Weapons Update!

Next Monday I'll post the latest Weapons & Warriors article. So for this week, I am presenting 3 more drawings for previous posts. The Urumi of the Rajput, Daneaxe of the Norsemen (Viking), and Shuriken of the Ninja. All three are fascinating weapons; click on their links and check them out if you haven't already.

Fantasy Weapons Lore: Mjölnir of Thor Odinson

Marvel Comics wasn’t far off on the magical abilities of this heavy iron hammer. Marvel claimed it’s made from a fictional metal called Uru, but the myths say it is only iron. Thor’s ferocity and pride as the greatest warrior of the Norse deities was also as the legends described. Aside from Norse Myhtology descriptions of him with red hair instead of blond, the character you see watching The Avengers is much the same as the legendary god of thunder.

In the stories told in the Prose Edda, the dwarf, Brokkr, was visiting Asgard, when Loki approached him with a challenge. After showing off several treasures made by the Sons of Ivaldi that were gifts to Asgard, Loki claimed that no other dwarf could ever make anything as beautiful or useful. Brokkr was offended and bet his head for Loki’s head that his brother could make more useful treasures.

Weapons & Warriors: The Daneaxe of the Norsemen

Art by TL Jeffcoat

Legends often describe the Norsemen wielding a huge double bladed axe and a skullcap with horns on their head. The description of that conjures terrifying berserker giants bearing down on their enemies. Although there are many records of single bladed axes as tall as a man, there is no account of a Norsemen wearing a horned helm in actual battle or of the popular double bladed battle axe.

The horns would have only unbalanced the helm and gotten in the way of swinging his weapons. The extra blade would have been clumsy and impractical. Norsemen trained using the axe with techniques that would have not required an extra blade anyway. They were lethal enough with one simple blade. The danger it posed to its own wielder was also a reason Norsemen did not design these fantasy based axes. If a shield was rammed into their arms while holding the axe forward, the force of the shield could push the axe against them and that extra blade suddenly becomes their own demise.

Weapons & Warriors: The Longsword and Seaxe of the Norsemen

Despite some artists’ vision, the Norsemen did not wield giant swords. Those heavy Claymores were more popular among the Scotts across the sea. In fact, the Norseman rarely used a sword, since it was very expensive and difficult to forge. Most Norse, who did carry a sword, had to find a proper blacksmith to have their weapon created. Not all blacksmiths had learned the art of sword making. Making a blade in the times of the Norsemen Age was a long process that could take around a month and cost a lot of money, more than the common Norseman could afford.

Norsemen considered the sword a sign of wealth and success, or a descendant of someone wealthy or powerful. This is one of the few weapons that were handed down from generation to generation. An inherited sword was not always an immediately useable gift as it might have been well used already and required some repair. If the blade was recovered from a battlefield or duel it was most likely damaged. Those in power were often challenged by others who wanted their position in society, and a duel was often an answer to such a challenge. 

The Norse respected strength and skill in combat above all. So winning a duel was an acceptable way of working out an agreement. This carried over into more petty things such as who had the right to marry a certain woman or if a man wanted to cut a tree on his land, but his neighbor claimed it was his tree. Nothing is more final than a fight to the death. That may sound extreme, but keep in mind, most Norsemen wanted to die fighting so they could go to Valhalla. Dying of old age was considered an embarrassment.

There were two swords used by the Norsemen. The most common sword was the double edged longsword, which had a thin triangle shaped blade that was around 3 feet in length. It was most often used with a round wooden shield. Most swords in Europe in this age did not have a cross guard to protect the hand from enemy blades sliding down on the fingers.

Many of the swords made in the later ages of the Norse were marked on the blade. A change in the types of steel and iron used allowed for this that the previous metals did not. The older versions included iron with the steel which was twisted together at very high temperatures and then flattened and sharpened. The newer metal was stronger steel, so that marking into the metal did not weaken the blade as it would have with previous designs. Norse spent a lot of time crafting the elaborate hilts and often named the sword once it was complete.

The Seaxe is equally as long, but generally has a thicker blade and is only sharp on one side. The exact thickness varied and the Seaxe resembled anything from a long machete to a cleaver. The Seaxe was more common on the longships because they made excellent blades for cutting ropes as well as removing an enemy’s limbs in combat. All practical warriors enjoy multipurpose tools. 

Modi, was the Norsemen God of Rage and was often envisioned with a sword. One of the reasons Norsemen were called savage barbarians by outsiders was the seemingly fearless rage that some of these warriors seem to present on the battlefield. There were myths and legends of these Berserkers. There is no shortage of stories about a warrior who would charge into the enemy line with the strength of ten men and swing his weapons wildly. He could ignore all injuries that were inflicted upon him until he was dead, or everyone else was. 

In reality, this berserker rage is just a legend. It is not unlikely that a few of the Norsemen would throw themselves onto an enemy line and swing their sword like a crazed madman, but that reflects their religious beliefs more than some mysterious rage induced berserk. However, most legends and myths have some basis to something that was real. With one of the members of their pantheon being a God of Rage, it is likely that some Norsemen pushed their adrenaline and rage over the top and went mad in battle as a tribute to their God. I’m not an expert on that matter, but it sounds like a possibility.

I hope you enjoyed this edition of Weapons and Warriors, click here to view the entire catalog of weapons and cultures. Thank you, see you next week.

Weapons & Warriors: The Spears of the Norsemen

The Spear is the most commonly used weapon in the Norseman arsenal, the axe was not, although that was pretty common as well. Spears were more common for several reasons, starting with the cost to make them. They were not made with a high grade metal as axes or swords and required less of it overall as well.

The Norseman spear was not a small tool, but the Norseman were not small men either. They used their naturally large size and strength to their advantage in combat. Some f these warriors were believed to throw two spears at the same time (one from each hand). The effectiveness of this in long range throwing is questionable, but the odds of hitting your target within twenty feet are probably improved.

Norse spears came in various sizes and shapes, but pretty much all were designed with the same concept. They had a long thin leaf shaped steel head attached to a wooden shaft. Norsemen did not often decorate or engrave the spear. There wasn’t much of an impression of success for carrying a spear, as most farmers owned a spear or two.

Weapons & Warriors: Legend of the Norsemen

Art by Steven DeVon Jones

When most people think of Vikings, they picture a giant man with flowing blond hair, braided beard, and piercing blue eyes. They see them with a horned steel cap and chain mail armor with fur pushing out from underneath. Giant warriors charging into battle wielding a big wooden shield and sword or a giant axe that can’t be held with less than two hands. Some of the more popular with the female are the shirtless ones, but I can guarantee you that none of those men had hairless chiseled chests, and were rarely topless unless they were jumping in a hot spring.

The Norsemen never referred to themselves as Vikings. Viking is something they did. They were not Vikings. They were Norsemen who went Viking. Again, mythology has mystified the Norsemen into raiding and pillaging barbarians when they went on these Viking expeditions, but that was not always the case.

The Norsemen colonized a lot of locations that most other Europeans had no interest in or did not know existed. They explored as far as the northern eastern regions of North America and around Africa and as far as New Zealand hundreds of years before any other Europeans. So yes it’s true, Columbus didn’t really discover America, he rediscovered it.

Trade was also a major source of income for the Norsemen who traveled further than most people of other cultures with their swift and agile ships. These ships were shallow enough for rowing up rivers, strong enough for sailing the oceans and light enough to pull across land from one water system to a completely new one. There wasn’t a place that the Norsemen couldn't reach and they traded often throughout their journey, as long as their reputation didn’t scare away the business.