I wonder how often steel or iron knuckledusters were used. They would be simpler to make and therefore cheaper than a pair of gauntlets (no moving parts), while still providing reasonable hand protection. Meanwhile, you could punch with them if need be. It fact, there are even examples of spiked knuckledusters from Ancient Rome, although I'm not sure if they were ever used outside of the gladiatorial games.
Remind's of Saint Seya's Dragon and Cygnus bronze "cloths" (i.e. armor) that have small shields/bucklers as part of the design of the left gauntlets. I don't like that the center of those shields is in the middle of the forearm, but the general idea works as a basis.
For those curious, the D&D rule states: "This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you don’t get the buckler’s AC bonus for the rest of the round. " So, they have you take a -1 hit penalty. Fairly significant, but not crippling. More interestingly, you don't get an AC (armor class) bonus. So there is effectively no benefit in combat to doing this in D&D.
It‘s not DnD but the system I play treats all shields as strapped, probably to avoid the complication of having different times to get a shield combat ready. Maybe not having different rules for every shield was what the authors thought about when writing these rules?
Looks like 3,5e for me. Benefit of this tactics is quite big on high levels. If you use 2 weapons and have buckler in offhand you get -1 which is really small penalty. For it you can use 2 weapons and still get all the enchantments you have stacked in your magic mithral buckler. Other bonus you get if you don't have full action to flex all your attacks, e.g. you are closing distance to opponent, and you can do only one attack. You strike once with your main weapon, and get AC bonus from the shield. As for the particular combo of of buckler and 2 handed. I can see it working with any 1 handed weapon that can be used 2 handed for 1,5x STR bonus. Especially bastard sword.
If I'm not mistaken the D&D ruleset referred to was specifically the 3rd edition, where bucklers are erroneously depicted as tiny shields you strap to your forearm.
Yeah, I play Pathfinder which unfortunately inherited that same mistake. Here's the description of Pathfinder's buckler (which is almost identical to the D&D 3.5e version): "This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you lose the buckler’s AC bonus until your next turn. You can cast a spell with somatic components using your shield arm, but you lose the buckler’s AC bonus until your next turn. You can’t make a shield bash with a buckler." Pathfinder 2e didn't fix the mistake either: "This very small shield is a favorite of duelists and quick, lightly armored warriors. It’s typically made of steel and strapped to your forearm. You can Raise a Shield with your buckler as long as you have that hand free or are holding a light object that’s not a weapon in that hand."
@@Patrickwardt Aside from completely misunderstanding that bucklers are held rather than worn, that rule is actually quite reasonable. The only issue I see is that reloading a crossbow while holding a buckler seem quite difficult, but everything else sound reasonable.
@@Knoloaify Yeah, the actual rules are fairly decent for what it is depicted as, it's just not really a buckler. The rules would be pretty decent for an actual buckler as well if it wasn't for that last line. You can totally bash someone with an actual buckler, as you're then basically just punching someone with a chunk of metal.
Interestingly, my local HEMA school, The Chicago Swordplay Guild, has a couple people who have what they call rondell shield gloves, basically gloves with disk shields attached that are just big enough to cover their hands.
Outside of Europe but the Peruvian mochica city states of the early middle age that left us thousands of artworks show that their favored way of fighting was with a two handed club with a butt spike and using in their left hand a small strapped buckler, meaning their favorite way of fighting was two handed weapons with bucklers.
I see an armchair theoreticist n00b when I see one using four bucklers. Every battle hardened vet knows that you must protect head and groin with the 5th and 6th buckler.
@@Slaveknight_gael hey guys look at this filthy casual, I personally like to wear a full suit of armour comprised entirely out of 24 seperate bucklers, I also weild an axe with a sharpened bucker as the head
@@lukesheridan4623 What an inexperienced chump, I leave the house with no less than a hundred bucklers on me. All of them have sharpened edges so they can become frisbees of death.
Several years ago Paul Wagner of Stoccata showed in one of his videos a very small finger buckler on a thin strap that he used to protect his hand using a particular sword. Don't recall the name of the video or where he said the bucker was from, but IIRC he indicated it was based on a historical example from somewhere.
A friend of mine hung his kite shield from the gigeue and only used the first strap at the elbow junction. Then he used a pole weapon, having the shield covering the side opposite of the "hitty" side of his weapon. It was worth taking note
Thanks for the video Matt, I had often seen descriptions of users of the Sarissa also using a Pelta (usually strapped on the shoulder) this video helped me finally visualize what that might look like.
Lol, I and another person already answered that question. I adore that you actually made a video responding to it. Gauntlets would be more effective while reducing dexterity less. Bucklers defend by active defense more than cover in the manner of larger shields. Similarly for defending from missile fire, the compromise defense with the two-handed weapon would likely be less effective than dropping the polearm, drawing your sidearm, going in defending yourself with the shield as much as possible, and then engaging with a sword or such once in reach, rather than getting shot with more arrows due to half-committed defense with the shield.
I always assumed, in D&D a buckler was strapped to, say, the vambrace, leaving the hands free. Or like the irish guy in braveheart- it appeared that his buckler was strapped to his wrist or the back of his hand, rather than being a boss grip, thus leaving his hand more or less free. (though it's been quite some time since I've seen that)
Well, the Scottish targe was actually strapped, not boss grip, and also it was frequently the case that they carried a dirk in the same hand as the one holding the targe. Assuming that was meant anachronistically to be a targe. Either way, D&D clearly is not describing a boss grip held buckler.
D&D 3.5e description for buckler doesn't actually describe a buckler: "This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you don’t get the buckler’s AC bonus for the rest of the round. You can’t bash someone with a buckler." That is very common with DnD, the book describes a weapon and gives it a name that wasn't the name given to the weapon described historically.
Alternately, D&D 5e does describe a buckler as a buckler, but it no longer mentions the dual wielding thing: "A buckler is a small metal shield held in a fist grip. As it is not strapped, it can be donned or doffed as easily as drawing or stowing a weapon. Wielding a buckler increases your Armor Class by 1. You can benefit from only one shield at a time. If you are proficient with light armor and with the rapier, then you can wield this buckler with proficiency even if you are not otherwise proficient with shields." I am not really familiar with 4e, so if someone would butt in with a comment on that, I'd be interested to know. It's still nice to see that a buckler's a buckler in the latest edition, though.
@@MariusLatauskas I don't play 5e, but I tried looking for 5e rules on the buckler and couldn't find anything official. I only found something labeled homebrew (which did have the same text you just quoted). Is there an official source for it?
