Striking with the flat of the blade

[sjard]

Originally Posted by Nereidalbel

And if you want to end your opponent rightly, throw your pommel at him!

Sadly, that would only work in modern fights... sword pommels weren't screwed on, they were usually riveted on. Ie, the tang wasn't threaded, and was hammered flat over the pommel to hold it all in place tightly.

[Nereidalbel]

Originally Posted by sjard

Sadly, that would only work in modern fights... sword pommels weren't screwed on, they were usually riveted on. Ie, the tang wasn't threaded, and was hammered flat over the pommel to hold it all in place tightly.

You didn't see the video linked in response to my post, did you? Throwing your pommel at your opponent is listed in a handful of old manuals as a way to "end your opponent rightly."

[sjard]

Originally Posted by Nereidalbel

You didn't see the video linked in response to my post, did you? Throwing your pommel at your opponent is listed in a handful of old manuals as a way to "end your opponent rightly."

I did, thus the italicized Usually in my post. Non riveted pommels were quite rare.

[Nereidalbel]

Originally Posted by sjard

I did, thus the italicized Usually in my post. Non riveted pommels were quite rare.

And possibly intended for this specific action. Come to think of it, removing the pommel could expose a sharp piece of metal for some particularly lethal "pommel" strikes...

[sjard]

Originally Posted by Nereidalbel

And possibly intended for this specific action. Come to think of it, removing the pommel could expose a sharp piece of metal for some particularly lethal "pommel" strikes...

Not any worse than normal pommel strikes. Not to mention the general bad idea that you're likely to lose the rest of the furniture if you don't reattach it before using the weapon. Also if it's loose enough to remove, you have the danger of loose furniture which can cause the weapon to be more susceptible to breakage at the tang, etc.

[Prince Charon]

Originally Posted by sjard

I did, thus the italicized Usually in my post. Non riveted pommels were quite rare.

We don't actually know how rare they were, given the context of the Gladiatora fechtbuchen (if it were particulatly rare, one would expect them to say something about it). 'Uncommon' may be a more accurate term.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Polydamas

Someone who wants to bludgeon the undead should use the pommel or an actual mace or club.

Back-up mace weighs in at 3lbs, all warriors should carry one.

[Railstar]

Originally Posted by evileeyore

Back-up mace weighs in at 3lbs, all warriors should carry one.

Or if they still want to use their Broadsword skill, a light club.

[Donny Brook]

Originally Posted by Anders

So my players are about to go up against skeletons and they'll want to do crushing damage. Can they strike with the flat of the blade or the back of the axe to do this? I seem to remember something about this in Campaigns but I can't find it.

Realistically, cutting damage should be no worse than crushing damage against skeletons except that there's no reason to apply the cutting wounding modifier.

[Donny Brook]

Originally Posted by Joe

Does anyone else kind of feel as if this should attract a -1 penalty to skill, at least until bought off with a technique (or maybe just worked off, like a familiarity penalty) ?

In cases where you're trying not to cut a living opponent, I'd require a skill element to test for it. Perhaps a separate roll, or a requirement to exceed the normal hit target by a certain amount.