i-id-swords-in-posts

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

What is this snek sword?

This is an interesting one.

From everything I can find, this is an ornamental 19th-century Spanish rapier, likely crafted as a statement piece or status symbol.

While blades this thin and flexible have been used, they are rarely practical, and swords had largely fallen out of fashion as an actually carried weapon by the late 19th century, when this blade seems to have been constructed.

In addition, the excellent craftsmanship indicates that this was crafted for someone of significant wealth, which adds support to the theory that this was constructed as a status symbol for a person of means, and not a serious fighting or dueling blade.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Could something even remotely similar to a chainsword/Ripper from Fallout be a viable weapon?

Not really? Chainsaw-type blades rely mostly on continued contact, which is not really something you want in a combat blade. However, as a weapon of last resort, or a tool for brush-clearing and fortifications, that can be used in a last-ditch, much in the same vein as a bladed E-tool? It could work quite well. Additionally, one must consider the intimidation factor of such a weapon, which is immense.

However, as an actual dedicated melee weapon, it would perform quite poorly. But, at the end of the day, I'd rather have it than a stick.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

answer my asks woman

I'm trying (T^T)

I can only type so fast.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

smallswords are little sister coded

They are ^w^

Lovely little things, aren't they? Big sis Rapier was just a little too wild, so she stepped up to take on the load and handle business.

Cute and petite, but no less dangerous when her edge finds its mark.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

A classic example of the flamberge, or flammerschwert!

That style of forward-swept crossguard is very popular on swords of the type, and can be seen in many remaining examples and period artwork. Additionally, behind the doll's head you can see the parrying hooks common in greatswords.

Thank you for drawing my attention to this lovely artwork, and the lovely blade contained therein :)

doll

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Shout out to all the blades that can't be sheathed until they've drawn blood, be that of the wielder or their enemies.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Alrighty then, let's see...

So, from the late 16th to early 19th century, the Ottoman vassals of Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, more or less had the run of the southern Mediterranean, seizing ships from various European powers for ransom and more or less doing as they pleased.

For most continental empires, this was an annoyance, but not one worth the effort to deal with. They would pay the Barbary pirates their demanded tributes, and their ships would go unmolested (except when they didn't.)

However, in 1783, something changed. The United States became formally independent from the British Empire, meaning that their shipping no longer fell under the protection of English tributes. As quickly as October of 1784, American ships were being harassed by pirates.

However, for some time, this state of affairs would continue, with the US paying tribute to the Ottoman vassals and biting their tongue every time the pirates attacked anyway, knowing the fledgling nation had no naval capacity with which to retaliate. The United States, after all, was still very young, and financing the construction of a professional navy was simply outside of their capability.

While 1794 would bring about the recommissioning of the navy, and 1800 the official commissioning of six frigates to "be officered and manned as the President of the United States may direct", it would also see a tribute of approximately $1,440,000 (more than 30 million dollars in today's dollars) given over to the Barbary states for the release of American sailors taken as slaves.

However, with the 1800 presidential election would come a turn in policy. It was custom for the Barbary pirates to demand an extra tribute from every new government that took charge of a nation with whom they had a treaty, and that is exactly what Yusuf Karamanli, the Pasha of Tripoli at the time, demanded from the US when President Thomas Jefferson took office.

However, unlike the previous administrations, Jefferson refused to give any tribute, leading to the Tripolitan government declaring war on the United States of America on the 10th of May, 1801. This gave Jefferson all the Casus Belli he needed to send the Navy and their Marine accompaniment in to deal with the Barbary Pirates for good.

So, now that the background is established, let's fast forward to 1804, where the Marines actually become relevant to this story. After a fairly successful naval blockade, and several key victories, In October 1803, the Tripolitan fleet managed to seize the USS Philadelphia, after a hidden reef ran the ship aground. All hands were taken as hostages, and the ship itself was converted into a gun battery to defend the harbor. As you can imagine, this was a massive embarrassment to the United States, and so it was considered an objective of extreme importance to either recover the ship, or deny the enemy its use.

On 16 February, 1804, USMC captain Stephen Decatur would lead a small force, operating from a stolen Tripolitan vessel, to storm the captured Philadelphia and destroy it, signaling to all that the Marines were here, and they did not intend to fuck around.

However, the true showing of the Marines would come at the Battle of Derna, where First Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon would lead a handful of marines and more than five hundred mercenaries on a 700 kilometer march from Alexandria to Derna, where they would then storm and capture the city, earning the United States Marines infamy from their allies and enemies both as uniquely fearsome combatants. To this day, this battle is remembered in the Marine's Hymn, celebrating their victories "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli."

