Deadliest Warrior

[voluptuary_manque]

I have been told Og that the English/Welsh bowmen wounded many of their opponents with arrows and especially the horses which mostly only had head armour. However, after they had run out of arrows the archers followed up the cavalry and used their hammers (which they had previously used to drive protective stakes into the ground at the beginning of a battle) to kill their wounded or dismounted opponents.

I saw a programme in the UK a few weeks back in which a military historian claimed that the archers hammer was a much underrated weapon of significant psychological importance because the enemy usually the poorer French soldiery knew that even if only slightly wounded they would be slaughtered by the English bowmen.

Incidentally he claimed it was also the origin of the expression now largely used in Sports reports of "hammering" the opposition.

I had not heard of the suggestion that the hammer was so important in battle before and wondered if you could throw any light on it.

This discussion is short but sums it up, nicely.

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Hubby is loving this show. We watched Samurai vs. Viking last night (Tivo'd it). I was rooting for the Vikings. He was rooting for the Samurai.

 

[cloudy]

Hubby is loving this show. We watched Samurai vs. Viking last night (Tivo'd it). I was rooting for the Vikings. He was rooting for the Samurai.

Y'all would probably like Battles BC, too. It's on the History Channel, and it's a great show.

 

[Leeboytoy]

I see this show going a long way.

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Y'all would probably like Battles BC, too. It's on the History Channel, and it's a great show.

Another one? Eek! I don't know if I could handle two... I didn't say *I* was loving it... but it's a good distraction, and he enjoys it. If someone gave me a battle ax about now, I think I could put it to some good use!

And I have to admit, it's better than baseball or something.

 

[Austin8]

Another one? Eek! I don't know if I could handle two... I didn't say *I* was loving it... but it's a good distraction, and he enjoys it. If someone gave me a battle ax about now, I think I could put it to some good use!

And I have to admit, it's better than baseball or something.

Looking sexy with that battle axe!

 

[cloudy]

Another one? Eek! I don't know if I could handle two... I didn't say *I* was loving it... but it's a good distraction, and he enjoys it. If someone gave me a battle ax about now, I think I could put it to some good use!

And I have to admit, it's better than baseball or something.

I'm really not into military tactics, etc., but this show is very different. It's made in graphic novel style, and I was very surprised to find myself waiting for a commercial to go to the kitchen for something to drink.

Plus...all those hawt guys in that barbarian get-up...*shiver*

 

[Leeboytoy]

I love finding out new things so that's why I love watching this show. A wealth of information about ancient cultures and warriors and fighting styles.

 

[oggbashan]

I have been told Og that the English/Welsh bowmen wounded many of their opponents with arrows and especially the horses which mostly only had head armour. However, after they had run out of arrows the archers followed up the cavalry and used their hammers (which they had previously used to drive protective stakes into the ground at the beginning of a battle) to kill their wounded or dismounted opponents.

I saw a programme in the UK a few weeks back in which a military historian claimed that the archers hammer was a much underrated weapon of significant psychological importance because the enemy usually the poorer French soldiery knew that even if only slightly wounded they would be slaughtered by the English bowmen.

Incidentally he claimed it was also the origin of the expression now largely used in Sports reports of "hammering" the opposition.

I had not heard of the suggestion that the hammer was so important in battle before and wondered if you could throw any light on it.

Two things:

1. English longbowmen could pierce almost any armour at medium and close range. Some armour has been found with holes front and back where the arrow has passed through the armour and the armoured man's body. The archer had a selection of arrow heads used for different purposes. The armour-piercing head was about the diameter of the shaft, pointed in hardened steel and longer on the shaft than other heads.

2. As far as I know longbowmen used swords and daggers by choice but there is at least one battle when they used their hammers. A longbowman's real intention was to capture someone worth ransoming - a noble. A hammer could be used to stun an armoured knight by pounding on his helmet but kill him? Never - he was worth real money. The other side's peasants? They were there to be killed, as were the longbowmen. No one would ransom them. The accounts of most medieval battles list the nobility who were killed but the peasant dead outnumbered the nobility ten-fold. Their deaths weren't worth recording.

The hammer or mace was frequently used by fighting clerics to pay lip-service to the Church's ban on shedding blood.

Og

 

[xssve]

It would still be stupid. The whole point of the show is to take two groups that could be, hypothetically, evenly matched.

You mean like Afghan tribesmen with Flintlocks against the Soviet Army?

It cracks me up how the experts in the particular fields get all worked up about it.

 

[xssve]

U.S. Marine with M16 vs. Apache with a bow and arrows.

