe blade top spike and crows beak
Dixie got rekt gaming the problem with a war hammer is that if you miss you're screwed. For a newb, the axe part of the halberd would probably just make it slightly harder to use than the average spear. It is a viable option, i just think the spear would be a little more user-friendly.
Dixie got rekt gaming Throwing a complete noob into a duel with a war hammer? The moment they missed their first swing it would be game over. The time it takes to pull the hammer or halberd back up to defend would be too long. Especially if you're dueling with somebody skilled.
I agree with you on tridents. Good point about the extra room for error. I'd have to stop you at naginata though. I see you point about it's ease and it is pretty versatile but it's blade presents it as a slashing weapon and being able to use it as quickly and effectively as it requires may be difficult.
The reason I would go with a pitchfork over a trident is one word: BARBS. Traditionally, tridents have barbs because they're hunting tools and need to hold onto fish. Imagine if you capture an opponent's sword between two of the points: if the opponent grabs the sword higher up with a free hand and twists, the barbs will catch and you can't back out of the bind. You've just gotten disarmed.
With a pitchfork you can simply pull back to retract the bind because the spikes are smooth.
It's the old lady bare hand when she caught her man cheating
Golden Yu love u genuine
Golden Yu and four angels even gibberish I care about
"For Honor: Nobushi Guide"
Nikolai Vutasherkov valk*
i know i am being kinda lame but at 3:18
"grasped the shaft even"
Outstanding video subject Skall, thank you! DO YOU have any thoughts on making a weapon such as a spear, or a mace harder to grab by your opponent? I'm assuming the opponent does not have substantial hand protection. I envision small blades, or short sharp spikes along the shaft, near the fighting end.
i knew you'd mention mace as soon as i saw the video title. i personally would give my unskilled fighters both the spear, maybe on their back, then the mace on their right hip with the shield on their arm, and then a long sword on their left hip. probably have some medium strength yet still light-ish armor, like a brigandine or maybe just a gambeson with a bit of ring armor. something that they could sprint away in for at least a short distance.
My brother is a spear fighter and went mad when he heard this 🤣🤣
Would say the spear has a low skill floor and a high skill ceiling, most ancient Chinese warriors are often depicted to be very skilled with the spear or pole weapons.
+Eiensakura
Yes, that's a good way to put it.
+Ben Wertz Yeah
Zhao Yun,Ma Chao and Yukimura Sanada(Japanese)
+Eiensakura There are frequent wars between dynasties and against border invaders, so Chinese warrior basically fight in battles only, and the famous ones are always those who fight in wars. Although from time to time there are some 1 v.s. 1 going on when 2 sides of the army send only their generals to go in a duel in front of both armies, but you still got a battle to fight afterwards. There is no tradition that encourages duel, unlike the west has the custom of Chivalry, or trail by combat. Dueling and challenging people to a duel is illegal most of the time in Chinese history. That's why a war-favored weapon gained more importance in the eyes of warriors, and they practice that a lot more than those weapon that's good for single combat.
+Eiensakura If you think about it a spear can do almost everything a staff can do, plus many things a sword can do, and then has its own specialized techniques as well. About the only disadvantages I can think of for using a spear are that you cannot wear it as easily as a sword or carry it as discreetly as a staff.
the enemy have grapped the shaft?
oh my
I love this channel . Thx for doing this !
As an inexperienced weapon noob, I would definitely want a shield (with straps because my grip isn't strong). As for the weapon, that mace looks too heavy for my scrawny arms. I think I would go with a rapier. Hide behind my shield and jab like a madman.
I'm definitely not gonna win by skill or strength, so focusing on speed is my only shot at surviving. Whatever the fastest historical weapon is, that's what I want. And a big-ass shield. I'm dead meat without one of those.
Same here
If we are talking 1v1 like the video.
Give me a crossbow.
Not hard to hit a target at close range, and even if I miss it has a bit of bulk to it for me to whack em with.
yu nofun Depending on how big and thick my shield is, and how powerful your crossbow is, I might be able to duck down and block it. Unless your arrows can go through a shield like butter, I can at least protect my heart and brain, so it won't be an instant kill.
