Nothing racist here, but I think that longer sword was suitable for higher mans, and vice versa. The shorter sized people are more agil, they are more on "tehnic" side, they need a faster sword, the bigger sized people are more slower. less technic, but they are stronger, so they need a longer, heavier sword. Simple.
And no, this isn't a "DPS" vs. "TANK" weapon. It's a dps/tank weapon vs. a dps weapon. If you take swordsmen of any skill, provided they're the same, the longsword wielder will have an advantage. That's noobs, that's pros, that's eveyrone. The katana is revered because of Japanese culture, not because it's good. That's the bottom line. Look at Kyudo. No one uses those bows in competitive archery. And yet, somehow, for some reason, they still exist and are often shown to be "better". It's because the Japanese revere what came before. It's why over hundreds of years the katana remained the same, never getting a second edge, better guard, etc. Longsword is better. Sorry.
This "balanced" discussion like at 5:20 "but with that said, the katana is more nimble when in close". He then fails to explain that it's really, really hard to get in close against an opponent with a reach advantage without well... dying. The exact same thing can be said about a spear too.
How would you precisely compare a thrusting weapon with a slicing weapon is alien to me. Both tipes of swords are great when handled correctly and in it´s supposed use. So in my opinion, there are just no "ultimate" swords regardless of origin and how it´s crafted. The skill is what makes even a crappy weapon deadly, not just the type. Yes I agree with your conclusion that neither of these swords is better than the other.
8:55. Good video but I’ve never seen someone check the balance like that before. What I’ve been taught is to hold the sword in your right handed grip, then smack the pommel. The sword will vibrate like a radio wave & if the balance is correct, the point where the sword moves least should be right above your grip, around the base of the cross guard. Also, from what I know, the point of cutting should be at about the 3/4 quarter length of the blade. By the way you were moving it back & forth, it looked correctly balanced. I might just not know the methods of measurement you were showing but still, very interesting! 10:05 you should try gripping the pommel directly, this gives you more leverage, it hurts your hands less And makes preforming a lot of moves much easier. 11:10 you should try using a true longsword & not a hand & a half sword. A true LS handle can be in excess of a foot long. 11:18 not necessarily, there are A LOT of moves that involve striking & slashing. I think they did a study they showed a great majority of kills from this time period came from crown cuts. The 5 master cuts also are all striking/slashing focused, but you can still thrust with them.
The knights often had chainmails suits under the armors. And it looks like a lot of people don't really know what steel plate means. If you think the samurai armor is similar to the medieval knight armor for protecting the wearer, you should imagine both on their horses and with a lance each, galloping at eachother and hitting frontal with the lances in the chest/head etc at full speed. That should settle the debate.
Katana cutting long sword piercing through armor that is the big difference, you can't really objectively say wich one is better, at least in my opinion I use guns in combat anyway, I mean if the Bundeswehr would use swords y'know, I'm just saying.
nah dude, use the pommel as an extension to the grip .If you can't, that's understandable. I prefer the round pommels myself. I will say this isn't an even comparison. The katana has a pretty long handle, and you didn't take that into consideration for an actual longsword. you didn't actually compare it with a longsword. however, you're baseball swinging. what are you actually trained in..?
I'm a medieval and ancient history historian. Longswords are not, nor were they ever made to be cutting weapons although they will chop up an unarmored man as nicely as a katana even though not as sharp. Nor were they thrusting weapons as the video creator asserts. The channel is, contrary to some popular beliefs, was not a gutter for blood to run down after stabbing someone. The purpose of the "gutter" is to lighten the sword's weight and make it so it can be used one handed, the other arm sporting a protective shield. Swords were used to bash an opposing knight senseless so he could be captured and ransomed back to his Lord. Hence, long swords edges were not sharpened like a katana because they are in reality a bashing weapon. You can't ransom a dead knight and ransoming them was a good source of income. Also, using a true long sword with two hands is not proper usage. The handles are made for one hand, not 2. Thus it is not surprising he found it uncomfortable when sing it with two hands. Now a two handed sword is much longer, has a heavier blade and are known from reading the Charlemagne histories to cut completely through an armored knight and bury itself halfway through his armored horse. One had to hold his blows if trying to render a rival knight incapacitated for ransom purposes.
