biggest LIES about medieval weapons from video games and RPGs

[@Murgoh]

One of the greatest misconceptions in fantasy must be the idea of bows and rapiers being weapons suitable for physically smaller and weaker characters and longswords being only fit for big and strong ones when actually bows and rapiers require quite a lot of strength to be used effectively while the typical longsword, being only slightly heavier than a rapier but being a two handed weapon, is less strenuous to use.

[@foldionepapyrus3441]

Part of the problem is the 'rapier' is the name commonly given to a very very wide range of thrust centric swords, many of which would be good for the lighter and weaker folks, probably even most given that name would be (though to real sword experts most wouldn't be actually described as a rapier now - they'd be a smallsword etc). And the same is true of the longsword with the common parlance for a longsword containing and probably usually referencing the relatively heavy single handed focused sword...

[@tylerrobbins8311]

I think it has more to do with Hollywood portrayed "rapiers" and the notion of bows being the "less" courageous weapon.

[@totallynuts7595]

​@@tylerrobbins8311 Yeah Hollywood tends to have that effect on gaming. It certainly did all the way up to the 2010's.

[@xani666]

Many games do limit smaller characters to less damaging ("short" bows) ones

[@marcinzysko1653]

I can't express how much this infuriates me...😂

[@Tuck-Shop]

If silver swords dont work against monsters, how come the vampire I stabbed and buried on Halloween is still dead? Checkmate.

[@Humster]

You tried digging the Grave and check?

[@Tuck-Shop]

@Humster it hasn't dug itself out and the soil is undisturbed.

[@OleDirtyMacSanchez]

Mine got thrown into a Particle Accelerator for good Measure. Why and How? Because I know a Guy.

[@sihilius]

Did you try a wooden spike through the heart?

[@RedLights9000-f3l]

Probably a glass Cannon vampire

[@Riftrender]

I prefer a born in wedlock sword over a bastard sword.

[@Renkij]

I'm a fist-born sword connoisseur anything less is subpar.

[@PROVOCATEURSK]

I prefer my messiahs concieved with consent.

[@sethh2400]

@@Renkij fist born?!?! My fuck what are they teaching in biology nowadays?!?!

[@elios7623]

@@sethh2400 LMFAO

[@Jigglysaint]

@@sethh2400 Fistborn should be the name for the sequel to Dustborn that nobody asked for.

[@MadHan-xg8np]

Shad flexing his armoury while educating us. Good content!

[@BlackHoleOfTime]

His LARPing youtube collection is not a armory.

[@King.Leonidas]

Play gurps

[@bastionsea2829]

​@@BlackHoleOfTime'armory' is not limited to armor, the weapons he's showing off are significant inclusions

[@BlackHoleOfTime]

@@bastionsea2829 Yes the KZbin LARPer is showing off the weapons you bought him that he swings at swimming noodles. Oh What Vast Experience he has... lol

[@bastionsea2829]

@@BlackHoleOfTime I see you haven't watched much from Shad. Most of the things he shows off,he didn't purchase himself. Much of the rest he or Tyranth built themselves

[@Dreamfox-df6bg]

Reach. I'd say this is the most underrated term in fantasy. Anyone who saw the first episode of 'Goblin Slayer' knows where I am going with this. Goblins (and other creatures of that size) would have their lairs in caves that a human might be able to walk through, but he wouldn't be able to use many weapons. A longsword or even an arming sword might be too big to be use in with normal combat styles.

[@jcaod777]

And that is the reason why our beloved Goblin Slayer purchased a normal arming sword and he grinded it down to a size he knew was maneuverable enough for the cave... that manga is so good with what it does to apply all of the DnD concepts to a somewhat realistic setting...

[@simonspacek3670]

Reach and environment are completely ignored in fantasy. Caves, rooms, ships,... I don't think you would use a halberd there. Or longbow. As a weapon of choice, I would with short sword, cutlass, dussack (or machete), maybe bardiche (it can be used as short weapon with crazy leverage). In so many games I saw that you can use a greatsword anywhere. How? It will get stuck somewhere. It is great for open field or street (you can probably block whole street alone, it is great area-exclusion weapon), but not for anything enclosed. Not to mention that when you fight another race (like goblins or dwarfs), you have to consider where is it happening. Consider human living. We live in houses, but today our ceilings are quite tall, ~2.5 meters or so. But when you visit some old house (not mansion or castle, town or village house), you will find that ceilings were often much lower, ~2 meters or so. Sometimes you cannot even stretch there. Now, dwarfs are ~120 centimeters. Their ceiling will be at 140, 150 centimeters, so you will not stand there. I don't know how tall are goblins, but in DnD they are about 3 or 4 feet, so about the same as dwarfs. You might have to fight kneeling down.

[@Matt_Alaric]

@@jcaod777 Ground*

[@powwowken2760]

My favorite will always be Bows being regarded as an "Agility" type weapon and Swords being "Strength" types, when in reality it's basically the opposite. Not that someone stronger wouldn't have an advantage in a Sword fight between equally skilled fighters, but more that "Agility Builds" tend to represent quicker, more mobile, and more 'skillful' fighters which is exactly what a Swordsman would want to be in most situations.

[@Pidalin]

I would say that sword is more like about endurance, after few minuts of playing with that, your hands will get pretty tired. Big bicepses will not help you much here, it's all about forearm training and for bows, you need strong fingers and tendons to hold it.

[@thetalantonx]

Blumineck is a great archer, greatsword wielder, and pole dancer who addresses this very, very well. I hope Shad reacts to his videos if he hasn't yet.

[@powwowken2760]

​@@Pidalin Depends on the circumstances, most 'normal' sword fights wouldn't last long enough for endurance to matter much because they'd end in a few strokes. But in a battle, or if the fighters are wearing armor, or if it's a fantasy setting then yeah, I could see endurance playing a key role.

[@ulurius]

Because to be able to land the shots with a bow, you need to be accurate, precise, dexterous even. That's why.

[@martinez206045]

@@ulurius in contrast with landing a sword blow in the right place? And the whole aiming with the bow is more based on a ton of practice and honing the 'instinct' of aiming than actually taking time to aim. Holding on to a drawn bow to aim requires a lot of strength and very good gloves / thumb ring, very less so dexterity. I think strength is way more important - if you can't fully draw the string back, the arrow will not get the full imparted on it. Then it's a matter of endurance, to be able to shoot more arrows before being winded. "Dexterity" is just an RPG artifice. It would come into play when doing fine actions like disarming a trap or for some artificer that is putting together fine mechanisms - heck, even for an alchemist to make sure that ingredients are properly measured and not spilled while combining them. If anything, "Dexterity" (I think Agility is a better term) may improve chance to hit and chance to dodge once the Strength criteria has already been satisfied.

