by Arrakis » Sat Mar 22, 2008 7:19 am
Blackhawk, he said quarterstaff, not jo staff or bo staff or whatever.
You know, the western martial arts weapon? The one that was possibly the most prevalent weapon ever second only to the sword? The one that, to an unarmored opponent, was a serious threat? The one that was heavy and long and often shod with a good length of steel?
Unless you're totally tanked, a quarterstaff can easily threaten grievous bodily harm. And if you're TOTALLY tanked, even a longsword would require several dozen shots to put you out of commission, not the, at most, four that our game allows.
Plus, who says the weapon we CALL a quarterstaff represents a quarterstaff? Just because the ends have to be cylindrical for safety doesn't mean you can't use one to represent a broad-bladed spear with which you can slash people as well as stab them and which can be used to strike people with the lower end of the haft (which was, often times, shod with metal). It's our only construction option for double ended weapons, purely for safety reasons, but it can represent anything with which you would want to strike with both head and haft.