User blog comment:Leolab/Ancient User Tourney, Round 8: Gaius Leopold (Skully) v Tiberius Proditus (EA)/@comment-422690-20160706224312

Since I have a lot less time on my hands, I'm breaking my "only vote on the last day" rule. I'll vote early so I have time to write the match.

So...

Inital: Salt wins. The Spatha and Scutum are nowhere near ideal for this situation. Tiberius is in single combat, not a group formation. Further, any place he'd be trained to stab at will be covered in armor. The better maneuverability Salt gives will allow Gaius to get around the shield and strike, likely rending the lorica for a kill.

Short Range: War Axe and Viking Shield wins. The issues with the Spatha and Scutum come up again here, but in greater force. The war axe and shield are lighter and more maneuverable, and provide a similar breadth of defensive coverage. Again, any point Tiberius will try to stab is either armored or defended by the shield. On top of all that, 13th-century Germanic war axes tend to be bearded. Which means that Gaius will be able to hook the scutum out of the way and chop into Tiberus' face and armor.

Mid Range: Halberd wins. The pilum is absolute shit in this match, and for several reasons. One is that as a spear, its not going to be useful at all due to the fact that it's made to break at the join. Two is that throwing a lawn dart is inaccurate even in the best case. Three is that Tiberius doesn't start with it; this means that it's free for Gaius to pick up and hurl at Tiberius' starting weapon set, the scutum and spatha.

Long Range: Plumbata win. They're easier to use and don't require stringing, aiming, and firing while the opponent charges you over less than 20m. Basically, bows and crossbows are useless in this arena. The Plubata probably won't penetrate armor, but it's better than nothing.

Special: Salt takes this. The Pugio is basically Tiberius' only chance to get through Gaius' armor, but he has to get in close to do that. Salt will easily keep him at bay due to its length, and is likely more than capable of busting through the Lorica; Damascus steel tends to win pretty easily over iron.

Overall: I'd have to give this to Gaius overall. He's packing better weapons and better armor, both made from better materials. Furthermore, Tberius was trained in squad combat. This kind of training will not leave him, which will greatly reduce his effectiveness in the arena-style combat here. He got lucky last round by facing someone he hard-countered. this round, though, the limitations of his training and metallurgy will show.