Polearms (AEG)

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==Polearms==
Also called staff weapons, polearms are defined as hafted weapons—edged weapons mounted on a short handle or on a longer shaft wielded with two hands. The shafts are usually made of wood, though metal shafts sometimes exist.
An alternate term for polearm is pollaxe, which is used to describe any weapon which has a metal head in a combination of axe, beak, or hammer, mounted on a pole ranging four to six feet in length. Poll is the contemporary word for a steel head mounted on a staff, and the term should not be confused with "poleaxe."
Though descriptions of the various polearm types follow, there are certain characteristics common with all pole weapons, as outlined here.
Polearms are easy to make and are used often by peasants and common foot soldiers. The polearm is a great equalizer for these troops, who often must fight armored men on horseback. A polearm gives the wielder a long reach without exposing himself to the swing of a sword. Setting polearms to receive a charge grants the wielders an initiative bonus.
A primary use of the polearm is to allow warriors in the second rank to attack over the shoulders of the front rank. Often times, a fighter with a hand weapon and shield will team up with one using a pole arm, and they will fight as a coordinated unit.
Polearms that have special attachments to topple mounted targets have a base 20% chance of success.
Special optional rules for implementing polearm tactics may be found in the Combat chapter in The Complete Fighter's Handbook.
Gnolls and hobgoblins make it a point to carry polearms often. A band of such creatures encountered carrying polearms will be knowledgeable in polearm tactics. Orcs favor halberds, pikes, and glaives.
While the Master Weapons Chart at the end of this chapter shows which polearms cause extra damage when set to receive a charge, any polearm can be used to receive a charge regardless of whether it causes extra damage.
The Real Way To Use A Polearm
: "Alright, listen up, for I am only going to say this once. I grow weary of seeing groups of bumbling amateurs running around with polearms, each person with a different type. One uses his halberd, another uses a pike, still another has a guisarme-voulge, and he cannot even pronounce it, let alone use it! This is ridiculous. If you are going to use a polearm, use it correctly! Here's how.
: "First of all, for the gods' sake, try to get some idea of where your group is going. Are you going to the jungle or a dense forest? You are? Then why buy a polearm, you fool!? You will have no room to wield it, and more often than not you'll wind up poking your comrade's eye out. Make sure that the terrain suits the weapon.
: "Next, once you know that the destination justifies a polearm, each person should get the same type of polearm. The weapons vary in the speed with which they can be swung and the amount of space needed to wield the things. Different polearms complicate what should be a simple operation.
: "When you see an enemy charging at you, have all the polearm bearers line up in the front row, with weapons set to receive the charge. In order to set for a charge, the wielder should stand sideways, leaning forward so the left shoulder faces the oncoming foe. The polearm should be set at an angle, with the head pointing away from the ground, facing up at the enemy. The end of the handle should rest against the instep of the right foot. Both hands hold the pole firmly. You are now ready to receive a charge.
: "Once the enemy impales himself on the blades, you cannot just pull out the staff weapon and begin hitting the creature. Your non-polearm-wielding comrades behind you should begin throwing spells, hurling missiles, spears, whatever, at the impaled foes. Try your best to keep the enemy on the blade, and out of your reach.
: "Now that's the way to use a polearm! It is a team effort that needs to be practiced often. Remember this, and perhaps it will save your life!"
:: — Fiona the Ranger, Daughter of Dierdre
==Awl Pike==
Also known just as a "pike" and a Morris pike (corruption of Moorish), this is an infantry spear ranging 16 to 22 feet in length. Awl heads are usually leaf- or lozenge- shaped. The pole is made of a strong wood, such as ash. Many pike heads are made with two tongues of steel, nailed down the sides of the shaft in order to prevent the head from getting hacked off. The grip is often bound with cloth and the butt capped in steel to prevent the shaft from splitting. The awl pike has the dubious distinction of being the slowest polearm available. Add to this its mediocre damage against man-sized opponents, and one is left with a weapon of questionable value, except when used en masse on the battlefield.
==Bardiche==
The word bardiche is the corrupted spelling of berdysh. The berdysh (Russian term) is in effect an elongated battleaxe with a large, narrow, curved axe head measuring 24 to 32 inches long, mounted on a pole five to eight feet long.
The upper part of the head can be used for thrusting, while the lower part is in the form of a langet. A langet is an iron strap used to increase the strength of the head and protect the most exposed part of the weapon from blows.
Berdysh require more room to wield than a pike or a spear, but the weapon has a unique function: it can be used as a gun rest. The smaller berdysh have two rings for attaching to a shoulder strap. This arrangement is popular among horsemen.
==Bec de Corbin==
Also called the bec de faucon, the names mean "crow's beak" and "falcon's beak" respectively. This pole weapon has a hook much like a bird's beak and is ideal for cutting open armor like some great can opener. The weapon also has a hammer or axe side that delivers a solid hit. This is a highly specialized weapon, designed for the purpose of cutting armor then striking the now unarmored victim with the other side of the weapon. The pole shaft is eight feet long.
