I think we both know a sword fish would be the best weapon for Merfolk.

@MultiMistick99

6 жыл бұрын

Do they catch swordfish with a fishsword?

@papabell4831

6 жыл бұрын

I am not sure, but that sounds like perfectly logical reasoning to me.

@rachdarastrix5251

6 жыл бұрын

Makes sense actually. Use their telepathy to just send something else to fight their war while they stay home and get pampered.

@adonisjunior3197

6 жыл бұрын

i actually fought about them using the swordfishes bones to be the primary material for a fucking hel of a rapier

@Merilirem

5 жыл бұрын

@@adonisjunior3197 Also spears.

Merfolk: We can’t eat fish, it’s cannibalism! Sharks and Fish: Laughs in blub blub

@hmwat1623

3 жыл бұрын

It’s like saying: “Humans can’t eat sheep! It’s cannibalism!”

@radiocinema1819

3 жыл бұрын

Fun Fact: We are more close to a fish with bones than they´re to a shark. So it isn´t canibalism in almost no way!

@alexjewett7455

3 жыл бұрын

Maybe if the fish was a pet they wouldn't eat it, but nobody with a brain would think a merman eating fish is cannibalism.

@midnighthorns

3 жыл бұрын

@Mauricio Osuna Actually when a fish dies, it's own species(or a different one) will eat it's skin. Well this only applies to some fish.

@the_kraken6549

3 жыл бұрын

That’s so stupid. By that logic humans can’t eat any type of mammal because it’s ‘cannibalism’, heck depending on how far you take it by that logic humans can’t eat land animals at all because it’s‘cannibalism’.

Something people overlook is that underwater, streamlined shapes have a *massive* advantage. An optimally designed double-edged sword faces almost 50% less drag than the equivalent single-edged sword. And, if you shaved off some of the edge so the cross-section would look like an airfoil and used the thicker edge to slash, you could reduce the drag even further, by up to 70% compared to a symmetric double-edged sword. Now if you held the sword close to the body, you could slash at any enemies with almost no drag penalty.

@neoqwerty

3 жыл бұрын

You are EXACTLY the comment I was looking for while I was looking for design consideration for my aquatic elves' weaponry. Thank you very much!

@chaotixthefox

3 жыл бұрын

You're forgetting the real drag generator: The arm holding the sword. Any swinging motion is massively gimped underwater.

@VVayVVard

3 жыл бұрын

@@chaotixthefox That's why I mentioned holding the sword close to the body. It's definitely important.

@matthewdevictor1442

2 жыл бұрын

I was think of this too a rapier like sword would be great and stiletto daggers as well would be a good one to do as well. But what else can be in a merfolks arsenals that would make sense

@chillingwarmly5155

Жыл бұрын

hair

If I was a mermaid, I wouldn't bother coming to the surface Just poke some holes under the ship Ocean will do the rest

@cardboardbox191

3 жыл бұрын

I've read this one in a book.

@felixsubakti6907

3 жыл бұрын

Sooooo, a hand cranked drill then? Or a claw?(like a claw hammer, but just the claw part)

@fattytan1377

3 жыл бұрын

But the problem is how You can't use explosives you die. The under belly if most likely plated with copper. You have to focus on it with a drill. The ship is always moving. How can you chase a ship while drilling a spot lmao

@fattytan1377

3 жыл бұрын

@Samuel Dimmock then are they strong enough to latch on and drill it?

@fattytan1377

3 жыл бұрын

@Samuel Dimmock its not like they have additional limbs to latch on.

"three hitty pointy stabby stuff" Quote of the century, right there

@vojtik135

6 жыл бұрын

That my friend is called terminology. In our language we have a perfect word for this: terminus-technicus

@benthomason3307

6 жыл бұрын

Doctor: "I'm sorry, it's terminal."

Screw Jaws, we need a horror movie about killer merpeople with hooks!

@ElysiaWhitemoonOmega

6 жыл бұрын

in that pirates movie, didnt the merfolk used seewead as grappling hooks?

@WarriorVirtue

6 жыл бұрын

I remember watching a horror movie that combined the mermaid and siren myths. Essentially, a mermaid allowed herself to be captured by a team of researchers and started entrancing the men in the group. Once she had control over them, she made them take her to her home where she transformed into a monster and started butchering them to feed to the other mermaids in the water.

@artski09

6 жыл бұрын

name ?

@nirktheman-thingstab-cutter

6 жыл бұрын

Humans came for their fish and now they're coming for human hearts! This Summer prepare yourself for...MER-MURDER...THE MURMAIDENING...28 MERMAIDS LATER...THE MERMAIDS HAVE EYES...DAWN OF THE MERMAIDS! RATED R!

@WarriorVirtue

6 жыл бұрын

I don't remember what it was called. I think it was on the SciFi channel.

Merfolk, may be vegetarians in some fantasies but I think in most the ocean is a fish eat fish world. Also, it is not cannibalism unless the other fish is the same species as the one consuming it. To flip the script for example, no one calls it cannibalism when a falcon takes down a pigeon for dinner even though they are both birds. Onto the main topic, I agree that the spear is the best weapon suited to the merfolk. I envision them using them to keep large predatory fish at bay. Jabbing at each other in close combat (or a surface folk) and swimming with them protruding lance-like for goring attacks. I disagree with the sword choice. Any slashing weapon meant to be wielded in typical fashion for us surface folk would be at a serious disadvantage in a underwater. The most effective strikes would come from piercing weapons thrusting through the water. A possible exception could be slashing weapons designed to be dragged across an opponent while the merfolk swim past, assuming they swim at speeds akin to large fish or dolphins. Drawing from their environment, I imagine modified whale bones lined or tipped with sharks teeth. Being a fantasy realm many more combinations could be conceived.

@michaelold6695

4 жыл бұрын

@Donald Schmidt I was think that a rapier type sword would be a good choice as it operates on the thrusting principle. Narwhal horns? Swordfish bills? I am sure there are a few more options that occur naturally in the ocean as well.

@user-zm1rq6xj9v

4 жыл бұрын

@@michaelold6695 A rapier....I like that notion!

@benthomason3307

4 жыл бұрын

saying that a merfolk eating a trout is cannibalism since they're both fish is like saying that a human eating a cow is cannibalism since they're both mammals.

@charlieapples9373

4 жыл бұрын

To be fair, there are many, many fish and marine animals that are herbivores, including manatees, which supposedly inspired the idea of mermaids (and may be the inspiration behind vegetarian merfolk). It’s definitely possible for large mammals to be herbivorous in the ocean, mermaids would just have to be adapted to digest it efficiently. However, I definitely think merfolk would be omnivores like humans, eating a bit of everything. But it could realistically go either way.

@MrMarinus18

3 ай бұрын

Humans eat mammals. If Merfolk can tolerate fresh water I would think they would base their economy heavily on rivers but even if not they would still dominate the ocean and extract tribute. I can image a merfolk kingdom at a marine chokepoint being very, very wealthy. Throughout history control over critical waterways like the straight of Mallaca, Straight of Gibralter, Strait of Phosperous, channel strait, straight of Hormuz and so on have created some of the wealthiest empires in history.

I know this is 2~3 years late, but some thoughts I had: I think a weapon used in merpeople-merpeople fights wouldn't be spears or any land weapons. The reason is because water resistance does a lot more than just making weapons like maces suck more. It makes _all_ movement that isn't 'forwards while showing least surface area' harder to do. A spear won't make an effective underwater weapon because while thrusts would be easy, swinging the spear around won't be. But why would you want to swing a spear underwater? Because underwater, attacks can come from all sides, up and down included. When we humans fight with spears, all we really need to do is thrust, because whoever we're fighting are probably going to in front of us. Especially so in group fights(like a war) where your sides and back are covered by your comrades. A merpeople can be holding a spear out in front of then and all the other merperson needs to do is swim out of the way. If you've gone swimming a lot, you'll know but keeping your _arm_ aimed at a good swimmer is hard enough with the drag. A entire spear? Unless the merfolk swims really really slow, it's most likely going to be near impossible to keep the point aimed at them if they choose to swim around you. I think weapons merpeople use would be ones they can use while in motion. Instead of going face to face with someone and trading blows, it'd be easier to just swim at them really fast and try to get them while you swam past. So something like a short fin-like blade they can attach to their sides or arms to slash at people by swimming past them, or things like a battering ram cone to hold in front of them and kinda smash into people really hard.

@MasterTheOrc

3 жыл бұрын

This brings up really valid points. Other points would be the impossibility of "merfolk" to work metal underwater. Plus the quickness with which sea water would corrode such weapons, even ones "found," that were dropped by "land dwellers." I still feel that spears would be a valid weapon, but made from material like Narwhal or Swordfish. Small fighting knives made from wood with sharks teeth or obsidian glass. Weapons with serrated edges for long slashings in "Swim by" attacks.

@connorclark8100

3 жыл бұрын

What about a short spear or rapier? Spear about a meter long, its pretty much multidirectional

@HappyBeezerStudios

3 жыл бұрын

Instead of metal they could also use sharp corals. Maybe they even cultivate some specifically for that purpose. In some depictions they are more beast-like than human, with just the rough shape being close, so they could have sharp teeth or claws. And instead of riding horses, they could grab a whales fin. Maybe even make some sort of "saddle" like a harness with a bunch of grips on it.

@sebastianmeisel

3 жыл бұрын

These fin-like blades would also help them against the most dangerous weapon humans could use against them: weighted nets. They could cut them just by moving the arms. Could come handy to have some blades attached to their fins as well …

@neerGdyahS

3 жыл бұрын

But if the opponent is agile enough to just get out of the way, then you could presumably course correct before making your thrust no? You say moving forward is easiest, but a merfolk can change which direction IS forward very quickly. And the more reach you have, the less course correction you need to do to land a hit, because you can strike them sooner, from farther away, and thrust in the direction they're trying to dodge in. In other words, with a spear, they would need to dodge further and sooner for it to work, but the sooner they try to dodge, the easier it is to course correct because at that distance a small change in angle equals a bigger change in destination. It could in effect be something like the underwater equivalent of a cavalry charge with lances. Additionally, you could use spears to defend against any merfolk trying to use "swim by weapons" like your proposed fin blades. I think ideally, a hydrodynamic spear in addition to those fin blades you mentioned, short swords/daggers and such would be ideal. Maybe even tail blades, to maximize your attack options in battle. That said, crafting and maintaining bladed weapons underwater would be a significant challenge.

