Romans Beware! - Dacian Falx Made in Romania (Review)

www.iamandi.net/en/weapons-hi...
/ iamandiknife
The good old sickle sword... Scared the invading Romans into reinforcing their helmets, apparently. Packs a mean punch, especially in tip strikes against padded clothing and armor. Can it cut tatami? How about ballistic gel? How durable is the edge when hacking into wood? Let's find out...
Specifications:
Overall length: 75 cm (30'')
Blade length: Blade length - 58 cm (23'')
Point of balance: 10 cm (4'') from the hilt
Weight: 960 g (2.11 lbs)
Blade material: 1055 carbon steel, tempered to 55 HRC
Previous tests with this falx:
"MAIL" Armor Like You've Never Seen Before!
• "MAIL" Armor Like You'... Testing Post-Apocalyptic Gear: Duct Tape Armor!
• Testing Post-Apocalypt...
Tests with the larger, two-handed falx:
Helmet tests, part 2 - Light Norman nasal helmet, made for LARP
• Helmet Tests, Part 2 -...
Helmet tests, part 3 - Norman mask helmet (16 gauge / 1.5-1.7mm mild steel) • Helmet tests, part 3 -...
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** Music **
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Outro:
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[@DH-xw6jp]

When you have to harvest you wheat at 11, but the Romans invade at noon.

[@PurpleKaf]

Lmao,probably historicaly corect xD xD xD

[@andreipop5805]

@P Ciprian this was Romanian type of guerilla fighting. We don't know if the Ancient Dacians used it as well.

[@andreipop5805]

@willl 88 I was talking about the fighting style not the weapons.

[@julianmarco4185]

If you look at that dagger, it is useless for stabbing, it is more of a stealth killing weapon like slitting throats than stabbing. So yes, we can assume that the Dacians used it for guerilla warfare.

[@UlpianHeritor]

@@julianmarco4185 Pretty sure I wouldn't want to be stabbed by a Syca.

[@raservesthedinner7620]

05:16 Skall just casually deflected a fly with the blade

[@Gan190]

If you hadn't pointed out I would've casually ignored it as he did lol

[@dawidwojacki5049]

LOL

[@alinalexandru2466]

You can even hear a slap sound as the fly hits the blade lol

[@mornuza938]

Hahahahahahaha that's epic, master swords man

[@immortaljanus]

@@mornuza938 Musashi reborn! :D

[@Mett-iv4es]

In Romania, near Orăștie, there is a big construction representing a Falx and his tip is pointing to Rome.

[@Mett-iv4es]

@Rares If you search on google: "colțul de lup Orăștie" (Wolf's fang Orăștie), you can find images with it. Or you can search for "falx uriaș orăștie", and you will find articles about it, but only in romanian.

[@jebjebson7798]

@Rares That's a huge flex.

[@slomoakiba3090]

@Modrea Andreea Minciuni.

[@danielmauch6370]

@@Mett-iv4es falus urias?

[@JPOGame]

@@slomoakiba3090 Google it you piece of shit.

[@2008davidkang]

Who would win? A trained, fully equipped legionary *Or an angry man with a weird looking sickle*

[@AstralS7orm]

They did get kicked back a few times... Those Dacians did have an actual military, not like Scots.

[@yoursexualizedgrandparents6929]

I wouldn't say weird for the time period. Maybe barbaric or primitive.

[@ScottKenny1978]

"it's a trap, there's two of them!!!"

[@martinez206045]

swords to plowshares (or sickles) was pretty much a thing back then :) So why not both :))

[@darthplagueis13]

Well.... depends. Domitians dacian war was more of a tie in the end, but Trajans dacian wars ended in a pretty decisive victory for the romans, so technically the trained, fully equipped legionary.

[@rasnac]

Skall, l think the initial problem with the cutting is, that you forgot that it is a sickle. You can't cut it effectively with the same technique you cut with straight swords. You should start the cut way lower on the edge to get the full slicing effect of the inward edge. And it should be a draw cut.

[@Nyctophora]

I suppose that this would lend itself to being used from horseback as someone else said, aye.

[@HoosierDaddy304]

Or for going around shields and armor with that curve

[@melt6894]

They used the tip mostly. The falx is mainly for puncturing. The curve allowed it to go over shields and into the guy behind . Slicing from the bottom isn’t effective as you don’t get the leverage and acceleration. If the falx had the blade on the other side, it would perform like a saber, but that’s not what it did.

[@DemonRazor88]

"If it can chop a tree it can chop a Roman"

[@sugarjumper45]

"I fear no man...but that thing (image of a Falx flashes up) it scares me."

[@MegaPokefan97]

One shudders to imagine what inhuman thoughts lie behind that mask... What dreams of chronic, unsustained cruelty

[@ridori7376]

No I... I ain't talking bout that freak, alright? He's not here is he? How do I get this thing off??

[@Julliusization]

@@MegaPokefan97 In this case its a Dacian falxman who thinks he is in a fairy land, patting Romans with a magic rainbow wand, while actually he chops their limbs off.

