Weapons & Warriors: The Plumbata of the Romans

Art by TL Jeffcoat

Although originally used by the Greeks, this throwing dart is best known from its use by the Roman legions over 1,600 years ago. These weapons are so effective that a legion could halt a charging cavalry before it reaches the line. Half of every battle is killing your enemy, the other half is disorienting or confusing them so they are easier to kill.

The Plumbata is a simple design. It’s a wooden dart that is slightly shorter than an arrow. The iron tipped head is weighted with lead to keep the sharp end pointed towards its target while airborne, no matter how it is thrown. This not only simplifies training, it allows the darts to be thrown under pressure at short ranges without focusing so much on technique. The fletched rear of the Plumbata helps the dart stay balanced, and increases range. The weight of the lead also increases the power of the weapon's impact, allowing it to penetrate light armor, or even horse skin as cavalry tries to flank or charge the legion.

Kitana and the Tessen!

It’s Just a quick update today. I attempted to do some shading on the Kitana picture, but it wasn’t turning out well. I also tried to change the boots to sandals with straps up to the knees like something Romans would wear, but apparently I’ve never tried to draw toes and they weren’t working out very well at all, even worse than my rubber looking fingers. That's when I dumped that picture and went back to this version. It's no where near as awesome as the one that Midway did, but it's the best I can do for now.

Kitana Preview by TL Jeffcoat

So after doctoring up the lines and colors some, it is as good as my skills can do for now. Maybe later I’ll come back and put in some shadows, but for now, she is ready. Click on the link below to see the entire picture, and if you’re into weapons, to check out the Tessen, which is what Kitana is most known for besides her curves and being a princess.

Tessen of the Samurai 

That's one out of five pictures done for the month, now back to writing, and then finishing the two I'm doing for the Rajput's katara. Here's a sneak peak to the first one I'm on. Already made good progress. The Katara post is one of my most popular Weapons & Warrior's posts, which is why I chose two drawings showing three different variations of it. See you next week with those. I honestly didn't notice the similarity in names (Kitana and Katara) when I decided to do these drawings in this order, lol. My list showed Tessen and then Katara.

Katara preview by TL Jeffcoat

Weapons & Warriors: The Keris of the Javanese

Art by TL Jeffcoat

This wavy dagger is one of the strangest weapons I’ve ever seen. I first saw in it a video game called Diablo II, and I had to find out if it was a real thing and why it was used as a magical conduit in the game when it looked like a knife. The game titled the dagger with the popular American and European name of Kris, but back in the Indonesia Islands where it originated it is called a Keris. The Keris has three parts, the blade, the hilt, and the sheath

The Keris was a ceremonial decoration, a weapon, and the tool of an executioner. In the ancient kingdom of Java, it was common for every man and woman to strap a Keris on their belt and behind their back when traveling outside of their home. The Javanese believed the dagger housed a magic power of its own that was fueled by the spirit within it, and they annually brought them to specifically trained bladesmiths for maintenance as part of a ritual for the spirit. The relationship between the owner and the Keris was important, and to test a blade the owner would sleep with the Keris under his pillow. Depending on whether his dream was good or bad that night he would then know if the blade was right for him. If it was not, the person got rid of it, because a bad blade could bring misfortune.

The blades were forged in layers of various irons and nickel that were folded together repeatedly. The stronger the smith wanted the blade, the longer he would fold the metal. Some blades were folded hundreds of times and took years to finish. Keris blades came in all sizes, but were never long enough to be considered a short sword.

Weapons & Warriors: Gunstock War Club of the Native Americans

In the late 1700’s or early 1800’s a new weapon emerged among the Plains Native Americans. It was called the Gunstock War Club and was one of the deadliest weapons in the Native American arsenal. There is no true pinpoint time in history that reveals where the Native Americans first came up with this design, but it is believed that the plains tribes learned it from either the eastern woodlands tribes or the constantly encroaching American settlers. Some Native American historians believe the design existed long before the settlers brought their muskets, but it’s hard to deny that the Gunstock War Club looks a lot like the stock of an old musket.