*Merfolk Grappling hook combat review* "It's like fishing, but for humans"

@teigantheisen2549

6 жыл бұрын

7.8 out of 10, too much water.

@Iriefame

5 жыл бұрын

Shouldn't be called "Humaning" ? Since fishing is the activity of catching/hunting a fish, humaning must be the activity for catching/hunting humans, for sport or food. - Something smells human around here... isn't that strange ? :3

@kharnthebetrayer8251

5 жыл бұрын

"Hey guys! I got a massive one! It must be 200 Pounds!"

@MushVPeets

5 жыл бұрын

@@kharnthebetrayer8251 If they call that massive, clearly they've never visited American coastlines.

@kharnthebetrayer8251

5 жыл бұрын

@@MushVPeets But that's 200 Pounds while underwater. With the boyancy

Underwater warfare, now we're getting exotic!

@sebastianwilczynski86

6 жыл бұрын

Next time: medievil weapons for fighting in space.

@karolkwiecjasz9356

6 жыл бұрын

I think that tridents would actually be more useful for merfolk than spears when fighting humanids on boats as you have 3 spikes going into the target that enables you to have a strong grasp on the enemy who you can drag out of his boat. Like grapling hooks if they keep cutting the ropes. Shelds would work if they had small holes to help avoid drag - a sheld made like shutters with big plates might be a way to go if one could be trained to move it in a way to not drag it. It would be also a nightmare to make, maintain and possible to destroy . I thought also of skeletal shelds made out of rods to block off chopping weapons but considering stabbing is the way to go underwater - wouldn't be as effective unless it's a specyfic weapon to use against sailors who are ill prepared for a merfolk ambush. Actually - normal shelds might work too. Using the fish tail the merfolk can change directions very fast and if they use pavis-sized shelds [they aren't as heavy underwater] to face the enemy as they come closer they can be fairly well defended as they use spear weapons to attack from around their sheld. I'm supriced that shad didn't say anything abaut rapiers. I could also see merfolk developing some kind of bigger siege engine to just sink ships without even bothering with individual crew members who can fight back. Maybe a ram propeled by a balista you place under a ship and sink it by poking holes in the underside with it because I assume taiming a whale to do that maybe isn't always possible.

@jshadowhunter

6 жыл бұрын

Submarine Titans!

@karolkwiecjasz9356

6 жыл бұрын

I also belive that merfolk would actually use stone to make most of their weapons as other materials eather rust or are hard to come by. I can see them scavenging some swords and metal off killed sailors, so some their equipment might be just made from already metalic objects reshapen to use underwater. There is also the detail that when you think of a fight between mythical creatures in a realistic situation - there is the thing that ussually if fights are known to occur, people tend to fight countermeasures. I could see humans - or whatever else is fighting the merfolk - find ways to counter the fighting style seadwellers are forced to utilize. I can see them developing early harpoon lauchers from crossbows to maybe use an unsuspecting tactic of unexpectingly dump a few people with those underwater to snipe one or two merfolk and pull them back with ropes tied to their waists after a few secounds. I could see this beeing effecive to scare the merfolk off as their tactic is to savely pick away at the enemy, so losses would be rare and more devastating to them. Metal-reinforced hulls might be developed as an answer to the underwater battering balistas I was talking abaut. If you can make a sheld, then a ship's underside made out of them is still medieval technology. Merfolk need to submerge to use grappling hooks. And petroleum was known in the middle ages as flammable material, expecially known in the arabic world . I could see sailors pouring buring petroleum on submerging merfolk or throw them at them as bombs.

@karolkwiecjasz9356

6 жыл бұрын

Some might say I overthink this but in a setting where merfolk raid absolutely evry ship people are going to get creative. And whatever ship is going to succed in it's travels will get ludicrously rich from egzotic material trade. I also thought of making hulls specially to counter grappling hooks. Making them higher with small windows for petroleum bombs or crossbow shots at submerging merfolk and limit the angles at which grapling hooks might be thrown in.

I think that daggers might also work in place of swords for a secondary weapon. They might not be as effective, but mermaids can also move faster than most humanoids underwater, so being able to get close and stab then dart off could be effective.

In most depictions of mermaids I've scene (at least ones with sufficient world building; a single episode of a cartoon doesn't count) the trident is typically reserved for mermaid royalty, in fact there'd usually just be this one specific trident used by the King, clearly drawing inspiration from Poseidon/Neptune. Regular merfolk usually use spears, or harpoons.

"Hitty pointy stabby stuff." I'm assuming that's the technical term?

@oneofmanyparadoxfans5447

6 жыл бұрын

I even got pinned. I was not expecting that, but hey, my thanks to Shad!

@paweandonisgawralidisdobrz2522

6 жыл бұрын

Its probably from latin

@oddish2253

6 жыл бұрын

From what institution did you graduate from, Mordor or Isengard?

"Hey, bro? Want to go fisherman fishing?" "Yeah, let me get the grappling hook?"

@johnmccrossan9376

3 жыл бұрын

But what about dragons?

@hasanmuttaqin464

3 жыл бұрын

@@johnmccrossan9376 spear, this is the way

@genghiskhan6809

2 жыл бұрын

Or a lasso.

@skz5k2

2 жыл бұрын

Only if they fish on a small boat ;-) From a big boat you are doing nothing with a grappling hook. With a crossbow? Much better

I think the underwater fights of mermen deserve an episode of their own! Fighting other tribes over territory sounds as reasonable underwater as it is on ground. Several points come to mind: Firstly, stealth is paramount. Visibility underwater is reduced, so you could maneuver large numbers behind enemy lines, as long as you don't make sound. Ink, or other visibility reducers become very strategic, covering retreats or hiding ambushes. Fear tactics through sheer noise of an unseen army would also be effective. Secondly, weapon material is an issue. Metallurgy and forging are only possible underwater if some magic is involved, which changes combat anyway. Otherwise one is left with stones, bones, sunk driftwood and the rare metal weapon sourced from the land-dwellers. Steel and iron will rust rapidly into nothingness, so you are left with bronze or brass tools re-purposed into weapons. Glass or crystal weapons might also have their niche, as they could be almost invisible underwater. Being underwater also allows for new weapons. Using "Ranged" weapons is not out of the question; Considering that the Macedonian sarissa, a 5 meter spear, was a very effective formation weapon, an even longer spear might be useful underwater. A 15-20 meter spear might be useful in a charge, as the attacker would be obscured until the very end. If it was made of materials with near neutral buoyancy, it would not be unwieldy for charging in a straight line. Nets and ropes, made of near transparent fibers are also quite handy. Massive nets, dragged by unseen assailants could disrupt and confuse forces, or break retreats. Same applies to smaller nets, used to break a charge and tangle attackers. The effect is more prominent depending on buoyancy, as it remains in the way until manually removed or circumvented.

@Kaitou1412Fangirl

3 жыл бұрын

Why isn't this farther up? This is genius! XD

@thomasfplm

2 жыл бұрын

Metal weapons could be obtained from trade with terrestrial beings.

@cutenerd1177

Жыл бұрын

I’d watch this

lmao, what fantasy settings have their merfolk considered fish-eating cannibalism? I'm a vegetarian on land and even I think that's friggen stupid. XD

@lmanproductions8680

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah, ocean is a deadly fish eat fish world! No time for morality in their food lol

@anonemos

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah, it's like saying that humans that eat other mammals are cannibals

@davehood2667

3 жыл бұрын

Only in Disney.

@magnemoe1

2 жыл бұрын

More so in that merfolk would be far more like sea mammals than fish anyway. Stupid stuff stupid Disney came up with because they wanted talking fish and all fish is equal because stupidity. If cats and dogs was smart and could speak it would not stop us from eating pigs and cows.

@michaelcherokee8906

Жыл бұрын

It's one of those silly things that makes just enough sense that if you dont think about it you might not realize it's ridiculous.

Drills! They can use drills for boats while making an evil laugh.

@christophe7723

6 жыл бұрын

I thought exactly the same thing, or daggers or any kind of pointy thing to make a hole in a ship.

@azuritet3

6 жыл бұрын

i was thinking the same thing

@matkobednjanec3478

6 жыл бұрын

and you can make multi layered botom of the ships, so it would take them forewer to drill through it. Also wood which woould separate layers could be of lots of weird shapes in order to push drills always of the center, what would stop drilling every time.

@azuritet3

6 жыл бұрын

not unless you made them out of steel. ships need to be smooth and they also need to be light.

