User blog:SPARTAN 119/Viking vs Athenian Marine

The Viking, the seafaring raider of medieval Scandanavia

VS

The Athenian Marine, the ship-borne warriors of ancient Greece that crushed the Persians at Salamis

WHO IS DEADLIEST?!

=Combatants=

Viking
The term Viking refers to the pagan Norse people of Scandanavia from about the eighth to the eleventh centuries, including present day Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. The Vikings were a warlike, seafaring culture, making frequent raids of Britain, France, and other European countries, and even going as far as Russia and Italy. The Vikings were also known as explorers, traders, and mercenaries. Vikings settled areas including parts of Britain, Normandy, Iceland, Greenland, and even had a brief presence in North America at L'Anse Aux Meadows, Newfoundland. Viking mercenaries were known to work for the Byzantines and Viking traders were known to have traded in markets in the Middle East. For a period of time, the Vikings even conquered and ruled part of Britain, known as the Danelaw, in the 800s and 900s AD.

Athenian Marine
Of all the ancient Greek city states, the city of Athens had by far the most powerful naval force. The most well-known battle in which the Athenian Navy participated was the battle of Salamis in the Persian Wars, the about 360 Greek triremes, including 180 Athenian vessels decisively defeated a large fleet of 600-1200 Persian ships by taking them surprise in a narrow strait of Salamis, trapping the Persian fleet in a narrow strait with little room to maneuver and sinking or capturing 300 Persian ship. The Athenian fleet fell into decline after the Peloponessian War, with the decisive surprise attack by a Spartan fleet at Aegospotami.

=Weapons=

Broadsword(Viking)
The Viking Broadsword was a straight sword with a double-edged blade of about a 74 cm in length. The weapon had a crossguard and a counterweight on the end of the blade that could be used as a secondary blunt weapon.

Xiphos (Athenian)
The Xiphos was a short Greek sword with a with a blade of about two feet in length. The weapon was considered a secondary weapon to the dory, or spear.

119's Edge
The Viking's '''Broadsword for its greater length.

Dane Axe (Viking)
The Dane Axe is a long axe with a handle of three to four feet. The weapon had a large, wide head with a sharp edge. The head has prominent "horns" on the top.

Kopis (Athenian)
The Kopis was a short, slashing sword with a forward curving blade. The weapon was about 65 centimeters in length. The recurved blade enabled the sword to strike with as much force as an axe.

119's Edge
The Viking's Dane Axe for its greater reach and superior materials.

Viking Spear
The Viking spear consisted of an iron head between 20 and 60 cm in length, mounted on long shaft of about two-three meters. The weapon could be used for both thrusting and and throwing, with Viking warriors often carrying multiple spears for throwing. The spear sometimes had a pin holding the head in place, which could be removed before throwing, so the head would fall off on impact, preventing the enemy from throwing the weapon back.

Dory (Athenian)
The dory was a spear two-to-three meters in length with bronze or iron head. The weapon weapon was used as a thrusting spear by hoplite soldiers in the phalanx formation. The dory had a secondary point on the back, which could be used both for stabilization and as a secondary weapon.

119's Edge
The Viking Spear for its greater versatility and superior materials.

Viking Bow
The Viking Bow and Arrow was made from yew or ash wood, and used for both hunting and battle. Typically, the opposing sides would fire arrows and throw spears and even rocks at each other, before attacking directly. The arrows used by the Vikings typically had iron heads.

Composite Bow (Athenian)
The Athenians often used Scythian mercenaries as archers on their warships. These bows were made from a combination of wood, horn, sinew, and other materials, giving the bow greater flexibility, allowing arrows to be fired with greater forces.

119's Edge
The Athenian's Composite Bow for its superior stopping power.

Viking Shield
The Vikings used a round, wooden center-grip shield with a metal center piece or boss. The shield was designed to be light, but not to break or split easily when struck. The shield was typically about 75 to 90 centimeters in diameter, and was often used in a tight shield wall for group defense.

Hoplon (Athenian)
The ancient Greeks used a shield called a hoplon, a large, round wooden shield sometimes covered in a thin sheet of bronze, either completely, or more often, only along the rim. The hoplon had a concave shape, with the concavity facing towards the user. The hoplon was designed for fighting in formation, with the left side of the shield intended to cover the man next to him, however,it was less effective in individual combat due to its side-grip design, as seen here

119's Edge
The Viking's shield for its better design for individual combat.

Chain Mail, Padding, and Steel Helmet
The primary form of armor in Europe in the early Middle Ages was chain mail, a form of armor made from interlocking steel rings. The armor protected the torso from slashing attacks, and provided more limited protection from thrusts. Chain mail, however, provided little protection from blunt force trauma, so padding was worn under the chain mail. The Viking's wore chain mail shirts that went down to knees on the legs and the elbows on the arms. For head protection, the Vikings wore a round or conical-topped steel helmet with either as simple nose-guard or a spectacle-shaped.

Bronze Breast Plate, Bronze Scale Armor, Bronze Greaves, and Helmet
The main pieces of armor for a hoplite were a bronze breast plate and greaves. The breastplate protected the front of the torso, with the greaves covering the lower legs, a bronze helmet with noseguard covering the head, and sometimes lammellar armor made up of bronze scales covering the lower torso and sides and back. The hoplite armor left the arms, legs, and neck exposed.

119's Edge
In spite of the Athenian's solid breastplate, I give this to the Viking's armor for superior materials (iron vs bronze) and the fact that the Viking armor partially covered the arms and legs.

=X-Factors=