Art by TL Jeffcoat

Despite its appearances, the Gunstock War Club was not made from the leftover wood of a musket. The shape of the club was similar, but the stock would have been unreliable as a standard club. The curve where the hammer and ammo once was would crack and splinter too easily after just a few strikes. The Native Americans crafted their own Clubs using various woods in their regions with the thought of creating a true club in mind. The wood was cut and smoothed down into the shape of a musket’s stock, but was thinner around the edges to give it sharp corners like an ax. Then a blade was embedded into the point where a musket’s hammer would have been. The blade could be made from anything like bone, flint, or old knives purchased or taken from settlers. Once complete, the club weighed no more than two or three pounds (0.9 to 1.3 kilograms). I could not find any documented length but from pictures I would guess it was about two to two and a half feet (0.6 to 0.8 meters) in length.

Weapons & Warriors: The Tepoztopilli of the Aztecs

This weapon could be considered a cross between an axe and a spear. Its fat head and razor sharp edges made it possible to slash or chop like a pole-axe, but the pointed tip and long shaft also made it ideal for thrusting like a spear. Although it was enough like a spear to be throwable, the wide head made it less reliable than other ranged weapons used by the Aztecs. Most likely, this was used against charging enemies, before the Aztec infantry drew clubs and Macuahuitl for closer combat.

The Tepoztopilli art by TL Jeffcoat

The length of the entire Tepoztopilli is around 5 to 6 ft (almost 2 meters) and is one solid piece of wood. The head is about a half foot long and edged with obsidian shards. Each obsidian razor was glued into slots with a plant resin. Like the Macuahuitl, the obsidian edges are potentially sharper than a steel razor. One of these shards is sharp enough to shave with. The pieces were spaced out along the head so that after they penetrate the enemy, the sides of the shards could catch and either break off into the body or hook the spear and cause even more damage.

Looking Back on 2012

The Chinese New Year is drawing to a close, and the time of the Water Dragons will soon be over on Feb 9^th. This year was the time for taking chances. The economy was struggling for many, but hording your money and trying to save isn’t going to put that back on track.

Took this pic from the boat, while passing an island of trees.

I went on that vacation out of the country, although our ship was rained out of the harbor in Canada, so I never set foot on foreign soil. I still got to see Alaska from the mountain tops and a glacier. It was beautiful and inspiring to see. Not even the pictures I took can really express the majestic beauty of those mountains coming right out of the water.

I began the work on starting that publishing company I always wanted and I’ve been helping writers as much as I can, but I never did file the paperwork to make it official. For two reasons, I was worried I’d have to pay some kind of tax after the year was up and I didn’t have anything prepared to publish to pay that tax. That, I’ll get into in a minute.

Weapons & Warriors: The Claymore of the Scottish

Art by Steven DeVon Jones

Most people these days think of William Wallace and the movie Braveheart when they hear the word Claymore. The sword that William Wallace used was not actually a Claymore, but was similar. His sword was of the heavy two handed variety and may have been related to the Claymore along some sword family tree of some kind, but it wasn’t a Claymore.

William Wallace’s sword has been rebuilt and preserved over the years. It is on display in Scotland, but some historians believe only part of the sword’s blade was the original sword of Wallace. A few hundred years can be hard on a sword. The hilt and crossguard on William Wallace’s sword is different from the Claymore, but that could be from its reconstruction. The part of the weapon believed as being the original is a portion of the blade, which also verifies that it was never a Claymore. The tip of the blade narrows towards the end to a point. The Claymore does not narrow a whole lot until its triangular tip.

The name Claymore comes from the Gaelic word "claidheamh mòr," which means Great-Sword. One thing that made the Claymore stand out in comparison to other swords, including the other types of two handed swords, was the leather wrapped ricasso that was between the blade and the crossguard. The entire sword was long enough that the average man could place the tip on the ground and the hilt would reach his armpit, which is about four and a half feet.

Fantasy Weapons Lore: Grond of Morgoth

Some of you have heard the name Grond. For those three people left in the world that hasn’t seen the Return of the King, then you have now met one version of the weapons known as Grond. This is the massive flaming wolf headed battering ram that Sauron’s army of orcs used to smash the magic gates once built by an ancient race of men with elven blood and long lives. That’s a mouthful. Throughout the thousands of years of history in Middle-Earth, Grond has taken a few forms that are suspected to be designs of Sauron’s masterful engineering and magic.