@TheFirstLanx

6 жыл бұрын

Drills have a great many downsides too. I challenge you to get some scuba gear and try to drill through the underneath of a moving dinghy in calm water, let alone near the surface of an ocean. You will need to keep the drill steady whilst swimming along with an irregularly moving object, possibly fighting currents and somehow turn the handle in a circular motion ALL at the same time. A slight mistake will get your drill lodged in the wood of the ship, and probably damage it. All the while the water will be resisting the motion of your hands, the inner parts of your drill and the actual drillbit all at once for massive drag. It IS possible though. Now you have a hole in the bottom of the ship after an extremely impressive feat of drilling. How large is this hole exactly? Maybe the size of a tap? So let's go with that and say it's like having a tap fully open and is leaking through about 100mL/s. If we're talking small rowing boat, this is easy for one person to bail out, and it would take a full fifteen minutes to add the weight of a single person to the boat if left unattended. Ah, but what about a bigger boat and many more drills? Well bigger boats have more crew and typically carry maintentance equipment. Due to the difficulties of drilling underwater on a moving and heaving target, it is WAY easier to patch a hole than to make it. Still, even if you put a hundred unattended holes in a viking longship, it would take around 15 minutes to begin to compromise the ship. Thing is, that's 15 minutes of an obvious (and fixable) problem going unattended by about 30 people. Furthermore, drills are absurdly hard to make underwater, and if made of materials intended for use above water, they would not last long, either in use or just being underwater. Oceans are pretty big too, so it would be quite the task to source them to the intended victim, not to mention a seriously challenging feat of capability to make EACH hole, Never mind 100 of them. And THEN you need to distract the occupants of the ship for long enough to not either fill the holes with resin OR bail out the water. Since the drilling is a hard task, any environmental circumstances like storms that might hamper the victims is likely to hamper the drillers far more. Finally bear in mind that all of this still assumes the most favourable scenario for the merfolk as possible: the humans are unaware that merfolk even exist and have never developed any countermeasures, while the merfolk have perfect understanding of the workings of the humans' ships, and have an impressive supply system for extremely specialised equipment for precisely this task.Oh and by the way, out of the water, the humans can't hear you laugh.

I feel like humans would counter this by just making their boats have higher walls, maybe with windows and doors. Which the Merfolk could counter by just hooking the boats to sink them. The humans could counter this again, by putting roofs on their boats and boom! Now boats in settings with aggressive Merfolk are just glorified barrel houses. Well done, Merfolks. You just made humans accidentally invent Sub-marines.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Dr. Archaeopteryx Modern scuba divers wear chainmail to protect against shark bites. Rivited chainmail would be highly prized by mermaids for stopping shark bites and would buy it with gold found in sunken ships. Sailors could use it as a bargaining ship for safe passage by leaving one of thier own at shore with the chainmail while the rest go on boat.

@dr.archaeopteryx5512

6 жыл бұрын

I mean, I guess that makes sense. But I feel like mermen would have a similar effect like humans, where nearby predators adapt to avoid them and thus chainmail armor would possibly only be necessary for remote regions, travelers and huntsmermen. This might change if humans are portrayed as "The vengeful race" within the setting, thus making each and every other species less prone to revenge by assumption. However prepared metal products, in general, would likely be in high demand with the Merfolk anyways, given that they would be pretty much incapable of smelting. Albeit they could maybe work around that by using stone and (drift-)wooden tools, which would, of course, be less effective, but also make them less dependent on the local landlubbers.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Dr. Archaeopteryx Underwater smelting with underwater volcanos WITH bbq grill cages over them.

@franciscoguinledebarros4429

6 жыл бұрын

Or you know, using the spears to punch holes?

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

francisco guinle de barros Using whales at sea not ones from land.

"The idea that merfolk use tridents for battle is actually a misconception, they use spears against wild sea animals and curved swords for more intellegent or humanoid foes. The use tridents as farming tools for fish and coral. Their some of the best fish 'n coral farmers in the industry, their most popular dish is śčolà de tisamò, a cooked chopped up fish wrapped in cooked coral."

@chloej1611

Жыл бұрын

How do they cook?

@ShinKyuubi

Жыл бұрын

@@chloej1611 Undersea vents, there are plenty of places underwater, especially near undersea volcanoes or other such active places where the water gets super hot from the vents, it wouldn't be that hard to cook something in such a situation if you knew what you were doing.

@chloej1611

Жыл бұрын

@@ShinKyuubi I've considered this too … but wouldn't the water be unbearably/unlivably hot? How would they get their food close enough to cook it without cooking themselves in the process?

@ShinKyuubi

Жыл бұрын

@@chloej1611 Probably some type of tool, like the long handle things (don't know the name off the top of my head) that they use to put pizza into brick ovens. There's also the fact they may have a magic spell if we're talking fantasy, if they don't have magic, and can breath air above water (which many merfolk seem to do) they can have a home set up with a cooking area that is in an air pocket, like a cave or the like..look at the way things are done in One Piece's arc where the Straw Hats go to the Fishman Island that is under the sea.

@leeshipley6383

Жыл бұрын

I don't think you can cook coral

No one talks about the fact that merfolk already have a highly lethal weapon: Their voices

@Likexner

3 жыл бұрын

@Commodore X Whats wrong with smelling of elderberries?

@andyrrafaelthebeastemperor8709

3 жыл бұрын

Like a sonar? A collective sonar? That's OP as fuck. If a blue whale's "voice" can kill a human if standing too close, it's totally realistic.

@the_kraken6549

3 жыл бұрын

Not universally, that’s a trait in many settings but it’s not integral.

@docphoenix2619

3 жыл бұрын

@@andyrrafaelthebeastemperor8709 I think they mean the ability to charm and hypnotize humans by singing

@stickers1539

3 жыл бұрын

Fus Roh Da

Did you see those mermaid warriors in the Pacific ocean? They have curved swords...... CURVED. SWORDS.

@sandtrap175

6 жыл бұрын

Leto85 nice.

@limeproductions7873

6 жыл бұрын

Let me guess... someone stole your seaweedroll?

@americancheese9103

6 жыл бұрын

Darth Kind Facebook is disgusting

@xaagripha7326

6 жыл бұрын

We have British Petroleum the oceans second greatest fear,i say second becuase the Japanese are the real enemy of the ocean. Even in myth it says so.

@justicebenskin3355

6 жыл бұрын

Hammerfell puns uh😫😩😖

Absolutely loving this series and I'm thirsty for more! Also if you don't like my water puns you've just got a dry sense of humour.

@ArvosCrusader

6 жыл бұрын

*puts gun in the mouth* goodbye cruel world BANG this is cancer

@mikey8107

6 жыл бұрын

Arvos Crusader Suicide isn't a thing to joke about. Cancer, either. Besides, why would you say puns are bad...? I mean, some are terrible *cough* skeleton puns *cough* and that and all, but why did you even say that?? This is confusing.

@blackdeath4eternity

6 жыл бұрын

+Wabbs Wight idk if your suicidal having a good laugh can help for a few mins.

@mikey8107

6 жыл бұрын

+blackdeath4eternity Not really. Sometimes I feel like I'm worthless but then I notice I'm not?? My mind is a messed up place. But yes, laughing does help for at least a few minutes.

@blackdeath4eternity

6 жыл бұрын

you say not really & then you say something that agrees 100% ? what are you trying to say?

Depending on the abilities of the merfolk they could also use biological weapons. Fling jellyfish like bolos, weaponized lionfish, and urchin caltrops. The humans on the other side could use Greek fire and explosives to defend themselves.

@CharlesUrban

Жыл бұрын

Pufferfish grenades!

Humans on a raft? They would not even need to engage combat. Attach a hook or more stealthly, to a single side of the boat, then get the heavy stuff and attach it to the other end of the ropes. Instant knock-over, everyone forced to swim in panic! Another fun method is two merfolks using one rope, jumping in sync above water to catch someone. Mostly a tabletop/movie flashy move, but still potentially effective. Other common methods are spear/javelin (can be made out of bones?) when jumping, because they don't need to care about if they miss as long as the weapon won't land on the boat, they just need to swim and get the weapon back. But yeah, pointy things are always a good choice indeed. And of course, the ultimate method to solo full crews, puncturing the boat so it sink. Takes more time and efforts...But again why engage combat if you can stay out of range? So, anything that can help with that, even if not effective in traditional combat, is high value weapon for them. The worse/best part about merfolk weaponry, is that almost everything they need are part of boat carried equipments. (rope, anchor, fishing trident, knife, ect) Merfolks would not have problems with casting swords or making weapons, they just collect anything they can out of the wreakages they causes. And that's their main advantage against landwalkers. (but also their main disadventage, especially with rust and rotting making every attack a time race to the next) They would not need proper combat methods unless fighting other sea creatures, including other merfolks. In that case, spear and buckler or small shield to deflect the opponent's spear seems quite good. Trident actually have an advantage over spear, as it can trap weapons like a sword's guard.

@scaveranasaur1897

2 жыл бұрын

I think tridents would be used, but not for catching weapons- it isn't exactly easy to catch a spear thrust- rather, as they're fishing implements, they'd often be used simply because that's what the merfolk have on hand.

@scaveranasaur1897

2 жыл бұрын

The jumping techniques, though certainly flashy, have the very obvious downside that if you miss, you land in the ship, where all the people in it can just stab you to death. Doubt it'd be used due to the high risk.

The use of the trident in fishing isn't because fish move fast - it's because of a thing called refraction. Water bends light, so an image of a fish underwater, as seen from above, it's actually not where it appears to be. The most important thing to consider underwater is actually light. I'd be more interested in the way merfolk use signals to manoeuvre in formation. I imagine coordination is the most powerful weapon they could use. I believe dolphins use this to kill sharks.

@fudgelame

6 жыл бұрын

Dolphins often "play" to death sharks (Who don't play), and use their concussive sound waves also. Latter meaning they have ways to signal and attack using sound. Wouldnt be surprised if they couldnt tell who is a dolphin and who is not just from sounds back from their own sounds too.

@SpasticEliteStudios

6 жыл бұрын

Tridents usually cause far more bleeding than a spear but not for the reason you are thinking. It has to do with what tridents are actually designed to do, versus what spears are designed to do.) Tridents have backwards facing barbs which tear and shred flesh when the weapon is yanked out. It's not a straight puncture wound, but a ragged hole. This is because a trident is not designed to come out in the first place. (it's a fishing tool first and foremost. The only reason we think of it as a weapon at all is because roman gladiators were sometimes given tridents so the audience could have a giggle.) Spears are usually either a straight sharp point or a short blade, which allows them be removed from a target fairly quickly. When you are on a battlefield this is a critical thing. If your weapon gets stuck you have effectively disarmed yourself. The fact that it doesn't severely maim surrounding tissue when it comes out is simply a by-product.