==Bill-Guisarme==
Also known simply as a "bill," this weapon is derived from an agricultural tool, the bill hook. Throughout its years of use, the bill's head went through many changes. Its most common head form is a sharp spike with a sturdy hook whose inside and outside edges were sharpened, and a cutting blade reminiscent of a cleaver. The pole length ranges around eight feet.
==Fauchard==
Developed from the common agricultural sickle or scythe, the fauchard consists of a long, curving blade with a large, pointed head and a fluke (a small, curved hook found on many polearms). The head is mounted on a wooden pole about eight feet long. Peasants can often change scythes into fauchards.
The fauchard is classified as a glaive. It is not very good as a thrusting weapon, but is used mainly as a slashing weapon. It fulfils the need for a weapon that puts some distance between the wielder and his enemy.
Since the fauchard is not an instrument designed foremost as a weapon but rather a farm tool adapted for war, it is inefficient as a weapon of war, being rather bulky and needing a large area to be used properly.
==Fauchard-Fork==
This term denotes a fauchard with the fluke attached. The fluke was added in order to improve the weapon's thrusting capability, but the effort was fruitless. It is still a bulky weapon, requiring much space to be wielded effectively.
==Glaive==
The glaive is a pole weapon with a large head shaped like a knife or a sword mounted on an eight- to ten-foot long shaft. The blade usually turns outward in order to increase the cutting area. Some glaives are fitted with flukes. Overall, the glaive's damage potential is not spectacular, but its long reach makes up for this. It effectively takes a normal sword blade and gives it a great reach.
==Glaive-Guisarme==
This term describes a glaive with a fluke mounted on the back of the blade. It is slower and heavier than a glaive, and its potential damage is nothing noteworthy.
==Guisarme==
Also called the gisarme or the giserne, the guisarme is an elaborately curved blade, much like the crescent blade of an axe, attached to a six-foot long staff. Thrusting spikes are often attached to the top of the shaft. The guisarme is supposed to have come from the farmer's pruning hook. The weapon may have contributed to the development of the berdysh and the halberd.
==Guisarme-Voulge==
This term describes the guisarme in its later stages, with a curved axe-head. It features a back spike, the fluke, for punching through armor, and the blade's end tapers for thrusting attacks. Often, the fluke is replaced with a sharp hook for use in dismounting riders. It is a slower weapon than the plain guisarme but causes comparable damage.
==Halberd==
By far the oldest and most often used polearm, the halberd consists of a cleaverlike axe blade mounted on a staff averaging six feet in length. The axe blade is balanced at the rear with a fluke, and surmounted by a sharp spike, usually of quadrangular design. The fluke is sometimes replaced by a hook used to dismount cavalry. A halberd can be best described as a cross between a spear and an axe.
Though a halberd's main function is to dismount cavalry, it may also be employed as a thrusting weapon and a cutting weapon. It is not a fast weapon, even compared to other polearms. Still, it does more damage to a man-sized opponent than all other polearms.
==Hook-Fauchard==
Like the fauchard-fork, the hook-fauchard is another attempt to improve the fauchard.
This weapon has a hook fitted on the blade's back. The hook is used to dismount cavalry. Like its predecessors, it was not a very effective weapon. Its damage potential is horrible compared to the fauchards that it was supposed to improve upon, and it is slower than the original fauchard.
==Lucern Hammer==
The lucern hammer is a hammerhead with a spike at its rear, mounted on a long pole, reaching as much as ten feet in length. In some cases, the end is fitted with a spike to keep enemy soldiers at bay. It is one of the heavier pole weapons and is rather slow. The entire weapon is usually made of steel, including the pole, and often it is decorated with carvings and precious metal gilding.
==Military Fork==
The military fork is the warrior's version of a simple agricultural farming tool. The head consists of two parallel spikes, often fitted with hooks for pulling horsemen off their mounts. Certain versions of the fork have a blade mounted just below the spikes. The wooden staff is about seven feet long.
Forks are useful not only as thrusting weapons, but as tools for climbing the defender's ramparts, setting up ladders, and hoisting baskets of supplies.
==Partisan==
The partisan (alternatively spelled "partizan") is a staff weapon consisting of a long, tapering, double-edged spear blade with two diagonally-set flukes at the base. The shaft is about eight feet long. The partisan's flukes may be used to catch and break opponents' weapons, as well as to inflict extra damage. Partisan heads are large enough to allow engraving and ornamentation.
==Ranseur==
Also known as the rancoon and the rawcon, the ranseur resembles a partisan, except that the ranseur's flukes are longer, resulting in a three-pronged head. The flukes are, however, shorter than the middle blade. Partisans are sturdier than ranseurs. The three prongs are large enough to puncture armor or trap a weapon and disarm the opponent (considered a Called Shot, -4 to hit, see Combat chapter of The Complete Fighter's Handbook).
==Spetum==
Spetums are similar to ranseurs, except that the side blades sometimes angle backward, increasing the damage when the blade is pulled out of a wound. When the weapon is pulled out of a victim, he suffers an additional 1d2 hit points of damage due to the side blades. The spetum's shaft is eight feet long.