During the time of the Return of the King, Grond was a one hundred foot battering ram that stood sixty feet tall. The head was forged from black iron. In the movie, the mouth was filled with fire, but I don’t believe Tolkien envisioned it that way. About the only use fire would have coming from the mouth is intimidation. Tolkien was an experienced military man who served during World War 1, and although the orcs are a flashy raging mass of unthinking hate, they weren’t unorganized when directed by Sauron’s generals like Gothmog. I would assume that just the sheer size would be enough to scare the Gondorians. Hauling fuel for the fire would be an unnecessary additional resource to be carried across rivers and mountains all the way from Mordor. That said, it did add some nice cinematography for the film so it got two thumbs up from me, no matter how impractical it was.

Netflix, Azeroth and Other Distractions

Well it has happened and just in time for Nanowrimo. The dreaded Writer’s Block has come to visit me. It seems that lately, if I’m actually trying to write anything new, my mind goes completely blank. I ask myself what’s wrong, but deep down I know the answer. I just have trouble accepting it.

Pic by Blizzard Entertainment

“Writer's Block: Situation when writer cannot write: an inability on the part of a writer to start a new piece of writing or continue an existing one” – Bing Dictionary

I don’t really have writer’s block in the sense that I can’t write because I’ve lost my creativity. I do have writer’s block because I’m blocking my own creativity. I’ve filled my head with distractions. Fantasy Football, Mists of Pandaria (the awesome new World of Warcraft expansion), and the worst of all… Netflix.

The title of this post was going to be Sex, Love and Other Drugs because I finally got around to seeing that movie. I absolutely loved it, but those things fuel my writing, unlike the stuff in the title I went with.

Writing Time

Art by Steven DeVon Jones

I have decided to take some time off from blogging. Not for an immense amount of time, but long enough to focus more on the editing for “Welcome To My Imagination” and “Devil Dog” sooner rather than next year. “Devil Dog” will need to go through another round of content editing before it goes to a copy-editor for proofreading. Since I’m scrapping the current ending and rewriting it, I want to make sure it gets as much attention as the rest of the novel.

I will be writing up another Weapons series, but for now, it has overwhelmed my writing time with research, writing and editing blogs. Once the books are done with their editing I will resume writing more weapons and warrior posts. I’ll organize it into sets so that I can continue writing more novels in between weapons series. I have about five different novel series I want to pursue, and I spend 75% of my writing time on this blog. Without sacrificing my time with children and work, there just isn’t much left to get those books done.

I hope everyone understands. It’s been 12 months since I began Weapons Weekly and I think it’s time to give it a short break. Hopefully the editing goes well and I’ll be back to weapons chat soon. This doesn’t mean this blog is dead until then. Since I’ll be editing, I’ll probably have a few random Writers Rambling posts popping up as I either learn new things or just feel inspired to speak up about something.

Thank you for following the blog, and I’ll see you soon!

Weapons & Warriors: The Dadao of the Shaolin

The Dadao is also called a Chinese sabre, Chinese Big Knife, or Chinese Great Sword. This heavy blade has served several purposes over the centuries in China. Some Shaolin monks train in the use of this sword and some daring monks train to use both the Dadao and the Jiujie Bian together. One way to describe the Dadao is that of a machete on steroids.

The blade of the Dadao is perfectly designed for chopping and was modeled after an agricultural tool for harvesting. The Dadao is considered a peasant's sword because it is a pretty simple and does not require a lot of training. The heavy blade and long handle balances the sword so that it is not difficult to maneuver despite its weight. Although it is not a light sword, it is not as heavy as an axe. However, the broad blade is designed to cut with the same power as an axe. The long handle allows for wielding with one or two hands.

The blade is only about two feet in length and the handle is just over a foot. The entire sword’s weight will vary from two pounds to close to four pounds depending on the type of and quality of metal used to forge it. The blade widens at the tip and curves slightly back to the wielder to increase the momentum of the tip. The width of the blade gives the Dadao the strength and speed to chop through bone and leather armor with ease.