@MrMarinus18

6 жыл бұрын

Fish often are small targets and always move so something with a greater chance of hitting is very useful.

@marcosdheleno

6 жыл бұрын

water is not the vaccum, sound has no trouble moving underwater.

@FJDH11

6 жыл бұрын

Light doesn't refract underwater, only when you look through it from the air above.

seems to me that the best weapon for merfolk to use against humans would be a hand drill

@mortyjhones4068

6 жыл бұрын

LOL, or a hammer & chisel, swim under the float'y thing and punch a hole in the bottom.

@TakaG

6 жыл бұрын

Hammer is useless under water. The hand drill would be best.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Takako Jin Modern scuba divers wear chainmail to protect against shark bites. Rivited chainmail would be highly prized by mermaids for stopping shark bites and could buy it with gold found in sunken ships. Sailors could use it as a bargaining chip for safe passage by leaving one of thier own at shore with the chainmail while the rest go on boat.

The moral of the story is “don’t piss off merfolk.” 😂😂

"Hitty, pointy, stabby stuff." I love how you explain weapons so well. :p

Spears, curved swords, and grappling hooks are great. But I think the most common weapon would be a dagger. First, mermaids don't have access to fire or forges, and therefore don't have access to metalwork. They have to make do with simple weapons. Second, large weapons don't work well under water. Third, a mermaid's best tool in combat is their ability to swim. Up, down, every which way, darting as quick as a fish. It's much harder to do that when holding something even as simple as a spear. The normal problem with a dagger is that it has poor reach. But underwater, it's speed and small size become incredible advantages. It might not be the _best_ weapon, that still goes to a spear. But it shouldn't be underestimated. So yeah, they'd use sharp rocks and sharp rocks attached to sticks.

@helenanilsson5666

5 жыл бұрын

Especially since a dagger would be a very handy all-round tool. Want to eat a shelled creature? Much easier with a knife! Need to pry off some coral or mollusks from the bottom? Knife makes it easy! Someone in a boat passing by without a travelers permit? Knife the boat!

@charliemccutcheon6030

5 жыл бұрын

Be great for quick slashes, and an easy finisher during a grapple

@scaveranasaur1897

2 жыл бұрын

For a defence of the curved swords. metals can be obtainted through trade with surface dwellers, or raiding shipwrecks though that's certainly a better argument then the ones i've seen put through previously. Spears would be faster than daggers underwater due to hydrodynamics- there's a reason people use fishing spears. Only time they might be using knives to fight is due to repurposing, like, oyster knifes or some other utility blade.

@scaveranasaur1897

2 жыл бұрын

@@helenanilsson5666 yep

Remember mer-folk have another depth to there combat, the have three directions they could move ( up-down, left-right and forwards-backwards) so there idea of combat would be much more different to regular land combat ( forward-backward, left-right). Ergo some bizarre weapon designs would possibly work under the sea, As well as some combat styles unthinkable be us land-people. Spears are a great idea but what of bladed gauntlets. I've always thought of mermaids fighting would look like under water jousting. Like how a shark rockets through the water to attack its prey.

@joaosturza

6 жыл бұрын

RNGesus 838 i Second this motion

@erikaicarman3184

6 жыл бұрын

RNGesus 838 especially depending on what they are fighting against. if its sea monsters they would most likely use something that could hook into gills or mouth and rip the flesh. perhaps a assassins creed wrist mounted curved serrated blade?

@nikki607

6 жыл бұрын

I thought exactly the same

@woutvermeulen4883

6 жыл бұрын

i thought about daggers because all you can do is stab under water, also sears are less effective because they wouldnt fight in a formation. So i agree.

@dasseher1467

6 жыл бұрын

Had the same thought i think maybe a common tactic would be to swim down under ur opponent and slice his fin so he is imobalized completly. But maybe because of that they would always fight at the ground.

"eating fish is cannibalism for merepeople" oh God were all cannibals I mean we eat other mammals!!!

@nonoctoro4933

5 жыл бұрын

*eating pork* wat ? I'm a cannibal !?

@theravenmonarch9441

5 жыл бұрын

Good thing I'm vegan then

@nonoctoro4933

5 жыл бұрын

@@theravenmonarch9441 Do you know how close you are genetically with that Banana ?

@theravenmonarch9441

5 жыл бұрын

@@nonoctoro4933 Less close than with a Pig

@nonoctoro4933

5 жыл бұрын

@@theravenmonarch9441 More than 60% ...

Maybe Rapiers could cut through the water more effectively with a more aerodynamic guard

explosives are far more deadly to the merfolk though. the air bubbles that allow fish and i'm guessing merfolk to control their buoyancy get shredded by shock waves and shock waves are far larger underwater than in air. depth charges would be the only really effective way of fighting (more accurately massacring) merfolk and it would kill all unfortunate humans in the water as well.

@andresmarrero8666

6 жыл бұрын

xcfencer99 they also wouldn't like electricity very well.

@TakaG

6 жыл бұрын

Electricity? Only if they were to touch something conductive. Otherwise it would just seek the closest opposite charge. If you fire a taser at them perhaps.

@MrDibara

5 жыл бұрын

Well now we're dwelling on *non-medieval* weapons, and I believe in the modern era we have PLENTY of different ways to fight -massacre- the merfolks. The guys during the Middle Ages? Not so much.

@kharnthebetrayer8251

5 жыл бұрын

Ah, the classic Medieval Dynamite, the bane of the Mer-Folk

@MrDibara

5 жыл бұрын

@@Hereticalable All thosr sound pretty heavy. Wouldn't the boat sink with them? But, indeed, those are some pretty creative ways to counter merfolk. Maybe not ideal, there might be a breach they can exploit somewhere, but definitely a solid defense. Or offense. Seems like boats of this kind would've been made specifically to fight merfolk.

What would winged warriors use?

@Noinoi_

6 жыл бұрын

I'd put my money on crossbows and the like. That way nothing can reach them and they are free to rain death upon whatever land creature they're attacking.

@nerdherd1819

6 жыл бұрын

Yes, like people with wings on their back. At least that's the basic flying folk I have in my story. I might also recommend what I've deemed Gorgons in my story: basically merfolk, but snake rather than fish, they also live in a volcanic area.

@jomartyn8789

6 жыл бұрын

Big bloody rocks

@MadSwedishGamer

6 жыл бұрын

Flight.

@95keat

6 жыл бұрын

big pots of hot water/oil

You forgot one incredibly, absolutely CRUCIAL thing that merfolk (especially mermaids) usually have as a weapon: their song. For a human, hearing this incredible, almost entrancing symphony of beautiful mermaid voices would lure the average man to his watery grave. Of course the weapons you propose are completely genius, and would certainly spell the doom of sailors at sea, but their song would be their absolute strongest weapon by far. Being able to sit on a rock a kilometre away and sing the sailors to death would be overpowered

Man, imagine if the Merfolk can't breathe above water. Humans vs Merfolk would just be the most aggressive fishing session ever.

I'd assume part of the reason tridents were used was also to account for refraction. Since you're not entirely certain if the image you're seeing is the actual target itself, having multiple prongs would help account for the inaccuracy.

@dank_smirk9971

6 жыл бұрын

Mike Young though since mermaids would be adapted for life underwater their eyes would be so as well, making it so light refraction only happens when above water, the opposite of how it would work for us.

@OakOracle

6 жыл бұрын

Merkfolk still need to stab a landlubber from time to time.

*I'm not so sure whether merfolk wouldn't eat fish. Even if merfolk would biologically be fish rather than a humanoid -> mammal* (and let's not forget that mermaids have breasts and thus maybe breastfeed their children), *them eating fish would be the same thing as us eating other mammals, like beef, pork etc.* Especially since fish are pretty much the only animals living in the water, save for exceptions like whales and dolphins and the like, they most probably would eat fish unless they like to live of algae and corals alone...

@pixelfox9666

6 жыл бұрын

They could eat crabs, squid, lobster, etc. Fish aren't the only fish in the sea, lol. Other than that, though, your point stands. Especially since the entire marine ecosystem is pretty much based on bigger fish eating smaller fish, so merfolk would probably see themselves eating other fish as just another part of the (marine) circle of life.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Pixel Fox Modern scuba divers wear chainmail to protect against shark bites. Rivited chainmail would be highly prized by mermaids for stopping shark bites and could buy it with gold found in sunken ships. Sailors could use it as a bargaining chip for safe passage by leaving one of thier own at shore with the chainmail while the rest go on boat.

@pixelfox9666

6 жыл бұрын

@ Mary Dominguez: That would be a really interesting addition to a mermaid story! "Listen, scary mermaid lady, be cool? Okay? Look, I'm going to give you my chain mail, okay? It'll protect you from shark bites or other mermaids or whatever. Look, here it is. Here. Okay? We cool? We can pass?"

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Pixel Fox WITH ONE Sailor LEFT AT SHORE WITH THE CHAINMAIL AS A HOSTAGE They cant go on land so they have no choice but to comply. Sailor: You ll get it when we get back to shore, Mermaid: (reluctantly agrees).

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Pixel Fox In my lores timeline after Govin-Pre invent cars, mermaids have jobs collecting seaweed for factories to make into leather. Which is leather made from seaweed.

I love all your Fantasy Rearmed videos! I love writing novels in a medieval setting, and one of my main problems is figuring out how fighting would work

When talking about tridents prominence is definitely a key factor. For a trident to be worth making you have to be hunting animals that you can lift out, in relatively shallow water (you have to be able to dive to the bottom), and you needs boats and other equipment. Which means only people to whom the sea offered many advantages would find it worthwhile. Think isles like New Zealand, Hawaii, Isle of Sky, or Crete. Also the idea of Merfolk “fishing” for humans is absolutely amazing

One of the rifles the mythbusters tested even had a too high velocity to penetrate the surface tension. The bullet was crushed like on a concrete wall and the parts just sunk.

