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John Warner





Joined: 27 Feb 2011

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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 6:29 pm    Post subject: Choose your weapon         Reply with quote

Here is the situation. You know you are to fight in a duel or small skirmish. You get to choose your weapon after learning your opponent's armor will be either (a) unarmored, (b) leather/linen, (c) mail, or (d) full knightly plate. You do not know how they will be armed, only their broad armor type. Which of these particular weapons would you choose for each armor type.










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Richard B. Price




Location: Providence, RI
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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 6:55 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Dibs on the warhammer, one solid blow to the coconut is generally enough to knock the bejesus outa anyone. Not to mention the armor piercing spike, kinda like a mideavil can-opener.
"We shall never know lasting peace until the last king has been strangled with the entrails of the last priest."
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A. Gallo





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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 7:51 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

halberd against plate, spear against the rest
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Isaac H.




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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 8:21 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I myself am advocate to the power of the sword.The single hand's sharply tapered blade is perfect for thrusting through leather and maille (and,of course,bare flesh). Against full plate armor ,I would use the flail on the initial assault,and then use the rondel dagger to plunge into a convenient gap in the plates.If I'm not mistaken,the rondel was developed for that very purpose.
However,there is one important factor that was left out.Are the combatants mounted,or on foot?

Wounds of flesh a surgeons skill may heal...

But wounded honor is only cured with steel.

We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.
Each of us should please his neighbor for his good ,to build him up.
Romans 15:1-2
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Benjamin H. Abbott




Location: New Mexico
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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 8:59 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I'd choose the spear for sure against the first two, and probably the halberd against the last two. It's just that halberd looks worrying decorative.
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Roger Hooper




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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 9:37 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I agree with Benjamin in using the spear on the first two. Against maille, I would prefer a cutting sword over a thrusting XV - I guess I'll take the axe. Vs. plate, I choose the combo of warhammer to smash armor joints and the rondel to finish the job. If there was a poll-axe on the list, I'd choose that against all four (I don't like the looks of the halberd)


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A&A poll-axe
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Jean Thibodeau




Location: Montreal,Quebec,Canada
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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 10:04 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Well if we consider the specific ones shown as just to represent the type of weapons I might choose one of them " TYPES " but a better specimen of the type since the halberd in particular looks cheap or ornamental to me.

For battle a polearm for sure and any sword would be backup, but generally the spear can do it all or almost all in trained hands and against more substantial armour the spear head type should be of the pointier/stouter kind than a wide leaf blade.

A partisan spear or winged spear being useful for various hooking and trapping techniques and with sharp edges good for soft targets and with a very strong and pointy butt spike against plate armour ( Well for the gaps and maille voiders not piercing the plate ) would be my favoured weapon.

The poleaxe has a lot of appeal also but the spear can be faster.

Up real close the spiked mace/flanged mace or warhammer is most devastating, so although I like swords as the all purpose backup weapon, for serious fighting I would go for a spear, a mace for up close and a 15" bladed rondel dagger for even more up close.

You can easily give up your freedom. You have to fight hard to get it back!
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Gregory J. Liebau




Location: Dinuba, CA
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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 10:14 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I'd swing a flail at anyone. If it didn't kill them, it would kill me. End of fight.

-Gregory
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Romulus Stoica




Location: Hunedoara, Transylvania, Romania
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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 10:32 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I would use the spear against unarmored and lightly armored opponent and the warhammer for the armored opponents. I would also use a small/medium sized shield with the warhammer because I would favour a lighter armor (some sort of transitional or maille and plates armor) for better moblity.
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Jean Thibodeau




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PostPosted: Sun 27 Feb, 2011 10:42 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Romulus Stoica wrote:
I would use the spear against unarmored and lightly armored opponent and the warhammer for the armored opponents. I would also use a small/medium sized shield with the warhammer because I would favour a lighter armor (some sort of transitional or maille and plates armor) for better moblity.


Steel rotella and a steel helm + maille bishops mantle ( Compact cervelière or kettle hat or sallet ) would give reasonable protection without other body armour and not slow one down very much.

One could also add either a maille shirt and/or brigantine or textile armour and vambraces if one wanted a bit more protection and still be able to move quickly and not get tired or overheated as one would get with full plate armour.

