2 Hander Testing

[BlackAxe3001]

Now, I've never used a sword, one or two handed. But I did use axes of almost all sizes - from small, meat chopping ones to the large tree felling variety ; and various big hammers. Seeing that in M2TW there are more axe/hammer two-handers than swords, I think my experience is rellevant.
As a matter of fact, your post (and my ever-growing belly) prompted me to remove my fat lazy arse from in front the computer, go outside and do some real-life tests with various implements I could find around, both to satisfy my curiosity and to get some much needed exercise. I could post the results, if anyone cares...

I would be interested in your results. What did you find out?

[Ars Moriendi]

I would be interested in your results. What did you find out?

Ok then, here it is :

First, the tools o' destruction :



Test method : I tried to see how many hits I could apply within 20 seconds, swinging as fast as I could. Smaller axes were used one-handed, the bigger one (no.3) and the hammer - two handed.

Note - the weights listed below are approximative, as I don't have a way to measure them exactly. They're pretty accurate, though, as I compared the tools with different household items the weights of which were known.


1. Small meat axe - one handed. Weight 0.4-0.5 kg (~1 lb). Length 32 cm. Speed 25-30 hits in 20 seconds, avg. 1.4 hits/sec.
This one is small but easy to use, and I think it would make an excellent weapon versus not too heavily armoured opponents.

2. Small wood axe - one handed. Weight 0.9-1.1 kg (~2 lbs). Length 47 cm. Speed 19-24 hits in 20 seconds, avg. 1.1 hits/sec.
I think this is about the right size for a one handed battle axe.

3. Big wood axe - two handed. Weight 3-3.5 kg (~7 lbs). Length 91 cm. Speed 12-14 hits in 20 seconds, avg. 0.65 hits/sec.
Probably accurate enough a representation of a two-handed battle axe, although those seem to usually have longer handles and wider heads.

3. Heavy hammer - two handed. Weight 11-13 kg (~26 lbs). Length 87 cm. Speed 6-8 hits in 20 seconds, avg. 0.35 hits/sec.
Much too heavy for a weapon, I included it for comparison only.


A big issue was how long you can actually swing such weapons. With no.1, I felt like I could hack forever. No.2 got my hand somewhat tired in 20 seconds. With no.3 I definitely needed some rest after testing. With the hammer, well, I nearly fainted after 2 test runs.

Finally, as you've probably guessed, I'm not any kind of athlete. I'm also below average in size and strength. There's no doubt a trained medieval soldier would go at it much faster & longer than me. But this is hardly rellevant for the purpose of this test, which wasn't to see the absolute speed of the weapons, but their relative "rate of fire".

[gardibolt]

I have a well-balanced two-handed sword, and while the thing is very heavy, once you have it up and poised it swings quite easily; the momentum it generates is substantial. I doubt you'd want to swing it all day though.

[Musashi]

Yes but if you look at those tests, you'll see the difference is not huge. If you look at the standard 2h axe animation in play, they are easily 10 times slower than even two handed sword units. They're that bad.