Rebuilding the Weaponry Baseline

Weaponry Baseline

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 23:52:09 -0500

A fine blog, but no longer active.

I’m extremely grateful for the promotion, and rather flattered that a blog I enjoy following would find this one worthwhile. Unfortunately, I recently lost my research document, and must go through my USBs and such to try to reclaim it before I can post more (though that really doesn’t excuse the inactivity due to general business before).

My great thanks, and if anyone following here hasn’t already checked out armsandarmor, I would very much recommend doing so!

Projectile Weapons - Pilum

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 19:40:00 -0400

throwing spear used by the ancient Romans with a leaf-shaped head on an iron neck connected to a wooden shaft, used to stick in enemy shields and weigh them down; essentially and anti-shield weapon

Projectile Weapons - Javelin

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:07:00 -0400

a spear with a heavy head, able to be thrown with good precision, carried by infantry; they could be used as projectile or melee weapons; when thrown at close range they were lethal and almost impossible to dodge or block; throwing spears have been used since prehistory, but the term “javelin” is derived from Middle English and Old French, perhaps seen used in its earliest form in the ancient Celtic language; early documented use in ancient Greece to destroy battle/rank formations; documented use all over Eurasia and Africa throughout history

Projectile Weapons - English Longbow

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:17:00 -0400

a powerful bow about six feet tall used by the English, Scottish, and Welsh that shot long, fletched arrows approx 3 ft long capable of piercing armor and traveling long distances, with a draw of 80-110 lbs; used for both hunting and warfare; used through the Medieval and Renaissance eras

Projectile Weapons - Crossbow

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:12:00 -0500

properly called an arbalest, the crossbow is a bow mounted on a short plank or “stock” that shoots stout, heavy arrows (called bolts) using a trigger system, making it capable of piercing armor; the earliest forms of the crossbow were invented in the 4th century BC, with evidence of their existence both in East Asia and in Europe

(above) Early Crossbow approx 4-6 century BC - Ancient Greek - Gastraphetes [reproduction]

(above) Medieval European crossbow [reproduction]

Medieval crossbow bolts [reproduction]

Projectile Weapons - Ballista (Ballistae)

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 15:35:00 -0500

also called the “scorpion;” developed by the Greeks around 399 BC; the ballistae is a siege weapon like a giant, mounted crossbow that shoots huge bolts, often flaming, at enemy siege weapons, castles, or ships; used in various forms with small alterations to the design through the Middle Ages, but fell out of mainstream use when the trebuchet was invented in the 12th century

Projectile Weapons - Angon

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:12:00 -0500

Frankish and Anglo-Saxon throwing spear about six feet long with a barbed head used in the Dark Ages; it is mounted using a hollow socket mounted on a wooden haft; if the angon stuck to a shield successfully, it was difficult to remove, often forcing the warrior to drop his shield

Projectile Weapons

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:26:00 -0500

are next on the list. I am sure I have missed some existing battle axes (and other weapons as well), since my research is by no means complete. Right now, I will provide everything I have, and update with further weaponry as I come across it.

Axes - Tomahawk

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:45:43 -0500

a small axe used by the Native Americans (and later, the colonists) as a hatchet and a hand-to-hand or thrown combat weapon; the head was originally crafted from stone, but brass heads came into use after North America was colonized

Axes - Francisca

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:28:00 -0500

a light throwing axe used by the Franks during the Early Middle Ages with an arch-shaped head fitted with a socket to the haft; most had a tapered haft similar to the axes used by Vikings [edit: notactuallythor.tumblr.com reblogged the definition and added this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcCbL_y3zTM which provides some support for a theory that states these throwing axes were not simply meant for a ranged attack, but for disruption of enemy ranks because of their tendency to bounce around significantly when they hit the ground]

Axes - Doloire

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 19:15:00 -0500

a single-edged European battle axe used largely in the 15^th-17^th centuries with a socketed steel head fitted to a wooden haft

Axes, beginning with the blanket term - Battle Axe

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 19:12:57 -0500

a heavy, broad headed, single- or double-bladed weapon used (as its name suggests) in battle in the 14^th and 15^th centuries, developed from the tool originally used to chop wood

Pole Arms - Voulge

Sat, 07 Jan 2012 22:48:26 -0500

a weapon of medieval Europe resembling a glaive—it consisted of a long pole with a cleaver-like blade affixed to the end, meant for hacking attacks rather than the precise cutting attacks of a glaive; also unlike a glaive, the bottom two-thirds of the blade was usually bound to the staff, rather than attached with a long socket; the earliest voulges or “pole-cleavers” simply resembled a meat cleaver or malformed axe head, while later designs included pointed tips and hooks to closer resemble guisarmes

Pole Arms - Trident

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 22:58:47 -0500

three pronged spear with barbed points, the middle prong being slightly higher, used by spear fishermen and by military forces in the ancient world; the name comes from the French “tri” or three and “dentes” or “teeth”

Pole Arms - Spetum

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 12:22:27 -0500

a spear 6-8 feet in length with two blades on either side of the main point, each set at approximately 45 degree angles to the shaft; the design provides more defensive capability for the spear, making the user able to grapple with opposing weapons; developed in Europe during the 13^th century

Pole Arms - Spear

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 12:22:14 -0500

long, pointed tool for thrusting, a common personal weapon in the Bronze Age; ancestor of other pole arms like the halberd, glaive, and najinata

Pole Arms - Quarterstaff

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 13:56:00 -0500

a long, hardwood staff 6-9 feet long; used with two hands in combat, usually in stick-fighting; sometimes bound with metal; popular in England during the Early Modern period

Pole Arms - Pike

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 13:51:58 -0500

a long infantry spear eighteen to twenty-three feet long, usually used in formation with other soldiers to counter cavalry attacks from the early middle ages to the 1700s in Europe

Pole Arms - Partisan

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:23:10 -0500

a spear-like weapon used in Europe during the Middle Ages with a long, double-edged sword-like blade two or two-and-a-half feet in length attached to a long staff; the blade is usually affixed with protrusions on either side to parry sword thrusts

Pole Arms - Najinata

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:35:00 -0500

(aslo spelled “Naginata”) a weapon 6 to 8 feet in length used in feudal Japan especially by samurai, with a sword blade or a curved blade at the end, sharpened on one side; it may be considered a glaive