@@GUNNER67akaKeltIt is the correct answer, but it's never fun. Someone asked me the best sword in history, so I showed him the work of Patrick Barta at Templ. He didn't want to hear how it depended on so many things, he wanted a fun answer. (Next day I told him it depended.) Even so, I'm awfully tired of "Well, it all depends, it's what works for you, it's not good for all things, just another tool in the box, and you have to kinda do what works, and what works is what works for you, there is no normal it's whatever works...." no matter how true it might be in the grand scheme of things.
@@greyvr4336 Truth or fun. Some prefer truth. Some prefer fun. The problem is the fun people come back and talk shit when they find out what they were told wasn't true. Sometimes it seems like they get their 'fun' only from pointing out that the person was incorrect, and that's only fun for one side, not the other. Which comes back around to the answer, 'It depends."
@@GUNNER67akaKeltCan be both. If you want to live in tired tropes that might be true but have bored generations to tears I certainly won't raise more then a post to stop you,
If you were a immortal in the highlander world and had to face other immortals who had different types of swords from all different eras What sword would you choose to carry
I would personally carry An Oakeshott Type XVIIIc Alexandria sword if I was a immortal in the highlander world, it’s a strong sword and a great cutter and a good size to keep the opponent at distance.
Re: Climbing a ladder with a pavise. Years ago I ran a historically accurate RPG campaign. At one stage the players had to fend off an attack by an enemy assault force and I said that they were all carrying shields and swords. One player with a very strong engineering background argued against this saying that it was impossible to climb with a shield, let alone with both hand full. This went back and forth until I actually went outside his house and demonstrated how it could be done by climbing a 20 foot ladder with said weapons in hand, in fact we observed that by climbing and leaning into the ladder it is almost impossible to NOT cover yourself with the shield.
My first thought at that point in the video was "can you climb the ladder by hooking the rungs with the corner between the sword pommel and your hand/wrist", is this roughly how you did it?
It may be possible to have the shield in hand, and as long as it provides actual cover it might not be a bad idea. Depending on the type of shield and the way it's gripped, I could picture it being cumbersome enough that simply strapping it and carrying it across the chest or the back would be much easier. Don't think I'd want my weapon in the other hand while I was climbing, though. I'd want it sheathed for quick access once I'm close to the top.
This is a fabulous idea for a video, I want to add about 100 scenarios to the list. Naval scenarios! Traveling incognito, but expecting serious fighting! Scouting/skulldugery behind enemy lines! Skirmishing in a small squad! Bodyguard for a young child walking the narrow streets of Venice! Fleeing a rout into woodlands on foot, pursued by mounted Mongol archers! Time traveler from the 16th century facing off against a small unit of 11th century Norsemen! Do more of these, I love kit hypotheticals.
Naval scenarios - what time period and what is your role? a standart sailor during early sailing period - a saber - thats what they invented. with a small hatchet as a backup. if its later during 17th century+ then guns. muscet and several pistol with a hatchet as a backup traveling incognito - what time period, who is traveling, and disguised/incognito-ed as who? - basically small stabby weapons that you can hide. daggers, knifes. if your disguise is allowed weapons - then those. if its peasent - hatchet, hammers, shovel or other basic tools. and fighting against whom? steriotypical peasents turned highway-bandids? - any one handed slashing sword, shield and armor. if its assessins or hired mercenaries - run. Scouting/skulldugery behind enemy lines - what time period? but knifes, small swords, hatchets. anything small that can easely kill and you can run away and sneak with. or a bow! Skirmishing in a small squad - again, what time period? and skirmishing against who? but mostly large shield and spear. if your enemy is cavelry then pikes Bodyguard for a young child walking the narrow streets of Venice - cool scenario - who is the child and who is the expected enemy? noble child against normal basic disgruntled peasents or townspeaple? then full plate armor for me, heavy clothing for the child and a humongous shield and a mace or truncheon. we dont want to kill peasents that are armed with rotten fruits, basic clubs and cubble stones, now do we? if the enemy is deliberatly trying to kill the child - small shield and stabby sword. kill them befor they get to the child. Fleeing a rout into woodlands on foot - fleeing from whom? what kind of woodland? but basically - no polearms or large weapons, cuz trees. maybe bows. but shield and axe or machette pursued by mounted Mongol archers - my own horse, heavy armor and full body kite shield with a saber. if i'm not on a horse - poleaxe or halberd or spear. Time traveler from the 16th century facing off against a small unit of 11th century Norsemen - claymore and full plate
I think the Zhanmadao “horse cutter” would also be a good choice against a troll, it has huge cutting power, leverage, and the handle has a full tang or similarity durable construction.