[@mr.turnip7952]

"Meet the Roman who went fight Dacia"

[@rorydonaldson2794]

Imagining being struck on the collarbone by that makes me cringe. A few layers of cloths might stop it cutting but it wont stop the collarbone being obliterated

[@Kyle-gw6qp]

Yeah those blastic gel blows were terrifying

[@mistakenotou7681]

I don't think clothing will do much good against that tip

[@omariscovoador7486]

Wear your poudrons soldier! Otherwise its extra guard duty for ya

[@lairdcummings9092]

A fight-ending wound. Even if you don't go straight down, everything you do that moves your torso will be agonizing; the affected limb side is just done.

[@visitkotor9663]

Well that thing might be one of the reason why we see Trajans legionnaires armoured from neck down the whole hand.

[@wendigolycan]

This is awesome. I'm Romanian and I love your review. Though I think you missed the way this blade was actually intended to be used when slicing. You could find inspiration by watching how a sikle is used to harvest. The cutting is performed by pulling the blade backwards, to benefit from that curvature.

[@sobolanul96]

Yep, and also the more curved blades were intended to pull the enemy to your stabbing range. You hit him with the blade, pain disorients him, then you pull him towards you and stab him. Quite a tactic.

[@kaialoha]

agree. try it with palm down vs palm up. Huge difference in strength and endurance.

[@dontclickonmychannel400]

The Metatron is shaking in his Roman boots! :P

[@nikeimizhongtomasch1880]

What is a metatron?

[@AdarBlu]

@@nikeimizhongtomasch1880 A miserable pile of katanas and gladii.

[@illidan124825634]

Nikeimizhong Tomasch He’s an Italian youtuber who also talks about historic armory, especially Roman and Japanese ones, he’s great, you should check him out.

[@nikeimizhongtomasch1880]

@@illidan124825634 never been a fan of transformers but will check it out.

[@Cozonac3000]

@@nikeimizhongtomasch1880 metatron is the name of a person who was taken by God, and then he became a seraphim. It sounds like one of the robots from Transformers hahha.

[@PratikSatpute12]

Considering that the Dacians were also horsemen, that blade is perfect to slash from a running horse. It won't shatter when you take off a head

[@andrescrespo2514]

I’m pretty sure the blade is curved the wrong way. With a blade like that it would be getting stuck inside of someone when you swing whereas a cavalry saber curves in the opposite direction to avoid this.

[@choiettech]

@@andrescrespo2514 it also does mean the entire blade does get stuck so as you ride past you could pull out the blade.

[@ricardoaguirre6126]

European dothraki.

[@erebys21]

I know what I'm using my motorbike for.

[@bizybliztaverage9414]

Disposable blade to target a preaching monk

[@alinkuzz2257]

the history of dacians is spectacular and undiscovered .

[@janteo1]

so how do you know is spectacular if it's not discovered ?

[@alinkuzz2257]

@@janteo1 because king burebista told me

[@janteo1]

@@alinkuzz2257 i see, you're a nazi idiot

[@SIGNOR-G]

Based

[@willl7780]

yes it is...i wrote a paper on trajan....awesome..dacians were super tough

[@andreigeeab153]

Im Romanian. I always imagined romans coming to Dacia (Romania before the romans) and seeing hordes of half naked screaming dudes comnig at them with these , scary af.

[@firestorm165]

And then that legionary gets deployed to Caledonia "Oh by Jupiter not this again!"

[@johndododoe1411]

As a Thracian people, didn't they have plenty of female warriors?

[@Kyle-gw6qp]

Willy Waving is a crucial part of warfare

[@blackthrone6976]

to be fair, when a guy charges at you wearing close to nothing, even after seeing both you and your allies wearing armor, you'd be intimidated also. same as modern times, seeing a guy in his skivvies charging would be terrifying...

[@Cozonac3000]

The only armor they had was a hat called "fes" =))

[@drewthecoo4942]

To everyone saying that they were fighting naked I suggest googling Dacian Armor. Yes there were a lot of basic peasants fighting in cloths but there were a lot of armored dacians in the front rows. You don't create problems to a literal war machine of an empire naked. Dacian Helmets are also really pretty to look at. Some of them seem to have the eye of Horus on them and some elements that can be seen in hinduism which is strange. And the fact that they found sumerian like writing in the area really makes you think of how far the dacians traveled around the world and from where they amassed all that medical knowledge and metallurgy tools. Google Matrita Sarmizegetuza used to create shapes out of metal alloys. It shows african animals( elephants and rhinos!!) and the concept of griffons in a time before Christ or at least 2000 years old. And they say Dacians had no writing yet they excelled in a lot of things. In my opinion dacian intellectuals knew more than one language (one of them being latin) but this is just my nationalism speaking.

[@BrakhianSoldier]

Most of them also seems to think the falx was just a sickle, when it was a weapons specially design to pierce through the roman shield formation. just as the Murus Dacicus was designed to withstand the roman catapult. Dacians also used straight swords, the falx was a weapon of war design for a single purpose: to go over and around the roman shield, into the roman soldier. There seems to be also this opinion that Romans conquered Dacia in just two short campaigns but most ignore the fact that Dacia was at war with Rome for hundreds of years before that and that Trajan attacked it at it's smallest and weakest. Even so, it could not hold it for more than 200 years before constant attacks and harassment sent the romans away. Whoever has this romantic notion that dacians fought naked, should also look for the images on the Trajan's column. Dacians used to have armor even for their horses, as shown there.