@@Patrickwardt By default 5e just has a single shield, same with B/X and OSR systems based on B/X (a lot of them). I prefer simple and vague rules much of the time, and always over rules that go into more detail but get it wrong. Those 5e buckler rules sound like someone's homebrew to be honest.
Instead of a buckler handle maybe a smal buckler size shield strapped in your forearm? I mean we have seen historical soldiers using strappd small shields and spear or bows
I've always wondered this as well, not because of D&D but I always pictured how cool it looks for a warrior to wield a greataxe and a small buckler to make up for the lack of handguard. Thank you for this video :)
The amount of metal and craftsmanship that goes into a buckler would be easier and cheaper as metal gloves (chain and/or plate) that would be superior in protecting your hands. I mean just think of the cost of crafting thin strips of metal that go around your finger, or rings of metal, compared to a 1ft+ circumference shield with grip, domed center, and any other features.
I have seen this done effectivly buckler + glave. The buckler was made with a flattened grip for this purpose and was held in the leading (left) hand. The fighter benefited from the extra hand protection while still having the flexibility to "pool queue" his weapon. Granted heavy duty gauntlets would have provided the same protection, but the game mechanics we played under gave an ingame bonus to blocking with a buckler. I would reckon bucklers being easier to produce than gauntlets, this might have been a viable weapon set in period too.
In pathfinder and d&d 3.5 a lot of people use a buckler whilst using two handed weapons. In those games the buckler is specifically the kind of buckler you just strap onto your forearm. The way it works in pathfinder is that you get a very small penalty to your attack rolls when doing so and you lose the shield bonus it gives to your armour class until your next turn so it's only really useful if you're attacked first or if enemy has ranged weapons. Also you can use bows and crossbows without penalty when carrying a buckler.
hi Matt I remember several documentaries Alexander the Great where they say the phalanxes, use a shield that was fastened to the under arm so they could use both hands
What about a lamp shield (with integrated gauntlet)? I can imagine that one of the attractions of this for city guards was: A. the ability to provide defensive capabilities; B. whilst also shining light into dark alleyways; C. whilst also keeping the hand free to grip a long pointy thing.
Guards are mostly an imaginary work of fiction in medieval settings. At night, almost everyone would be asleep and/or curfew in effect. A single guard posted in a tower would be able to see any light coming from anyone within miles, without having light themselves, and be able to ring an alarm bell or shout out if they saw anything - because anyone breaking curfew would be a stranger or up to no good - and no one would walk around without some kind of light. And without light pollution, you could see light all the way to the horizon (which would be longer distance if standing on a tall tower). In a huge city with advanced or magical lighting and a much more active night life, I can see guards becoming a real thing - like patrolling police in modern times. At this point, the entire city should be lit up well enough to see everywhere. If guards were being defeated or criminals succeeding due to dark alleys, the solution would simply be to install lighting to remove the darkness in the alley, rather than having the guards carry lanterns. But if Guards needed to carry lanterns, they could always put it on the ground in the dark alley before two-handing their weapon they carried in one-hand, even though guards would most likely carry only casual wielded weapons, not weapons of war, which means longswords or shorter spears at most lethal, but swords and clubs at least. One handed weapons either way, as longswords and spear equivalent lengths can be wielded with one hand, and lantern down with two. So most likely I can see them carrying Club+Lantern or at most aggressive Sword/Buckler + Lantern, but in a fight setting the Lantern down, throwing it at the criminal approaching them, or simply running with Sword+Lantern giving chase because they don't need a defensive buckler when the criminal is running away with their back to them. There's also always the option to simply not approach the criminal in dark alleys, but to give chase if they leave the dark alley. Siege them in the dark alley until reinforcements arrive to the other side. But if the dark alleys are a large area or go on for a long time, then installing lighting that is already in the city would be the answer. So yea, maybe in an underfunded or collapsing empire type of setting, where the lighting is bad bc society is falling apart economically, a lantern-buckler might be a great idea. 1. The guards would exist, bc the city is a renaissance/industrlial style world. 2. The city lighting would be modernized, but large swaths of darkness would exist without the ability to fix the problem. 3. The buckler and aggressive weapon (polearm or sword) would be very popular, as the falling economic results in more criminals and more violence on police. Thus the Buckler-Lantern would be a real thing of importance and popularity among police in such a setting.
Indian bucklers that people used to carry around in town is design to hold it with knifes or katar and they fit each others. Japan has a Tedate that is a small square wooden shield strap in the left hand to use with a two hand swords.
Shad did a video showing how you could also hang a shield from your shoulder using a strap and use a 2 handed weapon such as a spear. I believe this was also done by Macedonian phalanxes carrying pikes.
Indeed, in fact Macadonian reenactors have noted that the strap system required for the shield has the added effect of transferring a lot of the Sarissa's weight to the shoulder thus making it easier to wield.
As far as I'm aware, the most common way to combine two-handed weapons & shields involved a long spear or pike plus a strapped shield. It's possible pikers sometimes used center-gripped bucklers instead of strapped shields. This appears a fair amount in accounts, manuals, & artwork. Adam Breen 1618 manual shows the arrangement in some detail. Using a bow & shield together also shows up now & then. I don't know of any historical evidence for axe & buckler or similar. I'm glad you tried it out & let us know.
Excellent experimental archeology! Next you should answer the question of whether or not you can do all of this while wearing a shield on your back with two additional bucklers strapped to your knees. All while dressed as a Landsknecht.
3:22 Matt maybe you can grip with that type of buckler for the end of shaft of this daneaxe/other polearm. Even a little bit angled to the horizontal axis to shaft.
The falx would have been a good representation for this, as the falx or rhompia has been depicted used in such a way in certain video games, although it seems they weren't historically depicted that way at all. I suppose people who used such weapons just looked past the lack of protection, or accepted that they had less.
More that they were battlefield weapons, not side-arms or private carry implements, and others armed with shields next to you would take care of the defense for you. Also, such weapons use reach management as their primary defense, anyways. You need no shield from an attack that cannot reach you in the first place.
I do wish Matt had picked up his falx while he was doing this. Also it would be worth seeing the rainbow of Asian swords he's been gathering in this experiment. How would a katana or a dao handle, with the less complex grip and guard? Let's be naughty, let's consider weapons... out of context.
Its not really as useful as you'd think. The spear itself has reach and mobility which makes it a decent defensive tool. You don't need the weight of a buckler messing with it especially as both require weapon mobility to be be effective .
