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LittleLovableLoli commented at 2023-04-22 11:34:08 » #2798124
Oh wow! That's a falx! Those were giant-ass swords with a curved blade, intended to be able to punch through wooden shields and the like! Man, what a cool sword- I wonder if it was actually any good...?
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Oh wow! That's a falx! Those were giant-ass swords with a curved blade, intended to be able to punch through wooden shields and the like! Man, what a cool sword- I wonder if it was actually any good...?
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Oppai_chan commented at 2023-04-22 23:40:44 » #2798303
Falxes were indeed fearsome cutters, thanks to their blade geometry striking the target at a diagonal instead of perpendicular angle, creating a built-in horizontal slicing motion in addition to the vertical chop. But they had some drawbacks, which is why forward-curving blades are so rare in history.
One issue is how the blade geometry affects handling. With a forward-swept blade, the striking edge is leading the axis of rotation (your wrist). If you mess up your edge alignment on a strike, the blade will want to twist in your hand left or right and stop cutting, since you are in effect "pushing" it from behind. You're putting the cart in front of the horse, so to speak. In contrast, a traditional backwards-swept shape blade has the striking edge following the axis of rotation. If you mess up your edge alignment, the blade will want to seek the center since it is being "pulled" from the front, allowing it to continue cutting (especially if you also have the added momentum of a galloping horse). Traditional backward-curving swords are therefore much more forgiving of error, making it easier to deliver acceptable cuts and to recover from a failed one.
Another issue is recovery after a strike. A forward-swept blade wants to continue cutting deeper into your target, so unless you lop a limb off entirely, the blade is more likely to come to a stop inside your opponent's body (or shield). This means you have to pull out your blade in a separate motion before you can deliver another strike. A backwards-swept blade has a built-in exit strategy, in that putting force into your cut will have it enter and exit your target in the same motion.
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Falxes were indeed fearsome cutters, thanks to their blade geometry striking the target at a diagonal instead of perpendicular angle, creating a built-in horizontal slicing motion in addition to the vertical chop. But they had some drawbacks, which is why forward-curving blades are so rare in history.
One issue is how the blade geometry affects handling. With a forward-swept blade, the striking edge is leading the axis of rotation (your wrist). If you mess up your edge alignment on a strike, the blade will want to twist in your hand left or right and stop cutting, since you are in effect "pushing" it from behind. You're putting the cart in front of the horse, so to speak. In contrast, a traditional backwards-swept shape blade has the striking edge following the axis of rotation. If you mess up your edge alignment, the blade will want to seek the center since it is being "pulled" from the front, allowing it to continue cutting (especially if you also have the added momentum of a galloping horse). Traditional backward-curving swords are therefore much more forgiving of error, making it easier to deliver acceptable cuts and to recover from a failed one.
Another issue is recovery after a strike. A forward-swept blade wants to continue cutting deeper into your target, so unless you lop a limb off entirely, the blade is more likely to come to a stop inside your opponent's body (or shield). This means you have to pull out your blade in a separate motion before you can deliver another strike. A backwards-swept blade has a built-in exit strategy, in that putting force into your cut will have it enter and exit your target in the same motion.
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LittleLovableLoli commented at 2023-09-28 14:30:15 » #2833643
I see, I see... so it's less a fine blade and more an axe or a machete for meat instead of tree branches? Just swing at your target and hope that the raw force of the swing and the weight distribution of the weapon handle the rest? In terms of, like, videogames, I love that shit- but on an actual battlefield, with real life and death stakes, I'd probably just stick with a spear or something... It doesn't help that I'm a puny thing, so I'd probably struggle to handle the weapon in the first place.
Even so, it has such a striking design, real neat-o... Thanks bunches for the trivia dump!
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I see, I see... so it's less a fine blade and more an axe or a machete for meat instead of tree branches? Just swing at your target and hope that the raw force of the swing and the weight distribution of the weapon handle the rest? In terms of, like, videogames, I love that shit- but on an actual battlefield, with real life and death stakes, I'd probably just stick with a spear or something... It doesn't help that I'm a puny thing, so I'd probably struggle to handle the weapon in the first place.
Even so, it has such a striking design, real neat-o... Thanks bunches for the trivia dump!
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Oppai_chan commented at 2023-10-05 16:23:05 » #2835128
You're welcome!
A "limb lopper" is a good way of describing the falx. But I too would prefer to just have a spear if I had to be on the front lines of a pre-modern battlefield. I'd like to keep my foes as far away from me as possible, thank you very much!
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You're welcome!
A "limb lopper" is a good way of describing the falx. But I too would prefer to just have a spear if I had to be on the front lines of a pre-modern battlefield. I'd like to keep my foes as far away from me as possible, thank you very much!
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