I want to create ShadWorld, where all the fantasy creatures are present, but all fictional creatures are armed properly, like Shad describes.

@christophe7723

6 жыл бұрын

maybe you should make your own world and think about the equipment you would pick for it.

Hey Shad, love the video and the content. You’re killin it. I know you didn’t take Fluid Mechanics in college, but just to let you know, there is one major factor to water pressure-depth under the water. A bullet fired 100 feet under the water will barely move, while a bullet fired into the water from the land can still kill (just like an arrow) (although it may not penetrate as deep as Hollywood projects). I know you like being accurate, so I thought I’d say something. Cheers!

Many thanks for this series. It's given me lots of ideas for both colorful and realistic details for my fantasy roleplaying.

Meh in quite a few universes merfolk usually have siren bloodlines anyway. They just get a pretty one to sing and any people on the boat are basically dead. Oh they could stuff their ears I suppose. But at that point picking them off would be so much easier since they wouldn't be able to hear anything. That'd be interesting since in some stories (straight) women are immune to siren song. Would make for a nice diegetic explanation why sailors are all women. Don't think I've seen that one yet...

@eriks1765

6 жыл бұрын

you could still get holes cut in the bottom of you boat.

@Vrynix

6 жыл бұрын

Alright, but how would they get that hole in though? Drills maybe, though I'm not sure drilling into a moving boat would be easy. Not to mention that it'd probably be a hand crank as power tools in a fantasy universe seems... off. Then there's the problem that sailing ships often had wooden or sometimes lead sheathing on the underwater hull. So you'd effectively be trying to get through two layers.

@Knoloaify

6 жыл бұрын

Thank you, I'll start writing my all-girls pirate ship Light Novel using Shad's tips and aim for an anime adaptation.

@ElysiaWhitemoonOmega

6 жыл бұрын

i just want to say 1 thing, you do know that mermaid and sirens are two different races right?, sirens are birdpeople. i know alot of stories get this wrong, thats why im trying to get this knowledge spread out:D

@Knoloaify

6 жыл бұрын

That works only in english where you have two different words. If you look at french or japanese where there is only one word for them (sirène and ningyo), we simply assume that there are different styles of mermaids (greek mermaids (the birds), japanese mermaids, modern mermaids) just like there are different styles of dragons (asian and european).

One thing I think you missed it that Mer technology would develop based on what they encounter the most and not just anti-land humanoid. This would be other water races and creatures and based on the fact they have to fight three dimensionally. Spears can be useful in some cases but since the target can dodge in any direction it would be easy to miss alongside a poor recovery time between strikes (thus a trident is still somewhat relevent due to it's wider strike range). Extreme close fighting would likely be the norm. Personally I think a falx (or more likely a smaller version of one) would be better for them than a scimitar (as you mentioned), since the cutting edge is inverted and it would be easier hook and pull at enemies. Last time I played a DnD that went underwater for a significant time, the sahuagin (fish-men) used katars and tiger claw weapons to deadly effect since the water effected them less than standard weapons. TL;DR Inverted curved blades, hooks (used as a hand weapon) and small hand weapons would be the best, in my opinion.

@robertlewis6915

5 жыл бұрын

While any spear-wielder would definitely want a shorter sidearm in case of forward- dodging, I think you forgot that merfolk would be smaller than their worst enemies, on the whole, esp. in a fantasy setting. sea serpents, etc. would idealy be fought from a small distance with spears, not grappling. I'm not sure about sharks; if they are less agile than the mermen, clsoe up may actually be the best distance now that i consider it, but sea serpents and such would be too great a hazard at grappling range with coils, since even if the merfolk don't asphyxiate (depends on their breahtign apparatus) their ribs and such could be crushed. therefore spears would be a good choice, esp. if they utilized a paralyzing poison of some sort. against smaller, individual targets with presumably great agility and speed, a trident might be better, but spreading out imapct force across 3 different prongs would be less than ideal 'gainst larger armored creatures. against swarms, armor is the first obvious countermeasure, together with nets (coordinated between multiple mermen?) and a smaller curved blade that they can weild quickly and up close. About the falx, the forward swept tip could be much harder to keep on course if it went across a current than a back-swept blade, though this difficulty woudl diminish the shorter the blade got. the same problem would occur with any weapon containing a forward- sweep, such as a khopesh.

@BothHands1

5 жыл бұрын

Darkavatar what's the name of the movie he had in this video?? I love mermaids and i wanna watch it!! He doesn't say in the description either 😩

@Renesh2

5 жыл бұрын

@@BothHands1 It's from Pirates of the Caribbean 4, near the beginning-ish of the movie

@BothHands1

5 жыл бұрын

Renesh2 ty!!! 💕

@willclark4449

5 жыл бұрын

not if their entire bodies have scales like their arms. That with their extra strength just to survive in the ocean...you know water pressure. i'm sure it wouldnt be an issue for them to use any weapon much better underwater

Shad, first time: That is the TRITENT!! Shad, every other time: Tri'n'

Shad: “Push and Pull fighting style” -Intense Tui and La Avatar flashback ensues-

So, unexpectedly helpful! In my manuscript I have a scene where one of my characters is underwater and he is kind of drowning, but trying to fight off this enemy. The thing about the sword dragging through the water has made me re-think the scene a little. This character isn't really meant to beat the enemy, so I could raise the stakes a little by making him attempt a strike, but he feels the pressure of the water on his weapon, and him thinking that the weapon is going too slow. Just so you don't feel too sorry for him, he does survive.:)

@cesargeney5268

6 жыл бұрын

he was saved by the power of plot

@charliemccutcheon6030

5 жыл бұрын

I hope he used the enemies movements to impale itself on the sword

@imdone8243

5 жыл бұрын

Should have killed him. Boooo

I am defiantly using this in D&D

@visy23business22

6 жыл бұрын

Same idea here

@krisztianpovazson4535

6 жыл бұрын

*definitely

@jrodohan7814

6 жыл бұрын

Patricia Schonrock I PROCLAIM DEFIANTLY I SHALL USE THIS IN MY DnD CAMPAIGN! Llol

What you missed in my opinion: The important problem when using swords and other weapons you have to swing is not the surface area of the weapon but of your arm. Thats what produces the most drag. So, i would say thrusting weapons would be the primary weapons. Swords that reduce the need for swinging are a pretty good choice of sidearm i guess, as you said. PS: But... i like tridents D:

@lPhoenixGloryl

5 жыл бұрын

Great point, I agree any weapon you swing would probably be ineffective. As for tridents, the problem is you're dividing your thrusting energy between 3 points. None of them will pierce quite as deeply as a single point would... which could matter against armor. If Merfolk have decided that remaining speedy is more important than strong armor though, a trident would be more likely to hit.

@neerGdyahS

3 жыл бұрын

@@lPhoenixGloryl It would be pretty unlikely that Merfolk would use much in the way of armor though, and it would dramatically reduce their maneuverability to use armor that would have much in the way of coverage.

@lPhoenixGloryl

3 жыл бұрын

@@neerGdyahS I'm not so sure. Full western style plate is pretty unlikely, but I think you could get great coverage from something lighter without sacrificing hardly any maneuverability. The flipper might need to be left without armor - not sure. Anyway chainmail or leather should do fine - assuming you can find materials that work. Metalworking is difficult underwater and I'm not sure how leather holds underwater. Might need magic, outside help, or special materials - like shark leather or something. Anyway materials issues aside, my experience is that armor tires you out. It doesn't make you move any slower. Underwater there's no force keeping you up, so armor has to be significantly lighter, but I would think the same would be true otherwise.

@neerGdyahS

3 жыл бұрын

@@lPhoenixGloryl I feel like you said "I'm not so sure" then put forward many of the points that drove me to my conclusions. Any armor made would have to be under constant saltwater and not interfere with their shape too much. They also need significant range of movement to stay fully agile underwater since it's a 3d environment and their arms are used to swim. There's only so many obstacles you can pile on before it becomes impractical to achieve something (without magic). The point is that armor isn't going to be nearly the same issue it would be on land.

@lPhoenixGloryl

3 жыл бұрын

@@neerGdyahS I don't think it would limit their range of movement. That's the point I feel most qualified to answer, and my intention was to address that specifically... while making assumptions about other factors to allow me to do so. Full plate doesn't limit me on land at all. I'll get tired faster, but I can run as fast, jump as high, and move with the same range. Also if armor cannot cover your tail, and only covers the upper half of your body, I still think it's really valuable. Same even if only lighter armor is available. If any sort of protection is available - it will be sought after. The rest I grant you. It's logistically difficult to make and must be kept light. There's not many materials that work for that, nor are there great ways to work those materials underwater. We'd likely see a new material used for armor or a new mechanism for defense altogether. Maybe some arrangement of shells, or coral, or just regular clothes with jellyfish membranes attached on the exterior. Maybe they naturally evolve their own natural armor. I don't know but it's fun to think about. Personally I write for fantasy though, and I don't find magical manufacturing much of a stretch beyond merfolk already.

One time I did a karate chop in water with my hand and a hand is around a centimeter thick and swords are relatively thin so I think there won't be to much resistance from the water except you wouldn't be able to manipulate the blade easily but cutting is pretty fine.

@c.w.hughes2609

3 жыл бұрын

cutting, ez. Moving the blade around with any speed? Hard.

I think it is feasible for a merfolk society to have developed harpoons. They would not have wasted weapon development time with effective land weapons, they would have been developing water weapons, and material and technique wise a harpoon is feasible for a high fantasy setting

Counter to merfolk? Dynamite fishing!

@elijahjholt

6 жыл бұрын

DerFloh111 I presume you'd have to use Greek fire or something to light the Dynamite?

@modernknighterrant

6 жыл бұрын

A lot of types of fuse, like visco fuse, can burn underwater. So I agree with DerFloh, that in this hypothetical world, we'd pretty much be at the mercies of the Merfolk until we came up with underwater fuses and subsequent depth charges to deal with the fishy bastards... Unless the merfolk were mostly worried about something else. Sahuagin, maybe.