I'm with you. Sure, a spear is a long weapon, but the front hand is often halfway up the weapon. The distance from your front hand to the tip of the spear isn't much greater than the blade of a long sword, so I would certainly assume that hand is a great target for an opponent with a shorter weapon.
@@Robert399 Isn't armor kind of expensive and custom made? A spear is a cheap thing for footsoldiers and commoners, I've just always wondered why some kind of simple hand protection to go with it wasn't common and if that kind of thing was feasible.
Seems to me a flatter Dal (don't know enough to know if they exist)might work quite well to cover the forward hand on a spear for example? Another idea would be to grip the guige or some other strap of the shield to hold it out in front of you, and you could also let it fall back on the guige when you need the full use of the weapon? Similarily to how you would use certain Chinese Ai Pai, carried on a loop around the neck, and gripped in one hand with a small toggle at the end of a short cord to allow two handed weapon use.
When people talk about using a buckler with a 2-handed weapon, like in D&D or other RPG systems, I think they are usually imagining something more like a Macedonian or Thracian pelte. This would be slightly more akin to the larger shield that you try near the beginning of the video, the difference being that the Macedonian phalangite would have used another strap around their neck so as to completely free up their left hand. But as you suggested, the fact that they were using a pike changes the consideration a bit. However, I think you could design a similar small forearm mounted shield that wouldn't impede your left hand movement at all. The only problem becomes keeping the shield in position, and the phalingite neck strap solution wouldn't be practical if you are using a dane axe or a longsword. My mind goes to a sort of anchor-loop situation, with a rope or strap wrapping around your forearm with a loop for your thumb. Then you could design a shield which doesn't impact hand movement, with the downside that it doesn't protect your hand. At that point, though, the utility of the shield becomes questionable. Yeah, it could maybe block or deflect some stuff, but only very situationally. Anyway, point is that I don't think the D&D rules were written with the intention that someone would be holding a bar and an axe handle at the same time.
Speaking of shields on the back. I would love to hear your thougts on Mycenean and Minoan figure eight and tower type shields! As fas as i know they are believed to lack a handle and be worn on the back with a guige. Could you grip the guige to get the same effect you described with getting the cover from the shield when closing the distance? They look formidable in the artwork from the time, but its hard to actually tell what could be going on in terms of how to use such a thing...
I always was interested in one thing (simple thing really but always confused me) how does duel wielding works? I understand you use two (primary offence) weapons in both hands and fight and maybe defend with those weapons. However I never understood how it “works” like you use them as two separate things in fight or you try to synchronised them to make them as a one powerful weapon? Plus, which swords work the best in duel wielding, I know a small sword or rapier is a good sword two duel wield but often saw it duel wielding a dagger and sometimes a buckler (better question, can you consider a buckler a offence weapon or defence weapon?) but I’m not sure with other swords? So if you read this whole thing please consider doing video about it please :-)
I spar with 6 foot (rubber tipped) spears and 12" bucklers. We mainly hold the bucklers in or lead hand (off-hand) and only use them as we retreat after a failed attack -- but they work excellently for that! One thing I've wondered is if I could cut out a semi-circle about 45 degrees out on my (plastic) buckler to hold the lead end of the spear with. I can't afford to replace it right now if it ends up ruining it, so I haven't been brave enough yet to test it.
I love this, my “fantasy build” has two customised small shields with glove/ gauntlets fitted + forearm straps for security with dexterous grip capabilities, also more of a tapered tip or point off the fist of a shield so I can fantasise about using my Muay Thai and boxing 😂 Then I would also wield a Nagakiba for versatile combat with a longer reach, get in close in all parries and counter shots with the shields. Tldr, nerd who fights
I use my buckler with a one handed axe a one handed mace and a small war hammer with full plate armour. I like it because it's small and you can also get in some good hits with it . 👍
Great video Matt thank you for sharing this with us. If I remember correctly Razmasfar channel demonstrated using a bow and various weapons while holding a da. Round strapped domed shield. Curious if this was done in Europe also? Cheers!
I've played a bit of spear and rotella, sometimes I'll grip the spear 2-handed (Shield hand closer to the head, thumb towards me)- found it's good for leverage, plus the lead hand and arm are very safe.
The shastar vidiya people regularly hold a dagger with a dhal buckler (but those dhals aren't always as convex). I've even seen Nidar Singh hold a sword in a reverse grip behind a shield as a way of extending a small dhal downward to provide more extensive protection (in which case the sword is being used more like a parrying stave and the buckler is protecting the hand where it grips). Madu also sometimes have a shield built in (so they could be described as bucklers with weaponised handles - even though the hand protection apparently came later in their development). It is also interesting to note that some Indian axes have built in bars to protect one of the hands. So the picture is undoubtedly a bit complex. In many of the situations the smaller dhals are working more like what people commonly call 'finger bucklers'.
Obviously, to retain wrist dexterity, the grip must 'stand off' from the shield. A bit more like a kettle handle. In turn, this lets a weapon get in under the shield to injure the hand more easily.
A guy from my club is using daneaxe with a buckler but the buckler is strapped to his belt and front leg so he has a bit of cover there. But it's strapped on loosely so if he lose his axe he can pull it off and use it with his seax.
1 bit of information that may be usefull in this situation is that D&D bucklers are presumed to be strapped to the forearm like the first one shown in the video.
Two important distinctions to note regarding the source of the rule in question. 1. The description of the buckler item in D&D (and its common derivative games) is a small shield strapped to the forearm, which is not representative of a historically accurate buckler. 2. The rule also specifies that while an item can be used by tha hand of the arm the buckler is strapped to, including for the use of the a two handed weapon or item, the shield provides no benefit if the item is actively being used (the same round you swing such a weapon for example) and imposes a small penalty to non ranged attack rolls involving that hand. It's basically designed, though not required to be, a shield for archery based builds.
Messing around with my homemade spear, I've wondered a lot about hand protection. I wonder why you never see polearms that have guards of some sort about halfway down (or even a weapon with a sword blade & guard but a 1/2 pole in place of the grip...). Also, what about forearm shields with a notch or something to fit over the polearm? You can find pictures of modern riot shields like that to be used with a baton, but were there any historical examples and if not, why not?
Thank you for answering the most nerdiest questions! 🤗 It would be interesting why you think that ppl did not use eg. a dane axe in the real world like that if it could have been used with a shield.. ppl had shields and an interest in keeping their hands and for sure thought about it too.