You can easily give up your freedom. You have to fight hard to get it back!
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P. Cha




PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 1:57 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

If you choose a one handed weapon, are you allowed a shield of choice? Also do you have armor to match what your fighting? For instance, if both are unarmored and I was allowed a shield...I would take and arming sword and shield. Same deal with light armor. With chain, probably the war hammer or flanged mace and shield. With plate, the halberd. Now if the armor set up is not matching on both sides...well that gets a bit more complicated :P .
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John Warner





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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 3:10 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Isaac H. wrote:
I myself am advocate to the power of the sword.The single hand's sharply tapered blade is perfect for thrusting through leather and maille (and,of course,bare flesh). Against full plate armor ,I would use the flail on the initial assault,and then use the rondel dagger to plunge into a convenient gap in the plates.If I'm not mistaken,the rondel was developed for that very purpose.
However,there is one important factor that was left out.Are the combatants mounted,or on foot?
On foot.
P. Cha wrote:
If you choose a one handed weapon, are you allowed a shield of choice? Also do you have armor to match what your fighting? For instance, if both are unarmored and I was allowed a shield...I would take and arming sword and shield. Same deal with light armor. With chain, probably the war hammer or flanged mace and shield. With plate, the halberd. Now if the armor set up is not matching on both sides...well that gets a bit more complicated :P .
1-hand weapons allow you a shield of your choice. And armor is the same for both sides.

Is there no love for the zweihander??
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John Warner





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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 3:14 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Roger Hooper wrote:
Against maille, I would prefer a cutting sword over a thrusting XV - I guess I'll take the axe.
Why would that be, I thought maille was essentially cut-proof?
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JE Sarge
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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 3:27 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I'll take the A&A pole axe above FTW. Then I'd toss the rest of it into the Thames along with my opponents so someone can have a really nice river find centuries later. Happy
J.E. Sarge
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"But lack of documentation, especially for such early times, is not to be considered as evidence of non-existance." - Ewart Oakeshott
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A. Spanjer




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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 7:53 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I'd take the single handed arming sword against a, b, and possibly c.

Against full plate I'd go with the warhammer (or a pole-axe if that were an option.)

Na sir 's na seachain an cath.
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Ben Anbeek
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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 8:13 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

always the mordaxt
it's fast and you can do a lot of damage.

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Sean Flynt




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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 9:20 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

History offers the clear answer, I think. The late German two-hand sword is not an all-purpose weapon. In the thrust, it's inferior to the longer spear and halberd (not the ones shown, mind you, but historical types). As a percussive weapon, it's limited by the lack of mass at its distal end. The cut is all but irrelevant if full plate is in the mix of possibilities. Overall, a halberd of authentic design and construction will take down all comers, man or beast, armoured or unarmoured, because it combines the cut, the thrust and percussion at a maximum effective range of about 7 feet. Those large two-hand swords were of much more limited application and, by comparison, pretty rare.

If you need a medium-length two hand weapon to apply leverage to opposing pikes while keeping a thrusting point in your opponent's unarmoured face, choose that two-hand sword. Otherwise, defer to the historical consensus about polearms for infantry use.

-Sean

Author of the Little Hammer novel

https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1


Last edited by Sean Flynt on Mon 28 Feb, 2011 9:24 am; edited 1 time in total
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Craig Shackleton




Location: Ottawa, Canada
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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 9:23 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

No one wants a big rubber sledge hammer?
Ottawa Swordplay
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Jack W. Englund




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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 11:03 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

To me it would depend on wither I was mounted or afoot.
If Afoot., A "pole-arm" + a nasty dagger/dirk & an Axe.
If Mounted, An Axe & Shield & a good quick/agile mount. ( perhaps a "lance" to disperse" the rabble ( on foot )

Jack
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Emil Andersson




Location: Sweden
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PostPosted: Mon 28 Feb, 2011 12:23 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I think I'd go for that A&A poleaxe too, if I were to pick an all-purposes weapon, preferably together with a dagger or something else that's suitably small to be worn in my belt. I have a reproduction of that poleaxe here at home, and it definately feels very strong for both offense and defense.
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