| “ | Honour, eh? What the hell is it anyway? Every man thinks it's something different. You can't drink it. You can't fuck it. The more you have, the less good it does you, and if you've got none at all you don't miss it. But some men think it's the best thing in the world.
— Joe Abercrombie
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Two of the most similar historical fighting units to have ever existed. Warrior elites who fought primarily on horsebacks, tied directly to the feudal system, who would eventually become bound to fairly similar moral codes of honor, bravery, and loyalty. This match has been done before here, but each time the fight has been flawed. No, we can hopefully put the conversation to rest, and see who would truly win between Knights and Samurai.
Knight[]
| “ | A true knight is fuller of bravery in the midst than in the beginning of danger.
— Sir Philip Sidney
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Knights were the professionally trained soldiers under the command of the noble class in traditional European feudalism. Also called Chevalier, Knecht, and Cavalier, Knight's would become the backbone of European warfare, being the professional mounted warrior, bound to follow Chivalry, or the Cavaliers code. For centuries, Knight's dominated European warfare, but would with the advent of firearms and pike formations be slowly phased out, though the title still exists.
Weapons[]
Halberd: The mix between a poleaxe and spear, and The favored polearm of the late middle ages. The Halberd was around 6-7 foot long had a large amount of ironmongery, including a hardened spike for thrusting, a dedicated axe blade for chopping, and a hook for hooking.
Longsword: Possibly the most iconic medieval weapon. The Longsword was a two handed, double edged, cut and thrust sword. The sword was around 4 feet long, and by this period, was had a very narrow thrusting blade.
Warhammer: The best impact weapon used during the middle ages. The War hammer was a popular tool for dealing with armor opponents, often being around 2 feet long, being very end heavy, and having a percussive hammerhead along with a spike.
Rondel: A close quarters dagger designed to deal with armor. The Rondel was a long and thin dagger, often being around 1 foot long, and was designed to efficiently deliver powerful thrusts into the gaps in plate.
Goat's foot lever Crossbow: A common type of crossbow used in the field. The crossbow had a steel bow, allowing it to have a draw weight exceeding 300 pounds, but could be drawn using a goat's foot leaver. It could propel a bolt up to 180-200 yard range. 10-15 second loading time.
Samurai[]
| “ | Go into battle determined to die, and you shall live. Go into battle hoping to live, and surely you shall not.
— Tetsuro Shigematsu, guest on Deadliest Warrior
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The Samurai were the warrior class in traditional Japanese feudalism who existed from the 8th to 19th centuries. Originally being called Bushi, the term Samurai would be adopted, along with the adoption of the moral code known of Bushido, or the way of the warrior. Samurai would play a major role in Japanese society and warfare, being one of the most influential fighting units in Japan for centuries. The Samurai class would be abolished in the 19th century during the Meiji Restoration.
Weapons[]
Yari: A simple spear, and the favored polearm among Samurai. The Yari veried in length, though for this fight I will be giving the Samurai a 9-10 foot Yari. The Yari had a straight head primed for thrusting, but also had a decent cutting edge.
Katana: The primary sword carried by the Samurai. The Katana was a two handed, single edged sword optimized for cutting. The weapon was around 3 feet long, and as mentioned before, was a devastating cutter.
Tetsubo: The major anti-armor weapon among the Samurai. The Tetsubo was an iron club, being around 5 feet long and having a two handed grip. As one would expect, the weapon could deliver an immense impact.
Wakizashi: A short blade used as a secondary weapon in close combat. The Wakizashi had a very similar overall design to the katana, but was only around 2 feet long, making it a powerful close range cutting and slicing weapon.
Tanegashima: An early matchlock firearm used by the Japanese. The Tanegashima was capable of firing a ball between 80-100 yards, and could effectively pierce all but the best armor of the time. 20 second reload.
X-factors[]
Training[]
Knights and Samurai were both warrior elites well trained in the arts of war, with both being trained for years before being given their titles. Both were primarily mounted combatants in the past, but were becoming more and more accustomed to combat on foot.
Armor[]
Both the Samurai and Knights wore extensive sets of steel plated armor. However, the Samurai armor had a higher potential for durability, with the better made sets of Tosei Gusoku being able to turn hits from matchlocks. On the other hand, most suits of knights' armor at this time covered more of the body, and generally had fewer gaps which could be exploited.
Scenario[]
For the battle, the Samurai will be from the Early Edo period, and the Knights from the War of the Roses.
The battle will be an infantry engagement between two groups of 8 men engaging on open terrain at a distance of 10 yards. For the most part, these warriors will be carrying melee , with only 2 of the 8 carrying ranged weapons.