[@Harap-Alb.]

The elements from hinduism might be from our common indo-european ancestors tho

[@metalassassin8841]

@@Harap-Alb. Nah, pretty sure it has to do with the civilization that was there before the Thracian tribes arrived(Dacians being part of them along plenty others). Look for "Cucuteni". First European civilization, before Sumerians or Egyptians.

[@jinxhead4182]

Dacian: Just the tip! Roman: Not what I expected, at all!

[@alexandrub8786]

Dacian:Seriously you have a governor named Biggus Dickus and this is unexpected? I would have understood the spanish inquisition tho.

[@KirkWilliams300]

When you want to expand your empire but one curvy metal rod said “nah fam”

[@ColdDoomOfficial]

I didn't expect to see you here!

[@KirkWilliams300]

Nick Olivieri I go where I please, I’m not stuck in the back yard all the time

[@FrikInCasualMode]

Which only slowed Romans a bit.

[@KirkWilliams300]

Frik Na luzie a minor inconvenience, but we will get over it

[@tarasis2722]

HEY. ITS YOU. oh and btw Dacia was annexed, if only for a while.

[@omariscovoador7486]

"Don't worry, he will put just the tip on you" - Roman centurion to his soldiers before fighting dacians

[@Daniel-rd6st]

Intresting thing about fighting the Thracians, that i have read years back is, that those curved blades were very deadly against Roman soldiers because you could basically thrust the blade towards the Romans head and even when you missed, you could hack into the backside of the Romans neck, when you pulled the blade back. Thats why Romans added neck protection on the back to their helmets.

[@MotoTrooper]

Eventually the romans did conquer them

[@MudHut67]

ugh

[@gwennblei]

@@MotoTrooper Well when you look at the map of territory controlled by the Roman empire, and the Dacian territory, even if one Dacian had been worth 20 romans in battle, they would have just been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of resources and numbers Romans could deploy. Who wins the war is not necessarily an indicator of who was the most fearsome in battle.

[@ivankaramazov7375]

Trajan deployed about 200.000 soldiers for the second Dacian war. It was an immense army and basically impossible to defeat. The romans still had a very hard time against Decebalus.

[@WELLbethere]

My ex-girlfriend was Romanian. She used to brag all the time about how easy it was to pierce Roman Legionaire helmets

[@marealnamenott]

haha must've had that raw dacian blood running through her veins, did she also tell you about zamolxis and sarmizegetusa?

[@davidtiboca3940]

That's usually how we Romanians start a conversation lol

[@PurpleKaf]

Lmao

[@giogrig6574]

@@marealnamenott actually is Salmose and not Zalmoxis according to Carol Lundius and he takes the info from ancient documents.

[@marealnamenott]

@@giogrig6574 doubt it, sounds like a romanised version of the real thing, modern romanian words that stem from dacian have a specific sonority to them (such as șopârlă - ʃoˈpɨr.lə)

[@TrueMentorGuidingMoonlight]

Ah yes, the warriors from Romania. They have curved swords. Curved swords.

[@ct7567CaptRex]

Thraxia intesifies

[@oliviu-dorianconstantinesc288]

On top of that BACKWARD curved swords. Backward... curved... swords.

[@Sheridan2LT]

Not new honestly.

[@sadradehbashi3598]

Original comment alert!!!

[@SuperPresidentBeefbroth]

One thing I hate is when people are like "oh theres a ton of different types of curves" no u idiot they just made them how ever they wanted

[@bl4cksp1d3r]

Just from the craftsmanship this Falx looks AMAZING. I didn't even watch the cutting yet and I'm already in Awe

[@thraxhunter1450]

I always imagined that Dracula was turned by an older Dacian vampire that may have wielded something like this.

[@alexandarvoncarsteinzarovi3723]

Good fanfiction,

[@marcusc9931]

Reminds me of the old Vampire video game, where a bush hook was among the three strongest melee weapons.

[@alexandarvoncarsteinzarovi3723]

​@@marcusc9931 I remember the pain getting those ritual items for Pisha, but oh boy having that sword on me! :D

[@malahamavet]

enough with the Dracula thing, it's an Irish book 😐

[@alexandersmith7061]

In the book, he hints that he was turned when he was a student of the scholomance, which is basically evil hogwarts. Although I could imagine one of his thralls using the blade.

[@snorgonofborkkad]

This is phenomenal craftsmanship. This is the first home made sword I’ve seen you review that’s better than the best commercial brands.

[@mohammadzaman4039]

The word falx also influenced the word falcon, referring to the beak and talons of the bird

[@PurpleKaf]

Interesting info.Thanks!

[@te9591]

I could see it being like a talon because if you strike a shield and then rotate the blade the curvature becomes like a bird talon and can cut the person behind the shield.

[@floreageorge7138]

Salut Unique representative elements of the Dacians: their flag representing the wolf (Draco or Dragon), the falx, the gold mines, Dacian figures on Roman monuments The Romans placed on their most imposing monuments, important life-size Dacian figures. (arch of constantin) Falx was the dreaded brass of the Dacians, but their strategy made the Romans approach the fighting style and equipment differently. The flag representing a wolf, the only one of that period, made a terrifying sound to discourage the enemy. The Dacian people and their leaders were most often mentioned on Roman monuments and in their literature .

