
Originally Posted by
Olaf The Great
I know that the idea with viking longswords was to hit the enemies shoulders REALLY hard, the sword didn't even have to be very sharp at all, just heavy enough to break bones and incapacitate the foe so you could stab them.
Eh, not really. "Dark Ages" period longswords in Europe (incl. the stuff the Vikings used - which were more often than not imports from continental Europe anyway) were actually by and large startlingly light things; often barely a kilogram in total. This was because armour wasn't terribly common around the time (and of relatively modest coverage when encountered, most of the time), and sheer speed and agility was thus preferred over raw cutting power. (And if you wanted that kind of chopping power, you could always grab an axe.) The increasing proliferation of armour during the Middle Ages duly resulted in design changes towards in part larger, heavier "mail-killer" blade forms, as did the general preference for longer cavalry swords that accompanied the increasing importance of heavy cavalry as the offensive arm.

Originally Posted by
Julius Augustus
I was also not aware that longswords could break your bones through your armor. I thought only axes, falcatas, etc. could do that.
*Anything* that develops a lot of impact energy and focuses it on a relatively narrow area can do that. Straight slashing swords aren't quite as good at generating this result as some other blade types (nevermind now tip-heavy "mass" weapons like axes, maces etc.), but a solid strike from one can nevertheless cause quite a bit of damage through many types of armour. A very focused deep bruise is functionally little different from an open gash, after all, doubly so as far as any bone unlucky enough to be in the way is concerned.
I find that the +1 bonus already in place is ineffective, for instance, the Galatian Kluddolon guys have only one more attack than comparable longsword units like the Botroas.

Code:
;39
type galatian infantry kluddolon
dictionary galatian_infantry_kluddolon ; Galatikoi Kluddolon
-----
stat_pri 6, 6, javelin, 47.3, 3, thrown, simple, piercing, spear, 10 ,1
stat_pri_attr prec, thrown
stat_sec 12, 6, no, 0, 0, melee, simple, slashing, sword, 0 ,0.1
stat_sec_attr no
Code:
;77
type celtic infantry botroas
dictionary celtic_infantry_botroas ; Botroas
-----
stat_pri 5, 8, javelin, 45, 2, thrown, simple, piercing, spear, 10 ,1
stat_pri_attr prec, thrown
stat_sec 10, 8, no, 0, 0, melee, blade, slashing, sword, 0 ,0.225
stat_sec_attr no
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