[@mabciapayne16]

This channel made me see dull blades in movies

[@SirPraiseSun]

based pic, had to go back and finish those games.

[@ForestX77]

Shad makes a good point about comparing spears and daggers. Cause when you think about it a spear is just a dagger with a really long handle.

[@foldionepapyrus3441]

that really long handle does help for more than just reach though - as now you can get two hands and thus most of your body weight behind any hit you land.

[@kageseiryuu8675]

Dagger on a STICK

[@NOKORUS_The_Eldritch_One]

​@@foldionepapyrus3441 still can with a dagger the only difference is range at which it's possible to

[@ViolentMessiah666]

Metal STICK attached to wooden STICK! All hail STICK! 😂

[@ThaElf]

@@kageseiryuu8675 Reminds me of a long stick being better than two strapped together sticks... :D

[@BoE34567]

I love the editing in this video. Every time we see the weapon rack there are just miraculously different weapons on it.

[@ctrlaltdebug]

Javelins are often overlooked.

[@RealWorldGames]

So are slings

[@crushglobalists8640]

​@@RealWorldGames slings are almost meta if you think about it. Smaller, more compact than a bow with easier to store and find ammo.

[@tommeakin1732]

Or "throwing spears", or "darts" if you want to speak English

[@casually_lurking]

​@RealWorldGames my deadliest builds on table top (combat support, mid' range) used a sling & throwing knives respectively. Not lethal turns out to be non'applicable when smashing for double plus something's health at the speed of "rock".

[@tommeakin1732]

@@RealWorldGames I do seriously think that slings would be 10/10 if you were living the stereotypical D&D lifestyle. They have their limitations, but at the end of the day, it's a strap you can just tuck into your belt and you can find ammo as you walk. Spend enough time getting good, and you could reliably fuck up someone who's not wearing armor

[@RevanR]

0:00 Opening 0:42 Dagger, mostt depiction of Dagger is that they have small damage but easily delivering critical attack, especially on stealth or high proficient user 2:21 Short Sword, I don't know how it depicted, but personally it works like machete 4:34 Long Swords and Bastard Swords, seems many author never touch a sword based on your description Shad 6:17 Rapier, sacrificing cut for better thrusting 7:48 Standardization of Sword, sword should be categorized as dexterity weapons than strength based weapons 8:48 Axes reach, Axe should be strength based weapon alongside Mace and Flail 09:59 "Fantasy" Battleaxe, 10:34 Axe Head size, 11:04 one handed and/or two handed axe 12:42 Bigger bows dealing more damage, youtube(dot)com/playlist?list=PLWklwxMTl4szAELhLajrpDodDQMFwtJo6&feature=shared 14:16 Schimitar, He's got *CURVED* sword 15:00 Spears, this weapons is often overlooked. 15:52 Bows and Crossbows 18:00 Gretsword Weight and size 19:50 Katana 21:06 Flail 21:35 Morning Star is Mace not Flail 22:41 Shield 23:55 Polearm 25:33 Closing Shad you can make each misconception in a video rather than big compilation

[@danthiel8623]

I believe he has made a video on each one except for closing unless we count end them rightly.

[@danielcox7629]

They usually try to add spears then realize they are too strong.

[@daviddaugherty2816]

I only know he has one on the double-bitted battleaxe.

[@JosePerez-nz4bl]

Great to see Shad in his natural element. His passion is always an inspiration.

[@Ekzanimus]

One of the best if not THE best of your videos in a long time. Full of interesting information presented in a clear and concise fashion. It was simply a joy to watch.

[@Zoddlander]

One weapon that fantasy can get wrong is a Hand Crossbows. Mostly they are showed to be dual wielded and very fast to reload.

[@reptiloidmitglied2930]

While playing a Demonhunter in Diablo 3 this bothered me more than it should

[@CCDNúñez]

Have you ever played or seen Dishonored? The crossbow used by the protagonists are depicted as one-handed, with automatic reloading that takes place in less than a second, but are strong enough to take a target's head clean off their shoulders.

[@Zoddlander]

@@reptiloidmitglied2930 I agree. It felt outof place to be a mobile "gattling gun". And in the D&D players handbook 2024, the "Crossbow Expert" feat now lets you dual wield hand crossbows. Previously you could only wield one while you other hand had be empty to be able to reload, and still shot like crazy. That means that a D&D5e level 5 fighter can fire 5 bolts in 1turn(6sec) if they use their Action Surge (7bolts at 11th level, 9bolts at 20th level). Legolas can step aside for a D&D 5e fighter with Hand Crossbows.

[@Zoddlander]

@@CCDNúñez ​ I never heard of Dishonored until now. I tok a look at some gameplay YTvids, and the game looked fun but...wierd. I think the theme was interesting but the game mechanics looked like crap. The Soul- knife/dagger/thing looked like a strange tunning fork.

[@CCDNúñez]

@@Zoddlander It sounds like you mean the sacrificial knife from Dishonored: Death of the Outsider. I was actually referring to the weaponry of Dishonored 1 and 2; DotO is sorta its own thing, with powers and weaponry that are very different from what you get in the first 2 games (I've played all three and DotO was easily my least favorite, the powers felt much more clunky). The games give you a lot of creative ability: you can silently eliminate your enemies from the shadows, charge in loudly and simply overwhelm them (this requires arguably the most creativity since stealth is your most powerful tool otherwise), or you can even go through the entire game without killing a single person. Crossbows can be equipped with sleep darts that knock your enemies out instead of killing them, for instance.

[@j4s0n39]

Two annoying D&D rules that he missed: Short swords are piercing weapons in the game, not cutting. The bigger swords are almost all cutting weapons, with no thrusting capacity. And in D&D, the "long sword" is a one handed sword where the wielder can use a second hand on the pommel, i.e. an arming sword. The long sword equivalent in D&D is the great sword. Also, where is that thrusting arming sword he has from? I want one!

[@DanielMWJ]

I think you confused the arming sword with the bastard sword.

[@bastionsea2829]

@@j4s0n39 he has affiliate links in many of his videos It's probably mentioned somewhere in one of them

[@braveagentg]

Well... D&D doesn't get much correctly 😅

[@simonspacek3670]

@@braveagentg Sling has 1d4 damage... It should have 1d12 and disadvantage for hitting, not minuscule damage. And there should be a staff sling. There are very few weapons I was ever scared by when I used them. Swords, axes, spears, bows, arquebuses, crossbows, hammers,... all good. The only two weapons I was really scared by were a Hussites flail (basically a log attached to a long stick by piece of leather) and staff sling. The first one broke one of our helmets on the test, aiming swing, not a full swing, the other sent a half of a brick some 40 meters away, nearly horizontally and when that brick hit a tree, it broke in tens of tiny bits. There was more energy in that brick, than I could produce with a pickaxe or maul.