This victory at Derna finally gave US negotiators the leverage they needed to broker a treaty with Pasha Karamanli, securing the cessation of hostilities and the return of all United States Personnel. This marked the first time that US troops performed a major operation outside of their own territory, and proved that Americans could play on the same field as other powers, cementing their reputation as a military power in their own right.

For his bravery and ferocity in the heat of battle, 1LT O'Bannon was gifted a sword by Prince Hamet Karamanli, exiled brother of the Tripolitan Pasha. This sword would go on to be the sterling example of the "Mameluke sword", and blades made in its likeness are carried by USMC officers to this very day.

Apology sword

Ah, a beautiful example of a mameluke-style saber.

This particular model is the United States Marine Corps officer's sword, officially adopted by the service in 1825 and maintained for nearly the entire time since.

The mameluke saber is a largely European blade, based on designs carried by the Ottoman Mamluks, from whom the name is drawn. However, the blade has more in common with European sabers than the kilij or shamshir that share its heritage, being far less curved.

These sabers became quite popular in the early-to-mid 19th century, with every power from the British Royal Navy to Napoleonic France giving them their day in the sun, however, the USMC has a special affinity for them, owing to their tradition rooted in the actions undertaken in Tripoli in 1805.

Thanks for the ask, and for sending in such a nice piece!

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

It's a fascinating story, actually, dating back to the First Barbary War. I could tell it myself, or recommend further reading, if you like.

Apology sword

Ah, a beautiful example of a mameluke-style saber.

This particular model is the United States Marine Corps officer's sword, officially adopted by the service in 1825 and maintained for nearly the entire time since.

The mameluke saber is a largely European blade, based on designs carried by the Ottoman Mamluks, from whom the name is drawn. However, the blade has more in common with European sabers than the kilij or shamshir that share its heritage, being far less curved.

These sabers became quite popular in the early-to-mid 19th century, with every power from the British Royal Navy to Napoleonic France giving them their day in the sun, however, the USMC has a special affinity for them, owing to their tradition rooted in the actions undertaken in Tripoli in 1805.

Thanks for the ask, and for sending in such a nice piece!

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Apology sword

Ah, a beautiful example of a mameluke-style saber.

This particular model is the United States Marine Corps officer's sword, officially adopted by the service in 1825 and maintained for nearly the entire time since.

The mameluke saber is a largely European blade, based on designs carried by the Ottoman Mamluks, from whom the name is drawn. However, the blade has more in common with European sabers than the kilij or shamshir that share its heritage, being far less curved.

These sabers became quite popular in the early-to-mid 19th century, with every power from the British Royal Navy to Napoleonic France giving them their day in the sun, however, the USMC has a special affinity for them, owing to their tradition rooted in the actions undertaken in Tripoli in 1805.

Thanks for the ask, and for sending in such a nice piece!

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

My dad’s fuck-ass homemade katana. Blade was made in a friend’s garage, the handle is duck tape wrapped around wire wrapped around the blade’s tang, and the hand guard is the only thing that might be professionally made.

Also it’s one-handed. You might say that makes it something other than a katana, but that’s what makes it fuck-ass

(For reference, the following images are the "fuck ass homemade katana" in question, sent in a separate ask.)

Whoo boy. Where to begin.

First off, I would like to congratulate you on your pre-empting of my pedantry, for the length and one-handedness of this blade do, in fact, put it closer to what I would call a wakazashi, instead of a katana. However, to be frank, that is far from the main concern with this weapon.

While I cannot speak to the quality nor the temper of the steel without having either more information or the blade in my hands, I'm rather disturbed by just how competently made it seems to be, despite being forged in a garage.

The problem, to my eyes, lies in the hilt. Duct tape and wire, while certainly being an... expedient solution, are not ideal materials for maintaining a proper grip, especially in one hand. (Which is the purpose, I would imagine, for the massive bulb at the hilt's end.)

However, perhaps most baffling of all to me, is the fact that the tsuba is professionally-made. Why? Why not the rest? Surely, having a tsuba custom-made is more expensive than buying proper grip materials, unless it was scavenged from another blade, which raises its own separate host of questions.

Regardless, thank you for the ask, and give your father my compliments on his work, if you are able, even if I clearly do not understand his swordsmithing genius.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Double-whammy question.

1) Favorite depiction of "vibroblade" style swords in fiction?

2) Are vibroblade style weapons at all remotely feasible IRL? (I get the answer is probably no, but finding out why would be cool).

