longswords

WEAPONS OF GOR

SWORDS and KNIVES

The Long Sword

They Came in different sizes and lenghts.... from the heavy sword Of the Torvalslander.... to the Long and heavy blade of the Alars....... these fearsome weapons had blades from 30 to 50 inches in length and were designed to be used one or two handed

Norse Quotes and Pics Spatha

Torvaldsland Longsword
"He wore beneath his cloak yellow wool, and a great belt of glistening black, with a gold buckle, to which was attached a scabbard of oiled, black leather; in this scabbard was a sword, a sword of Torvaldsland, a long sword, with a jeweled pommel, with double guard."---Marauders of Gor, page 172

"Besides the ax Alars are fond of the Alar sword, a long, heavy, double-edged weapon." Mercenaries of Gor, page 45

"I had seen such men fight before. Once the sheer weight of the attacker's blows had turned and driven, interposed, his opponent's sword half through the man's own neck. But I did not think the Forkbeard would weary. On his own ship he, not unoften, drew oar. He accepted the driving blows, like iron thunderbolts, on his own blade, turning them aside. But he struck little. Hilda, her hand before her mouth, eyes frightened, watched this war of two so mighty combatants. Too, of course, the weight of such blows, particularly with the long, heavy swords of Torvaldsland, take their toll from the striking arm, as well as the fending arm."

"Too," he said, I purchased this splendid sword." He unsheathed it and swung it about. He handled it lightly. It nearly decapitated a passing wagoner. It was a long cutting sword, of the sort called a spatha among the wagons. It is more useful than the gladius, from the back of a tharlarion, because of it's reach. "--Mercenaries of Gor, page 66
Alar Longsword

these swords with thier longer blades are Indeed a fearsome weapon...
the Torvaldslander long sword is obviously the standard Viking longsword... these swords historically were used both one and two handed and have been found in various grave sites and battlefields to be of varying lenth between 30 and 50 inches....
the Alar long sword or the Spatha is the Roman horse sword...Take a Gladius and add a foot in lenth to the blade and you essentialy have a Spatha.... the blade is a little thinner than that of the Gladius usually being about 2 1/2 inches compared to the gladius's 3 to 3 1/2 blade width *interesting Note* the term Longsword was created By G. Gygax of TSR for use in the D&D roleplaying game, in truth there is no such beast as a Longsword, the closest thing being a Broadsword. That term being a generic name used to desrcibe any longer sword with a straight blade usualy sharpened on both sides that is used primarily with one hand
Through the Years on Earth this sword evolved from being a simple tool for hacking to the epitome of the cut and thrust weapon, Though it appears that On Gor it has reatined it's size and mass and not shrunk to the size of the sword most people envision. No where as quick as the short sword the greater reach though would allow a fighter to stand beyond the range of the common shortsword....it also would have the ability to chew through a shield or knock aside a smaller blade....

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Norse	Quotes and Pics	Spatha
	"He wore beneath his cloak yellow wool, and a great belt of glistening black, with a gold buckle, to which was attached a scabbard of oiled, black leather; in this scabbard was a sword, a sword of Torvaldsland, a long sword, with a jeweled pommel, with double guard."---Marauders of Gor, page 172 "Besides the ax Alars are fond of the Alar sword, a long, heavy, double-edged weapon." Mercenaries of Gor, page 45 "I had seen such men fight before. Once the sheer weight of the attacker's blows had turned and driven, interposed, his opponent's sword half through the man's own neck. But I did not think the Forkbeard would weary. On his own ship he, not unoften, drew oar. He accepted the driving blows, like iron thunderbolts, on his own blade, turning them aside. But he struck little. Hilda, her hand before her mouth, eyes frightened, watched this war of two so mighty combatants. Too, of course, the weight of such blows, particularly with the long, heavy swords of Torvaldsland, take their toll from the striking arm, as well as the fending arm." "Too," he said, I purchased this splendid sword." He unsheathed it and swung it about. He handled it lightly. It nearly decapitated a passing wagoner. It was a long cutting sword, of the sort called a spatha among the wagons. It is more useful than the gladius, from the back of a tharlarion, because of it's reach. "--Mercenaries of Gor, page 66