[@janrothkanarski]

Good video, Shad! I do love seeing you getting back to the roots of the channel, with the added experience and resources you now can bring.

[@FaceEatingOwl]

This was a damn good video. Well done. Haven't had one like this in a while. Really got my mind whirring on DMing and writing. Cheers.

[@chriswest4875]

Really like the dynamic camera angle changes to show the reach and application of the weapons. Keep up the good work!

[@diegoborges3716]

2e AD&D had a value for speed of the weapon. We must keep in mind that in ttrpgs, the combat system is an abstraction of a real combat, although not perfect.

[@tenshimusouka5820]

If I remember correctly, speed was a modifier to initiative- a rule that I always said to my DM should have come from the reach of the weapon rather than speed. But 2e AD&D had THAC0, so the less said about it the better. Haha.

[@diegoborges3716]

@tenshimusouka5820 THAC0 it's not a huge deal for me. Once you get it, it's easy.

[@tenshimusouka5820]

@ Yep! I played 2e for 4 years. I understood it just fine. That doesn’t make it good

[@SmithandWesson22A]

Thaco is good if you can do simple mental mathematics. My crew all could and we played 2E for years.

[@tenshimusouka5820]

@@SmithandWesson22A Again I disagree. It’s functional. My team played it for years too and had no issue. That doesn’t make it a good mechanic for determining hit chance. It’s been done better in countless other ttrpg systems.

[@jenss.8706]

Good one! No fluff, information on point, still Shad's style, liked it

[@xiii0722]

Couldn't agree more.

[@parisbarber2748]

I’m glad to see more of your videos, Shad. Always an awesome watch.

[@evocaeden2932]

Another awesome video Shad, love the long form content that has become so rare. In a Pathfinder campaign I played years back, I brought up the issue that our party's rogue deals way more damage with her rapier than my paladin did with his longsword. The response was always "piercing vital organs/weak points is going to deal more damage than just cutting through armour and tissue". The lack of misunderstanding built into so many of these gaming systems was frustrating to me. I know time is always short for full-time content creators. But if you gave examples of what a "medieval fantasy game" system with these types of weapons would look like, I think that'd be awesome.

[@brycejordan8987]

Maybe I'm missing something but I'm not really sure how* PF1e had rapier deal 1d4 (small) or 1d6 (medium) with a marginally better critical range and let you use Dex modifiers for attack rolls although you can't two hand it for bonus damage. Longsword dealt 1d6 (small) or 1d8 (medium). PF2e is a bit different. Rapiers deal 1d6, can use dex for accuracy (but not damage), can be used to disarm the enemy, and on a crit gets an extra d8 damage. Longsword meanwhile is 1d8 that can deal slashing or piercing damage. Damage wise Rapier deals less outside of critting. Of course in both situations feats and classes can change this up but that power is more coming from the feat or class augmenting certain things. For rogues a big part of the combat fantasy is being sneaky and then landing a devastating blow (subclasses/archetypes/speculizations or etc might change this). Paladin in comparison traditionally is a lot more defendery and dealing a lot of damage versus the evil specifically (although not always)

[@wokthiswaychef]

As an archer, I'd certainly love to see more people realize that while higher poundage usually equals greater power, it doesn't always equal greater speed. I have a 72# bow that shoots slower than my 60# by a significant amount. I think it'd be really cool to see arrow/projectile speed, mixed with max mass of projectile as measurable stats in a game. One of my favorite things to do irl is to build custom arrows of varying lengths, spines, weight distributions, and tip styles to affect flight, penetration, etc. I hope for the day that a game can pull this off...

[@Pidalin]

Reflex bows should be more efficient than straight bows and ofcourse, you need to consider how heavy and long are your arrows. Longer reflex bows (140+ cm) can be very efficient, I would say that 150 cm reflex bow is better than 180 cm longbow.

[@wokthiswaychef]

@Pidalin No doubt there's going to be a sweet spot where there's virtually no difference, I think the variance would be cool to see. Agreed on the longbow speed, my slowest bow is my second-strongest, and it's a longbow. My 50# recurve and 65# longbow are close enough that it's almost within use error territory. Bringing it back to gaming, it'd be so cool to have variances across all three: bow type, weight, and arrow customization. That said, unless it was a game like Horizon which uses archery (sort of) as it's main combat mechanic.

[@Pidalin]

@@wokthiswaychef Games should mainly somehow show how incredibly hard is to use a bow for a person who never had it in their hands. You don't realize how hard it is until you give it to someone who never tried it, they are not even able to keep arrow in it's place, it's falling everywhere around them and it can be pretty dangerous to stay close to such person who is trying it for the first time. Now I have only one bow, it's a modern 62" recurve bow with only 40lb of drawing weight, but I had some stronger straight bows in the past made of wood (no modern materials) and I am pretty sure that this 40lb recurve bow hits harder than 60lb straight wooden bow I had years ago. You think that 40lb is nothing, but I gave it to my father to try it and he was not able to fully draw it, so even 40lb is a lot for a person who never tried it, that's why gaming archery is completely wrong.

[@wokthiswaychef]

@@Pidalin I feel you on that! I made the unwise decision to get a 40# as my first, and it took forever to actually get proper form because of it. Had a neighbor who did archery, and I tried her bow.(25#) drew her bow back a few months in, and felt like I almost broke it. Though it'd be awesome to show progression in the form during the game, I'm not sure how viable it would be from a gameplay/satisfaction route (again, disregarding an archery-based game). It's not like I've ever had to undergo a training saga to use a sword/spell/gun in a game before u could even weild it. Closest to it might be stat minimums, but for some reason that feels too generic to be satisfying... Ultimately, customization might be the name of the game. Skill trees/stat caps like the rest of weapons, but a tad more customized/options, since it's more than "add power crystal to katana for +8 fire damage "

[@Pidalin]

@@wokthiswaychef I bought some 20 or 25 lb bow to my sister like 10 years ago and when I was shooting my bow and then tried her bow, I almost punched myself into face with my hand when I drawed it, such a difference. 😀

[@nicholasking6066]

We love you shad. Merry Christmas

[@LemmingOHW]

I love, how you love your topic. You are really in your element, and I could watch for hours. You have a vast knowledge and it is always funny to watch. Thank you Shad. Really hope you can go on.

[@neoaliphant]

5:11 at least in 2nd Edition AD&D bastard sword needed no extra training, one handed it was a tiny bit slower than arming sword, but with 2 handed style skill, was much faster 2 handed, main reason not to have is extra cost, and the fact of rarity of magic versions, but its versaility always made it popular with adveturers

[@kenbrown2808]

us old people remember that it is repeatedly explained that the damage class for weapons is not based on damage per successful strike. it is based on relative damage done between two combatants. - or in short, hit points were an attempt to reduce ALL of the intricate factors of melee combat to a simple number.