Now this is not real life obviously but in Goblin Slayer , GS has his shield strapped to his arm , but the shield doesn't go past his knuckles and there are no straps that he is holding on to , everything is rigidly held onto his arm , leaving his hand completely free. He does use his other hand to use his weapons with two hands sometimes and also carry a torch or other things. I think like that , you can definitely use a two handed weapon effectively with a shield.
But still less effective than if he ditched the shield. It's not just a question of can you physically do the motions; it's about how quick and agile you can be with the weapon. Also (assuming it's buckler sized), you gain no meaningful protection by doing that. You can't use the shield as a shield if you're using that hand to control a weapon.
@@Robert399 i didn't say it made sense I just said it would work. Also , in the movie he uses the shield for a pretty sick tactic , I won't spoil it to you if you haven't watched it but he uses it in a way I never would've thought.
@@afinoxi Well it depends what you mean by "work". It's not totally infeasible but I would say that if you're adding complexity/expense *and* it's making things worse, it's not "working" (even if the result's not catastrophic) - it's strictly dominated by a simpler option.
Just wanted to add to this and say that if you count bows (Which you should, because it is a two handed weapon) into the equation, the separ actually can and was used in conjunction with the bow on horseback. You can imagine if you're a mounted Javanmardan and you were firing your bow on horseback, it would be much quicker to switch to your sword if you already had the buckler in your hand while you have the bow out. Just something to mention when taking about the strapped shields from the east, a lot of them had a much different strap setup than the one you showed in the video and were smaller better accommodating for this purpose. Cheers.
This and the spearmen+buckler made me wonder how quickly one can equip a buckler being carried to the side, or if it even can be carried to the side. The buckler would have 0 utility until the spear/bow is dropped and the sidearm is drawn, which results in a faster equip time. But is it fast enough to matter? Humans have two hands and could draw a sword and pull off a buckler at the same time - if the buckler can be easily pulled off the side?
A thought: treat bucklers (and maybe shields) like oversized Gauntlets. Following that concept, attach your gauntlet or glove to a buckler. I’d also add basket hilts to the pile as they’d all be mutually exclusive... 🤔
As far as the historical use, I know there are some manuscript images and at least 1 treatise that shows a bastard sword being used with a buckler. The mentality was probably related to why messers often had long grips.
In german language there is a proverb "etwas im Schilde führen" to carry something in ones shield. It is understood in a bad way, like "who knows what he might be up to"
I would say extensive modification but then you would "accidently" iterate designing gauntlets and bracers, even a sturdy bracer can function as protection, well in melee, not for arrows and such. But with a right decent size shield and correct hand placement it can work well, even then in ancient Greece (before gambison was entirely figured out), archers used shields solely to hold over their head to protect against incoming arrows.
Matt, I have a question for you. If you were in a trial by combat (in a fantasy setting) and you have to fight using two shields (round shields let's say), whay would be the best way of defeating your opponent if the rule is you cannot grab their weapon? Can you give some example techniques on how you'd use the shield to "parry and counter" essentially?
If you open up the handle, curl the edge so you don't cut yourself, then wedge the shaft into the handle. i guess you could also practice hand sliding with it
I recall there's precedent for Vikings wielding single-hand weapons while holding an extra axe with the shield hand, so it's seems to me that the biggest drawback is the hindrance on movement with a two-handed weapon. Tying those shoulders together, as you've mentioned elsewhere.
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Getting to the "Can two bucklers be used with a two handed weapon?" question... sign of a true professional.
Dual wielded shields :D
You could solve these problems with some modifications...but then you're basically just iterating towards designing a gauntlet.
You're not wrong about either of those.
Yep, but I'd imagine a small buckler strapped to your hand is way cheaper than a gauntlet.
It's called Rondels
I wonder how often steel or iron knuckledusters were used. They would be simpler to make and therefore cheaper than a pair of gauntlets (no moving parts), while still providing reasonable hand protection. Meanwhile, you could punch with them if need be. It fact, there are even examples of spiked knuckledusters from Ancient Rome, although I'm not sure if they were ever used outside of the gladiatorial games.
Remind's of Saint Seya's Dragon and Cygnus bronze "cloths" (i.e. armor) that have small shields/bucklers as part of the design of the left gauntlets. I don't like that the center of those shields is in the middle of the forearm, but the general idea works as a basis.
For those curious, the D&D rule states:
"This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you don’t get the buckler’s AC bonus for the rest of the round. "
So, they have you take a -1 hit penalty. Fairly significant, but not crippling. More interestingly, you don't get an AC (armor class) bonus. So there is effectively no benefit in combat to doing this in D&D.
You won't have to draw the shield using an action turn, I think. Can't remember very well
It‘s not DnD but the system I play treats all shields as strapped, probably to avoid the complication of having different times to get a shield combat ready. Maybe not having different rules for every shield was what the authors thought about when writing these rules?
What edition is this?
@@SpruceReduce8854 3.5
Looks like 3,5e for me.
Benefit of this tactics is quite big on high levels. If you use 2 weapons and have buckler in offhand you get -1 which is really small penalty. For it you can use 2 weapons and still get all the enchantments you have stacked in your magic mithral buckler. Other bonus you get if you don't have full action to flex all your attacks, e.g. you are closing distance to opponent, and you can do only one attack. You strike once with your main weapon, and get AC bonus from the shield.
As for the particular combo of of buckler and 2 handed. I can see it working with any 1 handed weapon that can be used 2 handed for 1,5x STR bonus. Especially bastard sword.
If I'm not mistaken the D&D ruleset referred to was specifically the 3rd edition, where bucklers are erroneously depicted as tiny shields you strap to your forearm.
Yeah, I play Pathfinder which unfortunately inherited that same mistake. Here's the description of Pathfinder's buckler (which is almost identical to the D&D 3.5e version): "This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you lose the buckler’s AC bonus until your next turn. You can cast a spell with somatic components using your shield arm, but you lose the buckler’s AC bonus until your next turn. You can’t make a shield bash with a buckler."
Pathfinder 2e didn't fix the mistake either: "This very small shield is a favorite of duelists and quick, lightly armored warriors. It’s typically made of steel and strapped to your forearm. You can Raise a Shield with your buckler as long as you have that hand free or are holding a light object that’s not a weapon in that hand."
@@Patrickwardt Aside from completely misunderstanding that bucklers are held rather than worn, that rule is actually quite reasonable. The only issue I see is that reloading a crossbow while holding a buckler seem quite difficult, but everything else sound reasonable.
@@Knoloaify Yeah, the actual rules are fairly decent for what it is depicted as, it's just not really a buckler. The rules would be pretty decent for an actual buckler as well if it wasn't for that last line. You can totally bash someone with an actual buckler, as you're then basically just punching someone with a chunk of metal.
