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Spiral knights cutter6/7/2023 ![]() Staff-weapons in Medieval or Renaissance England were lumped together under the generic term "staves" but when dealing with them in detail we are faced with terminological difficulty. In the words of the arms expert Ewart Oakeshott, As well, all polearms developed from three early tools (the axe, the scythe, and the knife) and one weapon, the spear. For example, the word "halberd" is also used to translate the Chinese ji and also a range of medieval Scandinavian weapons as described in sagas, such as the atgeir. This can be due to a number of factors, including uncertainty in original descriptions, changes in weapons or nomenclature through time, mistranslation of terms, and the well-meaning inventiveness of later experts. The classification of polearms can be difficult, and European weapon classifications in particular can be confusing. Chinese martial arts in particular have preserved a wide variety of weapons and techniques. Polearms in modern times are largely constrained to ceremonial military units such as the Papal Swiss Guard or Yeomen of the Guard, or traditional martial arts. ![]() The Renaissance saw a plethora of varieties. Their range and impact force made them effective weapons against armoured warriors on horseback, unhorsing the opponent and to some extent effective to penetrate armour. Polearms were common weapons on post-classical battlefields of Asia and Europe. Bills, picks, dane axes, spears, glaives, guandaos, pudaos, poleaxes, halberds, harpoons, sovnyas, tridents, naginatas, bardiches, war scythes, and lances are varieties of polearms. ![]() Because of their versatility, high effectiveness and low cost, there were many variants of polearm, which were much-used weapons on the battlefield. The hook on weapons such as the halberd was used for pulling or grappling tactics, especially against horsemen. Polearms can be divided into three broad categories: those designed for extended reach and thrusting tactics used in pike square or phalanx combat those designed to increase leverage (due to hands moving freely on a pole) to maximize angular force (swinging tactics) against cavalry and those designed for throwing tactics used in skirmish line combat. This made polearms the favoured weapon of peasant levies and peasant rebellions the world over. The cost of training was comparatively low, since these conscripted farmers had spent most of their lives using these "weapons" in the fields. When belligerents in warfare had a poorer class who could not pay for dedicated military weapons, they would often appropriate tools as cheap weapons. Because many polearms were adapted from agricultural implements or other fairly abundant tools, and contained relatively little metal, they were cheap to make and readily available. Polearms are predominantly melee weapons, with a subclass of spear-like designs fit for both thrusting and throwing. A polearm or pole weapon is a close combat weapon in which the main fighting part of the weapon is fitted to the end of a long shaft, typically of wood, extending the user's effective range and striking power.
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