[@MagiKez]

Yeah, this video was a huge miss for me. If things weren't simplified, then every round of combat would take 2 hours and only the people who had been playing for a decade would understand what's going on

[@Flamewolf14]

​@MagiKez I think that is a bit of an oversimplification. But adding complexity and variation often comes at the cost of simplicity it's about finding the balance. Shad I think is arguing just for game designers to consider some more nobs and numbers to balance with. Which can create more interesting options for players than "well why would I use a dagger doing 1d4 if I can use a short sword that does 1d6 or better yet a longsword that does 1 d8" The issue I think comes from it being an easy way to optimize damage. Well this one can do a bigger number. And most if not all players will optimize the fun out of the game, that is why I would argue it is designers jobs to make sure the most fun way to play is also the most interesting and expressive. Plus the dice values are just assigned to the weapons you could just say you find a 1d6 dagger so you could still use a dagger but have the damage be more optimal.

[@littletreasure1999]

​@@MagiKez Not at all. Just adapt a term such as "attack" instead of "damage." That's what leads to the misconception regarding the damage of weapons, which is what the video talks about. It's the same with "hit points" no being actual "life points" but a representation of the likeliness of a character taking fatal damage. And while I agree that this serves as a simplification for the sake of practicality, I believe the effect is actually detrimental. To explore the differences in weapons and their usage would be a great way to make physical characters more interesting and strategical in combat, similarly to how "maneuvers" make a certain fighter subclass more interesting in D&D 5e, if you are familiar. In fact, physical characters seeming a bit dull is a well-known problem in the D&D community and which they are trying to fix in the newer edition, although through a different route.

[@MagiKez]

@littletreasure1999 I am indeed familiar with every D&D version and multiple other systems, and the tendency has been to simplify everything to make it more accessible and less time consuming. Everyone wants the most intricate system until they actually have to play it in the real world with people who aren't experts at the game.

[@SergioLeonardoCornejo]

One smart thing a video game, Warframe, did was adding physical damage types. Because a cut is not the same as a blunt force strike.

[@Ivanklord]

Im trying to create a fantasy setting rn and your videos are a good source of knowledge, thanks!

[@Shun_Monk]

Most likely I'll be receiving your book as a Christmas gift. Looking forward to reading it. Also, happy holidays to Shad & his team, and to y'all 😉

[@ticonofruger573]

Finally made it! I feel like this video has been a long time in coming. I'm glad you tot it out, keep it up Shad!

[@badeiser]

Merry Christmas Shad

[@Halera-]

Good to see you, Shad!

[@cavalieroutdoors6036]

The problem with using *reach* as a metric is that now you have to consider distance. And typically not a large amount of distance either. The average spear thrust will be 3 ft longer than a dagger, sure. But if we're talking about the reach difference of an arming sword vs a hand and a half sword it's less than a foot. Meanwhile in a game you twitch the thumb stick and your character has moved 3 ft. Any less movement and the character is moving too slow and combat is bogged down trying to manage keeping things in/out of measure. And how annoying would it be to constantly have to stop a turn in a reliable to RPG, "Wait, hoe far is your character from the goblin? What's your character's arm length? How long is his dagger? Oops, sorry - you missed by 2 inches, no need to roll for hit." And let me tell you from experience, a game where damage dealing includes minimizing misses where you missed because the game's system says you missed is extremely unsatisfying. Realism isn't fun in practice in a game. Big sword makes big number is fun in a game. So is small dagger also makes big number with the right combination of skills. You also need a reason for players to use something other than a spear, for players that want to use a dagger or sword and not just get bodied by any enemy that uses a pole arm. Or a bow.

[@Zeffarian]

Also, if you set out to make game with this level of realism, then everyone would just use spears and pole arms all the time as all they would outclass all other weapons (aside from bows). Swords would only be useful if you find yourself in a really tight space - however, even then you could always back off a bit and position yourself in a hallway/corridor where a spear would even have a greater advantage as your opponent wouldn't be able to maneuver around it.

[@esperthebard]

Great video with tons of goods points about a variety of weapons. The big challenge is implementing these various qualities into a tabletop RPG without the game system becoming overly complicated and tedious.

[@AnotherDuck]

Spears should be stronger than daggers because they're two-handed. You need less strength for the same amount of penetration, and you can apply more power. They also are simple weapons, since they're relatively intuitive to use. The argument that you can get better with training applies to all weapons, so that's irrelevant. It's also kind of pointless to compare special or rare versions of short swords to some average arming sword. Yes, there are always outliers, but those aren't the typical short swords. You can just as well have a heavy, cut-focused one-handed sword and claim it cuts better. A system like D&D also has a lot of simplifications, which is why so many weapons are equivalent. Like having three categories of long swords doesn't make much sense there.

[@simonspacek3670]

Not all spears are two-handed. The most common equipment in the history was spear and shield. Also, why we never see curved spears? We saw some at one castle and we were curious, so we got one (not from the castle, we just used a slightly curved stick). Damn, that was amazing weapon. You start thrust to head, slightly turn hand and it lands just above knee. When you try to parry, small movement will turn it and still stab you in the arm. It was basically cheating.

[@AnotherDuck]

@@simonspacek3670 The spears Shad uses to illustrate the point are, and you can use the same argument against just about anything. It's an argument you can use to introduce any exception you want. And even if they aren't two-handed, you still have more mass behind the thrust, making it hit harder.

[@Tallorian]

22:45 Wow, Shad never played Mount&Blade?? The greatest medieval immersion game of around 2008 onwards (until Kingdom Come: Deliverance, I guess). Its shield-breaking mechanics played a huge part in the game, especially in multiplayer. And in addition to durability it also had "damage resistance" stat on the shields, which indicated how susceptible to damage a shield is (i.e. reinforced shields would take much longer to break), and even a speed (how quick you can get into blocking stance). With accurate hitbox mechanics (you still can damage an enemy behind a kite shield if you manage to hit his foot with an arrow). What a brilliant game it was!

[@baschdiro8565]

I like how Shad only uses a screenshot for the flair as he does not even own one.

[@simonspacek3670]

Shad need a proper flail. Not this spiked ball on chain, the Hussites flail that was originally an agriculture tool. It is absolutely crazy weapon.

[@edgreen2660]

Thank you, Shad. I've written a number of fantasy books and have found your various videos helpful. Clear, sufficient, and laconic descriptions and examples. Always.

[@calknight]

In the game Conan Exiles I often use pole arms over swords because they have more reach. There are a LOT of BIG, nasty creatures in that game that you really don't want to get close to!

[@MAGAMAN]

This is the kind of content I subscribed for.

