Roman Gladius

[Silverblade The Ench]

1) "An inch of point is worth a foot of blade"
as someone pointed out above, a thrust is much more effcient than a slash. It tires you less, it's much harder to block.
what is theuse of wasting energy to cut someone's head off, when 1/10th the energy will get him just as dead?
we're not fighting ombies in RL, you know!


2) the gladius is a very broad bladed wepaon, about 3 inches or more?
a stab wound from that is almost always lethal.
If you want to kill a man most efficiently, a broad, sharp stabbing weapon is the tool, not guns, or katanas. (yes a firearm is a better weapon, but horribly inefficient. ammo is expensive to make it takes modern nations to make cased ammo and when you run out of ammo, you're screwed ! )
So, the gladius and some heavy bladed spears are the thing

Anatomically, the breadth of the blade ensures you will severe something vital when used to stab. double edged means a cut on both sides, through arteries, liver etc.

The gladius could also chop due to it's size (being heavier than most shortswords), but that was less useful except against say, a wrist. Later in the EMprie's history, Trajan, iirc, ordered the use of armour to protect the right arm of legionaries for the first time due ot that concern.

Also note, spears were not the main weapon of the legions by Imperial times, the hasta was being replaced and diminished before the Emprie even started.
Pilum were much more useful.


On the OP, I'd suggest that yes, making the gladius an improved form of shortsword with nastier crits or 1d6+1 damage would be an idea.

 

[Peraion Graufalke]

On the OP, I'd suggest that yes, making the gladius an improved form of shortsword with nastier crits or 1d6+1 damage would be an idea.

I'd say a shortsword with Brutal 1 and High crit as a superior weapon.

 

[Necronomicus]

So, there was no longsword other than the name 'longsword' that they had?

 

[Andor]

So, there was no longsword other than the name 'longsword' that they had?

The Spatha was the roman longsword. It was mostly only used by cavalry although very late era when the discipline to fight in proper formations had been lost the legions did transition to spathas in general use as they began to fight more and more like their barbarian foes.

The Falcata is another longswordish heavy chopping blade of the era if you like, but the Romans did not use them.

 

[Necronomicus]

Awesome. I'll look up more info on the Spatha then, for assistance with my roman-based character in my fantasy story. Always wanted to make a Werewolf Swashbuckler whose based on the idea of a ferocious Roman Gladiator.

 

[pawsplay]

It's also intereting to note that the Spatha is the result of a the Romans, Celts, and Gauls borrowing each other's technologies successively over time. What began as a barbarian weapon, but made long and sharp using superior forging techniques, was then improved by Roman metallurgy and given to the cavalry, then enthusiastically adopted by barbarian allies and enemies in central Europe. It then moved north again, and a similar sword appears frequently in Scandanavian burial hoards as the "Viking sword."