My favorite example of a vibroblade would have to be the HF blades from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. They're simply so cool, and hit all the right visceral action buttons for my brain.

As for the realism of vibroblades, what if I were to tell you that they already exist, after a fashion :3 ?

These oscillating cutters, which have many uses in the crafts and trades, are the closest thing we currently have to vibroblades, and to be frank? They do a pretty good job.

However, they're also likely to be as close to a vibroblade as we ever get. For a durability and longevity, sword steel needs to be flexible and springy, able to bend and reform on its own. However, with a vibrating motor, such a blade would simply be wobbling all around like that pink rubber "back massager" in a shoebox under your mother's bed.

To maintain its shape and usefulness under that kind of vibration, the blade would need to be incredibly hard and brittle, to a degree that makes it possible that the blade would snap under its own vibratory force, and it would definitely snap under the kind of force exerted on a blade during a swordfight.

Thanks for the ask!

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Coolest sword in fantasy?

Coolest sword in sci-fi?

(Infodump is always welcome)

Coolest Sword in Fantasy?

That's a hard one. I'm a big fan of Andúril, which was once Narsil, blade of Elendil, father of Isildur, who cut the one ring from Sauron's hand. I'm also a big fan of Devil May Cry's Yamato, the katana which can cut through anything, up to and including time and space. (I actually have replicas of both of these blades :3)

As far as Sci-Fi swords, I'd be loathe not to mention the Lightsaber, the energy blade that is neither made of light nor a saber. I'm also a big fan of the Energy Sword from Halo and the Power Sword from Warhammer 40k.

However, I think my favorite sword in all of sci-fi has to be Jetstream Sam's HF Murasama from Metal Gear Rising: Revengence. While it's gun-sheath launching system is ridiculous and infeasible, it's also cool as all hell.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Thoughts on whatever this type of sword is called?

Generally, rope-based edged weapons are a poor idea. This is because, as the name might suggest, they rely heavily on careful edge alignment, something difficult to achieve with a flailing piece of metal on the end of a rope.

However, there is one sword in history that springs to mind, that I can think to compare it to: the Indian Urumi, or Chuttuval.

These incredibly long, flexible blades, developed in southern India somewhere from 100 BCE to 250 CE, are some of the strangest weapons out there, sitting somewhere between a whip and a sword and incorporating techniques of both.

It was meant to be worn wrapped around the waist, as a sort of concealed weapon. It is an incredibly difficult weapon and usually among the last weapons introduced in the classic study of Indian martial arts due to this fact. While it's unpredictability and flexible nature make it incredibly dangerous to contend with, it's flexible nature can make it just as dangerous (if not more) to the user, in the hands of an inexperienced wielder.

Thanks for the ask!

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

This is a fantastic joke, but there's another layer that makes it even funnier.

In most schools of swordsmanship, you are supposed to keep a loose focus on your opponent's torso, so as to make yourself less vulnerable to feints, and better predict their movements. And assumedly, both parties in the duel know this.

So, with that in mind, it really sounds like the speaker just wanted an excuse to tell her rival to play with her tits.

[holds up one hand to signal a pause in our impassioned duel] look i can see you staring at my chest okay? you're making this weird. if you can't keep your eyes off of my huge tits then at least grab them and use them against me like the huge soft warm bouncy weak spots that they are

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Why is it so hard to teach a princess to fence?

Cause she won't quit fingering the guard.

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

Feel like I'm being specifically called out here.

But, I'd like to do you one better. I'm going to find and watch the original video, and give my own opinion, instead of taking an out-of-context video thumbnail and running with it. I shall return.

love when weapons YouTubers get deep into the weeds and they start calling a specific year of a specific type of sword that only other weapons YouTubers know about "overrated".

[i-id-swords-in-posts]

There are actually a few interesting benefits to the design.

Firstly, the wavy shape dispels the impact of energy better, potentially making the vibration of a parry more unpleasant for an opponent as well as increasing the blade's overall durability and longevity.

Next, it creates messier, wider wound channels in the thrust, making wounds harder to treat and more likely to do hellacious internal damage. (Remember, in line formations, greatswords are all about pointwork and thrusts, so this is more of a benefit than it seems.)

Thirdly, the waves can act to increase the bind on an enemy's blade, making it easier to control, thanks to the angled edge working to "catch" their attacks.

However, their main advantage was a much simpler one: they looked totally badass. The Landsknechte of Germany were very fond of ostentatious clothing and equipment, symbols of status, skill, and wealth, including fanciful blades like the flammerschwert.