[@Blindy_Sama]

The simplicity of the damage system in most games is kind of nice that being said I can obviously understand the frustration. There are definitely some short swords out there in comparison to some daggers that really are not extremely different in size and then there's something like this coustille which could be either or it could be a really large dagger or a very short sword. It's also have to revisit again soon but yeah I totally understand it's that thing of how do you make it easy for the players of whatever respective game but still keep it flavorful and interesting with a variety of different weapons....

[@htenerf137]

I remember the first video and I’m about to go back to rewatch it. Because I have fond memories but looking at how the channel has grown? Incredible!

[@aeddonchapman1696]

the problem with expressing a lot of these advantages, especially in tabletop games, is that the games become very complicated very quickly and they can become difficult to play, and the tactical differences between these weapons only really matter to the most desperate of nerds. These differences are much more easily expressed in video games but again, it is simply a case of not a whole lot of people caring.

[@Zeffarian]

Exactly. In games, it's nice if the weapons are balanced in some way. If they try to make it realistic, then pole arms and spears would be the only weapons worth using (aside from bows) as they would have such a huge advantage over the others.

[@simonspacek3670]

@@Zeffarian There are ways to do it. Use halberd in a cave. Or dense forest. Use spear as "stealth" weapon. Maybe even add that when you sit down to eat, somebody will steal that big thing and run.

[@miceliusbeverus6447]

Great job! Although I'd point out two things: 1) Longbow is more powerful compared against the regular short bow of medieval Europe; not the refined Mongolian killing machine. 2) Long polearms shouldn't be overappreciated in my view - they are very cumbersome, especially in one-to-one combat. If I were to face an opponent with a spear while wielding a sword myself, I would just try to push it away and run towards the opponent... Cheers!

[@epauletshark3793]

I would like to state it is 4 am where I am. What is wrong with me. Please help.

[@andreas_rr]

you're watching Shadiversity at 4am.... there's absolutely nothing wrong with that lmao

[@ChaolaoFueChi]

It's 5:30am.

[@Merilirem]

Maybe you have insomnia? Perhaps caused by stress. You doing ok outside this video?

[@spiffygonzales5160]

What's wrong with you is that you're questioning the validity of watching this at any time of day.

[@kageseiryuu8675]

Your time is fine

[@ethankilbride-johnson5074]

Thank you for another excellent video Shad!

[@swanronson5799]

This makes me thinks about all the ways I could update my rpg games at home! Great video Shad!

[@Atheismo9760]

Awesome video. I'm very glad that you brought back these kinds of videos.

[@WillStopka]

20:37 the bird chirping when Shad picks up the okatana a coincidence? I think not!

[@HalfBreedMix]

That's a lot of great info. You're doing a great job, keep it up. 👍

[@yozhik_out_of_mist]

Shad, as a person working on a ttrpg system myself, I can kinda explain the thing about damage. First and most obvious, it's a balance thing. Second, the damage number is a really boiled down concept to get rid of many nuance wich would be tedious to think about. So the short sword does less damage because you need some time (minimal, but still) to get closer, you have disadvantage in reach, and many other circumstances that makes it kinda harder to land a hit. So the damage number, which is better described as damage / time + effort to land a hit, is lower.

[@IncognitoActivado]

That's a poorly made excuse.

[@brycejordan8987]

@@IncognitoActivado Honestly no, it isn't. Granularity can be fun, it can be neat, but it can also bog things down and lead to a lot of clunky rulings. I have my glorious halberd. To really properly express things I need it to have piercing, slashing, and bludgeoning with different calculations. It needs more reach than a spear but less than a pike and needs to factor in ease of reacting. Is it easier to block with it? What swings are harder to block with? Hopping over let's opt for DnD because it's the biggest player in the pool. Now then you have to factor in how well it does against plate armor, how well does it do against gambeson, how do I consider somebody that only has the breastplate or breastplate + gambeson. If you are grappling an enemy (which in DnD grappling isn't quite grappling grappling arguably) then do you have a better chance at the weak points of the armor or the vitals? How are you now going to support a system where the monk is going to punch the enemies or how both they and the barbarian are going to be charging in without any armor? How does it factor in fighting a dragon? What weapons can even penetrate the scales of the dragon? How do you factor in the ease of a dagger (for transportation and portability) vs the pike. All of this is before you hit HP which is some weird amalgamation of luck, your health, your stamina (but not exhaustion which is also sort of your stamina). There are of course other systems that are far more lethal (OSRs games are generally far more lethal) and there are games that opt for other health methods (ex Blades in the Dark that simplifies it down but gives players the ability to "cheat death" so to speak by lessening injuries one step down at the cost of taking on stress. Then again that's a system where you will roll far less often and thus proc taking injuries less).

[@IncognitoActivado]

@@brycejordan8987 Blame WotC for that; not me.

[@brycejordan8987]

@@IncognitoActivado Why should I? I think it's fine that most things aren't a deep simulation of X.

[@IncognitoActivado]

@@brycejordan8987 Believability is always important in this type of role-playing games.

[@danielwoltanski1413]

Best video in a while! This is the kind of content I come here for. My two bonus frustrations with fantasy is the discounting of shields: shields add way more than just a point or two of armor. Unless you're in full plate, try closing on someone who is armed with a spear or greatsword without a shield and let me know how that goes for you. Also helmets. I get in films they want to show their high-paid actors' faces, but seriously, everyone, stop taking off your helmets! Brain trauma and internal bleeding is not something you want to mess with even a little!

[@VanceHelw]

Bow would consume far more stamina than crossbow due to the lack of tool to assist the panning, and hold the bow at full draw would rapidly exhaust the archer while loaded crossbow can be held and ready to fire for a long time, giving them far greater tactical/ambush advantage.

[@simonspacek3670]

I also like that crossbow can be used for interrogation. With bow you need some time to draw and then release the arrow, while with crossbow you can shoot faster (when it's loaded). But how do you want to add this to a game?

[@Gengh13]

Thanks for the visual demonstrations and comparisons.

[@BrennonIsMilak]

Shad since you mentioned potentially doing gaming content again in another video, you should check out We Who Are About To Die. It's a physics based gladiator game (it's always to the death but it's a game, whatever). But it addresses a lot of what you're talking about. Most weapons have similar damage depending on the rarity, but how fast you swing and where you hit are the most important factors in your damage. Shields and weapons will break when they take too many hits, and armor protects specific body parts they're equipped to. It's really fun and it's really impressive it's made by just one guy. There's a free demo too. Game is on steam. Also side note I'm getting a lot more notifications with your new upload cadence. Seems to be working quite well.

[@MarkusMahlberg]

Loved this! Thanks for carrying on!

[@Mac4s]

If I ever going to make an rpg, dagger would come as weapon to use when enemy is close. Different combos rather than when enemy is at range, good damage as it can slit into btw armour and other areas. I always found strange that some games would make dagger as primary weapon, instead of supportive on close range.