==Voulge==
Also called the vouge and the Lochaber axe, this weapon is a large, long blade, narrowing to a spike at the top, with a hook-shaped fluke at the blade's rear. The staff is eight feet long. Though it is a simple weapon to make, this advantage is offset by the fact that it is one of the slowest polearms available.
: "Taken as an entire weapon group, polearms are a useful weapon especially in an outdoor setting. Their advantages include a good reach, excellent defensive capability, and the ability to knock opponents off their mounts. Among the drawbacks of polearms as a whole are the amount of room needed to wield them, their diminished usefulness in close-quarters melee, their overall slowness, and their encumbrance. Also, with so many polearm types to choose from, it is unlikely that a group of adventurers all have the same weapon or that everyone in the group will want a polearm of any sort in the first place.
: Polearms are more effective if several people have them; a single adventurer wielding a halberd is not going to stop a row of four charging orcs. Remember the advice given earlier and try to co-ordinate polearm choices before going off to adventure."
: — Fiona, Daughter of Dierdre
The sarisa, a Macedonian infantry spear, was the ancestor of the pike. The Swiss rediscovered the idea of mounting a spear head on a very long pole, and it became so popular that they adopted the pike as their national weapon in the 15th century. Their prowess with the pike, not only as a defensive weapon but as an offensive one, prompted other European nations to adopt it. The pike remained in use until the end of the 17th century, when muskets and bayonets made the long spears obsolete.
The berdysh were created by the Russians and used by Muscovite infantry during the 16th and 17th centuries. They were also used in Scandinavia and eastern Europe.
The bec de corbin (and faucon) was used by the upper classes during the Late Middle Ages and early Renaissance. The terms are French, but the weapons were so named by English writers!
The bill was a popular weapon with the English, and, along with the halberd, remained in use longer than all other polearms, well into the early 17th century. The English bills had a shorter shaft length, usually around four feet, and were rather tough.
The glaive (derived from the Latin gladius, meaning "sword") blade increased in size over the years until it was big enough to have a nation's or ruler's coat of arms engraved upon it. It was often carried in parades. Glaives were introduced in the 14th century and favored by the French. The blade is said to resemble a large bread knife. The 16th century Italians and Germans favored the glaive as a palace guard weapon.
The guisarme was used extensively between the 12th and 17th centuries.
Halberds were introduced sometime between the 6th and 9th centuries AD, when foot soldiers of Northern Europe mounted their swords, called scramasax, on poles. The Swiss refined this weapon and wielded it with devastating skill. In fact, halberds were known to split a man's head from pate to jaw, armor notwithstanding! The halberd got its name during the first primitive versions made by the Swiss.
The word halberd comes from the German words halm (staff), and barte (axe).
Primitive halberds had a wide blade with a straight cutting edge. The staff fit through two sockets in the back of the blade. This design was probably inspired by the guisarme. By the end of the 15th century, the halberd was modified in order to increase its effectiveness. This is the halberd type most often referred to when using the term. The primitive halberds were soon referred to as the Swiss vouge (voulge). Like most polearms, the halberd fell into decline with the introduction of firearms.
Confusion often exists whether a lucern hammer is a hammer. It is safe to say yes, it is a hammer, and is alternately called a war hammer. A short-handled version of the lucern hammer was used by mounted troops as early as the mid-13th century. It is longer than the weapon most adventurers call a war hammer and is used mainly by massed units on the battlefield. The lucern hammer gets its name from the Swiss city of Lucerne, whose armories were well-stocked with the weapon, so much so that scholars named them after the city.
Military forks are descended from farmer's pitchforks, though the former's spikes were straight as opposed to the curved spikes of the latter. This weapon appeared frequently during the Crusades and peasant revolts from the 15th to 19th centuries. In 1920, Polish peasants used forks to fight off Soviet troops attacking Warsaw.
Partisans are a derivative of the langdebeve, a broad-bladed spear. The name partisan came from the people who wielded it, the partisans, in late 15th century France and Italy. After its retirement as a weapon of war, partisans continued to be used as ceremonial weapons in royal courts. In fact, the Swiss Guards of the Vatican and the Yeomen of the Guard at the Tower of London still use partisans at state occasions or when in full dress.
The term voulge has been used to describe many types of polearms, thus its true meaning is obscure. A number of texts associate the voulge with the English bill, the French glaive, and the Swiss vouge, the latter of which is the accepted voulge form. The lochaber axe is a Scottish polearm used in the 16th to 18th centuries, most likely descended from the gisarme.
==Trident==
A trident is a long pole measuring four to eight feet with a metal, triple-bladed fork on one end. It is not used as a weapon by professional armies, but has seen some limited use from peasant guerrillas. The trident is normally a tool used for fishing, with some limited uses as an agricultural or hunting tool. It is a two-handed weapon.
Several aquatic races, such as locathah, mermen, sahuagin, and tritons, use tridents. They realize the versatility of the trident, since it is effective as both a fishing tool and a weapon.