Weapons & Warriors: The Jiujie Bian of the Shaolin

If you thought the idea of beating someone to death with a chain was thought up by some mobster or street gang, you’d be wrong. The Shaolin Monks have been administering chain whippings since before 500 AD. However, the difference between a monk and a thug is a wide gap in training and expertise. The Shaolin don’t just use any chain either. They have specially designed chain whips called the Jiujie Bian.

More commonly referred to as the Nine Section Chain Whip, or Nine Link Chain Whip, the Jiujie Bian is the most dangerous weapon in the Shaolin arsenal to train with and possible one of the most dangerous weapons to learn in the history of Earth. The Shaolin Monks train for many years to master this dangerous device. More people are reported injured while training with the Jiujie Bian than with any other weapon in the world. Many monks still train and practice to this day for showing off their techniques to tourists. There are also other versions of the Jiujie Bian that vary in the number of links from seven to thirteen.

Weapons & Warriors: The Liuxing Chui of the Shaolin

There are two variations of the Liuxing Chui, also known as the Meteor Hammer or Dragon Fists. It gets its name from the lightning speed and power at which it strikes an opponent. The Liuxing Chui is one of the many chain weapons used by Shaolin Monks and requires excellent strength, reflexes, and years of and training to use safely. Once mastered, this blindingly fast weapon is virtually impossible to predict. It’s capable of disarming and then crushing a man’s skull in seconds.

The design of the Liuxing Chui is very simple. The chain or rope has a steel ball attached at either one end or both ends. The chain or rope varies in length depending on the version of weapon. Each steel ball weighs over 6 pounds. The ball is swung in circles as fast as possible before striking at opponents. Six pounds at high velocity is enough force to shatter the skull like a watermelon that’s been slammed on the ground, very messy.

Weapons & Warriors: The Fu Tao of the Shaolin

If you have ever played any recent versions of Mortal Kombat, then you have seen the wickedness of the Fu Tao. Kabal's favorite toy is not a game designers conjured up idea of a crazy pair of swords. These things are for real, and they are really deadly.

To watch a Shaolin Monk perform with Fu Tao is a wonder to behold. These hooked swords are as dangerous to the Monk wielding them as they are to their opponent. The monk will constantly twirl the swords and with a flash he can strike with the razor sharp edges.

The sword blade is narrow and the tip curls forward into a hook. The edges are sharpened so that anything that slips into the hook can be snared. The hooks have a variety of uses, including tripping an opponent or disarming. Another trick used by Shaolin is hooking two swords together to double the reach of the deadly blades twirling them out and slashing with the razor sharp dagger below the handle. The hand guard is a sharpened crescent moon with the points facing away from the hand. No matter what angle the blade strikes from, it can slice into a foe with ease.

Weapons & Warriors: The Yueya Chan of the Shaolin

This crazy looking pole arm is better known as the Monk’s Spade. Shaolin Monks carried a shovel when they traveled for various reasons, including digging holes for any corpses they might came across, so that they were given proper burial. The flat sharp blade also served as a weapon used in self-defense. The Shaolin Monks are pacifists and will not harm anyone, unless they are attacked. Once threatened however, the Shaolin have proven to be lethal adversaries.

The spade eventually evolved into the pole arm it is now and is one longest lasting weapon arts still practiced in the Shaolin arsenal today. I read somewhere it first appeared over 2,500 years ago. A crescent moon shaped blade was added to the pole opposite of the spade to sharpen both ends, and offer more balance to the cumbersome weapon. The overall length of the Yueya Chan is between six to seven feet and can vary in weight from 10 to 25 pounds, or even more. The width of the flat blade ranged between eight inches to more than a foot.

Weapons & Warriors: The Māori Behind the Masks

The Māori warriors started training at an early age. They specialized in a martial art called Mau Rakau, which included training in the various weapons they used. In one on one combat, a Māori warrior was quite formidable. They did not fight like savages as some might have suspected when they stumbled across these warriors while exploring New Zealand. The Māori are a proud people and more than just powerful proud men, they are spiritual and intelligent. They are excellent astronomers, navigators of the seas, as well as amazing wood and stone carvers.

The history of the Māori people was only recorded orally for many generations until Europeans came to New Zealand and began writing down everything they learned. The first encounter by Europeans with the Māori was not pleasant and friendly. More than likely it was a misunderstanding of the Pōwhiri.