[@-.Robert.-]

Thanks Shad. Based on your video, my ideas for the reimagined D&D game mechanics. First, all "non magical" blades deal the same amount of damage. They are blades! - Daggers, knives, etc. - if you roll 20 you crit + you can grapple enemy if you will, due to short reach. (witch means advantage on next turn) If you roll 1 you obviously miss and you are grappled. - Simple swords, short swords - Nothing unusual, roll 1 miss, roll 20 crit, no risk and no penalty. Perfect middle ground. Longswords, greatswords: - One handed - On a crit you can disarm the enemy, if you roll 1 you are disarmed. - Two handed - On a crit you can step backwards or sideways 5 feet without triggering opportunity attackss due to mobility and reach. (even if you are surrounded with more than one enemy) If you roll 1 everyone in melee range has advantage against you but only till the end of the same turn! (if you are last in the initiative order you are a lucky bastard) I think this way everyone can choose their own playstyle while the dagger and shortsword becomes significantly more useful and realistic.

[@alkatron768]

How about those MASSIVE sledgehammer type weapons you see every now and then, assuming you have enough strength and weight on your side to wield them properly, are they really all that useful compared to possible alternatives?

[@Rakaziel]

They would be VERY stamina intensive, as you can't catch your breath between each swing in a combat situation. You also can't really draw them from the hip (without extra time) making them very consipicious when carried on the shoulder. And they are too heavy to parry with properly, even compared with axes. They WOULD have utility against heavy armor and reinforced doors, though. But realistically you would need to work in a tag team, with your friend distracting the enemy and you coming in for the kill.

[@xXResidentEvilrulzXx]

the real issue with massive weapons/hammers etc , stuff like Cloud Strifes buster blade and soulslike weapons, is the physics. For example assuming you could lift such weapons that doesnt mean you would be able to wield them even if you had the strength to accelerate the weapon, once physics takes over you better hope you weigh tonnes or the weapon will be swinging you XD.

[@gregewing3916]

I have considered whether someone who is more dense/heavier for their height could handle a heavier weapon than a more slim or less dense person the same height. I always found the very old school say 1985 villains and vigilantes lifting capacity calculation interesting because it took character Mass into account. Such a formula might give dwarves an advantage to make up for their shorter limbs. All of the game I played where there were what were called mountain dwarves who are actually high gravity aliens who were about 6 ft tall and 5 ft wide would be even more terrifying.

[@black_dragon-carpentry]

​@@xXResidentEvilrulzXxforget the physics of the Miss. It's the physics of the hit and acceleration. The hardest part of swinging a sledge isn't when you miss. It's the rebound control when you hit something that doesn't move. Or worse flexes and sends it back at you.

[@bulldowozer5858]

On top of that, they are mostly flat and have a large surface, so if you can weild them, why would you wanna distribute all that strengh and acceleration on such a big surface?! A simple pickaxe would be better suited, since for most people in a combat roll, your torso is already rather flat when you stand, so if you hit them with a flat hammer you have won nothing.

[@izzyoddzy6556]

Fabulous vid. Thanks, Shad!

[@EllisanLeonhardt]

About the shields, that is actually one of the things I like about Pathfinder 2e's take on them. The bonus you get to armor rating/class is the same regardless of the shield (since a better quality of material doesn't change how frequently you can deflect an attack with it), however this requires the player to spend a portion of their turn readying the shield, and specifically blocking an attack head on does deal damage to the shield (and its weilder, though both are reduced by the shield's hardness value), resulting in shields potentially breaking down over time. You can also add shield augmentations to give it the ability to disarm or be used in a variety of other combat maneuvers.

[@williammclyr3330]

I am torn about that. Having some actions that allows actively use your shield is good, but to not get any passive benefits you need to actively try to move shield behind you. So not getting any defensive benefits in turns when you don't raise your shield is kinda stupid. But pf2e is overall really bad with weapons and armor (no parry with twohanded swords parry trait on main gauge when swords are better for defending than daggers etc). But action economy, maths and leveling is so good and easy to homebrew upon, so it's worth it

[@EllisanLeonhardt]

​@@williammclyr3330 TBF the idea is kinda that keeping a shield poised to deflect an attack alters how you fight such that you can't as easily follow up with another attack as if you weren't using a shield. It's also only 1 action out of 3 you get per turn, so its not like it prohibits you from both a stride and strike action, its just one of many forms of additional combat maneuvers that can change the outcome of an enemy's turn (others being grapple, trip, shove, etc.). If the action economy feels bad (IMO it doesn't, as second strikes are usually wasted by mediocre modifiers/Multiattack Penalty) but you really want to be a dedicated shield user, then there are ways around it, either with Champion's Defensive Advance (Stride + Raise Shield + Strike if in range all for 2 actions), or by building for Bastion Dedication and Reactive Shield (Raise Shield on reaction), and I'm sure theres probably others I just haven't read up on yet. As for other weapons and armor, PF2e is no worse than any other more mainstream TTRPG. Sure, its no GURPS or whatever more historically accurate combat TTRPG Shad & co. play, but there are certainly still ways to homebrew more realism; you could create a 2h longsword that is, say, 1d10 damage and has the versatile P and parry traits, rename the 1h longsword to arming sword, yeet studded leather away to your nearest greaser cosplayers/"specialty" brothel, etc.

[@shockwavegaming1376]

I always enjoy your videos. I really enjoyed the extra bits about the rapier and the bec de corbin. Keep up the good work.

[@--Sama-]

The biggest lie in fantasy about weapons is the thing that wearing a bow is for people who have no strenght and are delicate.

[@miceliusbeverus6447]

Well, comparing to those fighting with clubs in mano-a-mano clashes...

[@DAndrewL1]

Ninja stars and other similar throwing weapons. In most fictional media they are depicted as having more range and being far more lethal than they actually are. Yes, getting hit in the face or neck with one 'could' kill you, but they were primarily designed to injure or distract your target.

[@JustTooDamnHonest]

Never judge a sword by its sheath.

[@Димитър-н6в]

I hate the algorithm that barely lets you 1.5 + MILLION CHANNEL to shine

[@chriscollins2095]

One of the problems is translating reality to game mechanics. There's usually just normal and long reach for simplicity, and different damage is given to different weapons to make the weapons seem different mechanically. If they all did the same damage, alot of weapons would just feel the same, and players would have little reason to pick one over the other. A short sword, long sword, and dagger would effectively be the same weapon if damage and approximate reach were the same. And keeping track of various details of a weapon to determine cutting capacity or penetration power would bog down a game. A computer game could keep track of such fine details, but it's a lot for a player and DM to keep track of.

[@edgarbrown8235]

A better solution would be to give melee weapons three different numbers: damage based on how hard they hit, a defense bonus based on how well they can parry, and an attack bonus based on reach. While it still isn't perfect, this would actually capture some of the flavor of how various weapons differ from each other. For instance, maces and axes would have higher damage than swords but lower attack and defense bonuses.

