Hey all,

Just doing some sharing. In a recent youtube channel video VSauce (great channel btw, filled with random facts and news) they did a feature on the plausibility of Cloud's fantasy sword from Final Fantasy 7. He did some weight calculations based on proportions and extrapolations then compares the fantasy sword with some real life examples. One of the clips and examples are taken from ARMA's very own Mr. Clements.

As a warning the some examples are a little off, when talking about a zweihander a clip of someone using a langschwert is being played. Also the person using the claymore don't seem like he knows how to use it.

But in any case it's just some fiction fun.

http://youtu.be/MejveUjpw8U

I think their math might be off. if clouds sword blade is 54in long then
54x10x1= 540 cubic inches
540in^3x0.283lb^3=152.82 pounds
The sword would be lighter due to not being a solid rectangles, but i doubt the edge bevel and missing triangle of metal due to the tanto tip would lighten the weight by more than 50 pounds

Ya, a 15lb-er would be too heavy. Also, very predictable, since you can probably only cut downward with it, at least the one in the video seemed to be like attacking someone with a caber: let it go and hope that they don't move or block.

Clements' first name is "John", not "Randall". :D

Yeah... here's a video with a 5lb sword cutting tatami: http://youtu.be/wCPHVW0ajdo

It's enough of a beast to swing around as is. Much less 10 lbs. Don't even mention 15. Kill yourself at 20.

Also, I've only cut tatami once before, and this was the first time that sword has cut anything. Though, we did it right. I bought 40 mats, and then made 20 full mats and 40 half mats. :D It took all day.


Also: I laughed at Randall Clements. :D:D

Looks like the designer had never heard of an invention called "the spear." What do you do when your character needs a weapon bigger than a regular sword? Well give him a bigger sword of course.

ugh, :\ i can't count how many time i've been asked if i could make this make this sword - no - no - NO - NO!! i'm sorry i just have a problem with this sword it's so iconic that everyone wants one that's a fan of the games with no aprehencion of it's massive weight. to even produce something of this size would break your budget.

i don't know of any historical example of sword weighing over over the 15 lb range that wasn't a bearing sword. and even bearing swords were built with all the correct features to make them a functional blade (profile and distal tapers) so they were probable to use, but probably not either due to their weight, orornate qualities.

among other things, 20lbs unbalanced is going to feel like 40lbs unless its distal tapered out the bum - even then with no pummel, the harmonics of the blade are going to be crap it's going to feel like you hit something with a crowbar. you'll probably get a shock to your shoulder or wrists that will just be uncomfortable.




in all, it's just a cool design by the game designers - but if you want a replica to hang on the wall, i hope your house has steel framing to hold it up - and that you use some lag bolts and shields to keep it anchored.

personally my fandom of the series sword goes towards the sword of the games final boss, sepiroth, his sword the masamune is also MASSIVE but in a different way, its basically an oiversized odachi, its not particularly thick or broad its simply insanely LONG based on the character art the blade on itself is almost the hight of the man who is at least 6 foot.

to make a katana that long that is strong enough to be able to be swung with the force sepiroth must swing it at shows how well made the sword is.

and essentially cloud wields the buster sword like its a regular 2 handed sword which speaks volumes about his physical power.
it should also be remembered that niether cloud nor sepiroth are normal humans, these two are supersoldiers and are head shoulders and torso above other people in strength and power

the big sword phenomenon in asia though i think definately goes back to the idea of oversized weapons as tests of strength for example Gwan Yu's famously heavy guan dao (they say some are up to 100kg) because i can list a fair number of game and anime series that feature ridiculously oversized weapons so its not just final fantasy that has oversized swords.

its something that features all throughout east asia but in japan its the most famous in modern culture.