@elijahjholt

6 жыл бұрын

Ah, okay. I just knew Greek fire burnt underwater so I used it as an example.

@modernknighterrant

6 жыл бұрын

I'm just uncertain how well it'd work as a fuse since it was a liquid(ish?) material and we're not entirely sure what it was since the exact formulation was lost with the Byzantines. It might make a fantastic area denial weapon against Merfolk though, since it floated on water. They wouldn't be able to surface without being roasted. Honestly, if we take that into account, it was a very good thing to bring up. It probably would be the best weapon we had against merfolk for several centuries until we figured out proper explosives, although it would be a fickle and dangerous "ally."

@AshenDust_

5 жыл бұрын

Or nets

I imagine merfolk technology would develop slightly different than other people. More Harpoons, Net Tactics, some kind of slingshot or underwater bow with a spiral cut arrow to let the water flow around while it spins. I also image the Fin-Blades that some people have mentioned along with hooked and barbed items to control movement and drag or pull you into smaller spaces to drown you or get you stuck so they can get close to stab. Definitely would be using slim and narrow items probably made from Bone, Corral, Shell, Kelp or Seaweed, and the like

"You know the warriors from the deep sea? They've got 9:29

@citcoin-official2681

3 жыл бұрын

Curved. Swords.

The best weapon to fight Merfolk would probably be Greek Fire. Early Napalm used by the Byzantines. Water cant put it out, and it spreads, as in it floats ontop of water.

@WarriorVirtue

6 жыл бұрын

Black powder would also be effective if you found a way to use it in the water. The shock wave would be devastating over a large area.

@quentinbean348

6 жыл бұрын

also a spear like in spear fishing

@CAPace09

6 жыл бұрын

Clay Good area of denial weapon. Assuming Merfolk can't go through flames, then a layer of Greek Fire would prevent them from surfacing

@Omnigeek6

6 жыл бұрын

"And it floats on top of the water." That would make it an excellent weapon against sentient dolphins or other aquatic creatures who still have to surface to breathe. Merfolk could just hang out below the surface until it burns out.

@TagRoss

6 жыл бұрын

Clay better hope they don't have a tool to fling surface water up at you.

Dragging humans over the edge with A Harpoon would actually make for prime medium range combat. Effective at underwater combat since its effectivly a spear and then the barb on the harpoon could drag the human over the edge with even a small wound.

@lewisw3436

6 жыл бұрын

kai magnus yes

Something which I find people rarely consider when discussing merfolk, and other underwater creatures, is the pressure they live in. Merfolk are often depicted as living on the ocean floor, while also being able to survive at surface level. However, depending on where in the ocean, the pressure on the ocean floor is enormous, and just like humans can't survive in high pressure, a creature designed to live under high pressure may not able to survive under low pressure. For example, there are species of fish which will die when brought to the surface due to the gasses in their body expanding, particularly when this happens quickly. While this doesn't necessarily mean merfolk would be unable to surface at all, it would certainly be a challenge for them, and it could be lethal depending on the exact physical makeup. Also, the pitchfork is the poorman's trident.

Shad, just bringing to your attention that there is a type of sling shot/javelin that is used by Natives of the Pacific to hunt fish, so saying that ranged weapons don’t work on the water You would be referring to the large majority of ranged weapons, especially in the Mediaeval period but this slingshot/travel in style weapon has been around for centuries so I would presume that they also had it during the mediaeval period to hunt fish. And the best type of defence towards grapple hooks is by adding planks and or shealds on the side of your ships and boats.

even worse. a team of merfolk using hooks to capsize a whole boat

@alexwschan185

6 жыл бұрын

Well then the logical solution to kill the merfolks is to pollute the water

@noahstevens6662

6 жыл бұрын

Or some thing just as good drill and stab holes in the bottom of the boat.

@noahstevens6662

6 жыл бұрын

But after the water is polluted then there is no more fish and then nobody can't go fishing.

@alexwschan185

6 жыл бұрын

I kinda prefer not having to deal with merfolks than having salmon on my dinner table

@hayleybartek8643

6 жыл бұрын

Even more even worse: simply destroying the bottom of the boat or filling it with holes, allowing it to slowly sink (would take less effort and in a medieval setting the boats wouldn't be metal).

What about crossbows? I would argue merfolk could simply load them underwater then pop up anywhere they want on the surface within range of the human boat and shoot at them, while easily recovering quarrels that missed. Also, any chemicals that might start a fire on a ship would be deadly Also about the hook idea, i would simply find a way to anchor their ship(s) from the hull so as to immobilize them and them wait for them to starve, I doubt they would risk going underwater to fix the problem, so you probably can just leave them there without even watching them

@oejlen

6 жыл бұрын

Agree on the crossbow. How much the tactic would be used, would depend on how often merfolk would figth humans on boats. If they rarely did it, they might not have come up with the idea, and dont know of any materials found under water that could be used to make a crossbow. Also alot of stuff found on dryland might not survive for long in salt water. But if the merfolk would often raid ships it sounds like a logical tactic to use. Also like the idea of starving people on the boat out, especialy in salt water. If the merfolk wanted to eat the sailors, a few drills could do the trick, with the stearing disabled and the anchored down, time would be on their side. Could see a scary story about a boat trapped at sea, nasty hungry merfolk around the water, and the boat slowly filling up with water, the crew getting desperate for food and water, and the merfolk slowly thinning them out.

@klawypl

6 жыл бұрын

Problem with anchoring is called knifes, they could just simply cut the rope, you have nothing to "pin" on boat that is lower than 2 meters above water

@fistsofsnake5475

6 жыл бұрын

problem with crossbow is similar to bow- bowstring. If it wet it's not efective

@benthomason3307

6 жыл бұрын

problem with chemicals that start fire is that, well, how would a mermaid make them without getting them wet?

@thewordywarlock7159

6 жыл бұрын

You could just make the crossbow string out of seaweed, and start fires using magnesium.

We were on the same page Shad. Before these videos end, I try to come up with what I think would be the best weapons. I came up with (i don't know the name of them) hand hooks. They employ guerilla tactics, build up speed in the water, leap out, hook a human, preferably in the chest puncturing a lung, pull them out of the boat, and drag them to the bottom of the water and into a watery grave. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Kind of a late suggestion but you never mentioned knives and daggers. In combat you primarily use speed to cut quickly which can work well for the merfolk while under water, plus they can kill any humans they drag into the water using their daggers. Also daggers don’t have as much drag as larger blades weapons such as the one you mentioned which would make them a better candidate for use

How would they even produce metal weapons? Forging under water seems to be pretty problematic and as grinding a sword from a massive block of steel would take a lot of time. The only possible way to get metal weapons is by stealing/looting it from humans.

@trevorh6438

6 жыл бұрын

Flint-knapping. And Coral

@Elmorn

6 жыл бұрын

Trevor H right, didn't really think of that

@garysmith3037

6 жыл бұрын

And bone. The problem comes from how to shape/carve the weapons. Metal weapons would also have a limited lifespan with all that salt water.

@gabef9538

6 жыл бұрын

Mirfolk-alloy could be crafted in deap volcanic vents. Also the mirfolk could eat the wildlife off of the vents. Lance a crab and cook it in the vent.

@garysmith3037

6 жыл бұрын

The problem of that though is how close could the Merfolk get to those vents, the water around it would be boiling. I would think the Merfolk would boil alive long before they got close enough to heat the metal.

WITH MY MERFOLK ARMY, I WILL CARVE OUT... PART OF YOUR WOOOOOORLD!

@celtofcanaanesurix2245

6 жыл бұрын

Trygve Plaustrum 70% to be specific

@Neferkariusz31

6 жыл бұрын

"No sink shall be safe from… world domination!"

@JeanLucCaptain

6 жыл бұрын

Ohhh, that sinking feeling....

@JeanLucCaptain

6 жыл бұрын

Blow the damns! Release the rivers!

Let’s keep in mind the materials they would have at their disposal: - Bones (stuff like shark teeth and whale bones) - Shells - Venoms and poisons - Plant fiber (from kelp and similar plants) First, because of their lack of access to heat sources (unless they could use the hydrothermal vents from the abyss) their weapons and armor would be crude (could make a sword by sharpening a whale rib or shark teeth swords). Cetaceans have very heavy bones, and shark bones are cartilage, so they could make bows or any arrow using weapon with more accuracy and range (plus, as how we tend to aim by using gravity, they could by using buoyancy) Think about it, merfolk warriors with shark hide armor for chainmail, whale bone armor for plated armor, the rulers of the sea.

This is a pretty interesting and informative video. Now I can't help but wonder what merfolk castles would be like. How do you build a defensible residence that can repel attackers from all angles? Would their castle essentially have giant cages constructed around them? Would they be giant lumps of coral, labyrinthine in design with false passages? How do you balance practical defense and aesthetic in this scenario? It seems like all the usual defenses for a castle go out the window in a 3D environment(except for towers I suppose), so it's a real puzzler to try and imagine what an effective merfolk castle would look like.

they could also sabotage the boat, just make a hole in it's floor, and watch it sink. There would be no way to stop them.

We have it, a species that would be able to wield scythes for war! Hook and pull, just hook and pull.

@scaveranasaur1897

2 жыл бұрын

incredible

How about steel wires when fighting each other. I think that would be more efficient for cutting, especially with one or more companions.

@Technotoadnotafrog

2 жыл бұрын

That's what I was thinking, too. A chakram might also work, since they're practically hydrofoils in shape.

My favourite so far. Great stuff.

We're gonna need a bigger boat.

@kyleharrell4853

6 жыл бұрын

Scratch boats, I'm getting a ship.