The Pōwhiri is a welcoming ritual and part of it involves three warriors advancing and showing off their skills before making an offering to the newcomers. If the offering is picked up, then the strangers are considered peaceful. If it is not, then the strangers become hostile or untrustworthy to the Māori. Four sailors and only one Māori were killed in that encounter. Apparently the story that was told to the rest of the world was frightening enough that no explorers returned for decades.

Weapons & Warriors: The Tewhatewha of the Māori

This axe-like wooden club was another weapon that was not wielded in the same manner a European invader would have anticipated at first glance. Like many weapons designed by the Māori, they were not used to chop at an enemy like an axe or club. Forward strikes and counter attack slashes were the preferred techniques. Something else confusing to someone who was expecting to battle against an axe was that the sharpened end wasn’t the end with the axe shaped head.

The entire weapon was carved from one solid piece of wood. One end was carved with a fat flat end about half a foot wide that resembled a lumber axe. The rest of the length was nearly five feet and tapered into a sharpened point. At the bottom of the axe-head a hole was drilled and feathers were tied by a cord to dangle. Sometimes designs were carved into the wide flat portion of the head.

Weapons & Warriors: The Stingray Tete of the Māori

This was another weapon I saw on The Deadliest Warrior TV show. I don’t believe it was primarily a Māori weapon, but it was occasionally used by them. As you know, I don’t usually talk about spears unless there is more to them than a stick with a sharp end. This spear is definitely one of the wicked ones. I think this spear is almost as frightening as Makrigga to look at. Although it is less likely to disembowel you, it delivers its own kind of pain in the form of poisonous barbed stingers.

The word Tete is used by Māori for any short spear that is designed for the head to break off once it impacts its target. Most often these look like your average spear with the spearhead made of whale bone, sometimes the bone is carved into three points which allowed a wider impact point for striking at fast moving animals. The particular Tete I’m talking about today replaces the whale bone with several stingers from Stingrays. The stinger of one of these marine animals houses poison inside. Lucky for most people who are stung by a Stingray, the poison is not really lethal to humans. The incident with Steve Irwin (aka: Crocodile Hunter) was a freak accident. The stinger actually pierced his heart, and that is why he died, not because he was poisoned to death.

Weapons & Warriors: The Leiomano of the Hawaiians

I first saw this bad boy on The Deadliest Warrior  TV series and I instantly fell in love with it. It resembles the Hungry Wood of the Aztecs, but it is not as razor sharp or durable. It is also not long and flat, but the weight of it and the jagged sharp teeth are just as deadly. It is scary enough to look at, but when you realize the sharp edges are real shark teeth it adds to the fear.

According to The Deadliest Warrior, the Māori were known to use this weapon, but the Leiomano was more of a Hawaiian weapon and the name Leiomano is Hawaiian. Hawaiians are more known for using it, but the simplicity and abundant resources available to make these clubs made it a possibility for Māori to either create their own or take one from an island north of New Zealand. There are many different kinds of Leiomano. The Hawaiians made fat paddle like versions to long and thin versions that resembled the Aztec Macuahuitl.

On The Deadliest Warrior they referred to the Leiomano as simply the Shark-tooth Club. After some researching, I found that many Polynesian islanders made use shark tooth weapons as well. It wasn't just a Hawaiian weapon, although its first designed versions are from Hawaii. I don't know if the Māori somehow acquired the design from interactions from Hawaiians or if they eventually came up with it on their own.

Weapons & Warriors: The Mere and Wahaika of the Māori

The Taiaha was an effective weapon in combat, but not the only one the Māori cherished. Although the Taiaha represents the ancestors of the warrior, it does not declare status. A Mere was often used by a chieftain and was an expensive weapon to make that sometimes involved more than one generation of crafters. It is said that despite the Taiaha’s range, the Mere was the more deadly and reliable weapon.

The process to grind down a piece of jade, also called greenstone could take many years. It had to be done with perfect precision and care so as to make it’s surface smooth and at the same time the paddle had to be as thin as it could be. Jade is a very hard stone, so even once it is thinned and flattened, it will not break easily. This makes it one of the sturdiest materials available for the Māori who did have access to iron or steel.