[@thrownswordpommel7393]

* Slaps Manica * *This bad boy can fit so much anti falx protection*

[@arandomfawn5289]

That's why they needed to add bands of metal to the helmets, cuz of how good the manica was

[@nottoday3817]

@@arandomfawn5289 Well, manica is meant to protect your arms not your freaking ears and neck

[@GoatOfTheWoods]

*slaps dead meme* you were a good meme

[@oditeomnes]

"single handed falx". isn't that basically a sickle? On a more serious note imagine the square shield of a legionaire, so if you swing right over the shield that angle will probably plant the tip into the helmet with an angle that will give the tip penetration.

[@MandalorV7]

oditeomnes go for the eyes.

[@mariosebastiani3214]

It's exactly why Roman helmets got a cross-shaped reinforcement protecting the center of the head after the first battles. Lots of perforated skulls.

[@mariosebastiani3214]

@@MandalorV7 not an option against a Roman helmet with a curved blade like that.

[@alexhulea2735]

if you think the falx is scary, the dacians sending a message to their pantheon was a guy throwing himself off a height onto spears O-O. surviving it was considered the god's refusing.....

[@raymondbiskner6885]

Everybody keeps talking about going around the shield into the head. ANKLES.

[@Zeliek]

A cool testing scenario for this sword would had been putting a board like half a foot from the torso gel to simulate the Roman shields and how that blade could overcome it! Like even chopping right on the shield and lodging it on the top of it, the motion you would do to dislodge it would have been threatening due to that curve!

[@fergusmccallum7751]

That's how I expected this video to go

[@alexhulea2735]

this kind of scenario would resemble a shotel demonstration. only not as cool looking :3

[@purplehaze2358]

“Falx” is one of those words that sounds like it’s not an actual word, but is.

[@mushroom_gal490]

Dr Bright True or falx: this word is real

[@hic_tus]

Sounds like latin. wooops :P

[@ElSchizo]

Finally found you. We've sent out personel to recapture you doctor

[@purplehaze2358]

ThaSpoda REEEEEE

[@aluminiumknight4038]

Falx cerebri

[@DreadtheMadSmith]

Got to love modified agricultural tools as weapons.

[@ksanbahlyngwa1998]

Especially Polish war scythes

[@stouthelm6324]

Dread, the Mad Smith English bill hooks

[@blatorden]

The well known nunchacku, used for threshing rice.

[@marioradu3965]

Was inspired to agricultural tolls but penetreted very well roman armores

[@ionut9161]

I wonder what were romans thinking when they saw some drunk dudes running towards them with sickles

[@ornot_toby]

5:55 must be one of Joerg's safety shirts

[@keeganowens8949]

Ha!

[@vincediesel]

T-Shirt is the new Armor

[@CodePython69]

Tbh Dacia is kinda underrated

[@floweroflife0306]

A lot.

[@moioyoyo848]

Beware boy we got a haker

[@floweroflife0306]

@@DorinNistorRO Correct. Except the fact that this situation won''t last 1000 years more but just a few (in our life time).

[@holymaryfullofshit3790]

yes very reliable and sturdy, work in every condition. just very good cars.

[@kavky]

@@DorinNistorRO We are descendants of Roman colonists, speak a Latin language, and worship a religion brought by the Romans. Dacians are dead and left nothing after them. Get over it.

[@Anino_Makata]

The Dacian Falx, the Ginunting's bigger and scarier Romanian cousin. I like!

[@puffymcfart7782]

Miguel Rojas agreed

[@awaitingconfirmation8406]

Thank you for doing your best at pronouncing the romanian stuff it was really cool to hear as a romanian :)

[@andreydoronin6995]

Romans: no, you can't stop us with just sickles Dacians: haha, falx goes brrr

[@PurpleKaf]

Du-te baa :)))))))))))))

[@emanuelmaldoileacont8253]

=)))))))

[@kavky]

Well... they couldn't.

[@dragos1997]

@@kavky we winned some battles tho

[@eid8fkebe7f27ejdjdjduyhsvqhwu2]

@@dragos1997 "we"? Are you a 2000 years old pure blooded Zalmoxis worshipping Dacian? Is your mother tongue Dacian?

[@stupidbeetle]

I'm really glad you addressed the blade sharpness. It seems like the sword excels at armor piercing and blunt force. Would make sense to not put a really sharp edge on such a weapon.

[@hadinapokalix7329]

crazy looks like the Dacians evolved their swords to reach over and around roman shields

[@dovahgwyn_]

Romanian here, this video is so awesome! A piece that really means a lot for us, a mark of our fathers and grandfathers, for our children and their children too. My ancestors are smiling at me, imperials, can you say the same?

[@bladekick6405]

I love the history lesson he gives with weapon reviews. Not sarcasm btw. Is the handle lil short for two handed?

[@JamiesDay]

Not many people can look as cool as skall wielding a sword 😀

[@Poth94]

@@JamiesDay it's his beard

[@JamiesDay]

@@Poth94 I knew I was going wrong somewhere 😅 I can't even grow a beard let alone have one as good as him

[@thesussadin]

I believe he called it a hand-and-a-half blade.