A dragon slayer would also a good choice. That's a 13' long and 22 lbs. heavy spear created by dwarves of Aventuria (from the German RPG Das Schwarze Auge) to fight against dragons (which are much more dangerous than ogres or trolls). Sadly you need a spear team of two to fight effectively. But with it ogres are really no problem.
@@barbarossarotbart we're talking about things used by humans, sorry but 22lbs is grossly over weight for an weapon, at least make it 13lb also, 13'long? do you mean feet or inches, because 13 feet look is too long, the ogre can just grab it and yank it, and you have to remember, the ogre/troll can use weapons as well, it's best to get an oversized sword then an spear, remember, 2inches of penetration is nothing against an troll, since they're 8 feet tall and made of fat and muscle
@@stefthorman8548It is really 13 feet (~ 4m) long and completely made of steel. And that's the reason you need a team of two (dwarves). It was originally developed to fight against invading dragons and other wyrms, hance the name dragon slayer. And it is the most lethal melee weapon in the RPG, because no other melee weapon comes even close to the damage it can make.Its damage output is on par with (small) siege engines.If you see two dwarves charging at you with a long spear with a weird head, run, even if you are an ogre!
first, primarily stabbing weapons because there isn't much room to swing, and a large shield since if you can find a choke point like a doorway it would make it very hard for enemies to get around you.
We had the same thought on the ogre! Harpoons if you have enough people to restrain it, pollaxe otherwise. The one I might disagree on is the battlements, although it depends on the details of the battlements and if there are any other defenders with me. Provided there were other defenders, I would go for a combination of swords, spears, and two-handed flails in the manner of the Hussites. Battlements minimize or negate a _lot_ of the problems of flails while making them quite potent at snapping at people below you.
Pretty much agree except for defending against ladders. I would choose an ax with a spike on top. It gives you the ability to thrust that Matt likes but I would mainly target the hands of those climbing the ladder first. Even with heavy gauntlets a good smash or two to the hands, especially when braced against a ladder rung, is going to hurt and might make them let go.
New nightmare. I'm holding a wall during a siege. Ladders are set. An armoured man climbs over the wall in front of me. It's Matt with a dagger, and he is dagger crazy.
As a fantasy roleplayer, here’s my question to Matt: From Early Medieval to Early Renaissance, disregarding firearms, what would your adventuring kit be in a standard fantasy world? Armor (head, body limbs), primary weapon, shield (yes/no, what type if any), backup weapon, any missile weapon?
as a Pole, in the fifth question I almost expected the answer "Karabella", especially after I heard about the passion for sabers :-D Polish karabellas were often very decorated, together with the noble robe and the rest of the costume typical of a Polish nobleman, they often dazzled even rich visitors from the west. This is, of course, a slightly later period than the times of Henry the Eighth, but there was no time frame in this question 😀
" *as a Pole [...] Karabella* " You sure you are a Pole? Regardless, it's "karabela". And I wholeheartedly agree that's the most stylish weapon ever! ;-)
@@TrueMentorGuidingMoonlight Szabla means a saber. Karabela is a type of saber. A simple small crosshilt, "eagle's beak" style of a grip, fairly curved, often with a hatchet point.
Great vid! Love your reasoning! I'd go type XIV and a viking shield for pretty much everything, but a Goedendag for fighting the folks on ladders and a mahusive glave for the trolls.
Siege defense: Roman liquid fire hand siphon. Siege attack: Axe of some kind, preferably capable of hooking and whatnot. Fantasy: I think I'd want a bow, but if the quarters are guaranteed to be tight, a two-handed sword. Scenario: Naval action, boarding ship to ship. Scenario: Forlorn Hope trying to force a breach in a wall caused by mining.
Open ground, unarmored duel, matched weapons: I'll go with pool noodles, maybe a water pistol, since it wasn't specified that somebody had to die in this duel.
My picks: Open ground duel: Metal fan. I doubt my opponent will know how to use it. Defending the ramparts: I think a boar spear because I want to use leverage to remove them from the ladder. Climbing the ramparts: Large shield as Matt said, and I think a Tomahawk so I can hook, pull and also hit around my shield or their shield. Civilian travel: A short messer and buckler because I'm best with short swords. Fancy party: I dislike bumping into things so I'll go with a fancy main gauche and an expensive fan. Against an Ogre I'd prefer to engage at long range with a crossbow. At short range I'd like a pavis and a crow's beak poleax as Matt said.