@@Knoloaify Depends on the loading mechanism in question. It should be fine with a goat's foot lever.
@@Patrickwardt props to this guy; I was going to look up the rule in pathfinder as well.
Interestingly, my local HEMA school, The Chicago Swordplay Guild, has a couple people who have what they call rondell shield gloves, basically gloves with disk shields attached that are just big enough to cover their hands.
Rondel disks?
I've not been so concerned of Matt Easton hurting himself as I have been watching this video.
At one point the sword moved down much more quickly than I expected and I was like "DANG DID MATT JUST CUT HIMSELF BECAUSE OF THE AMOUNT OF BUCKLERS?"
Bucklers are like Cow Bells...... and you can never have too much Cow Bell.
I look forward to the episode on a +1 Mace.
I love it. Need More cow bells
Outside of Europe but the Peruvian mochica city states of the early middle age that left us thousands of artworks show that their favored way of fighting was with a two handed club with a butt spike and using in their left hand a small strapped buckler, meaning their favorite way of fighting was two handed weapons with bucklers.
"im drowning in shields."
Shad would be proud.
"I don't know if that's in the D&D rule book"
I have a feeling there'll be homebrew rules very soon after this
It's very much a thing in earlier editions like 3.5, actually. 2nd buckler wouldn't do anything for you, though.
@@naruyashan That rules goes all the way back to Chainmail. It came from Gary and his friends not understanding how weapons and armor work.
I only ever use four bucklers- One on each hand, and one on each foot. I feel naked without them.
I see an armchair theoreticist n00b when I see one using four bucklers. Every battle hardened vet knows that you must protect head and groin with the 5th and 6th buckler.
@@Slaveknight_gael hey guys look at this filthy casual, I personally like to wear a full suit of armour comprised entirely out of 24 seperate bucklers, I also weild an axe with a sharpened bucker as the head
@@lukesheridan4623 What an inexperienced chump, I leave the house with no less than a hundred bucklers on me. All of them have sharpened edges so they can become frisbees of death.
Where's the fifth one?
Several years ago Paul Wagner of Stoccata showed in one of his videos a very small finger buckler on a thin strap that he used to protect his hand using a particular sword. Don't recall the name of the video or where he said the bucker was from, but IIRC he indicated it was based on a historical example from somewhere.
that sounds interesting . have you remembered yet ?
Bad ending: he forgor
A friend of mine hung his kite shield from the gigeue and only used the first strap at the elbow junction. Then he used a pole weapon, having the shield covering the side opposite of the "hitty" side of his weapon. It was worth taking note
Sounds an awful lot like how Macedonean phalanxes worked in the hellenistic period
@@lindseyfrancesco4 Yes, but consider that the Aspis was designed to be held in that way and not, say, a kite shield. but it works nonetheless
“I can’t quite get my hand around that shaft to hold it.” If I had a nickel for every time I heard that...
Sadly, I’m kidding.
"It's kind of hurting my hand, to be honest."
Okay. Now you're just bragging.
"My hand is struggling to keep a grip on the bottom end."
CONTEXT!
New pickup line: Hey baby, could you try holding this buckler and Dane axe and let me know how your hand feels?
Thanks for the video Matt, I had often seen descriptions of users of the Sarissa also using a Pelta (usually strapped on the shoulder) this video helped me finally visualize what that might look like.
Love Soundgarden!
And of course your very informative videos!
That was really interesting Matt, thank you for the answer.
Matt Easton: real-time mythbusting with bucklers!
Myth Buckling maybe.
Mythbucklers
Lol, I and another person already answered that question. I adore that you actually made a video responding to it.
Gauntlets would be more effective while reducing dexterity less. Bucklers defend by active defense more than cover in the manner of larger shields.
Similarly for defending from missile fire, the compromise defense with the two-handed weapon would likely be less effective than dropping the polearm, drawing your sidearm, going in defending yourself with the shield as much as possible, and then engaging with a sword or such once in reach, rather than getting shot with more arrows due to half-committed defense with the shield.
Missed opportunity to say, “Buckle up!” And “All hands on deck!”
I always assumed, in D&D a buckler was strapped to, say, the vambrace, leaving the hands free. Or like the irish guy in braveheart- it appeared that his buckler was strapped to his wrist or the back of his hand, rather than being a boss grip, thus leaving his hand more or less free. (though it's been quite some time since I've seen that)
Well, the Scottish targe was actually strapped, not boss grip, and also it was frequently the case that they carried a dirk in the same hand as the one holding the targe. Assuming that was meant anachronistically to be a targe. Either way, D&D clearly is not describing a boss grip held buckler.
@@tedhodge4830 3rd edition was unfortunately filled with incorrect names and artwork.
@@StupidAnon-gn8ih yeah, I'm pretty consistently impressed with how functional 3.5 really is once you've really dug into it.
Thank you for this video, Richard. Miss your Riff Raff performance, but you seem to manage well on RUclips!
D&D 3.5e description for buckler doesn't actually describe a buckler:
"This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm. You can use a bow or crossbow without penalty while carrying it. You can also use your shield arm to wield a weapon (whether you are using an off-hand weapon or using your off hand to help wield a two-handed weapon), but you take a -1 penalty on attack rolls while doing so. This penalty stacks with those that may apply for fighting with your off hand and for fighting with two weapons. In any case, if you use a weapon in your off hand, you don’t get the buckler’s AC bonus for the rest of the round.
You can’t bash someone with a buckler."
That is very common with DnD, the book describes a weapon and gives it a name that wasn't the name given to the weapon described historically.
Ah d&d. So many things you misname.
Alternately, D&D 5e does describe a buckler as a buckler, but it no longer mentions the dual wielding thing:
"A buckler is a small metal shield held in a fist grip. As it is not strapped, it can be donned or doffed as easily as drawing or stowing a weapon. Wielding a buckler increases your Armor Class by 1. You can benefit from only one shield at a time.
If you are proficient with light armor and with the rapier, then you can wield this buckler with proficiency even if you are not otherwise proficient with shields."
I am not really familiar with 4e, so if someone would butt in with a comment on that, I'd be interested to know.
It's still nice to see that a buckler's a buckler in the latest edition, though.
Addressed at 1:15
@@MariusLatauskas I don't play 5e, but I tried looking for 5e rules on the buckler and couldn't find anything official. I only found something labeled homebrew (which did have the same text you just quoted). Is there an official source for it?
