Pathfinder 1E Shouldn't the Khopesh sword do Bludgeoning as well?
- Thread starter Puxido
- Start date
Khopeshes are somewhere between swords and axes in actual use, and aren't all that sharp. Some don't even have a true edge, and they don't have a thrusting point. However, they're still pretty narrow. I'd say that means a fairly concentrated application of force- IOW, slashing/cleaving. Not exactly blunt force trauma.
But if you really want to know for sure, contest the guys & gals at Sword Forum International. Several interesting threads about khopeshes there, like this one:
http://www.swordforum.com/forums/showthread.php?77893-Canaanite-Khopeshes
But if you really want to know for sure, contest the guys & gals at Sword Forum International. Several interesting threads about khopeshes there, like this one:
http://www.swordforum.com/forums/showthread.php?77893-Canaanite-Khopeshes
Puxido
First Post
Ok, I should do that. But from what I understood, the curve was sharp, but one of the corners tips was blunt, but I'm not sure.
BigVanVader
First Post
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkjyNjiUpz4
Think of the Khopesh as like, an Egyptian machete. It's gonna do some good slicing, chopping damage if it hits you simply because of how heavy it is, and how it's built. It doesn't need to be all that 'sharp' when the blade is as thick as it is.
That's one sharp Khopesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVSb7vfra9g
And now here's a guy talking about the Khopesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngjMtzJ6xgQ
Think of the Khopesh as like, an Egyptian machete. It's gonna do some good slicing, chopping damage if it hits you simply because of how heavy it is, and how it's built. It doesn't need to be all that 'sharp' when the blade is as thick as it is.
That's one sharp Khopesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVSb7vfra9g
And now here's a guy talking about the Khopesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngjMtzJ6xgQ
Last edited:
Besides, an authentic khopesh wouldn't hold an edge for very long- they're made of bronze, after all. Instead, they use mass and a relatively blunt wedge to do damage. In a sense, they're like sword-shaped axes.
The Crimson Binome
Hero
These things were hardly precision-crafted. I doubt they put that much thought into the design.
Take your favorite chef's knife. Go out to a metal signpost. Whack away at that signpost with the knife for 30 seconds, see what happens.
Swords, broadly speaking, are not kept kitchen knife or razor sharp. An edge that narrow will be lost quickly in combat with metal armor and weapons, reduced to a nicked ruin. You can get a lot of damage out of a sword that's merely butter-knife sharp.
Oh, I wholeheartedly agree, but a khopesh doesn't even have- not can it hold- the kind of edge a steel sword would have.
Where a steel knife would have an edge of @17-19 deg, and a steel sword might have as much as a 30deg edge angle (max), a bronze khopesh might be around 40deg, maybe more*. And, as the builders on the SFI board point out, some were not sharpened at all- the "cutting" was purely the work of the force & mass behind the blow.
* It may not sound like much, but it is significant. I can (and embarrassingly, have) cut myself simply resting a steel sword on my hand and drawing it slightly across. A khopesh, in contrast, is so blunt it would be more like drawing a heavy metal picture frame across your skin.
Where a steel knife would have an edge of @17-19 deg, and a steel sword might have as much as a 30deg edge angle (max), a bronze khopesh might be around 40deg, maybe more*. And, as the builders on the SFI board point out, some were not sharpened at all- the "cutting" was purely the work of the force & mass behind the blow.
* It may not sound like much, but it is significant. I can (and embarrassingly, have) cut myself simply resting a steel sword on my hand and drawing it slightly across. A khopesh, in contrast, is so blunt it would be more like drawing a heavy metal picture frame across your skin.