1:39 a Dagger 2:42 a big ole Canon 4:59 a shield and a sword 7:14 a Kriegsmesser, because that would be legal to carry haha - and always a dagger 9:05 I would not attend such a thing, and I would be too poor anyways 10:15 quick acting poison darts, and lots of them with lots of very strong poison
A scenario I'd be interested in your take on would be: you're going to be in a duel, you cannot wear armor, but you don't know whether the other person will be wearing any armor or what type if so, or what weapon they will be using?
More of these please! I would ask what would you arm yourself, with a primary, secondary, shield (if wanted) or third weapon (Such as rondel), and armour (late 14thC, you are mid class man at arms level) tasked with 10 compatriots, jwho are armed as they please, to hold a 15 metres wide street from an incoming wall breach of a city? What if you could choose what everyone else was armed with as well individually and had 2 days to train them?
"Against a monster I'd take a pole axe!" Matt, I am so disappointed. Everyone knows the best weapons against monsters is the Falchion! After all, the only surviving weapon to actually have slain a dragon is the Conyers Falchion, which Sir John Conyers used to slay the Sockburn Wyrm.
For a fantasy realm scenario, I would choose no weapon at all, just some powerful spells and a bag of mana potions. I might also consider shapeshifting into a dragon and scorching my enemies from the air. The enemy would stand no chance in Hell.
I have two questions. 1. Modern day, year 2024. Any MELEE weapon that's available and that you can legally own and carry, that would be useful for self defence and wouldn't raise suspicions. I like the topic of modern melee weapons. 2. Early modern period, what we can describe as the Age of Sail. You are a shipwreck survivor on an island with lots of wildlife as well as an indigenious population that's hostile to you and would attack you on sight. You'll spend at least the next couple of years on this island and this very weapon is the only item you have when you survive being shipwrecked.
Scenario: Open field, facing a hundred goblins (or other child-sized, disorganized opponents) armed with knives, you have about 20m between you and the closest one
Without armor I’m a dead man no matter the weapon. Assuming I can have the most maximal armor possible, I think I’d go for some type of two handed sword. Seems like that would do the most damage in the shortest amount of time, hopefully saving me from succumbing to sheer exhaustion before I can finish them off. 100 of anything is a lot. I’d probably need a knife or dagger for the ones that inevitably start crawling all over me. 😂
I've always thought a brown bear was the best IRL analog for an ogre-y/troll-y creature, but with an aggressive male chimpanzee behavior and physiology. No sane person would want to go one-on-one against this sort of thing, but if I did need to I'd want a stout long-bladed polearm like a glaive. I'd want to be able to easily perform deep cuts to tendons, while having a blade long and sturdy enough to reach the vitals of huge a large opponent. I'd almost certainly die unless I wasn't doing this alone, and preferably had a pack of mastiffs to harry it.
Questions for another video: 1. In an 15th century fantasy setting, you're fighting an oriental ogre. In addition to being eight feet (about 2.5 meters) tall, and unbelievably strong, they're also highly intelligent and have magical abilities, such as the ability to turn invisible at will. What weapon and armor combination would you choose? 2. In the above scenario, what weapon and armor combination would you choose if you were the ogre fighting a human adventurer? 3. In a 15th century fantasy setting, what weapon and armor combination would you choose for your human army if you had to face Tolkien's elves of Rivendell? 4. Back to the real world, if you were a 17th century pirate captain, planning for boarding actions againts everything from merchant sailors with improvised weapons to repelling boarding actions by the British Royal Navy, what hand weapons would you choose for yourself and your crew? (Firearms are outside the scope of this question.)
2. Does the invisibility include the equipment I'm wearing and holding? If not, I'd fight naked with bare fists to take full advantage of my invisibility.
@@pRahvi0 It's been a while since I read the oriental legends but, if I recall correctly, the invisibility covers armor, weapons and equipment, but doesn't include inaudibility so clanking armor is out.
After playing my one medieval game for a long time I reckon the best weapon to defend against enemies climbing up siege ladders is a really big hammer or a dagger and you get them right as they reach the top. If you peer over the side there’s a chance you get hit by a projectile.
Scenario: It's 1024 and you're in charge of twenty good (or at least healthy and fairly obedient) men holding a new, wooden-walled motte-and-bailey castle by a river in Normandy, placed there to keep the vikings from raiding into France. What would you equip your troops with, assuming you had the budget for it?
Hey, is there a good video on this channel on pavise shield comparisons? No... some that mention them... Should be! Matt, do a video on the pavise and it's many types! (Also, what would you paint on yours?)
