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| - A subtrope of Weapon of Choice. A polearm--such as a poleaxe, spear, halberd, or any other weapon that's a long stick with something sharp and metal on one end--is often the province of hapless Mooks: city guardsman, honor guard, angry natives, and so on. Anyone who needs something long to cross over a portal to prevent someone from entering will use a polearm. When not in the hands of mooks, they are the weapon of choice for calm collected individuals, or The Lancer. See also Harpoon Gun, X on a Stick, Javelin Thrower and Telephone Polearm, for the giant-bladeless-stick version.
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| abstract
| - A subtrope of Weapon of Choice. A polearm--such as a poleaxe, spear, halberd, or any other weapon that's a long stick with something sharp and metal on one end--is often the province of hapless Mooks: city guardsman, honor guard, angry natives, and so on. Anyone who needs something long to cross over a portal to prevent someone from entering will use a polearm. When not in the hands of mooks, they are the weapon of choice for calm collected individuals, or The Lancer. Polearms are extremely effective weapons, especially the halberd and naginata, both of which require considerable training. Those weapons are extremely effective in massed battles, much more so than the sword. This is due to their reach and the fact that they're more effective at mounted combat and penetrating armor. However, many longer spears -- and especially the pike -- are not terribly suited for single combat. In medieval combat, the sword was more a sidearm, and the polearm used as the main infantry weapon on the battlefield. The characterization of polearm being in the hands of collected individuals likely comes from how they were historically used in formations on the battlefield - and an effective formation requires disciplined people in it. The reason you may not have heard of the importance of polearms is that our cultural obsession with swords is at least a thousand years old. In the hands of a hero, a spear is often swung around as a slashing weapon, in a flashy manner reminiscent of a staff. The effectiveness of such a maneuver is largely dependent on the type of spear; a pike isn't good for much other than stabbing, whereas the Chinese Qiang is effectively a knife on a stick, making slashing moves potentially effective. Naturally, the halberd, glaive, naginata and similar weapons are particularly well-suited for this style, due to the use of a slashing blade in place of a spear point. Of course, regardless of actual utility, the Rule of Cool dictates that simply 'poking' the enemy won't do by itself, even if that's the most logical and effective use of a spear. However, some martial arts do indeed teach staff-like and even slashing motions with the spear; it all depends on how the wielder is trained. Spears may also be thrown, even if the weapon in question isn't exactly built for it unless magic is involved. Often the preferred weapon of a Lady of War; a Naginata was traditionally the weapon of a Yamato Nadeshiko Housewife while the husband was away, giving it a "feminine" mystique. See also Harpoon Gun, X on a Stick, Javelin Thrower and Telephone Polearm, for the giant-bladeless-stick version. Examples of Blade on a Stick include:
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![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)