@@Patrickwardt By default 5e just has a single shield, same with B/X and OSR systems based on B/X (a lot of them). I prefer simple and vague rules much of the time, and always over rules that go into more detail but get it wrong. Those 5e buckler rules sound like someone's homebrew to be honest.
I like those small steel buckler. Being a rapier and Side-Sword practitioner, I need a nice one. That is a nice design Matt!
Love the t-shirt, Matt. Not only do you make great videos, but also listen to great music :-)
Instead of a buckler handle maybe a smal buckler size shield strapped in your forearm? I mean we have seen historical soldiers using strappd small shields and spear or bows
That is a sick tshirt Matt!
No no, it is perfectly healthy, don´t worry!
@@RiderOftheNorth1968 I did open the door I suppose, lol
The shirt said it all. Keep up the great work.
Really enjoyed the fact that he was learning as the video progressed. Made for a more interesting video I believe
I've always wondered this as well, not because of D&D but I always pictured how cool it looks for a warrior to wield a greataxe and a small buckler to make up for the lack of handguard. Thank you for this video :)
The amount of metal and craftsmanship that goes into a buckler would be easier and cheaper as metal gloves (chain and/or plate) that would be superior in protecting your hands.
I mean just think of the cost of crafting thin strips of metal that go around your finger, or rings of metal, compared to a 1ft+ circumference shield with grip, domed center, and any other features.
I have seen this done effectivly buckler + glave. The buckler was made with a flattened grip for this purpose and was held in the leading (left) hand. The fighter benefited from the extra hand protection while still having the flexibility to "pool queue" his weapon. Granted heavy duty gauntlets would have provided the same protection, but the game mechanics we played under gave an ingame bonus to blocking with a buckler. I would reckon bucklers being easier to produce than gauntlets, this might have been a viable weapon set in period too.
Great video Matt, enjoyed that
The shirt
In pathfinder and d&d 3.5 a lot of people use a buckler whilst using two handed weapons. In those games the buckler is specifically the kind of buckler you just strap onto your forearm.
The way it works in pathfinder is that you get a very small penalty to your attack rolls when doing so and you lose the shield bonus it gives to your armour class until your next turn so it's only really useful if you're attacked first or if enemy has ranged weapons. Also you can use bows and crossbows without penalty when carrying a buckler.
hi Matt I remember several documentaries Alexander the Great where they say the phalanxes, use a shield that was fastened to the under arm so they could use both hands
I would enjoy seeing more on how to ware swords band shields.
What about a lamp shield (with integrated gauntlet)?
I can imagine that one of the attractions of this for city guards was:
A. the ability to provide defensive capabilities;
B. whilst also shining light into dark alleyways;
C. whilst also keeping the hand free to grip a long pointy thing.
Guards are mostly an imaginary work of fiction in medieval settings. At night, almost everyone would be asleep and/or curfew in effect. A single guard posted in a tower would be able to see any light coming from anyone within miles, without having light themselves, and be able to ring an alarm bell or shout out if they saw anything - because anyone breaking curfew would be a stranger or up to no good - and no one would walk around without some kind of light.
And without light pollution, you could see light all the way to the horizon (which would be longer distance if standing on a tall tower).
In a huge city with advanced or magical lighting and a much more active night life, I can see guards becoming a real thing - like patrolling police in modern times. At this point, the entire city should be lit up well enough to see everywhere.
If guards were being defeated or criminals succeeding due to dark alleys, the solution would simply be to install lighting to remove the darkness in the alley, rather than having the guards carry lanterns. But if Guards needed to carry lanterns, they could always put it on the ground in the dark alley before two-handing their weapon they carried in one-hand, even though guards would most likely carry only casual wielded weapons, not weapons of war, which means longswords or shorter spears at most lethal, but swords and clubs at least. One handed weapons either way, as longswords and spear equivalent lengths can be wielded with one hand, and lantern down with two.
So most likely I can see them carrying Club+Lantern or at most aggressive Sword/Buckler + Lantern, but in a fight setting the Lantern down, throwing it at the criminal approaching them, or simply running with Sword+Lantern giving chase because they don't need a defensive buckler when the criminal is running away with their back to them.
There's also always the option to simply not approach the criminal in dark alleys, but to give chase if they leave the dark alley. Siege them in the dark alley until reinforcements arrive to the other side.
But if the dark alleys are a large area or go on for a long time, then installing lighting that is already in the city would be the answer.
So yea, maybe in an underfunded or collapsing empire type of setting, where the lighting is bad bc society is falling apart economically, a lantern-buckler might be a great idea.
1. The guards would exist, bc the city is a renaissance/industrlial style world.
2. The city lighting would be modernized, but large swaths of darkness would exist without the ability to fix the problem.
3. The buckler and aggressive weapon (polearm or sword) would be very popular, as the falling economic results in more criminals and more violence on police.
Thus the Buckler-Lantern would be a real thing of importance and popularity among police in such a setting.
@@nowayjosedaniel Except, lantern shields are a real historical thing.......🤔
Nice shirt Matt, I love that album.
Found you through Shad's RP, love the channel
Indian bucklers that people used to carry around in town is design to hold it with knifes or katar and they fit each others.
Japan has a Tedate that is a small square wooden shield strap in the left hand to use with a two hand swords.
Shad did a video showing how you could also hang a shield from your shoulder using a strap and use a 2 handed weapon such as a spear. I believe this was also done by Macedonian phalanxes carrying pikes.
Indeed, in fact Macadonian reenactors have noted that the strap system required for the shield has the added effect of transferring a lot of the Sarissa's weight to the shoulder thus making it easier to wield.
Dutch pikers under Maurice of Nassau used a similar arrangement, as you can see in Adam Breen's 1618 infantry manual.
I think there was a shield that was worn like that in China as well, called an Ai Pai.
2:07 "you were so preoccupied thinking about whether you could that you never stopped to think if you should".
As far as I'm aware, the most common way to combine two-handed weapons & shields involved a long spear or pike plus a strapped shield. It's possible pikers sometimes used center-gripped bucklers instead of strapped shields. This appears a fair amount in accounts, manuals, & artwork. Adam Breen 1618 manual shows the arrangement in some detail. Using a bow & shield together also shows up now & then. I don't know of any historical evidence for axe & buckler or similar. I'm glad you tried it out & let us know.
Excellent experimental archeology! Next you should answer the question of whether or not you can do all of this while wearing a shield on your back with two additional bucklers strapped to your knees. All while dressed as a Landsknecht.
3:22 Matt maybe you can grip with that type of buckler for the end of shaft of this daneaxe/other polearm. Even a little bit angled to the horizontal axis to shaft.