[@ScottKenny1978]

The grip is a little short for two hands, but you can still double hand it.

[@alexandarvoncarsteinzarovi3723]

I'm happy for you! :D love from Romania

[@JustJaker]

7:08 I was waiting for the "Just the tip" joke . . . . . And was disapointed

[@mittag6326]

This kind of unique weapons always fascinated me, cause they always make me wonder. If you think about it, there's not THAT much variety in weapons used in history for the most part. At some point everyone used straight swords. The bit later came curved swords and then everyone used these. Simultanesly everyone used spears for the most part. Etc etd. There are universal factors behind this, why people sperately, thousands kilometers away from themselves were arriving at the same conclusions. And yet occasionally in some small areas there were some weirdos that came up with weapons noone else used, and somehow made them work.

[@hrares9334]

It is about the skills of the blacksmith. If most blacksmiths in Dacia were making 95% of the time sickles and other curved agricultural tools, then there you have a lot of very skilled blacksmiths in making a curved blade. And since Dacians were mostly farmers, a curved war blade might be more confortable to weild.

[@tedarcher9120]

The problem with forward curved blades is that they themselves can ruin edge alignment, while back curved improve their alignment while cutting

[@mister_grizzlee5105]

Then let's have a double bladed curved sword =D

[@lairdcummings9092]

It's a trade-off; what do you want, the ability to sever flesh, or wreck armor? Lots to be said for either choice, but the Dacians went the armor wrecking route, with a side-helping of flesh slicing.

[@XfStef]

Depends how you start the cut. If it's from the tip down then yes, if it's from the bottom towards the tip, I would say no.

[@kaialoha]

only in forehand cut (palm up ). Hook swords are meant to be backedge cutters ( palm down ) the hand pronated at the last second to hook the blade around an obstacle with ripping power. This is much more biomechanically efficient - like a forearm shiver or a hooking punch vs a hammer.

[@peterbota1913]

And of course, remember that a guy rich enough to afford one of the 2-handed ones would likely not be naked, but covered in some rather beefy scale mail

[@FuzzyChubbyPurpleUnicorn]

Have you heard about the warriors from Hammerfell? They have curved swords.CURVED SWORDS

[@finalcam1740]

You must not get to the cloud district very often.

[@michagruzewski5592]

*Foken weebs intensityes*

[@TheExecutorr]

Let me guess: Someone stole your sweetroll?

[@JeepRoad]

I used to be an adventurer, like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee..

[@bestopinion9257]

Yeah but the cutting edge is on the opposite side.

[@kodain]

7:08 "Just the tip itself can tear material open, and that's effective in of itself" *giggity*.

[@Scarlet_Soul]

Nice seeing these both with you and Thegn

[@thecrusader3852]

Rome has left the chat

[@SamohtNox]

pretty sure rome won and submitted them regardless what weapon they were flailing about lol

[@slimshady9756]

Hey Skall ! I m romanian and i ve been watching you since that first falx video from years ago, that s how i found your channel ! Love you !

[@ComradeMeow]

The dagger, or "sica", was primarily used by nobles, tribal chiefs (taraboste) and sometimes cavalry. There are also longer versions, which blur the line between a dagger and a sword.

[@koffebolander9618]

what a beautiful blade! and man i really love your channel since im a blade lover aswell, keep up the good work my dude!

[@Grabehn42]

I just love how "hand crafted" this one looks, just beautiful.

[@alexmalyarchuk1723]

4:26 Those six-rays star in circle decoration is quite common in ukrainian ornaments as well - and I was am concerned as architect - is one of substantial ornaments in rural ans traditional decoration of classical architecture of XV-XIX cent. Even now those symbol is revieved as classic pre-christian symbol and is quite often used in contemporery art and decorations, expecially those, that should resemble connections whith past - let's say more traditional. Really interesting relic of pre-christian east european symbolisms.

[@Dr_V]

I may be wrong about this, but I think that's actually supposed to represent a flower, possibly the edelweiss. The decorations are quite anachronistic, more representative of medieval Romanian culture than the ancient Dacians, but since we don't know how or if the Dacians decorated their weapons I guess that's about good enough, at least they're authentic for the region.

[@doomy330]

yes certainly these motifs especially right angle dominated are more medieval than ancient. there aren't any Dacian decorations remaining per se except some jewellery, but there is the older Cucuteni culture and some stone ideographs in the mountains. they are more large shapes language and not much of the 90° angles maybe like stylised mesopotamian

[@augustiniumihaila4466]

Dacian cultural space was very wide and merged with scyto-sarmatians in east , as they were somehow related , and in north up to baltic and nordic space.

[@nottoday3817]

Well, let's just say record keeping in this side of the world is very lax. We did not have great cultural centers like Athens, nor did we have military juggernauts like the Roman empire. And what was built was quickly raided and burnt by migrators. Culture after culture occupied the area between the Balkans and Donets or Don or even the Volga. Bulgaria and Serbia had a strong thracian heritage which was tarnished by Latins and Byzantines, then by bulgars and slavs which eradicated most of the previous cultures (as refugees fled towards inner Byzantium), then by Ottomans, with each domination lasting for hundreds of years. In Romania, the cultural exchange was a bit more peaceful, initiated through trading before Christ, then conquest in 106, then maintained through trading after 3rd century. Then came the Slavs. After them we had the Ottomans, but without signifiant changes. For Ukraine, well, there were dacians there, as well as Schythians and slavs. Then the vikings formed the first Russian state. Then came the mongols and then the Polish-Lithuanians, each adding their culture and genes into the mix. Personally speaking, it is damn near impossible to say 'this belongs to this culture'. In the end, even Dacians of Decebal(us) seem to have used latin inscription at some point.

