Pike Axe

[KevinJ]

Originally Posted by RBasler

OK, here's a question that has been bugging me for years: Exactly what is a "Pike axe"? I've checked the references in my library (including G.C Stone), I've exercised my Google-Fu, but I am coming up with a blank (well, not exactly blank: Google redirects to "Halberd.) Pikes were pikes, and when you've got something that long and skinny, adding extra weight at the tip for something like an axe blade is generally a bad idea.
There was the "Pole Axe", which was generally a longer, more axe-like halberd-ish weapon, The "Pick Axe", which is a tool, and the rather handy "Poll Axe", which was a shorter (~6" overall) halberd-ish weapon with a pronounced top spike and often had a broad hammer-head opposite the axe blade, and was usually used for armored single combat. CQB the the tin-can crowd.
What did Steve Jackson have in mind when he wrote "Pike Axe"?

Yet you are fine with Mechanician and Physicer instead of Mechanic and Physician. You should have heard how Steve explained Sha-ken vs Shuriken to me back in 1982.

[hcobb]

Originally Posted by KevinJ

Yet you are fine with Mechanician and Physicer instead of Mechanic and Physician. You should have heard how Steve explained Sha-ken vs Shuriken to me back in 1982.

You need to use shaken to not stir up a hornet's nest of darts.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaken...huriken/shaken

[KevinJ]

Originally Posted by hcobb

You need to use shaken to not stir up a hornet's nest of darts.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaken...huriken/shaken

Hey now, don't bring Darts of the Hornets nest into this discussion...

Pike Axe is just another 'close but no cigar' name for a class of weapons, not a specific historical weapon, hence the Cheese Shop parody. There are plenty of these throughout the game.

[RBasler]

Originally Posted by KevinJ

Yet you are fine with Mechanician and Physicer instead of Mechanic and Physician. You should have heard how Steve explained Sha-ken vs Shuriken to me back in 1982.

(Actually, I'm not - those are two of several name changes going into my own campaign...and shuriken are not even going to show up unless the party travels a long LOOONG way.)
I wasn't torqued off about the name itself so much as I was trying to understand what sort of a weapon he actually had in mind when he came up with that name - If I understand that, I can describe it to the players, I can guess what effects it might have, what other uses to which it might be put, what problems the players might encounter trying to use it in unconventional environments, etc. If all I have is an arbitrary name, a ST minimum, and a damage, I might as well be playing a computer game.

[KevinJ]

Originally Posted by RBasler

(Actually, I'm not - those are two of several name changes going into my own campaign...and shuriken are not even going to show up unless the party travels a long LOOONG way.)
I wasn't torqued off about the name itself so much as I was trying to understand what sort of a weapon he actually had in mind when he came up with that name - If I understand that, I can describe it to the players, I can guess what effects it might have, what other uses to which it might be put, what problems the players might encounter trying to use it in unconventional environments, etc. If all I have is an arbitrary name, a ST minimum, and a damage, I might as well be playing a computer game.

There is a sidebar text box that gives alternate names for weapons that fall into that category. Too lazy to look up the page number.

[RBasler]

Originally Posted by KevinJ

There is a sidebar text box that gives alternate names for weapons that fall into that category. Too lazy to look up the page number.

Page 111, thank you.
This actually makes things pretty clear: The "Pike Axe" is equated with the berdiche, glaive, poleaxe; while the halberd with the likes of the bec de corbin, the brandestock, and the godendag.
I'm going to take this to mean that BOTH "Pike Axe" and "Halberd" are misnomers, and what was intended was that weapons used in two hands with choppy, bashy, or pecky bits (to use Lindybeige's typology ;) and a length of under 6' (classic examples being the Pollaxe or the bec de corbin) fall under the heading of "halberds', while polearms of 7' or more are like the "Pike Axe."
The damages will need a bit of jiggering: why the "Battle Axe" - which I assume must be like the Dane Axe - is a 3D weapon, while the "Pike Axe", equated with the Berdiche, is only 2d+2, is puzzling. Oh well, this is the sort of hair-splitting that I find personally entertaining. :)

[Skarg]

Originally Posted by RBasler

Page 111, thank you.
This actually makes things pretty clear: The "Pike Axe" is equated with the berdiche, glaive, poleaxe; while the halberd with the likes of the bec de corbin, the brandestock, and the godendag.
I'm going to take this to mean that BOTH "Pike Axe" and "Halberd" are misnomers, and what was intended was that weapons used in two hands with choppy, bashy, or pecky bits (to use Lindybeige's typology ;) and a length of under 6' (classic examples being the Pollaxe or the bec de corbin) fall under the heading of "halberds', while polearms of 7' or more are like the "Pike Axe."
The damages will need a bit of jiggering: why the "Battle Axe" - which I assume must be like the Dane Axe - is a 3D weapon, while the "Pike Axe", equated with the Berdiche, is only 2d+2, is puzzling. Oh well, this is the sort of hair-splitting that I find personally entertaining. :)

Yes, the Battleaxe is a big 2-handed axe. The reason the Pikeaxe does only 2d+2 is because of the design pattern where polearms do 1 less point of damage than a sword or axe of the same min ST, but then get the various polearm advantages, so it's a trade-off proposition.

[KevinJ]

Originally Posted by RBasler

Page 111, thank you.
This actually makes things pretty clear: The "Pike Axe" is equated with the berdiche, glaive, poleaxe; while the halberd with the likes of the bec de corbin, the brandestock, and the godendag.
I'm going to take this to mean that BOTH "Pike Axe" and "Halberd" are misnomers, and what was intended was that weapons used in two hands with choppy, bashy, or pecky bits (to use Lindybeige's typology ;) and a length of under 6' (classic examples being the Pollaxe or the bec de corbin) fall under the heading of "halberds', while polearms of 7' or more are like the "Pike Axe."
The damages will need a bit of jiggering: why the "Battle Axe" - which I assume must be like the Dane Axe - is a 3D weapon, while the "Pike Axe", equated with the Berdiche, is only 2d+2, is puzzling. Oh well, this is the sort of hair-splitting that I find personally entertaining. :)

You forgot the stabby bit, which can be quite long. I watch Lloyds videos as well, very entertaining online influencer.

[KevinJ]

Originally Posted by RBasler

(Actually, I'm not - those are two of several name changes going into my own campaign...and shuriken are not even going to show up unless the party travels a long LOOONG way.)
I wasn't torqued off about the name itself so much as I was trying to understand what sort of a weapon he actually had in mind when he came up with that name - If I understand that, I can describe it to the players, I can guess what effects it might have, what other uses to which it might be put, what problems the players might encounter trying to use it in unconventional environments, etc. If all I have is an arbitrary name, a ST minimum, and a damage, I might as well be playing a computer game.

And I changed it to Artificer and Physician myself...