@josephburchanowski4636

6 жыл бұрын

+Kyle Harrell Scratch ships, I will go with balloons. I don't care how well build that ship is, the merfolk could just build a big flotation device under water keep at the same density as the water with weights, swim it underneath my ship and cut the weights. I don't exactly like the idea of a ship design to ram ships from below ramming my ship from below.

@dashiellgillingham4579

6 жыл бұрын

Fuck all of you, imma build a space ship. I don't belong on this... mer-planet.

@ls200076

6 жыл бұрын

Dashiell Gillingham prepare exterminatos

@JeanLucCaptain

6 жыл бұрын

So long and thanks for all the fish?

Lassos would be another possibility along those lines. One problem merfolk would have is an inability to forge metals underwater. Or, they could use a short, barbed spear with a rope affixed to the rear. Score a hit with the barbed end, then pull the human into the water. Basically, a fishhook for apes. :) Merfolk would probably look for ways to weaponize sea creatures. For example, think of something like a lacrosse stick with the basket filled with sea urchins or poison octopi (like the blue-ringed octopus). The merfolk pop up, lob the creatures into the boat and let the poison spines or bites do their work. If they could team up with/domesticate large and powerful creatures (whales, kraken, sea serpents, whatever), the merfolk could harry the humans with their weapons while the sea creature(s) capsize or ram the boat or ship. Their spears (something like a narwhal tusk?) could also be used to attack the rudder of a ship to pry it apart. If the humans can't steer, they're pretty much toast if they're out at sea... They could conceivably have slender pure thrusting swords like a rapier, smallsword, or estoc with a minimal guard to reduce water resistance. If they can't find a way to make swords, they could still trade for them, though metal weapons would still be less than ideal on account of rust and corrosion.

@matthewmuir8884

6 жыл бұрын

Finally; someone else mentioned thrusting swords.

@timothyyoung691

4 жыл бұрын

kevin crady i was gonna sugest the same thing thrusting sword with serations inspired by sawfish the serations ( i think more bread knife or kriss blade) would assist push and pull cuts while still aloowing for easy swimmingby being slender and if kept close to the body while swimming instead of what we think of as a hip scabbard would not hinder the merfolk at all

@corvus_da

4 жыл бұрын

Is octopi the correct plural of octopus? That sounds like folk etymology.

@CaptainWobbs

4 жыл бұрын

Imagine finding the one jerk who decided to forge and sell all those grapple hooks to the merfolk that are getting your men killed.

@ericward8459

4 жыл бұрын

@@CaptainWobbs A nation of pirates allied with the Merfolk for dominian of the waves? Now the costal kingdoms launch a campaign to end their reign of terror??

Love the video! I think a simpler and easier to pull off tactic than grappling hooks would be to just get hooks, attach them to one side of the boat and flip it over. Or course I'm thinking about small paddle boats

this came up in my again, and one thing that you may have missed is that when fishing with a trident you can immobilize fish by getting all three prongs into them lengthwise. it prevents the fish from moving as needed for it to swim. if you only get one prong into them (or using a spear) the fish can sometimes wriggle off the point, and thus when pulling it out of the water you tend to use your hand to hold the fish on the point.

How would they forge metal weapons??? please explain, anyone.

@doomkitty8386

6 жыл бұрын

Same on watching, but what about underwater volcanic activity? I imagine a place like the Mid-Atlantic Ridge would be a major industrial area for merefolk.

@TheWampam

6 жыл бұрын

If you want to have boiled mermaids?

@doomkitty8386

6 жыл бұрын

Hahaha fair point. They would need protective equipment, and eventually facilities to channel the heat to the right places.

@Killobot42

6 жыл бұрын

Abradolf Lincler different materials or stolen items. I think it would be more like shaped coral or something like the bones of large sea creatures

@jozefkeresturi2139

6 жыл бұрын

Abradolf Lincler What abou bone? And they can go in shallow water. And why not human slaves?

That actually brings up an interesting and super effective tactic for even a small group of Merfolk against a boat full of humans. Have one or two mermaids show up on one side of the boat making kissy faces at the sailors to distract them while one or two Merfolk silently pop up on the opposite side of the boat and quietly hook their grapples to the side of the boat no one is paying any attention to and as soon as the hooks are set, all 4 Merfolk dive down and swim away pulling the ropes and flipping the boats over dumping all the men into the sea.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

Chris Poole Modern scuba divers wear chainmail to protect against shark bites. Rivited chainmail would be highly prized by mermaids for stopping shark bites and would buy it with gold found in sunken ships. Sailors could use it as a bargaining ship for safe passage by leaving one of thier on shore with the chainmail while the rest go on boat.

Your ideas make all these fantasy creatures so much more badass than I thought of.

I think knives are also an option; small surface area, so drag isn't much, can be used in closer combat underwater or thrown above the surface, you can have many of them at a time, and they would likely already have knives on their person in case they get caught in nets/seaweed/etc.

Looking forward to when we get to avian/flying races. That shit will get really out of control.

@Kaithelion3K

6 жыл бұрын

I can imagine it now, a strafing run of Angels dropping sword pommels on their enemies, you have to end them rightly after all.

@gslinger19

6 жыл бұрын

We're all doomed! :)

@firephoenix4013

6 жыл бұрын

The arrows will literally blot out the sun.

@austintrigloff9562

6 жыл бұрын

angelic skirmishers. I could see avians throwing lots of javelins and dropping grenados on lots of heads. but, if we're talking about flyer against flyer, then that would be more of a martial art.

@Lockdeath

6 жыл бұрын

When pitting a flying race against a land bound race, in large enough numbers the flying race could just drop stones/logs/anything in a simultaneous drop from a height where it would achieve terminal velocity (not really that high) and you could disable a large portion of the land based force. The tighter the formation the more damage. Imagine a rain of even 10lb stones going as fast as an object can fall (over 120MPH) smashing into a formation from above. This followed up by targeted arrow fire (from the high ground) would be devastating to a land bound force while not even exposing the flying force to the possibility of damage.

I love this series but you missed the most important point, only mentioning it in a caption. Metal weapons underwater. Does not compute! Even if you're talking about modern steel with stainless variants (which make them less capable weapons), how are you going to forge under water? Forging steel requires heating it to 1700 F. That's simply not happening under water, where post the first few feet the temperature is a consistent "fricking cold". So mer-weapons would need to be made of not-metal. What are the options? Bone? Coral? Rock? Can your flint nap under water? Can you make a scimitar out of whale bone? I'd think a stone knife and a good head of speed would be incredibly effective. The mer-person becomes a pointy projectile himself. A fight would consist of flying past each other at high speed until one fighter punctures the other, then let them bleed out. I'd love to see a follow up video discussing materials for weapons underwater. Grappling hooks as anti-boat weapons make a ton of sense, if you have a viable replacement for steel.

@BlueSun_

6 жыл бұрын

Also, Shark teeth. They could also capture metal weapons from downed humans and use them until they rusted away (with a nice bonus dose of tetanus). They could also use the wood from sunken ships.

@AndrianTimeswift

6 жыл бұрын

I was having the same thought, myself. Materials really are the problem. I posted a longer comment discussing the materials, but I want to address the potential forging process. Even though metal would be crap underwater, I don't think it would be impossible for merfolk to accomplish forging steel if they were really dedicated to it. WHY they would be dedicated to it is beyond me, but I think it would be possible. While merfolk certainly could not forge anything underwater, I think they could do it above water. If the merfolk can breathe above water (or comfortably hold their breath above water for a sufficiently long period), they could find a location with calm water and a solid stone shore that isn't significantly affected by tides. They could then carve out paths for themselves to use and build forges and workstations above the water. That way, they could achieve the necessary temperatures and generate enough force with a hammer to shape the metal. Now, one thing I think merfolk would be more likely to develop instead of steel, that would require this kind of above-water crafting, is glass. They've got plenty of sand available, so if they can achieve the proper temperatures, glass would be readily abundant. It might not be a great material for weapons, but it could be used for ornamentation and other utilities. As for the qualities of weapon materials for merfolk, I think weapons wielded underwater would probably be under a lot less stress due to being used more slowly, so more brittle materials might not be as bad a thing.

@BlueSun_

6 жыл бұрын

The thing is they would be the equivalent of humans trying to manage mining, smithing, carpentry, milling possible even tanning while having their feet bound together, their knees unable to bend too much and only a limited time and area to work on (remember that a lot goes into the infrastructure needed to have all of this functioning). Not to mention how would they even acquire the knowledge to do these things. How in a million years are underwater living creatures going to invent not only controlled production of fire but also working with it for manufacturing. If they imported that knowledge from land people, they why not just make deals and trade for the supplies themselves. It just seems completely nonsensical for merfolk to ever venture out of water.

@AndrianTimeswift

6 жыл бұрын

Hey, I'm with you there. I mean, it's hard to imagine merfolk even encountering fire much in their natural habitat, much less learning how to create and control it. Now, I don't necessarily think merfolk would have to learn milling, since their primary food sources would almost certainly be fish, seaweed, and shellfish. They could develop farming for seaweed and shellfish pretty easily, I imagine. Carpentry wouldn't really be necessary, either, since they wouldn't have much in the way of wood to work with. I imagine that stone knapping and bone carving would be more valuable skills for them. As for tanning... yeah, that's gotta be impossible underwater, and pretty much useless anyway, since leather tends to not like being wet. Underwater mining would be... difficult, but not impossible, I think. One technology I think merfolk would need to invent would be some kind of harness to prevent Newton's Third Law from screwing them over all the time. They'd need to anchor themselves and have something to push back against.

@BlueSun_

6 жыл бұрын

I meant that has technology for smithing and glass work outside of water. I said milling but was thinking of a sawmill and other apparatus to gather large amounts of wood to make charcoal, the tanning was more for the foles or other devices to make strong wind to make high temperature fire.

I think if they could find a way to damage the ships from underneath, or even capsize them, that would be their best weapon. Obviously that would harder the bigger the ship got. For humans, the best way to fight them would be big nets they throw in the water. Also, I don't think it would be easy for a merfolk to get their hands on steel. Maybe have them trading sea treasures to greedy humans in exchange for the grappling hooks? Or maybe make them out of corals or something?