Very true. It would still be my choice on the off chance that my opponent didn't pick a shield or somehow can't deal with me swinging away after I fired :p
yu nofun And if you shot the shield guy in the knee, he'd at least be easier to beat on with an empty crossbow. xD
Axe/Hatchet, sharp, cheap useful as a tool, bad range but you could help that with a shield and if you dont quite have edge alignment most are also hammers so if you don't slice straight you get a mace or hammer that does decent amount of damage to your opponent.
It is quite easy to unarm a noob with an axe....that's why you can see more falchions on illuminations than axes...
Yeah, no, if you don't have edge alignment, you plink off to the side. Your axe is not going to suddenly transform into a mace mid-swing, nor is it to automatically turn around to the blunt part.
Vojtěch Nosek Good point. I feel falchions are very under-appreciated weapons in the media. In fact, only Dark Souls shows them in their true glory.
Can someone tell me, is possible to use this kind of speer with a shield ? or would should be the speer shorter if I want to use it with a shield ? Thanks for the answers.
+Karl Arsch
Ideally it would be shorter for use with a shield.
Ah, ok. Thanks !
+Karl Arsch Yes, the spear was usually used with a shield. But it would've been a little shorter because you would have to use it with one hand.
+Batman The Fourth Although they could still be extremely long-- at least if you were formation fighting. Granted you won't be using a pike or something, but a long spear could still be used in formation alongside a shield. The Greek Hoplites did such practices.
KatakiDoragon You could, but it wouldn't be very efficient because you would have less control of it with only one hand on it.
I think a halberd would be a good choice as well - maybe even in combination with a very small shield attached to the arm for close combat situations.
"Grasp the shaft" that's when the fun begins
A trebuchet
Thanks, Obama
Truly, you are too smart obama
Spot on, totally untrained people were used to operate the artillery and contributed 25-50% of the killing, which is equivalent to aces you find one in a hundred.
Did you buy a trebuchet to try and take out Trump's wall?
@@paeden5431 no, he puts it on the wall to keep Mexicans out, by launching 50 pounds of pommels at em.
It gets hard when they grasp the shaft. Got it.
Your list is pretty good. However I think another question to tackle is 'which takes the least time to be proficient with' which again I'd say the spear, but then the mace goes out because there's only so much you can do with that.
i'm a newbie spearman in a norman battle re-enactment group call historia normannis and in my experience two-handed spears suck for one on one fighting, a man-at-arms(i.e. guy with a shield and one handed weapon like a sword or even a long knife) can just charge you down and win. but in a something like a line-battle or big group fight a spear is a much better weapon.
urbanmyths95 I agree. Long thrusting spears work well in groups, but they would be nearly useless in a duel. You only get one thrust, and then the enemy is on top of you.
Tony Stark
My point was if they're quick enough they can charge you and make the spear just a bit of wood this is doubly so if they a shield
urbanmyths95 Yeah the person would have to learn how to pull back the spear very quickly and a bit of footwork
TheGuardian163
I'd agree if they just had a sword but with a big kite shield and a sword it's really to hit at close range
urbanmyths95 Yeah now that you mentioned it, I heard/found out that spears with a triangle shape (rather than a leaf shape) were used to grab the shield like a hook, pull it than pierce the person
(spartans did that I heard, not sure about others)
"Thrust"
"Straightforward"
I've been watching your videos for a while now and greatly enjoy your insights.
If you're up to it, I'd love to see a video about the practical purposes of differing blade-to-hilt-length ratios in European swords.
I'm just starting to get into European swords after spending a while learning and practicing with katanas. So I'm accustomed to a 27-29 inch blade with a 10-12 inch hilt. What I see most commonly with European swords is arming or Viking swords that are roughly 30 inch blade length and a 7 inch hilt, which I'm finding it difficult to half-sword with. Alternatively, the typical longsword 10-12 inch hilt with a 37-45 inch blade, which I'm finding cumbersome.
Is there a type of European sword that meets me in the middle somewhere? Or is there something I'm not understanding?
Yes. Half-swording with a katana is a bit different and the difference in hilt length is throwing me off. Hence my inquiries. I don't have any real teachers for this like I do with the katana.
I'll try my best to explain it. When I have a longer hilt, I'm used to gripping it with about a fist of space between my hands and I find it easier to parry/counter simultaneously. When I do that on a shorter European sword, I'm obviously gripping the pommel and I don't feel like my grip or leverage is as good.