[@dandondera2618]

That simbol has been found painted or enscribed on pottery and objects from the bronze age, if not neolithic (if I remember corectly) and is still used today in folk art in Romania. So it may be a common symbol for a lot of populations in south_eastern europe.

[@JackShen]

Hey Skall, use the sandpaper on a soft backing method, that's how I do my ginunting and Kukri's without making a secondary bevel and maintaining the convex shape, you can put like a piece of leather or something with a little give on a dowel rod or phone book and place the sandpaper on top of that (no lower than 1000 grit). To get the polish back you'll have to strop with black then green compound. And since the compound is put on leather, you can make it form fit so it can handle the gentle inward curvature of the blade. Edit: oh yeah, and in all steps you gotta draw the blade backwards, like a stropping motion

[@johndododoe1411]

Please name your units and compounds. What your local shops sell with green color, might be red or blue in another country. What they sell as 1000 grit might be named different in a country with different units of measurement.

[@JackShen]

@@johndododoe1411 I got my compounds from jreindustries I beleive, they are the standard grits in the US for green and black. the sand paper is US 1000 grit. Usually used I think for cars, jewerly, things where the finish matters

[@matthewrobert6491]

I just love the way it looks. Literally it's beyond awesome.

[@fabiansanchez7203]

Ive been a fan of this channel since i was 13 just wanted to say i love ur channel and ur informative work

[@Reuel-Jazwa]

Has anyone noticed "the flower of perun" on the scabard of the knife and handle of the falx? That is a slavic symbol and I am interested if the producer knew that when he was making the them.

[@friendlynhvamp3400]

You do realize Romania has slavic roots and for the longest time Romanian was written using cyrillic letters, right?

[@thrownswordpommel7393]

But I don't think Dacians used that symbol at the time. I may be wrong but I'd assume that they were more celtic at the time, an that all this slavic symbolism appeared later.

[@angeloh.7746]

Might be similar but i don't think it's the same thing. The flower of life is not particular to slavs and we have archaeological finds since the bronze age

[@Sheridan2LT]

@@friendlynhvamp3400 Romania is Slavic yes. Also the Perun flower is widely known in general lol

[@darthplagueis13]

It's somewhat anachronistic if this weapon is supposed to be dacian. Perun wasn't worshipped until about the 7th century, 500-600 years after the dacian wars (slavs in general weren't around at the time, that's a later ethnicity).

[@saratuthedemonkingofsow9373]

Ohhh I’ve never seen this weapon before cool

[@voltekthecyborg7898]

It has increased leverage with the cost of not being an auto correcting sword

[@nahuelmat]

Nice video as always Skall! The falx is probably one of my favorite swords and is definitely up there for pre-medieval stuff. Looks great in this short version as well as the other two handed you've got.

[@ryano8002]

What a beautiful blade. Really good craftsmanship

[@raptorokc]

Favorite blade from mount and blade 2.

[@krisrakow6663]

Same

[@-GyBer-]

romphaia's little better

[@tsmspace]

Only yesterday I was looking up "peening a scythe" after a comment in a forum suggested I learn about it. I wonder if the shape of the falx also had a relationship to "peening the edge" of blades, and how the increased durability of the curved forward blade would be important with lower carbon steels. I also wonder if there is a history of "peening the blade" in swords, and how common the practice was in ancient times. (for example bronze swords are "peened" to sharp, perhaps iron swords were also????)

[@donlekrosan4291]

Finally, I have waited for you to make a review on these

[@Nyctophora]

Lovely solid bit of kit!

[@2008davidkang]

Will you test a billhook? They look like falx on a pole especially the Italian style ones. I'd imagine they'd be more devastating due to it being a polearm. Also will you showcase more forward curving weapons?

[@nottoday3817]

More devastating? Technically it would have more force in a perfect hit, but it would also be harder to manouver.

[@RoGameReview]

Salutari din Romania, sa iti dea Dumnezeu sanatate pentru ca esti interesat de sabiile noastre ❤️

[@Phil-S8]

What a beautiful blade Thank you for sharing I would love to see a video on the smaller blade too

[@ESFAndy011]

12:49 I swear, every god damn morning...

[@yuezhithat5055]

Glory to Zalmoxis! So, how do you like this one compared to your last falx?

[@pdkfilmromania2075]

have 3 such weapons, and a Dacian sica (dagger). Anyway, I participate in historical reenactments from the Dacian period, and yes, I am a reenactor at these festivals that take place periodically in Romania

[@mihailghiga2732]

I saw the little one in action and a reenactment event, it is impressive. Really proud to have good sword makers in my country.

