RaVeN
Sergeant Knight
The Debate To End All Debates About 2H Weapons Being Too Fast
I am a player who uses two handed weapons most of the time, especially two handed swords, such as the Great Sword. I almost always spam attack with my two handed weapon and feint spam like crazy. Being a player who plays like this, I am very well aware that to many players, it is very annoying to be killed that way. So annoying that many players are complaining that the two handed swords being way too fast and too unrealistic. Many players have said that two handed swords cannot be faster than the speed of 70 and some have even said that two handed weapons should only be half of their speed!
I am getting the expression that many players believes that two handed weapons in the Middle Ages were something like this...
...and were held by clumsy giants like these...
People who are complaining are saying that two handed weapons' speed should be lowered and tried to back it up with the following arguments. I am here to provide counter arguments against their arguments in an attempt to refute them.
The Arguments
Here are some arguments presented by people are who complaining about this. Please note that these three arguments are very, if not the most common arguments presented by these people.
Argument ONE: Two handed swords should be much slower than one handed weapons due to its big size and weight.
True but the question is, "how much does the weapon weigh and how big is it?" When I asked some people about this, they answered that a two handed sword weigh around 80 to 100 pounds and a sword that weighs 20 pounds is a Lord of the Rings sword replica. When people say this, they have punched a hole in their own argument. How can you possibly hope to swing a heavy bastard sword that weighs 80 pounds faster with one hand than with two?
Many people say that two handed weapons, such as Zweihanders and two handed swords, great axes weigh over 40 pounds that needed strong soldiers to wield. I suggest people take the time to hold a real weapon before believing what movies and video games stereotype and propagate about clumsy giants and their a million pound maces/axes/swords/whatever. If you have held weapons like these before, please keep in mind that just because you cannot swing fast does not mean the warriors hundreds of years ago who spent years training with couldn't. Also, if you have left weights before, you would know that doing a bicep curl with a 40 pound barbell isn't easy, so don't dream about wielding a sword that weighs 80 to 100 pounds.
Bastard swords generally had a weight 1.5 to 1.8 kg/3.3 to 4 pounds.
Even claymores, being stereotyped by many to be huge and hefty blades, had an average weight of 2.5kg/5.5 pounds.
The Dane Axe, no doubt used by Nords in Warband in the name of two handed axes, had an average weight of 1 to 2 kg/2 to 4 pounds.
Bardiches have heavy blades and its the weight of its heavy blade used to be advantage by its users. However, the weight of a bardiche does not exceed 8 pounds.
There is no argument here that two handed weapons should be slower because they are heavy, because they aren't heavy and hefty! With that said, that is no reason for two handed weapon speeds to be lowered.
Argument ONE: Refuted
Argument TWO: Feinting is unrealistic because there is no way you can fake a swing and out of a sudden bring the swing from one side to the other and register it as a hit on your enemy.
Have you guys ever bothered to look at what happens to the sword when a player feints with it? If you did, you would see clearly that the sword passes through the model of its enemies from the right swing animation to the left swing animation. Sure it can be unrealistic, however, it is the problem of the mechanics that a hard model such as the body of a player is unable to stop a sword from passing through it when someone is feinting, it is not the problem of the two handed weapon being too fast.
Also, try swinging a sword to your left and then again to your right. It isn't hard and it doesn't take forever to do. In fact, it is quite fast.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIsec-MTGwU : Look at starting from 1:10. Ultimate proof that a two handed weapon CAN be swung fast, swung faster than that in game.
Also...
ares007 said:Also, here is a better video showing the speed that a medieval European longsword can be wielded with:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwYi_uOwGtY (note, the sword is blunt, but is otherwise weighted and balanced just like a medieval longsword)
Possible Argument on my counter argument against the second argument - It is easy to swing fast against non living objects.
Yes it sure is. But please note that the fact that a two handed weapon CAN be swung that fast refutes this entire argument all together.
Argument TWO: Refuted
Argument THREE: Two handed weapons unbalance the game as a good manual blocker can run the game.
That is based on the skills of the two players fighting. I can also argue that one handed weapons unbalance the game because a good feint spammer with a shield can run the game.
Argument THREE: Refuted
These are the only arguments I've came across so far and these are the only arguments argued by complainers again and again.
If you are one of these complainers, please feel free to send in another argument. I am sure a lot of people would be happy to refute them as well.