When half-swording, I was taught it as a short range and controlled thrust. If I understand correctly, half-swording with a European sword is more of a wrestling technique.
So I either need to find a broadsword with dimensions I'm accustomed to or I'm doing something wrong in the transition.
That answers that then. I've found claymores a little awkward in their size in the couple of times that I've tried them out. I stand at 5'10 so I don't know if that's normal or not. Maybe I should just give myself more time to get accustomed to a blade that's 35 inches or longer?
I'm not sure why longswords feel cumbersome, they weigh around the same as a Katana. It's probably because katanas have longer handles and shorter blades, so the balance is different. From personal experience katanas are also the most forgiving swords to use (other than lack of reach),
I couldn't say about whether it is normal for claymores to feel awkward in their size, suit me just fine but I'm 6'4, I assume it's just because you're used to handling a smaller blade.
I would suggest maybe putting some extra time in the gym if you are struggling, but you will probably get used to it in time anyway.
Brawny Buck I also am an akido guy, but found out my name lineage was begun as a general and helped introduce the hand and a half sword...better known as a basterd sword... typically 32...to 35 inch blade with 9 inch handles... slower then a curved blade... but with these types of swords u use them as a fulcrum point style swing... reverse swings from right.. behind ur head to the left side attack and so on... also... up cuts are utilized. .. western martial arts is amazing when seeing it done properly. .. and a samurai vs a knight... during that time period would most likely result in both dieing. A wound at that time with out antibiotics was lethal, even if u won the dual. My research on this has been more interesting then I would have guessed at the beginning and the true techniques r astounding
Dude I love your Alucard/Dracula/Castlevania poster.
A very noob friendly weapon would definitly be Clouds buster sword, easy to wield and very fast! :D
it is lightning itself, not even a katana can beat it
remixex369 nor the legendary lightsaber
remixex369
It IS lighting itself. That's the most accurate description of such a sleek and nimble weapon. You sir, are a word wizard.
so noob friendly, we dont even need to have any muscle.
Ernwalfe Green you'could be a worm to wield the very light buster sword
I would say the Kanabo (tetsubō) is a pretty brutal and forgiving weapon. it takes the forgivingness of a mace, but stacks on the additional force and reach of a longsword. It doesn't quite match the reach of a spear, but it's a solid, easy to use weapon without really any training. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanab%C5%8D
I think I saw that on deadliest warrior, looks pretty devastating to fight against I totally agree with you on this one.
survivingzgamer Deadliest Warrior used a fictitious Kanabo, mind. That show is entertaining, but hardly good for historical accuracy. Historical Kanabo's were closer in size to a European Mace.
The problem with the Kanabo is that it takes a while to recover from a missed attack, so knowing how to feint and when to commit to an attack are esential to its proper use. Also, the levering motions used to attack with it are rather unique and not intuitive, whitch would be a problem in a no-training scenario.
Martin Alonso it depends. There were versions that were made of iron, instead of just being iron studded, that would certainly be hard to recover from, but the wooden versions would be much more forgiving in that regard, and could still be choked up on if necessary (i believe the picture on the link I posted had a fairly generous haft).
I'm not saying it's perfect, but no weapon is for someone with no training. But it would likely be easier than a bladed weapon, and even a mace which, for best effect, requires a specific whipping motion and proper judgement of its relatively short range and even smaller point of percussion.
Certainly 100% iron and iron studded versions would behave quite differently, with the later being more or less a stilized nail-bat. I agree, some training, however minimal, is always necessary.
Historical weapon that uses the least skill: A rock.
DemonicSquid * pommel*
I suspect that killing someone with a rock takes far *more* skill than with a spear or mace (ceteris paribus).
Or maybe a stick
I think this is an awesome video that gives good food for thought. I agree with the video that in general the most basic weapons to use in close combat would be spear or mace and shield. However, efficacy in this case is very much dependent on yourself, the terrain, the number of defendants and the number of assailants.
There is a huge difference between fight on a street corner and a battle of many hundreds where men stand shoulder to shoulder.
The choice of weapon in a duel was often a personal choice (at least for defendant). If I were to have a significantly slower opponent, I would choose a shield and a short sword. If I were to face a fast but weaker opponent would use a shield with either mace or a short sword. When you don't have time/experience - use the club or mace it will often beat the blade.