[@Zaitekno]

Mordhau Patch 19 brought me here

[@arunmor1824]

Dacians considered that if they died in battle they would see their God. Economically, Dacia was the second most prosperous "state" in Europe after Rome. Dacian gold funded the Roman expansion into Asia minor, current day East Turkey, Armenia, Georgia etc.. Imagine fighting a war against the taliban in the 21 century but they also have as much military tech as the USA. Shits scary, yo.

[@atomicgrasshopper4391]

Dacia was the second most prosperous state in Europe after Rome...What a bunch of bollocks...

[@nottoday3817]

As much military tech as the USA? This is literally bonkers. Yes, the 'davas' (Dacian fortresses) were amazing (some claim that they were built using granite blocks cut into shape and then placed on top of each other -like the Pyramids). Yes the falx was a feared weapon by the romans. However, DO NOT underestimate the military juggernaut that Rome was. It was like a cat fighting a blood thirsty, jacked up tiger. Aside from a victory against Domnitian (if I am not mistaken) in 89, the Dacians came defeated after both of their wars. In 102 Trajan retreated after an inconclusive battle at Tapae due to domestic and supply problems, but after causing massive damage and forcing his enemies to a disastrous cease-fire. In 106, it was total anihilation. As for being a prosperous state, well, there are many definitions of 'prosperous'. Yeah, they possesed large riches, especially rare metals like gold and silver (for them silver was more valuable due to medicinal properties), but generally their tech was not something to dream to.

[@newromanianmappernrm4420]

@@nottoday3817 Eh,their "tech" isn't exactly very well known to us nowadays which is the major problem.Most people just assume they were the usual type of barbarian,just a different culture,so they assume they weren't technologically all that impressive,but for all it's worth the actual knowledge we nowadays have of Dacia only comes from remnants or outside forces writing about them,which can only show so much,it's like looking at the tip of an iceberg and thinking it's the entire thing when so much more of it is actually underwater.The main problem however with the idea that the dacians weren't technologically all that impressive is that from what we *do* know,they were actually not half-bad at all,they had a decent bit of medical knowledge,with 30 plants in a greek botanical book being credited as being named and used by the dacians medicinally,and they even used a type of volcanic ash if I remember correctly (do please correct me if I'm wrong,since if I am wrong I'd like to know) to cauterize wounds,and their calendar was also one of the most accurate one in the ancient world too,having only a difference of 6 hours per year.These things together with the fairly well-made and intricate accessories made from different metals such as gold indicating some decent metallurgical capabilities in the end do suggest,at least to me (though maybe I'm just too much of a dacophile which is why I see it as this,so again,if I'm wrong I'm sorry) that the actual technological capabilities of the dacians are to this day rather unknown and possibly decently underappreciated,so while it may not be quite like putting the Taliban up to US technology,it would still be a decently more advanced Taliban which would still be rather not good.

[@nottoday3817]

@@newromanianmappernrm4420 Don't get me wrong. I love what my ancestors were able to pull out. As said, they had impressive fortresses They had the falces. I'm not sure what to say about your ash cautersing wounds.. Generally, to cauterise something, you need to burn it. Volcanic ash (unless you take it out straight from a volcano) is pretty cold and putting it on a wound might not be quite a good ideea for the same reason you are supposed to clean such a wound. As for metalcrafting, they were decent iron/steel forgers. Not sure about gold, but they were amazing with silver, this metal having some religious conotations (most likely due to its medicinal properties of purification); However, this is more like an oddity, rather than a sign of superiority. We are comparing them with the freaking Roman Empire. They were better than the Dacians in everything that mattered and if it wasn't something they were good at, they would hire someone that was.

[@kavky]

[citation needed] Stop spreading falsities.

[@dashroyer7249]

I have been waiting for eons for you to review my favorite sword in history

[@malango255]

very nice. That helmet strike was crazy.

[@shawnwolf5961]

So I guess you can say that "just the tip" does a great job ;) ;)

[@aldor9357]

Just the tip is fine~

[@erichusayn]

Gotta get me one of those. Good review dude.

[@akmalr5829]

An extra info, the dacian falx design is actually able to counter the roman testudo formation. As shown by skallagrim, the blade can withstand heavy impact. The dacians would hit the roman shield and hook their shield out, breaking their formation and allowing the dacians to attack the roman, and their blade would still be okay for more shield hooking 😄

[@darthplagueis13]

What it sadly can't prevent is the onslaught of weighted javelins perforating the dacian troops before they even got into melee....

[@akmalr5829]

@@darthplagueis13 *flopping onto the ground under the rain of pila*

[@elite968]

Someone needs to make a Ottoman-Yatagan for Skall. Sadly i have no talent to do that. Also none seems to sell a Yatagan for actual use. :(

[@augustiniumihaila4466]

Yatagan is an weappon for another age. Be sure it would have had less effect on roman formation. And also, falx would have had less effect on an Jannisary polearm-spear formation.

[@Alexander99602]

Normal people: Falx Intellectuals: Reverse Katana

[@RazvanMihaeanu]

Sakabatō! (kinda sounds like..."sica")

[@xzenitramx666]

Weaboo

[@Alexander99602]

@@xzenitramx666 says the cringe with the name xx666

[@xzenitramx666]

@@Alexander99602 because I was born the 6 of june at 6 pm and my real name has 6 letters i don't know why is that cringe but you weaboos don't use logic.

