Wall Stormers #90

 Its been a hard long year, the fields have not grown any better than before, and the guilds keep voting to send out more kids to their deaths. My first born lost his life out there, and yet it didn't stop my second born from going out. Yet, he returned, returned with enough iron to make a new ploughshare and more.

The Guilds divided up the loot, as parent we were afforded new stone and new wood for our house, and indeed an upgrade to my plough. We're thankful for that, but I look at the neighbours, who've lost their children and I wonder. Maybe I should have gone out instead of my firstborn. I won't let my 2nd born out again, in the excitement he got married and are now with child. 

I have the muscles of a farmer, so why not. 

The Start of Summer

Its not the 9th year, sending kids out to clear the walls. Lets be fair, its always a volunteers job. the survivors return not just rich, but also proud, looked upon by the others as someone who matters.

Yet not all missions go as planned. Last year, some kids let loose an abomination. Something described as a body of bodies, all glued together, yet it could come apart if needed. 20 feet high, multiple heads and arms. sick, twisted. Worse, it was at Merchants gate, usually the safer of the gates, but sadly the harder to defend, due to the overhanding customs gate house.

So, the three who discovered it, and seven more of their kin, the ones who survived, but not found enough to retire, plus some new kids, and 12 guard, were sent out to clean it all up.

The Guards reported back, something else was out there.

The Zombies were tougher than usual, there were stranger ones, and then the beast appeared. The fight was furious, and fast, as the priests summoned the word of Ignatious Flageston Mortantius Fury, and burned the ground, escaping back into the gate as the street was lit with holy fire. Several heroes were scorched, many infected by the blood and are now in hospital being treated. But, word has it, the abomination was purged.  

Once returned, some of our adventurers, not happy that they'd returned empty handed, snuck out into the city the next morning, grabbed a few items from a building (decorative iron chairs) and managed to improve their standing at the adventurers guild.

Morning Star, an argument.

 Sometimes, there are thing, ingrained so deep, its hard to let go. My education into medieval weapons came originally from fantasy roleplay. Then later Historical texts, that were as often wrong. Today in the digital age, where we have access to 'all the information' we also have many holes, gaps and the youth get so strung up on 'things which are, are, and everything else is false'

Arguing about the Morning Star.

The Thing about this one, is, there is evidence for both sides. Is it a flail or is it a mace?

What I was raised on, the Ball with spikes is the star, the Flail head, being a cylinder, starred or spiked or plain, but never the less, at least a single chain link to allow flexible movement was the Flail. The Chain however didn't come into it til later, and due to the arc of the end point, being swung, somehow represented morning.

In reality

Medieval peasants brought the flail from the wheat fields to the battlefield. Its well understood and there are many depictions of its use both as a threshing tool, and then by combat manuals. Its more like a club attached to a polearm, but you can see the connection.

Then there is a blur. many articles use the words, may, might, could have, would have. But there does not appear to be clear precise context. Many references turned out to be forgeries. The blurred lines between someone attaching 'something' to the end of a chain, and calling it one thing or another, in different languages. German *seems* to be referring to the head of a mace with the specific spiked 'sun/star' version, where the French and English did not use this term for the mace variety, but for the less common flail variety. 

It also seems, there may have been some confusion, where the holy water sprinkler, was mistaken as a weapon, described on the battlefield, drawn onto parchment and then without having seen one, monks or scholars drew them into artworks, which were then copied by weapon crafters, due to the demands of their lords to at least have one of everything at hand if need be. 

In Dungeonworld

While I could go back into all my documents and relabel morning stars to starred flails, if there seemed to be enough need for it, It begged a question. Does this world and its linguistic path, have to follow our world? Sure, there might be some mild confusion at the game table, when a player requests a morning star, expecting a starred mace, and instead gets a chain weapon, but nuances of the world build is what makes a world interesting. 

As long as its not too many..  

Morning Stars, being the Ball of spikes, on the end of a blocky chain, are fashioned by clever blacksmiths to 'mourn' in the correct direction, and are reduced in their ability to flick back or follow through too far. The chain is blocky and has limited range. It can't easily hit the wielder, unless they are unproficient. [12]* d10B/+d6P, d6AD, 6AF, HP: 120(s) 80(c) 40(w) - only 12s can cause damage, if they miss, to the wielder

Starred Maces, being the Ball of spikes on the end of a club/mace, are fashioned by blacksmiths and weaponsmiths, due to the structure and design, its often too easy for the head of such to snap off, but far cheaper than the morning star. [10], d8/+d6, d6AD, 5AF, HP: 60(s) 40(w)

Morning Star Flails, being a ball of spikes on a common chain, being the lesser cousins, have no blocky form to the chain and as such, swing back into the weilder or overswing and knock the wielder off balance. [11]* d8B/+d6P, d6AD, 5AF, HP: 80(s/c) 40(w). All fail rolls (10,11,12) cause damage to the wielder

Flail, being a wooden club possibly with spikes, at the end of a longer mace/polearm. The weapon, like all flails, can get around shields, and the physics of the swing, causes extra damage, but unproficient wielders will likely be unbalanced. [10]* 2d6B/+d2P), d4AD, 3AF, HP: 50(h) 40(w) (12s cause unbalance)

[Initiative] *unproficient characters +50%

/+ if the Pierce damage goes above armour, add the B damage again to Pierce.

AD: Armour Damage
AF: Armour Factor of the Weapon
(s) star, (c) chain (w) wooden handle (h) head