So your fantasy story requires your plucky farm boy or farm girl to pick up what they have to hand and take on the invaders or fight a dragon or maybe set out in pursuit of the pillaging gang of bandits or… At this point, I’m thinking of Tolkien’s Farmer Giles of Ham, who took on a giant with the blunderbuss he used to frighten trespassers, filled with bits of broken pottery and old rusty nails (for which he was awarded a sword by the king, but you’ll have to read the rest of the story for yourself). I’m also thinking of Roran in Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance series, picking up the hammer he used as a blacksmith’s apprentice and turning into his signature weapon. Then there is the clichéd scene where the locals grab pitchforks and torches as they hunt for the werewolf or monster.
Your peasant-class protagonist has access to a range of items that could be turned into weapons – with the added advantage that he or she is already familiar with using one for its intended purpose. However, some of these would make better weapons than others. If you haven’t spent much time working with tools as your peasant protagonist, then this list might help you make sure that you put the right weapon in the hands of your wannabe warrior.
Make sure that you put the right weapon in the hands of your wannabe warrior.
· Scythe. You’d expect a scythe to be a great weapon, what with that big long slashing blade. However, the way the blade is set on the handle would make it a very awkward weapon indeed. You see, a scythe is designed to slash down long grass at about ankle height in a twisting side-to-side motion. The handles and the curve of the shaft, and the fact that the blade is set at right angles to the shaft would make it hard to use in combat. If a scythe is all your protagonist has, then let him or her remove the blade from the handle and/or take it to the blacksmith to alter its shape into something more like a machete.
· Hoe. A hoe sounds pathetic but would actually make a much better weapon than a scythe, even though it has a smaller blade. A pull hoe has the head at right angles to the shaft, but the shaft is straight. In combat, a hoe would act like a quarterstaff but with a sharp end. A Dutch hoe, however, has the blade more in line with the shaft and with a bit of sharpening, it could make a good improvised spear. In my garden shed, I’ve got another type of hoe; I don’t know the name of this type but it looks like a trident bent over to look like a set of three claws. I call it the Dragon Claw hoe and it would be the one I would grab as an improvised weapon.
· Pitchfork. There is a reason why this has been the improvised weapon of choice for mobs of roused villagers. A pitchfork involves two or three quite sharp points attached to a long handle. With a bit more sharpening, it’s every bit as good as a pike or spear.
· Axes. Axes have obviously been used as weapons in the past and if you rely on wood to do your cooking and to heat your home, you will have an axe handy. Several axes, in fact. However, there are a range of different axes which would have different capabilities. A hatchet has shorter reach but is faster to use – and can be used in one hand while the other holds an improvised shield. A wood axe has long reach and requires two hands to use, but it would be a bit slower. Longest, sharpest and slowest of all is the poleaxe, which is what everybody used to butcher oxen before captive bolt humane killers were invented. An axe would make a better weapon in the hands of someone big and burly who has the strength to give it some serious momentum. In the case of a hatchet, for goodness sake, don’t make your character throw it.
· Spades and shovels. With a bit of sharpening, this gives the user the option of using the end for stabbing or the flat as a blunt weapon. The spade is straighter than the shovel, which is more like a giant spoon. Spades and shovels would probably not be as useful as a deliberate choice of combat weapon, but would serve well in self-defence if your character was taken by surprise while digging.
· Sledgehammers. The weighted end makes a sledgehammer slower than other weapons. Nevertheless, the heavy long-handled hammer has a history of use in combat and is practically the same as a war-hammer. Give it to a beefy character. And don’t throw it, unless your character is Thor and the hammer will come back again.
· Pickaxes and mattocks. The difference between these is minimal, as both have a chopping blade like an axe with the head on sideways. Add in a spike, like the pickaxe does, and you have a weapon that works in two directions.
· Flail. A flail is more or less a two-handed nunchuck. It’s a quarterstaff on steroids, designed to get the end going as fast as possible to thresh grain out of the head. There’s a scene in Braveheart where William Wallace makes excellent use of a flail.
What’s more, someone living in the typical fantasy setting (based on Medieval Europe) could also have access to a bow with the arrows to go with it.
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