[@Alexander99602]

@@xzenitramx666 learning about japan doesn't make you a weaboo, but ignorants do seem to judge a lot based on what they hear, they do indeed not use logic and make random calls using what limited information they have

[@stevenakre4177]

Your attire is dope, I love your assortment of tee’s that have pirate, chainmail, Viking under-jacket garments graphics - also love your content skall, keep it all coming brother 🤘🏻

[@stevenakre4177]

Also, I would support, share, and enjoy seeing you do some blade sharpening videos - plus I’d love to learn how to do it myself from your channel - over and out, keep it up skall

[@SkyTowerKurogane]

Impressive craftsmanship.

[@FellVoice]

Dacian is actually pronounced "Datchian", for future reference and general accuracy. Great video!

[@antonteodor6305]

I personally prefer "Dakian", "tch" didn't exist in Classical Latin or Greek. Or even Proto-Germanic.

[@antonteodor6305]

@Modrea Andreea Sper ca trollezi =))) Și mai sper ca totuși putem discuta calm, așa că voi argumenta mai în profunzime. Grecii îi numeau pe strămoșii noștri "Δάκοι", printre altele, transcris "Dakoi" și pronunțat ['da.koj] . Romanii îi numeau "Daci", pronunțat ['da.ki] în varianta clasică. Acum, nu știm cum își spuneau dacii lor înșiși, poate foloseau într-adevăr [t͡ʃ] în loc de [k] la pronunție. Din păcate nu știm practic nimic despre fonologia limbii dace. Totuși limba dacă făcea parte din aceeași familie de limbi Indo-Europene ca și greaca antică, latina clasică, proto-germanica, sau limbile celtice. Și nici una dintre ele nu avea [t͡ʃ], deci m-aș aștepta să nu fi avut nici daca. Bineînțeles, nu am cum sa demonstrez asta.

[@FellVoice]

@Modrea Andreea No, I was corrected once by a Romanian speaker as to how Dacia was actually pronounced with a "t" sound then I just looked heavily into it since I always seek the facts as to not spread misinformation. Failure is always the best teacher.

[@antonteodor6305]

@@FellVoice Dacia is pronounced with [t͡ʃ] in modern Romanian and was also pronounced so in Vulgar Latin. There is little reason to believe the Dacians pronounced Dacia that way during the wars with the Romans, at least. Modern accepted English pronunciation is with [s] like Skallagrim says.

[@antonteodor6305]

@Modrea Andreea De unde atîta fiere...?

[@leppeppel]

The last time I was this early I was disappointing a woman!

[@onik_dovah4354]

YOU SHOULD MAKE A VIDEO ON THE DACIANS TOO U GRUMKIN :C !!!

[@kevlarandchrome]

Those are gorgeous pieces, the man is quite the blade smith.

[@yodasshagshack5299]

perfect timing with this upload. i had just begun my first bannerlord playthrough as the battanians, who use falces

[@daniel-zh9nj6yn6y]

I'm still playing the first one, my horseback fighting is awful. Dean Takahashi level :)

[@sosig6445]

As a Hungarian i'm like: Bruh they even made the saber BACKWARDS

[@verdy-7465]

In Romania we say "te tai sa moara mama".

[@laurswoodwork5942]

Da. Daca esti tigan.

[@goe54]

Only the Gypsies has such a language, and they are of Central Asia origin, not a Dacian one.

[@I_am_ENSanity]

Might order a pair of these (falx). The design are some of my favorites.

[@Unownzone]

What a wicked bladed, beautifully designed satisfyingly cutting sword!!

[@lovelememes6694]

Bruh its literally "I am Andy" not "Iamandy" lol

[@Userius1]

Funny, but do you realize that Iamandi is a Romanian surname?

[@lovelememes6694]

@@Userius1 yes, I am romanian

[@Userius1]

@@lovelememes6694 A Romanian friend told me it's like "Yamandee".

[@lovelememes6694]

@@Userius1 Yeah, thats pretty much it

[@ozkan576]

England is my city

[@Wavemaninawe]

I just want to give praise for the awesome precision of that follow up cut. 4:45 - 4:54

[@Jopeymessmusic]

This is why I love this channel, always discover new shit.

[@Tax_Buster]

Wow, that blade is gorgeous!

[@Number1Irishlad]

Dacian falxs are soo god damn cool. Esp the 2 handed ones. Romphias are awesome too

[@ct7567CaptRex]

Glad to see your cutting game is back in buissnes. I love your last video

[@lairdcummings9092]

Good review; thanks! I have a pruning axe that has an extremely similar blade shape and profile; the difference being that the working portion of the blade is only the last ten inches. It *blows* through green wood, lopping off green limbs up to three inches thick in a single blow. A human limb wouldn't stand a chance. Extremely nasty blade. The Dacians were really on top of their game, turning their agricultural tools into viciously effective weapons. I want this paired set.

[@mateicosmin1989]

Sica is more for going between the ribs and the arm pits, it's more of a secondary weapon, used in houses and hallways where a sword would be to big to swing without hitting a wall or furniture. And it was also used to skin animals and sacrifice animals around the house(pigs, sheep, chickens...).

[@Bahnking]

Brutal weapon for a brutal time and people. Beautiful finish on the blade and scabbard