[@gameseduard6466]

Bro i just cant have enough of these videos i love your channle :D

[@Repotyr]

This is why i use Warhammers big Bonk = big dmg, both in game and irl

[@Jito463]

My takeaway from Shad's comments on crossbows, is that the crossbow was the AR of its day.

[@oktodragon2743]

I agree, thanks for teaching us this amazing information

[@martinmarvinii3139]

Marvelous video, I’ve always felt polearms in particular were badly represented despite being the best melee weapons throughout history. I’ve actually been hoping to make myself a nice spear. I’ve carved and oiled a wooden one but I’m hoping to get a steel head for it.

[@raidfixer2443]

Problem with spears in games is that they usually target one enemy at a time, while swords and axes can do sweeping attacks to multiple enemies.

[@amyb.6368]

In some games the spear can be thrown though for a ranged attack, so I guess depends on the mechanics.

[@JustinJulian-00]

​@@amyb.6368now in God of war Ragnarok kratos does have a weapon called the draupnir spear and it can do multiple things Like multiplying infinitely when being thrown or being stabbed multiple times They can explode when the wielder hit the spear on the ground He can generate a Sonic blast that can knock enemies back He can also manipulate wind with it like cutting the air that can hit you from a distance or even generate mini tornadoes that can damage to multiple targets at once And also it can siphon the elemental properties of its enemies so that the welder can do elemental damage with their own element or he can siphon the element to become resistant to elemental damage caused by the enemies And if you ever pick up God of war Ragnarok I recommend using this spear

[@SoloMona18]

Damn, good vid, I wish I was recommended more of your vids, I'm glad I subscribed when I did, and this video has def given me a watch list. I got to know about flails, maces, short bows, longbows and stuff! This is cool, specially as someone who has at least casually looked into game design, and enjoys fantasy

[@johnstuartkeller5244]

In Basic D&D, all weapons did 1d6 damage. Vareyung levels, depending primarily on weapon size, was an optional rule.

[@haydenbsiegel]

Right off the bat with the point about daggers! Love it! I have been thinking of homebrewing daggers to have the option to approach a target within 5ft. The player makes a Dex based grapple check against a target and if they succeed they are within the defenses of their opponent. If successful then they get an Advantage on attack rolls with daggers and their opponent gets a disadvantage on attack rolls. Just like a grapple the opponent can sacrifice an attack to escape by contesting their approach by doing a Dex check to dodge out of the way or Str check to hip check them or whatever to get out. My idea is the dagger gives players the ability to get inside of someone's defenses where longer weapons like swords become a bit unwieldy due to the proximity. Just an idea for my D&D campaign I have been thinking about for when we start back next month with the new rule set. Also, I already changed the Longsword Weapon Mastery so it gets Vex when used one handed and Sap when it is used two handed to mechanically play around with the Versatility of the weapons and Whips got Topple because it makes more sense. Weapon Mastery was a great idea but needs some revisions. Edit: Shad's crew is always welcome at my table btw.

[@graw19]

Problem with reach in a lot of games is that it's either useless or very hard to use by player.

[@marcinzysko1653]

Yee.... only biggest pvp sickos make use of such things

[@TheHoodedScholar]

Thats just a skill isue. They should just " Get better" ... I'm just kidding!!! PLEASE DONT KILL ME WITH WITH YOUR GREAT SWORD (* I say while weilding my short sword*)

[@xiii0722]

You really seem to be in your element in this video shad. Also, I quite liked the editing, you went from point to point to point.

[@Gadris0192]

Damage on blade like objects feels to me like more of a stand in for range. Most older games operate on some form of tile system. Given normal swords/maces might operate at 1 tile, how do you represent a dagger having smaller length? You nerf the damage and then maybe add in some armour pen. Similar principles for other weapon ranges.

[@Flamewolf14]

You know that is a very good point! I was thinking about how without making things too granular with the tiles for range. Thinking of them as just representations of their range is great headcannon.

[@petrmisek3681]

Good video, best in a long time. Keep the historical focused, solo style up

[@Drejzer]

*Looks at GURPS* Yep seems fine enough to me. Reach, damage type, leverage... Then come skill defaults... If someone knows "Broadsword" well, they can handle most other swords well enough. Then there are strength ratings of bows (and crossbows). (Yes, I'm editing this as I watch). Crossbow is "Easy" vs "Average" of bows (basically a "level" behind (if you spend 8/12/16/... on bow, you get the same level as if you've spent 4/8/12/... on crossbow, which apparently is about 800 hours of training, by the (optional) rules)

[@Psycorde]

That 2h falchion is just too beautiful

[@InDeathWeLove]

Lower dagger damage isn't actually "incorrect" it's just that they are often using damage to substitute for reach advantage. If you have a spear and you are facing someone with a dagger as a general rule you will achieve more "total damage" with the spear than the dagger even if each succesfully landed attack the dagger might do as much or possibly even more damage. Now you could implement reach into your game, but this is a lot more work than simply modifying a damage number and also is often wouldn't even add much to the games that use damage stats in the first place like RPGs.

[@Merilirem]

Ok but the correct way to alter the stats is by increasing things that reach affects more directly. Like hitting and being hit. In a stealth game daggers also help that.

[@InDeathWeLove]

@ I mean the only “correct” way would be actually involving range in the programming of the battle system. Everything else is just a flawed facsimile to save on the time required to implement something more true to reality. In the end whether you increase damage or increase hit rate you end up at the same point. Increasing damage to simulate what range would result in on average. Even then the hit rate is once again just adding a step to achieving increased damage output so again simply increasing damage would be the time/effort saving measure.

[@brycejordan8987]

@@InDeathWeLove This does stumble a bit on a few more challenges. In a real time system reach can more readily be implemented but honestly I think of HEMA talk about how when you don't actually die or don't care about dying it's a lot easier to hit somebody at times. When a man is spinning around with a zweihander vs you and a partner with shortswords it's significantly more intimidating when you know that being struck by the blade can likely end your life but if you have a ton of HP to tough it out or think it's beneficial you can have somebody effectively sacrifice themself so you can land the finishing blow. Turn based runs into a problem of the fact that turns going one at the time means that you can't react like you can in real life.

[@Hacker_rex04yt]

An Apologetic for double headed axes. If instead of two the exact same, have one head as a battle axe in order to go through the enemy, and the other head is a woodcutting axe head in order to go through wood and shields .

[@malucoblz588]

early comment for Al Gore's rythm.

[@AgustinHaacker1026]

Huugh?

[@marcoalimandi6013]

Yes, yes but what about EYE-GORE? :( kzbin.inforiKQ6_xIKX8?feature=shared

[@johnstuartkeller5244]

​@@marcoalimandi6013 Al ain't got no rhythm, and Ygore ain't got no booooooody.