Very fun video! Here is a possible hypothetical for you Matt. It is 1901, a mad scientist has selected you to test his time machine, you will be transported back in time to early 1400s Europe. Your potential foes range from lightly armoured brigands to plate armoured knights. To aid you in this journey you are to select one model of European sword dating from 1780-1901. Which sword do you take?
If I had to pick one sword to carry for any time period and any scenario, I would have a hard time choosing between a longsword and a Scottish Basket Hilted Broadsword
v Foes coming up a ladder: Got to be a forked long pole to push the ladder back & over! Saves all the exposure & time & effort trying to reload your crossbow & take shots without getting an arrow in your throat from the attackers covering bowmen/crossbowmen. Failing that a ruddy great lump of stone or two to knock several off the ladder as it goes down., Oli poured down, even cold, will make climbing the ladder very dangerous simply to cling on & step up, It could then be set alight too. Quicklime if it's to hand & the wind isn't blowing it back into your face. Late C15th-Also grenades-black powder in clay pots, including shrapnel. Lob then over towards the base of the ladder & at least you'll devestate most waiting to come up & several starting-you might also break up the bottom of the ladder itself😊 Scatter a load of caltrops along the base of the wall too. They can't fight you if they never get up the top of the ladder!
Fantasy setting I would go with haliberd, but poleax is excellent choice. Though with the right training the whip sword from India with 9 blades should do some heavy damage to an unarmoured opponent
I actually agree with the last choice, but it would be a poleHAMMER, in my case, since I'm not an experienced axe user. I might also want a nice point at the bases of the shaft, too, so I can attack with both ends. As for traveling in the Middle Ages, I'll stick to a staff, thanks: it's completely inconspicuous and I actually have *some* training with it.
Against an ogre i think that a kriegmesser would be really effective, you need weapons with a really powerful cutting capacity to match against those really big and really fat dudes, it's really difficult to Pierce them enough to reach vital organs and at the same time blunt weapons would do really little damage to a creature with thick bones and that amount of fat... So the best option in my opinion would be a really powerful cutting weapon that possibly doesn't remain stuck in the target (something that would probably happen with an Axe), so i would choose a two-handed curved blade possibly, such as the kriegmesser as i said or some tipe of long katana like odachi/nodachi (with the only downside that would probably break easily, so that's must be kept in mind); the last weapon i would consider is the Spadone, because it has certainly a powerful cut, but the extra reach and the Powerful thrusting option could be really useful to target weak spots like throath/eyes.
Some say that bucklers are easier to defend against at night, but in the daytime it might be better to use cloaks for offense and defense. (However, did cloaks begin to be used as weapons after the mid-16th century? )
1:open ground duel - I pick (bare knuckles) in unarmed combat to the death as F facing someone with sword be it sabre or another blade. If I have to use a weapon then English Staff as I know most people are not familiar with Staff & pole arms these days like myself. 2:Atop a siege/defending a siege- you want a weapon that can thrust, pull, push & rake cut so Halberd, guisarme or a Bill though the latter has no push to cut. Corseque or a septum would not be bad but Halberd or guisarme is likely king atop a siege with a man catcher or 2 along the offended wall. Man catchers are great as you can pin 1 guy in place & the other can't come up behind him as 2 blokes atop have him pinned with a spear or another polearm at their neck! Your love & bias of swords blinds you to reason Matt. 3: assaulting a siege I agree on most matt as a dagger would be a good pick- personally a short sword-long dagger like a anelace, Swissdagen gladius, Cutlass or Bilbao would be my choice as some cut but mainly thrust while paired with a shield in preferably Brig & plate. Short & manageable would be best but I'd still like some cut with reach enough to prod near the top of the ladder. 4:Personal defence - a Pistols & if not guns then a few Saunion or soliferrum that are solid iron javelins-spears that can be carried in a quiver. ranged weapons exist matt & I'd rather a large dagger over a sword for personal defence as it is quicker to hand. 5:looking good/style- I pick 4 barrelled Gun mace walking cane like henry 7th & other nobles had as the height of heavy violent masculinity to enforce odder of the lands laws.
6 against ogre, a troll or any large mythical beast then javelins or very high poundage crossbow as trying to take down a mammoth or elephant sized creature with any melee weapon is radio rental Matt. I ain't an fantasy adventure with protagonist plot armour or a daily trained knight so a pole arm I know would be of use but not wise for me or you Matt as just fairly ordinary blokes. Fight smart & not with courage or honour for you will live longer to hopefully see your twilight years!
