Premodern Weaponry and Armor

This is an index of weapons which have their origins before the widespread use of gunpowder.

Melee Weapons

• Clubs: The Club is most likely the first weapon ever to be used, with use of clubs being observed in Chimpanzees. A long, narrow, ridid object which can be carried in hand to hit enemies with, causing damage with blunt force trauma. Clubs generally give an edge over an unarmed oppenent, but inflicting a leathal blow with a club is generally quite dificult. However, clubs can be effective at subdoing opponents without killing them. Outside quick improvised weapons, clubs are still used today in the form of Truncheons for said reason.
• Maces: The Mace is a more refined version of the club, having some sort of head made of stone or metal to make impacts more damaging. Some maces would have spikes for penetrative effect. Maces became popular after the advent of plate armor as their impacts could shatter bones even if they did not get through the armor outright.
• Spears: A spear is at its most basic a long rod with a point on the end. The first spears were simple pointy sticks, then had their tips hardened by burning them, sharpening and then by attaching stone (and latter metal) points to improve penetration. As spears were easy to manufacture, had non military applications in hunting and fishing and required fairly minimal amounts of metal, they became the most common form of weapon used by early civilizations. Among the most effective use of spears is that of the spear wall, in which spearmen would stand side to side with their weapons pointing forward to resist charges (praticularly cavalry charges).
• Axes: A bladed wedge on a handle, axes have both applications as tools and weapons of war and can deliver a concentrated strike with cutting power to a single point and as such useful against armor. That said, they were inprecise.
• Swords
• Daggers: A short knife designed for combat, usually bladed on both sides. Used as an emergency weapon, close quarters fighting, assasination as an emergency fallback.
• Pole arms

Ranged Weapons

• Javelins: A light short spear intended for throwing. Javelins were used for hunting and for warfare, notably by the Greek Peltast skirmishers and Roman Legionaries as well as by vikings and Spanish Jinetes. These weapons were limited in use by the fact that the maximum effective range of a Javalin was comparitvely short and only a small number of Javelins could be carried.
• Slings
• Bows
• Crossbows

Seige Weapons

• Battering rams
• Catapults
• Trebuchets
• Seige Towers

Armor

• Helmets
• Shields Shields are hand held barriers. Shields ranged in size from small to large barriers that could screen most of a human body. Shields were made out a variety of materials including leather or cloth on wooden frames, wickerwork, wood or metal. Shields were most effective by lining up soldiers into a shield wall. Shields could often be used offensively, generally to stun, disrupt or disorient an enemy. Shields are still use today by riot control units.
• Cloth Armor Armor coposed of quilted or padded textiles was used by various civilizations. This armor was cheap to make, but lacked in terms of durability. It was mostly used by primitive civilizations such as the ancient egyptians and the aztecs.
• Scale Armor
• Chainmail
• Brigandine
• Plate Armor