[Low-Tech] Material or quality

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Nah, there's probably some metallurgy issues involved (not that easy to make a long thin stabby thing that doesn't just break),

Yup. No rapiers in my 10th century Ärth setting. Some places actually have the metallurgy to make them (the equivalent of GURPS' TL4 in metallurgy and smithing, sometimes even TL5) but it hasn't happened yet.

That's also why their presence bothers me in D&D and in GURPS Dungeon Fantasy. I don't think metallurgy was contemplated. I don't think anybody remembered to ask "hey, can a medieval smith do a rapier?"