Misc > The Sage's Guild - Historical Discussion
Wounds and Injury
Kaiser Bill:
I have a question and since there seem to be some damned fine scholars out there, this seems like a reasonable place to ask.
What sort of injuries and wounds would be likely to be caused in combat? How easy is it to kill someone with a single attack? Obviously there are many variables that can affect this, armour and weapons in particular, but a general overview would be nice, for anyone who feels qualified. It has been something that intreagues me and with my inability to test empirically (cutting people up with sharp objects is a bad and wrong thing, I am led to believe), it is something that I really don't know much about.
I would be greatful to anyone who can help enlighten me.
Thanks, Will.
Ingolifs:
I'm no expert on the matter, but I'd imagine (especially in later times, when there was better armour), that the main cause of injury would be from blunt trauma, getting crushed and trampled.
Against the peasant troops, you'd see all manner of wounds, mainly because their armour (or lack thereof) would make them very susceptible to cutting wounds and other piercing weapons. It would be extremely unlikely to see amputation or decapitation in a battle though.
Also, with rare exceptions, very few blows would've killed someone instantly. A soldier could quite easily fight on for a limited period with a sword in his gut. Even a blow to the face would have to be sufficiently strong to get through the skull and significantly damage the brain. I'd imagine there has been a few horiffic incidences where someone with an exposed brain was still living and fighting.
Many of the casualties would have resulted from infection, i think.
Merentha:
--- Quote from: Ingolifs on February 20, 2007, 10:32:33 PM ---Also, with rare exceptions, very few blows would've killed someone instantly. A soldier could quite easily fight on for a limited period with a sword in his gut. Even a blow to the face would have to be sufficiently strong to get through the skull and significantly damage the brain. I'd imagine there has been a few horiffic incidences where someone with an exposed brain was still living and fighting.
--- End quote ---
A stab wound to the gut is certainly not immediately fatal, but having your stomach opened by a slash is going to take you out of the fight. It might not kill you immediately, but you are going into very severe shock and dying not long afterwards. A slash is much more incapacitating than a stab, which often does nothing to slow down or stop an opponent. This is one reasons rapiers were rarely seen on the battlefield, even though they are much faster than a longsword. A fight between a rapier and a longsword would go like so...
Longsworder moves into range with his sword held in a highguard and starts to swing. Before his blow hits, the rapier hits him in his gut or shoulder, since the longsword makes no effort to block (the head and throat are both protected by the nature of his strike). Completely unfazed, his sword hews deep into the neck or shoulder of the rapierist, killing him. Fight goes to the longsworder, who possibly dies a week later from infection or lacerated bowels.
Merentha:
Its fun how humans are simultaneously much more fragile and also more resilient than people think.
GreySaber:
In full plate armor, a man is almost injunerable. Any killing injury will be either blunt truma, or more likely, a deep penetrating wound under the arm or in the face. The usual way to kill a man in full armor is to get him though the mail underarm with the point of a sword, or to wrestle him down and stab him in the face.
With FULL mail, we are still looking into it. There are several opinions.
If he's wearing less, you would see many terrible cutting injuries, most of which are suprisingly deep.
Of course, what you are hitting with matters too. If you hit him with say, a great axe, cutting him from brow to groin isn't unheard of, even in mail.
As to immediate stops, you are looking for massive cranial trauma, or significant bone damage. If you cleave a collar bone, he can't lift a weapon.
Oh, the drugs and the berserkers thing isn't proven. Scientists say the avalible mushrooms would make them puke before having an effect.
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