User blog:SPARTAN 119/Genghis Khan vs Vlad the Impaler

Genghis Khan, the Mongol ruler whose empire stretched from China to Eastern Europe

VS

Vlad the Impaler, the brutal Wallachian prince who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula

WHO IS DEADLIEST?! =Combatants=

Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan was the ruler of the Mongolian Empire who achieved power by united the nomadic tribes of Mongolia into one strong unit. By using this united force, he invaded much of much of Eurasian and Asian lands. Soon enough, his empire stretched from China to Central Asia. Genghis was advanced for his time; he promoted religious toleration and established a writing script for the Mongolians called Uyghur. During his early years, his family was sent away from his tribe because the Khan's father passed away and the tribesmen refused to have a young boy, Genghis/Temüjin, come to power. The main way he rose to power was through alliances. Temüjin would ally himself with other tribes and using this combined force to conquer enemy groups. After his death in 1227, his son Ögedei Khan rose to power and helped to expand his father's empire.

Vlad the Impaler
Vlad the Impaler (1431-1476), also known as Vlad III and Vlad Dracula (literally: "Son of the dragon" or "Son of Satan") was the Prince of Wallachia (in modern day Romania) who is best known historically for his resistance against the Ottoman Empire and its expansion, and for the cruel punishments he imposed on his rivals. In the English-speaking world, he is perhaps best remembered for possibly inspiring the name of the titular vampire from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula.

The title "the Impaler" refers to his habit of having his enemies impaled upon stakes. The consensus among most historians is that anywhere from 40,000-100,000 victims were impaled during Vlad's three reigns as prince. It was also reported that in 1462, Mehmed II, the man who conquered Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey) and was well-renowned for his own psychological tactics, was forced to retreat in disgust at the sight of 20,000 impaled corpses (many of them Turkish prisoners of war) outside of Vlad's capital.

Vlad was also a courageous man- he led from the front and never let his men do all the fighting. Although he is renowned for his cruelty throughout most of Western Europe, he is regarded as a national hero in his native Romania.

Once, Vlad had peasants and beggars, the lowest of the low, come to a big feast. When they were all drunk, Vlad asked if they wanted to never be hungry again. When they said yes, Vlad left and ordered his guards to burn the dinning hall down with all the people inside.

Vlad was known throughout his land for his fierce insistence on honesty and order. Thieves seldom dared practice their trade within his domain, for they knew that the stake awaited any who were caught. Vlad was so confident in the effectiveness of his law that he laced a golden cup on display in the central square of Tirgoviste. The cup was never stolen and remained entirely unmolested throughout Vlad’s reign. Another storys goes Vlad once had a mistress that lived in a house in the back streets of Tirgoviste. This woman apparently loved the prince to distraction and was always anxious to please him. Vlad was often moody and depressed and the woman made every effort to lighten her lover’s burdens. Once, when he was particularly depressed, the woman dared tell him the lie that she was with child. Vlad had the woman examined by the bath matrons. When informed that the woman was lying, Vlad drew his knife and cut her open from the groin to her breast, leaving her to die in agony.

Another story tells of a merchant from a foreign land visiting Tirgoviste. Aware of the reputation of Vlad’s land for honesty, he left a treasure-laden cart unguarded in the street overnight. Upon returning to his wagon in the morning, the merchant was shocked to find 160 golden ducats missing. Then the merchant complained of his loss to the prince, Vlad assured him that his money would be returned. Vlad Dracula then issued a proclamation to the city—find the thief and return the money or the city will be destroyed. During the night he ordered that 160 ducats plus one extra be taken from his own treasury and placed in the merchant’s cart. On returning to his cart the next morning and counting his money the merchant discovered the extra ducat. The merchant returned to Vlad and reported that his money had indeed been returned plus an extra ducat. Meanwhile the thief had been captured and turned over to the prince’s guards along with the stolen money. Vlad ordered the thief impaled and informed the merchant that if he had not reported the extra ducat he would have been impaled alongside the thief.

=Weapons=

Turko-Mongol Saber (Genghis)
The Turko-Mongol Saber is a curved sword used by various people of Central Asia, including the Mongols. The weapon features a curved blade designed for making lethal slashing attacks, though it could also be used to thrust. The weapon is about three-four feet long, making it ideal for use on horseback.

Kilij (Vlad)
The Kilij is a curved sword, dervived from Turkish and Mongol swords, with a pronounced curve and a reinforced point. The kilij is a powerful slashing weapon that, as seen on an episode of Deadliest Warrior is capable of slicing a pig carcass in half.

119's Edge
The two weapons are similar enough to be called even, being essentially the same thing

Jida Lance (Genghis)
The Jida is a Mongol spear with a long, eight-inch blade on the head of a twelve-foot spear, being usable on foot or horseback.

Halberd (Vlad)
The halberd is a polearm that combines and axe, a spearpoint, and a spike mounted on a 5-6 foot pole. The spear was effective in combat with mounted opponents, with spike allowing the user to hook onto a cavalry man and pull them off their horse.

119's Edge
Khan's Jida Lance for its greater reach and ability to be used on horseback.

Mongol Recurve Bow (Genghis)
The Mongol recurved bow made from a laminate of wood, horn, and animal sinew. This gave it greater flexibility, allowing it to fire arrows with greater force. The Mongols were skilled at using the weapon on horseback, being able to draw the bowstring up past their ear and fire with enough force to easily pierce contemporary European armor.

Arbalest (Vlad)
An arbalest is a crossbow with a steel bow, capable of firing an arrow with much more force than a wooden crossbow. Because of the forces involved, an arbalest, a windlass was often required to string the bow.

119's Edge
Genghis' Mongol Bow for its superior rate of fire and usability on horseback, as well as the greater skill of the Mongol archers.

Hand Cannon (Vlad)
The Hand Cannon is a simple metal tube filled with gunpowder and projectile. The weapon is capable of piercing plate armor given the right powder charge and a large enough projectile, however, the gun was highly inaccurate, but could be deadly when used in mass formations in combination with crossbows and pikes.

Fire Lance (Genghis)
The fire lance was, effectively an ancient Chinese shotgun, with a tube filled with gunpowder and lead shot. The weapon was effective only at short range, sometimes as little as a few feet, though later fire lances had range more similar to the hand cannon. The weapon, however, could be effective at slightly greater ranges when fired in racks from city walls.

119's Edge
Vlad's Hand Cannon for its greater (if only just) range.