That's nonsense, longswords were plenty sharp, are two handed for use without a shield & were not used for bashing. We have both surviving examples & plenty of historical treatises showing how they were used, & none of them bear any resemblance whatsoever to what you said Two handed swords only appeared centuries after Charlemagne, late medieval to the renaissance
Tin foil hat time... I know it's the wrong channel. I think the Ninja didn't disappear with the Samurai. I think they became the secret service right after they rewrote history in their own image. Think about it... the Samurai are recorded as corrupt, crazy accident prone bafoons. While the Ninja are recorded as illusive heroes who are true to their word... Now you mention they lived in the mountains, they were constantly helping people escape through secret mountain paths.
Roman short sword with shield needs some love. Not very romantic but lethal when executed under the right tactics and battle formations. Swords where always a back up / melee weapon, to be used after long spears and pikes were not of any use. Also, long swords were usually lighter and more flexible than we imagine.
Have to remember the height of people using those long swords at the time as well. 5' was around the average height during the height of the long sword, so smaller hands, and damn near a 2h sword. Personally though USA's sword is the Calvary Saber/Saber's. Personally I think an Epee or Rapier is a better close in weapon for a blade. Sry have a fencing background lol.
Europeans were about an inch shorter than today on average (the upper class that would have been using longswords would have been a little larger). The Early Modern period is when there was a dip in average height The feudal Japanese were much shorter
Fromsoft has it accurate: Katanas do more blood loss damage due to being able to slice easier, but requires finesse and skill to wield, being rigid and thin blades makes them easier to break, so strength isn't needed, you just need to be nimble and slash them enough times. Longswords do more raw damage, requiring more strength to wield, and have sloppier cuts, but have good thrust attacks, and don't really bleed, but more just lop off the bodyparts if you swing hard enough. Katanas are lighter, shorter, and faster but require finesse. Longswords require more brute force and are heavier/blunter, typically relying on thrusts and hard swings. It comes out to pretty close marks in damage, just depends on your playstyle.
16:00 as you said here that is what this sword was made for, it's a stabbing/thrusting weapon which is why it's straight and not curved, it would have been used for stabbing under floorbroads or gaps in walls slashing is not something you would want as that means your fighting someone and as you have a shorter sword at a disadvantage and failed as a ninja this sword was a tool small compact and multable functions.
Yknow I find your last comment INCREDIBLY interesting. Because in FFXIV the classes are in fact just that xD Paladin with a longsword plus (optional) shield is a tank and Samurai with a katana is a damage dealer lol
You brought up the bushido code but not knightly vows and chivalry. They also had the same not fearing death mentality. It's a pretty big commonality between them. I always figured the longsword was better because it was sourced from an area with more available metals. Therefore across a battle between knights and samurai, there would be a ton more broken katana than longsword. Now the two you had were made of modern materials so the katana was much stronger than it would have been historically. In my light experience a cross guard can literally save your life in a fight and being able to rely on one is a pretty big boon. A Kbar was my experience though so... who alive knows anymore. I'm taking the longsword for material, crossguard, and length.
In Ireland 🇮🇪 we had worriers who fought with a sword in one and and spear in the other i don't think this sword better than this sword are you smarter then your enemy
I always thought the straight edge and square tsuba were for climbing. You can lean the sword against a wall and use it as a step. No curve means its not a balancing act when stepping on it and the square tsuba keeps the sword from rotating when against a wall.
So, a Katana IS NOT LIGHTER THAT A LONGSWORD ! and you really got the "balance" of the longsword wrong. This couid have been a good video, but the information and execution was just so bad.