@Shadiverstiy I think the main reason why the trident wasnt used on Battelfield is, because its easier to block off, its basicly a spear with three spearheads on a bride steelpattern, which means you can stuck much more easily at shields, and enemy weapons. A spear is more usefull because its quite thin and can push between shield and arms, or above/beneath the weapon's guard.

I think that merfolk fighting styles would be similar to cavalry charges. Get up to high speeds with their powerful tails, and come in straight with a powerful charge tearing through the enemy lines. Lances! Lance charges would also be good at piercing boat hulls.

@alekseyibragimov9873

6 жыл бұрын

This tactics is actually used by sword-fish =)

@notatruck2640

6 жыл бұрын

Good point

@serhansali

6 жыл бұрын

That i was thinking about too, a lance with a hidrodinamic hand huard

@joshuahadams

6 жыл бұрын

Aleksey Ibragimov similar ones are used by orcas too. They find an ice floe with a seal on it, then charge in a line, using their combined wake to capsize the ice floe or wash the seal off into the water. Apply this to a small boat and add Merfolk with sabres, and you gave a scary scenario.

@BonBon-oq5pl

6 жыл бұрын

HansLemurson merfolks just pick up a swordfish and charge

What about daggers or Rapiers using underwater? Wile daggers don't give you reach, it doesn't give you much drag. Rapiers thin blade allows cuts and most importantly piercing power of spear just in shorter range. And mer-folk could use hooks to anchor boat or even ship that humans (or other race) would not escape, then it is just a matter of time to cut a hole underwater. Best weapon against mer-folk? Big ass fishing net.

@alexlacoste3574

6 жыл бұрын

no chemicals

@alexwschan185

6 жыл бұрын

BEST WEAPON AGAINST MERFOLKS: POISON THE WATERS!!!!!

@Carewolf

6 жыл бұрын

I think rapiers would be better than curved blades too. Less offcenter drag when maneuvering it or swimming with it by your side.

@freaki0734

6 жыл бұрын

Rapiers arent as useful because their handle creats much drag

@natiadelibashvili

6 жыл бұрын

it is true their shockwave is "stronger" because it creates an oscillating blast, however the area of said shockwave is greatly diminished. also, the explosives would need to be detonated by a spark or fire, which is much harder to maintain underwater, so the explosion would likely happen on the surface, decreasing the power and area of the shockwave underwater. programmes or shows where they test or mention this effect, mostly modern explosives are mentioned, and even then they ask questions like "is it better to jump off the boat or stay on it" and jumping off the boat doesnt really put much distance between the subject and the explosion, whereas merefolk can swim and put much larger distances between them and explosives compared to a human. just imagine how fast fish change direction and swim away when frightened...

Trident disadvantages also include the propensity to get lodged or pinched in the body of opponents, as well as the horizontal surfaces present which are not on a spear. The horizontal parts would act as a potential area of grip for the enemy, giving them possibly more leverage than the person holding the vertical shaft.

Poison seems like an obvious option for underwater combat... your opponents won't be wearing armour, since they'd sink, and you can't expect to break bones or chop off an arm with water resistance, but use man-o-war/fugu toxin on a stiletto or even just sea urchin spines on a stick and you could probably end a fight pretty quick. Also, if you need a potentially sharp, non-corroding material for small blades and points, try clam or oyster shell. Also also, mancatchers.

A year late, I know, but there's a large concept that you didn't address that I think would have significant impact on underwater combat. Much like water has a much higher density and viscosity than open air (and thus a lot more drag which you addressed), *that same density also provides a lot more buoyancy and counteraction to the force of gravity.* This has two major impacts. The first has been addressed by another poster on the page: the location of your opponent. Depth and location in 3 dimensions becomes a big idea - just ask anybody who has fought in an underwater zone in an MMORPG. That's because the force provided by buoyancy means that not only can the weapon be heavier - but that the opponent themself can move through the medium differently. The other impact doesn't seem to have been addressed by anyone yet: while the _size, surface area, and swinging/thrusting profile_ of a weapon would need to _shrink,_ the _weight_ could actually *_increase_* with no major issues. I'm not entirely sure how that would look. However, it does mean that the construction of a lot of weapons can change. The weight of a blade would have less downside. Indeed, increased weight might provide a bit of counteraction to the issues with drag. The problem of course is that a lot of weapons that are heavier are also larger - which circles back around to the issue with drag. As for your idea of a grappling hook, I think you took a little too much time examining something that really wouldn't be as useful as you think. You're a merperson, why bother coming up above water to throw a grappling hook and expose yourself to arrow fire at all? Just come up underneath the boat and drill a hole in it underneath the waterline. Or multiple holes. Game over.

@benthomason3307

4 жыл бұрын

sounds like warring merfolk would attach smoothed and polished rocks to their fists and just hulksmash eachother.

@timothymclean

4 жыл бұрын

It wouldn't increase maximum weight much, though. Water is only a small fraction as dense as most materials you'd consider making weapons from, and mass would still be a problem. The biggest effect of buoyancy would be extra (or at least different ( trouble with unweighted wooden weapons.

@ashtongiertz8728

3 жыл бұрын

Something else to bear in mind is that buoyancy and weight aren't the same thing; a tree is buoyant, but it has a significant amount of weight behind it. Now, I could be wrong about this, but this should mean that buoyancy could potentially be used as a driving force. I know trees getting dragged under the Mississippi River were incredibly dangerous to riverboats when they popped back up; so I'd imagine Merfolk could turn trees and logs into essentially underwater battering rams. Imagine you're just sailing across the sea, when suddenly BAM! A tree smashes through the bottom of your ship.

@timothymclean

3 жыл бұрын

@@ashtongiertz8728 That is certainly a possibility. The big problems would be getting enough energy to move a tree underwater at a tech level where that's a useful weapon, and getting a whole tree when you live in the middle of the ocean. (Or even on the continental shelf-most trees break into little pieces before they reach the ocean.) You'd probably need to treat the wood so water didn't seep in, though. Or maybe create an air-filled cavity in the middle, somehow. And definitely put a spike on the business end!

@fattytan1377

3 жыл бұрын

Drilling a hole. How. You can try and drill it with a hand cranked drill, but its impossible with it moving You can't use explosives, (see dynamite fishing)

I think they would use dye to great affect, like octupuses do. Imagine you square off with one, next thing you know puff of black dye and you can't see anything. And as your thrashing about worried about where the merfolk went bam! trident to the back.

@fudgelame

6 жыл бұрын

Dye that mostly affected the air and surface of water would be even better really in assisting in stretching human observation to the limit. Or simply wait til theres a rainstorm or fog for targets of opportunity.

@marydominguez6033

6 жыл бұрын

David Craft Modern scuba divers wear chainmail to protect against shark bites. Rivited chainmail would be highly prized by mermaids for stopping shark bites and would buy it with gold found in sunken ships. Sailors could use it as a bargaining ship for safe passage by leaving one of thier on shore with the chainmail while the rest go on boat.

@FirstLast-fr4hb

6 жыл бұрын

how would they hit you with a trident if there is blinding dye in the way? :P

Also using serrated edges would be highly effective as it will create a deep cut with little effort and it could be used as a defense against slash and run attacks.

Merfolk I think would use an adaption of a harpoon both underwater as well as above. Heavy bones can be formed into these weapons or volcanic rock/glass can be adapted w/o forging or the use of metalsmithing. They can also attach a rope to these thin and very sharp harpoons and above water, use a throwing stick like weapon for greater range.

The grappling hook would be reverse fishing, humaning!

What medieval weapons would Australians use?

@joaosturza

6 жыл бұрын

WisePictWarrior the digeri-sword ,brought with digeri-dollars in digeri-smiths

@EFlatcap

6 жыл бұрын

Riding emus, of course.

@artski09

6 жыл бұрын

mounted emu

@Alayne89

6 жыл бұрын

Emus are bloody scary mate. When you get a chance, read about the Emu war. It was a real thing we failed to win here in Aus.

@EFlatcap

6 жыл бұрын

Yup. I know all too well. Lest we forget the fallen pride of the Australian army.

A counter to the grappling hook (which may also be counter-intuitive and may require technological advancements in boat design, like metal hulls, or metal lined hulls, similar to what is seen on larger trireme styled ships) would be pitch/oil/Greek fire to prevent the merfolk from surfacing for an attack.

Trident also disperses the impact to 3 locations cutting penetration power down to a third of that of a single prong.

I like spears for their primary weapon, but I think a more appropriate backup would be a dagger of some kind. Since this is medieval technology, their are going to basically have no metalworking ability and steel will rust away underwater, which you mentioned for the sword but not the spear or the grappling hook. Therefore I think you need to look to earlier tech without metal, or even the new world. Namely bone spears, daggers, maybe even rock, unless this fantasy world has some material to fix these issues.

So merfolks are the medioval equivalent of a submarine? Drop the DEEP CHARGE! We will make some "explosive" fishing!

@alexlacoste3574

6 жыл бұрын

or you pollute the water

@charleslindeman2169

6 жыл бұрын

Yeah versus modern humans they're kind of boned. Just drop a grenade or stick of dynamite and watch them all float to the surface.

@rachdarastrix5251

6 жыл бұрын

VS modern merfolk depth to surface turrets and trap doors that unleash float mines to the surface.

I like how you didnt bother with "what if they are fighting an armored opponent?"

@fattytan1377

3 жыл бұрын

Because they will *never win*

@ahmedmanaseer8696

2 жыл бұрын

Actually if they pool someone wearing Armour underwear it would be an automatic victory

Shad the only problem I could see with spears would be if the merfolk are highly mobile underwater as turning the spear to engage would be fairly difficult. Though a short curved sword would probably in that situation. Maybe different weapons for whether they are engaging other merfolk versus animals?