[@holtec333]

i like the fast pace of this video. kept me engaged the entire time.

[@GM_Lemmy]

TBF, in D&D, Pathfinder and most other tabletop RPGs, most of the damage comes from the user's strength and/or abilities... So while daggers do less damage, the difference usually isn't that much... [1d4 + Strength + other bonuses] usually isn't significantly less damage than [1d6 + Strength + other bonuses] or even [1d8 + Strength + other bonuses]. And of course, most of the time... The main goal of the difference is to offer players a larger variety of gameplay options, rather than actually portraying weapons realistically...

[@EllisanLeonhardt]

Not to mention, in situations where a player would likely use a dagger, shortsword, or rapier over a longsword (or arming/bastard sword), the player probably has class features that add additional damage to make up for any reduction in damage due to weapon size, and in games like Pathfinder 2e smaller weapons are treated as agile, meaning consecutive attacks are more likely to hit than non-agile weapons thus more opportunity for damage.

[@RogaineForEwoks]

And if you "balance" the idea of reach, because in D&D and Pathfinder everyone has their 5 foot square, then the dagger trying to "reach" into that other 5 foot square means it takes more to get a hit, thus doing less damage. Where longswords and spears have the better reach and do more damage because they're gonna hit more. Not to mention that Hit Points are always HITS with blood. It is also the energy levels you have for combat. So you'd do a lot less dodging away with an opponent with a dagger.

[@Hot_Dice]

There’s no reason a dagger thrust should be a D4 and a dagger on a stick (spear) thrust should be a D6 is his point

[@totallynuts7595]

Kinda agree, if most weapons you will interact with in those games will be magical, most base stats should be 1d4, 1d6, etc. funnliy enough, 1d4 is better than d6 d8 d10, since you have a smaller range of values. if you can somehow stack 4d4 damage, you'll do better than 2d8. Shad does have a point about RPGs misrepresenting and misinforming with regards to the historical weapons. I believe an rpg ruleset with historically accurate combat and detailed weapon stats *might* turn into a chore to play during combat. His Cogent RPG system (his brother Jazza afaik is more active on that now) had some interesting ideas on that, it was very rules light but I recall seeing some recorded sessions from years ago and Shad debated rulings with the GM very often.

[@brycejordan8987]

@@Hot_Dice I mean the big reason is that there's no point to having a dagger and a spear if they doth deal 1d4 piercing.

[@VigilantErik]

You should do a video on creating specific new RPG rules for weapons and armor based on the stuff you mention here. What damage dice should daggers, spears, swords, axes, maces, etc. get to best emulate reality? Are picks armor piercing? Do weapons with more reach increase the wielder's defense? Do spears get penalties for close in fighting? Do narrow hallways impede swords? Does a plate helmet provide more protection against swords than maces? Should shields get saving throws against being destroyed? Compile all this info into specific dice and numbers. That would be an interesting video.

[@victorykraft2007]

"Warhammer" being equated to a maul

[@GregorioRoperYearwood]

In my opinion, you have stepped up your game as a content creator. Good work!

[@MBMEMDDD]

I'm okay with the new meta not being everyone uses spears now. That would be like making every car in racing games a family sedan.

[@nextcaesargaming5469]

Shad talking about fantasy gaming misconceptions? Now THAT is a good way to start my day!

[@Merilirem]

There are definitely some big ones that have inspired a lot of dumb things in media like games and tv shows. A lot to do with speed and strength.

[@andrews3199]

Shad fact: Shad's sword flourishes are so fast that he can create wind currents that can cut through armor.

[@aganaom1712]

Additional note on the bow vs crossbow The papacy alongside several territories did try to have the crossbow banned because it was considered too easy to learn how to be proficient with and made it too easy for common people to kill/ incapacitate soldiers in heavier armor

[@williammclyr3330]

You are wrong. Church never banned crossbows specifically, it was always bows+crossbows, since they both considered being too much to use against other christians. Though everyone just ignored this bans and continued to use both bows and crossbows

[@curtisbeattie5571]

"...to get that arrow on target regularly vastly more time and effort is needed." This is especially true for Tyranth.

[@TheAziraphale]

I was thinking about why I don't consume your content as much anymore as I 3+ years ago. I came to your channel for three things, castles, swords/weapons, and battlefield tactics. As I already know a lot of these things (as it is my interest) I personally want more edge case / "rare" knowledge pieces and opinions. I feel lately, there is so much basic things about weapons and swords being told, that is probably interesting to an audience that isn't that invested in those interests, but for me, I feel I just skip though your videos when I look at them, nodding along. Don't know if this information is any helpful, but this is anyway why I don't watch that much anymore, and is probably affecting the alogrithm negatively. Anyway, I wish the best for your channel and I hope it survives and thrives. And ofc, I will keep being subscribed,

[@VespoLiveGaming]

One problem with ad&d weapon damage is misconception over what an "attack" is. A combat round was something like 10 seconds, but everyone thjnks an "attack" is acsingle strike- it is actually the net average result of an entire exchange or series of moves. A typical sword doing 1d8 versus a dagger doing 1d4 less represents the cutting/stabbing/armor piercing ability of the weapon than it does the amount of injury (bruises, minor scratches, getting knocked around, as well as damage from cuts and stabs) accumulated over an entire exchange. By that logic, in most exchanges, a longer sword will have many more opportunities from reach and leverage to do something thatbimpacts combat effectiveness. The dagger may make a deadly wound on a full strike, but the longer sword will have at least one more opportunity for a strike ascthe combatants close range. The vagaries of starting postions etc is why we get a random number in a range forcdamage rather than just 4 or 8. Sure therecare better ways to represent this, but its meantvto be quick and easy to be calculated rather than 100% accurate. It hets messy when you start comparing different types of weapons.. you can see the logic when comparing a sword to a shorter bladed weapon, but the vomparison breaks down vonparing swords to spears, or swords to bows/crossbows where an attack literally is a single shot rather than an average over an exchange.

[@daviddaugherty2816]

Actually, in AD&D a round was a full minute. One minute of strikes, parties, and maneuvering.

[@mattcat83]

RPGs aren't trying to be realistic by stimulating how medieval weapons work. They're trying to create incentives with dramatically interesting trade-offs that play into character archetypes.

[@IncognitoActivado]

And they suck in that.

[@SeattleJeffin]

Great video. I do feel that one polearm that is not underrated in fantasy is the full pike. In formations deadly but would it be something a handful of adventurers would want, probably not. I think your points on weapon damage are spot on. Greater damage would only come into play on creatures where the vitals are protected by more tissue, like ogres or such. One specific thing about swords is the fantastic defense they give by the nature that the parrying ability is generally much better than typical axes and maces. Short swords, arming swords and daggers are also very easy to carry.