Sabre

[Johannixx]

It seems sort of silly to make the sabre a bastard-sword-type weapon (martial two-handed, exotic single-handed). Personally, I've houseruled it to be a lighter scimitar, similar to how the arming sword is treated as a lighter broadsword.

Thus, the Sabre deals 1d8 damage, crits on an 18-20 for double damage, has an AP of 1 (like the arming sword, its AP is one less than the heavier version) and is finesseable.

What do you think?

 

[argo]

shrug

Its not unbalanced, so if you feel the need to fill the niche for a finesable, one handed martial weapon that does 1d8 18-20/2 then go for it. Of course you are giving up the niche of a one handed exotic weapon that deals 1d10 18-20/2. Do whatever seems like the best fit for your game, or even keep the saber as is and simply declare the scimitar to be finesseable, I doubt that would be unbalanced either.

 

[Johannixx]

It's not that I think it's unbalanced, per se, it's that I think a sabre is a light, one-handed slashing weapon similar to a scimitar, rather than a blade so large that it requires an EWP to wield it in one hand. A Germanic "Grosse Messer" or hand-and-a-half version of the falchion would serve that role a bit better.

 

[Anonymous]

The word sabre/saber has been used to describe soooo many different types of swords... everybody seems to have their own ideas about it.

I'm with you though, I think of a sabre as a lighter weapon typically.

The 1.5 handed curved sword is a good thing, though. Maybe call it a shamshir or a tulwar (even though those weren't typically wielded in two hands) just for purposes of differentiation.

 

[Yuan-Ti]

The word sabre/saber has been used to describe soooo many different types of swords... everybody seems to have their own ideas about it.
I'm with you though, I think of a sabre as a lighter weapon typically.

I think that's the issue. I couldn't find anything on the web, but I have this feeling that a Persian sabre was quite a bit heavier than the cavalry sabre we are used to from the 19th century -- the one used by Napoleonic forces and in the American Civil War.

 

[Mayhem]

Yeah, the sabre was, originally, a heavy, curved, cavalry sword, not the twee little thing associated with modern fencing.

 

[Johannixx]

I'm well aware that the historic sabre was quite a bit more substantial than the modern fencing 'sabre', just as the classical rapier was larger, heavier and longer than the modern fencing foil or epee. But even cavalry swords like the British 1796 Light Cavalry Sabre, patterned after the Indian tulwar swords, wasn't a two-handed weapon. The only two-handed or hand-and-a-half sabre I can think of would be a katana, and I think that would fit the Conan "Sabre" stats much better than a single-handed sabre.

 

[Anonymous]

The cavalry-sabre could actually be called the back-sword to avoid confusion. The early sabre's from the 9th sentury were quite different weapons from the 18th and 19th century sabres

An interesting and informative article on different swords can be found at
http://www.thearma.org/essays/thrusting_vs_cutting.html

Cheers,

-Jarkko

 

[Badelaire]

Ah, ARMA. That website is so great a resource for gaming it makes me weep to see it used here. Especially nice to see my handle showing up in the article (a "badelaire" is a French falchion-esque slashing sword).

I also recommend reading the article linked at the bottom of the "cut vs. thrust" article - the one on weapon weights. Even with the image of iron-thewed barbarians whippng around gigantic swords in my mind, it's good to see the Conan RPG avoiding 15-pound two-handers.

And anyone interested in reading some really good research material on Medieval swords can find Ewart Oakeshott's books worth their weight in gold. I have his "Archaeology of Weapons" and it is a treasure. He also has in print a series of short, informative books written with a slightly younger audience in mind (but still well worth it for older readers) called his Knight's series (A Knight and his Sword, a Knight and his Castle, etc.). These books are a great source of research material and are also quick, easy reads (these are not "Children's books" by any stretch).