"Everything is a compromise.." Easton's Rule.
;-)
Two shafts in one hand? That's quite a feat!
In Shastar Vidya they use a dagger or katar in the same hand as their buckler. It's pretty cool.
nice topic, Matt!
The falx would have been a good representation for this, as the falx or rhompia has been depicted used in such a way in certain video games, although it seems they weren't historically depicted that way at all. I suppose people who used such weapons just looked past the lack of protection, or accepted that they had less.
More that they were battlefield weapons, not side-arms or private carry implements, and others armed with shields next to you would take care of the defense for you.
Also, such weapons use reach management as their primary defense, anyways. You need no shield from an attack that cannot reach you in the first place.
I do wish Matt had picked up his falx while he was doing this. Also it would be worth seeing the rainbow of Asian swords he's been gathering in this experiment. How would a katana or a dao handle, with the less complex grip and guard? Let's be naughty, let's consider weapons... out of context.
In a dnd game I played once, I ran a fighter that used dual bucklers attached to dual tonfa tridents.
The fighting style was to mimic boxing.
Matt made an axe sing! Twice!!
(At the very end of video, when he puts his hand over axe head)
I always loved the idea of using two handed spear with some tiny shield.
Its not really as useful as you'd think. The spear itself has reach and mobility which makes it a decent defensive tool. You don't need the weight of a buckler messing with it especially as both require weapon mobility to be be effective .
Why? What's the benefit?
I'm with you. Sure, a spear is a long weapon, but the front hand is often halfway up the weapon. The distance from your front hand to the tip of the spear isn't much greater than the blade of a long sword, so I would certainly assume that hand is a great target for an opponent with a shorter weapon.
@@99Stutz So wear a gauntlet...
@@Robert399 Isn't armor kind of expensive and custom made? A spear is a cheap thing for footsoldiers and commoners, I've just always wondered why some kind of simple hand protection to go with it wasn't common and if that kind of thing was feasible.
Seems to me a flatter Dal (don't know enough to know if they exist)might work quite well to cover the forward hand on a spear for example?
Another idea would be to grip the guige or some other strap of the shield to hold it out in front of you, and you could also let it fall back on the guige when you need the full use of the weapon?
Similarily to how you would use certain Chinese Ai Pai, carried on a loop around the neck, and gripped in one hand with a small toggle at the end of a short cord to allow two handed weapon use.
Great video!
You look like you had a lot of fun making this video. :D
Awesome shirt!
I was just thinking that.
When people talk about using a buckler with a 2-handed weapon, like in D&D or other RPG systems, I think they are usually imagining something more like a Macedonian or Thracian pelte. This would be slightly more akin to the larger shield that you try near the beginning of the video, the difference being that the Macedonian phalangite would have used another strap around their neck so as to completely free up their left hand. But as you suggested, the fact that they were using a pike changes the consideration a bit. However, I think you could design a similar small forearm mounted shield that wouldn't impede your left hand movement at all. The only problem becomes keeping the shield in position, and the phalingite neck strap solution wouldn't be practical if you are using a dane axe or a longsword. My mind goes to a sort of anchor-loop situation, with a rope or strap wrapping around your forearm with a loop for your thumb. Then you could design a shield which doesn't impact hand movement, with the downside that it doesn't protect your hand. At that point, though, the utility of the shield becomes questionable. Yeah, it could maybe block or deflect some stuff, but only very situationally.
Anyway, point is that I don't think the D&D rules were written with the intention that someone would be holding a bar and an axe handle at the same time.
Loving that shirt Matt
Speaking of shields on the back.
I would love to hear your thougts on Mycenean and Minoan figure eight and tower type shields!
As fas as i know they are believed to lack a handle and be worn on the back with a guige. Could you grip the guige to get the same effect you described with getting the cover from the shield when closing the distance?
They look formidable in the artwork from the time, but its hard to actually tell what could be going on in terms of how to use such a thing...
I always was interested in one thing (simple thing really but always confused me) how does duel wielding works? I understand you use two (primary offence) weapons in both hands and fight and maybe defend with those weapons. However I never understood how it “works” like you use them as two separate things in fight or you try to synchronised them to make them as a one powerful weapon? Plus, which swords work the best in duel wielding, I know a small sword or rapier is a good sword two duel wield but often saw it duel wielding a dagger and sometimes a buckler (better question, can you consider a buckler a offence weapon or defence weapon?) but I’m not sure with other swords?
So if you read this whole thing please consider doing video about it please :-)
I spar with 6 foot (rubber tipped) spears and 12" bucklers. We mainly hold the bucklers in or lead hand (off-hand) and only use them as we retreat after a failed attack -- but they work excellently for that! One thing I've wondered is if I could cut out a semi-circle about 45 degrees out on my (plastic) buckler to hold the lead end of the spear with. I can't afford to replace it right now if it ends up ruining it, so I haven't been brave enough yet to test it.
I love this, my “fantasy build” has two customised small shields with glove/ gauntlets fitted + forearm straps for security with dexterous grip capabilities, also more of a tapered tip or point off the fist of a shield so I can fantasise about using my Muay Thai and boxing 😂
Then I would also wield a Nagakiba for versatile combat with a longer reach, get in close in all parries and counter shots with the shields.
Tldr, nerd who fights
Please to a video on war darts (fletched javelins), specially on horseback.
I use my buckler with a one handed axe a one handed mace and a small war hammer with full plate armour. I like it because it's small and you can also get in some good hits with it . 👍
If a rule seems stupid, make a house rule. Recommended.
Great video Matt thank you for sharing this with us. If I remember correctly Razmasfar channel demonstrated using a bow and various weapons while holding a da. Round strapped domed shield. Curious if this was done in Europe also? Cheers!
I've played a bit of spear and rotella, sometimes I'll grip the spear 2-handed (Shield hand closer to the head, thumb towards me)- found it's good for leverage, plus the lead hand and arm are very safe.
The shastar vidiya people regularly hold a dagger with a dhal buckler (but those dhals aren't always as convex). I've even seen Nidar Singh hold a sword in a reverse grip behind a shield as a way of extending a small dhal downward to provide more extensive protection (in which case the sword is being used more like a parrying stave and the buckler is protecting the hand where it grips). Madu also sometimes have a shield built in (so they could be described as bucklers with weaponised handles - even though the hand protection apparently came later in their development). It is also interesting to note that some Indian axes have built in bars to protect one of the hands. So the picture is undoubtedly a bit complex. In many of the situations the smaller dhals are working more like what people commonly call 'finger bucklers'.