The Apache Knife fighting expert is a trainer with the US special forces, in fact they make a modern special forces version of the Tomahawk for hand to hand combat, apparently it's quite lethal at close range.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Deceit and treachery are the best weapons.

 

[Belegon]

Special Forces Eagle Talon Tomahawks
http://www.rmjforge.com/images/EagleTalonMainPage/CrashAxe/Copy%20of%20October2002A%20001_small.jpg

http://www.rmjforge.com/images/EagleTalonMainPage/CrashAxe/Copy%20of%20October2002A%20002_small.jpg


It's more than a combat weapon, it is also a very versatile tool. Multitasking ability with comparatively light weight? A sure winner.

Why a Tactical Tomahawk?

The tomahawk has served as an effective field tool and weapon for over 300 years, and the physics behind the tomahawk give it many advantages over a knife. The user can choke up on the grip to use the tomahawk like a knife. Held at the normal grip, the cutting power is multiplied several times over because of the leverage of the long handle.



Features of the Eagle Talon Tactical Tomahawk:

· The spike can be used for general hole punching, and is capable of punching through a standard Kevlar helmet. It can also be used for climbing.

· The forward cutting edge is flat ground for general cutting purposes.

· The beard of the tomahawk is hollow ground and sharpened, allowing the user to hook and rip his adversary at the same time.

· The all-steel integral design ensures that there will never be a head-handle separation.

· The Micarta scales can be removed and the handle wrapped with para-cord. A figure eight wrap provides an excellent gripping surface and provides the user with over 22 feet of cord if needed. The Micarta scales also have 4 feet of 4mm nylon cord laced in them.



The Eagle Talon is equally at home in urban warfare as it is in the mountains and forests. In the woods the Eagle Talon can be used for climbing, digging, chopping wood and clearing brush. In urban situations the Talon excels as an entry/exit tool and as a rake and break tool for windows. The Eagle Talon can even be used to chop through a standard cinder block wall.

 

[Samandiriel]

I bet on the Ninja.

I bet wrong.

 

[rgraham666]

If it's a straight up fight, I'd bet against the ninja too.

But ninjas never fought fair. And you had to find them first. It is 'the art of invisibility' after all.

 

[xssve]

Lol, really, that's the fun of being a Ninja.

 

[loganforester]

I bet on the Ninja.

I bet wrong.

That spartan shield was just nasty. The ninja had no answer for it at all.

 

[3113]

Pirates vs. Ninjas

I really, really wish they would do Pirates vs. Ninjas.

Heh. Only problem is, unlike Ninjas who were all about sneaking in past trained guards and assassinating a target, there was no one way a pirate was trained to fight (at least I don't think so. If there's a pirate fighting manual, I'd love to see it!). Heck, they might not have been trained at all outside of the usual rules of knife fighting. Pirates win fights by damaging other ships (and the people on them) with cannon fire and good sailing. After which, the wounded ship usually surrenders. Maneuvering that pirate ship on the ocean waters is what you really want your men to do. That and fire cannons. Being an expert with a cutlass is useful, but not, I imagine, something that was topping the list of pirate training.

Outside of movies, Pirate ships were not really that interested in meeting up with a military vessel with cannons and men trained to fight back--and likely to kick their ass. They were, after all, pirates and the whole idea was to pick on rich but poorly armed merchant ships.

 

[cloudy]

Heh. Only problem is, unlike Ninjas who were all about sneaking in past trained guards and assassinating a target, there was no one way a pirate was trained to fight (at least I don't think so. If there's a pirate fighting manual, I'd love to see it!). Heck, they might not have been trained at all outside of the usual rules of knife fighting. Pirates win fights by damaging other ships (and the people on them) with cannon fire and good sailing. After which, the wounded ship usually surrenders. Maneuvering that pirate ship on the ocean waters is what you really want your men to do. That and fire cannons. Being an expert with a cutlass is useful, but not, I imagine, something that was topping the list of pirate training.

Outside of movies, Pirate ships were not really that interested in meeting up with a military vessel with cannons and men trained to fight back--and likely to kick their ass. They were, after all, pirates and the whole idea was to pick on rich but poorly armed merchant ships.

Oh, I know, but still...

It would settle the age-old question, wouldn't it?

 

[TheeGoatPig]

I really, really wish they would do Pirates vs. Ninjas.

Oh, I know, but still...

It would settle the age-old question, wouldn't it?

http://drmcninja.com/page.php?issue=2

Or, if you want to skip right to the answer:

http://drmcninja.com/page.php?pageNum=32&issue=2