My choices would be . chair for the matched weapons, 2, crossbow and burning oil, 3 wait until the siege equipment takes out the walls 4. sword and buckler is a good choice, 5. agree rapier, saber is second, choice 6. revolver that fires 500 mag rounds
Here's one: you're outfitting a squad of men-at-arms to fight ogres or trolls. I'm thinking a bill would be excellent since some guys can hook a target to slow it down while the others hack away at it. But what do you think?
You might look into the Mandarin Duck Formation. It was a formation designed to take about ten poorly trained Chinese soldiers and use their numbers to overwhelm much highly trained Japanese raiders. The center of the formation is a guy with a cut down tree (with the branches still on, later made of iron) called a lángxiǎn. There's a lot of variety in how these were made, and the idea wasn't to kill with it, but to get it in the face of the enemy to 'jam him up' and keep him from moving freely, while the rest of the formation (spears, bows, swords, shields) try to kill him.
What weapons would you use if you were a bodyguard for a trade caravan? Would you pick different weapons if you would be guarding a wealthy person in a city?
Loved the concept great idea, we did our own blind version of the questions on @AtreidesHEMA with @SixDeadZeroHEMA asking the questions. Look forward to seeing more in the future😊
My 2 personal favourites are arming swords like the one Oakeshott type XV Arming Sword and American revolution sabers(but i kinda like all kinds of sabers)
You slayed the dragon rescued the damsel and got drunk on mead. You come home at 3 am, what do you tell your wife? And what do you use to defend yourself vs a cast iron skillet?
I have to call you on the USA / CSA Calvary during the ACW and fighting the early Americans, they all used pistols as the weapon of first choice. Not use why the European Calvary used, I am guessing sabers as weapon of first choice or lances.
A modern military wants a dress sword that meets the fallowing requirements: It must be a fictional weapon. It must be the most beautiful sword possible It must be practical to carry It must while being practical to carry be impressive, large, and intimidating.
Okay but like context IS everything, and are there nerds imagining that various cultures used various weapons of various styles just because they thought they looked cool?? (I'm constantly thinking about the way that European battlefield swords almost immediately snapped back to being moderately curved blades in the gunpowder era, i.e as soon as you're not facing medium-to-heavy armour, slashing at an enemy's limbs and vitals with a sword you can draw near-instantaneously becomes the whole game. These are practical concerns owned by guys trying their best to get through particularly dangerous and stressful situations, meanwhile The Internet is that one general who believes that elan matters above all else.)
Hi Matt and Zach, low hope that you'll get to this but I'll give it a shot - unlimited stamina context. If you had virtually unlimited stamina* but no other super power, what kind of fighting style would you adopt? *(but not unlimited energy, you still need to eat your expended share) Additional context: on foot, (obviously) elite soldier, roughly migration era tech. (is this for a fictional character? why yes, this is for a fictional character!)
If heat exhaustion is also taken care of, I would say heavy armor would be a definite go-to. Id say a large two-handed axe or polearm for fighting groups, but have a shield slung on the back with a hand weapon at your side. Gives you cover from arrows if you need it, and it's always good to have a backup weapon.
There was a show that ran here in the states called deadliest warrior. I was wondering if you have ever had an opportunity to watch the show and if you have what are your thoughts? I would love to see you take each episode and give your opinions... Take the Hollywood out of it.
For the ladder scenario, has there ever been considered or evidence of something similar to a overlong hayfork/pitchfork (or simple poles) for the opening minutes? If you can push the ladders far enough away, they will fall backwards, not only likely killing anyone on the upper half, but maybe breaking the ladder. That will certainly not stop the attack, but it may slow it considerably.
I think that if simply pushing the ladder over were simple it would have been done a lot and they wouldn't have been used. Something to consider is that there will be a lot of people on the ladder, in armor, so it would be very heavy and hard to push away even with the assistance of some kind of pole. More importantly they knew that there was a specific angle to lay the ladder against the wall at to make it hard to push over, they were't basically up and down but were almost angled like stairs. Lastly they would secure the ladder at the bottom with hooks and spikes into the ground for more stability.
This was absolutely done historically. One source is Aeneas Tacticus from the 4th century BC: "The planning of scaling ladders against the wall should be resisted. If the ladder, when in position, projects over the top of the wall, you must wait until the man coming up reaches the top, and then push him or the ladder away with a pitchfork, supposing a discharge of missiles from below prevents you from stopping him in any other way. If the ladder is just level with the top of the wall, you will not be able to push it away: in that case you must push off the men who come over the top."