Scottish warriors did this with targe & dirk as well.
Good stuff! Cheers!
Obviously, to retain wrist dexterity, the grip must 'stand off' from the shield. A bit more like a kettle handle.
In turn, this lets a weapon get in under the shield to injure the hand more easily.
I'd love it if fantasy explored this kind of alternative armour developement.
Awesome video.
A guy from my club is using daneaxe with a buckler but the buckler is strapped to his belt and front leg so he has a bit of cover there. But it's strapped on loosely so if he lose his axe he can pull it off and use it with his seax.
1 bit of information that may be usefull in this situation is that D&D bucklers are presumed to be strapped to the forearm like the first one shown in the video.
Two important distinctions to note regarding the source of the rule in question. 1. The description of the buckler item in D&D (and its common derivative games) is a small shield strapped to the forearm, which is not representative of a historically accurate buckler. 2. The rule also specifies that while an item can be used by tha hand of the arm the buckler is strapped to, including for the use of the a two handed weapon or item, the shield provides no benefit if the item is actively being used (the same round you swing such a weapon for example) and imposes a small penalty to non ranged attack rolls involving that hand. It's basically designed, though not required to be, a shield for archery based builds.
Messing around with my homemade spear, I've wondered a lot about hand protection. I wonder why you never see polearms that have guards of some sort about halfway down (or even a weapon with a sword blade & guard but a 1/2 pole in place of the grip...). Also, what about forearm shields with a notch or something to fit over the polearm? You can find pictures of modern riot shields like that to be used with a baton, but were there any historical examples and if not, why not?
Thank you for answering the most nerdiest questions! 🤗 It would be interesting why you think that ppl did not use eg. a dane axe in the real world like that if it could have been used with a shield.. ppl had shields and an interest in keeping their hands and for sure thought about it too.
Now this is not real life obviously but in Goblin Slayer , GS has his shield strapped to his arm , but the shield doesn't go past his knuckles and there are no straps that he is holding on to , everything is rigidly held onto his arm , leaving his hand completely free. He does use his other hand to use his weapons with two hands sometimes and also carry a torch or other things. I think like that , you can definitely use a two handed weapon effectively with a shield.
At that point, is it not just a large oversized bracer? But then he still has typical weird JRPG armour that most cookie cuter fantasy anime have.
But still less effective than if he ditched the shield. It's not just a question of can you physically do the motions; it's about how quick and agile you can be with the weapon. Also (assuming it's buckler sized), you gain no meaningful protection by doing that. You can't use the shield as a shield if you're using that hand to control a weapon.
@@Robert399 i didn't say it made sense I just said it would work.
Also , in the movie he uses the shield for a pretty sick tactic , I won't spoil it to you if you haven't watched it but he uses it in a way I never would've thought.
@@afinoxi Well it depends what you mean by "work". It's not totally infeasible but I would say that if you're adding complexity/expense *and* it's making things worse, it's not "working" (even if the result's not catastrophic) - it's strictly dominated by a simpler option.
"No way that would work. Let's try it anyway." Awesome!
Just wanted to add to this and say that if you count bows (Which you should, because it is a two handed weapon) into the equation, the separ actually can and was used in conjunction with the bow on horseback. You can imagine if you're a mounted Javanmardan and you were firing your bow on horseback, it would be much quicker to switch to your sword if you already had the buckler in your hand while you have the bow out. Just something to mention when taking about the strapped shields from the east, a lot of them had a much different strap setup than the one you showed in the video and were smaller better accommodating for this purpose. Cheers.
This and the spearmen+buckler made me wonder how quickly one can equip a buckler being carried to the side, or if it even can be carried to the side.
The buckler would have 0 utility until the spear/bow is dropped and the sidearm is drawn, which results in a faster equip time. But is it fast enough to matter? Humans have two hands and could draw a sword and pull off a buckler at the same time - if the buckler can be easily pulled off the side?
My wife was listening to this video in the next room and thought you were talking about buttplugs. Then you commented on the shaft and she went nuts.
She just needs a little context. Tell her about the penetration.
That Dane Axe is one mighty sexy weapon! :-O
This was making me think, if you where armed with a knife like the Bowie, Seax or trundle and a buckler how would you use them together?
Makes me wonder about the Rhomphaia and long oval/lozenge shield of the Thracian/Odyrisian Warriors in Rome 2 Total War
A thought: treat bucklers (and maybe shields) like oversized Gauntlets. Following that concept, attach your gauntlet or glove to a buckler. I’d also add basket hilts to the pile as they’d all be mutually exclusive... 🤔
As far as the historical use, I know there are some manuscript images and at least 1 treatise that shows a bastard sword being used with a buckler. The mentality was probably related to why messers often had long grips.
5e homebrew conclusion after watching, +1 to AC and -1 to attack rolls using the weapon in question per buckler up to 2.
Nice shirt! Soundgarden was the shit.
I used a flat buckler with an x strap when I fought two handed sword in SCA melee battles.
You could absoultly shape the bullckler grip flat in cross section and curved to the haft of the weapon
In german language there is a proverb "etwas im Schilde führen" to carry something in ones shield. It is understood in a bad way, like "who knows what he might be up to"
Were you ever in Louisville KY at the Fraizer?
I would say extensive modification but then you would "accidently" iterate designing gauntlets and bracers, even a sturdy bracer can function as protection, well in melee, not for arrows and such.
But with a right decent size shield and correct hand placement it can work well, even then in ancient Greece (before gambison was entirely figured out), archers used shields solely to hold over their head to protect against incoming arrows.
Matt, I have a question for you. If you were in a trial by combat (in a fantasy setting) and you have to fight using two shields (round shields let's say), whay would be the best way of defeating your opponent if the rule is you cannot grab their weapon? Can you give some example techniques on how you'd use the shield to "parry and counter" essentially?
If you open up the handle, curl the edge so you don't cut yourself, then wedge the shaft into the handle. i guess you could also practice hand sliding with it
"...and another shaft as well..." well, that's my day done.
I recall there's precedent for Vikings wielding single-hand weapons while holding an extra axe with the shield hand, so it's seems to me that the biggest drawback is the hindrance on movement with a two-handed weapon. Tying those shoulders together, as you've mentioned elsewhere.
I think that it's imoprtant to also mention the Macedonian Foot Companion pikemen used pikes (in two hands) and shields strapped on.
Although if you receive training in the use of the Indian style buckler, they recommend holding a dagger in the buckler hand.