fandomhigh | Introduction to Personal Weaponry [Monday, second period]

No jumbled pile of weapons this week. Instead, there were well-organized weapon racks set against the wall.

"Last week I used the terrible oversimplification that blades are a combination of the leverage of a stick with the force-focusing of a punch-dagger. Continuing in that theme, today I'm going to use the, perhaps even worse, oversimplification that a pole weapon is a stick with a blade on it."

His lip twitched wryly. "Actually, that may not be too terrible an oversimplification since a lot of pole weapons are sticks with blades on them..."

"The point of a pole weapon is to let you stab or cut someone without having to get close. In the same way that a sword has a reach advantage of a dagger, a pole weapon has a reach advantage over a sword." Max picked up a simple spear from his desk and held it up for inspection. "There aren't really any fixed rules for what makes something a pole weapon, but in general you can think of anything that has a longer handle than it has a blade as being one."

"With few exceptions, the shaft of a pole weapon is made of wood since wood is lighter than metal and there's a lot more weapon than with a blade. Weight is extra important as a weapon gets longer, too. The same leverage that allows you to bring more force to bear with a longer weapon also makes it harder to handle, so every little bit helps."

Max hefted the spear in one hand, then ran through a rather flashy little flourish with it. "While the spear is pretty much a punch dagger on the end of a stick, pole weapons can get quite a bit more complicated." He set the spear down and picked up a halberd. "This is a halberd. It's a combination between a spear and an axe. You can stab people with it, yes, but you can also swing it to great effect. Because the shaft is so long, you can get a lot of force into a swing, too."

"There are some major disadvantages to a pole weapon, though. The big one is that the blade doesn't cover the whole weapon. While getting close to someone with a sword may make it more awkward for them to swing, you're still in range of the blade. Which isn't the case with one of these," he held up the halberd. "Once you get past the blade, the only thing a pole weapon is going to do is be awkward. And while there are combat techniques for using these things at closer ranges, your best bet is going to be to simply make sure whoever you're fighting doesn't get too close."

"Which brings us to today's activity." Max grinned. He was looking forward to watching this one. "Grab a weapon that looks interesting to you. A spear, a pike, a halberd, a naginata, whatever strikes your fancy. Feel free to test a few out before deciding. Then pair up and take turns trying to slip past one another's weapon to get inside the arc of its blade. Danger Shop safety systems are on, but don't take that as some sort of encouragement to be reckless about it, okay?"

"Now get to it."

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From a distance!

Karla

Prince Alexander of Daventry

Zack Fair

Alex Karev

Jason Todd

Wesley Wyndam-Pryce

Kurt Wagner

Shane Gooseman

Bruce Wayne

Dru Anderson

Tim Drake

Listen up. Ask questions if you want. Max is willing to answer them, after all.

Alexander listened carefully, feeling both excited and a little wary to try polearms. After all, his skills with even just a sword were terribly rudimentary, and it would be interesting to get his brain to focus on how, really, it wasn't really just a staff with a sharp thing at the end...

Karla raised a hand. "Do pitchforks count?" she asked, feeling a little silly as she did.

Max smiled slightly. "They do. In fact the trident is something like an 'official' weapon based on a pitchfork."

Karla nodded, jotting something down in her notebook. Pitchforks were a very common tool for farmers, both Blood and landen alike. With a little training, they might be able to wield them as weapons, too. Something to think about for the future.

They may just be sticks with blades hooked to them, but Max thinks they're pretty cool anyway.

Karla found to her disappointment that polearms didn't have the same feel as the long Eyrien bladed sticks. For one thing, they lacked the blade at both the top and bottom to keep them balanced. They were also longer and more unwieldy, more suited for thrusting than slashing.

Karla? Not much of a fan.

Alexander found himself pretty interested in the spears, despite his inability to get past the icky feeling he felt if he wound up unconsciously holding it like a staff. Still, the piercing motion he tried out was effective, though his mind wound up wishing for javelins to throw instead.

Wes would've preferred another week on swords, but whatever. He spent the period getting a feel for the spear, focusing mostly on footwork and the kinds of steps he'd need to take to wield it effectively.

Kurt picked up a halberd and waved it around, but it just felt awkward to him.

It probably said something about Bruce that his first instinct upon picking up one of the spears was to stick the pointy end in the ground and break it off, turning it into a simple staff.

He didn't do that, though. He just practiced with it.

You can tell him how awesome he is. He likes that.

I've got my fingers crossed for this being a good week.

Introduction to Personal Weaponry [Monday, second period]

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The lecture

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Spears

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Talk to Max

OOC