Gauls

[FierceKitty]

What bothers me about Gauls is that they used a big shield like that with a simple central handgrip. Where's that pragmatic Celtic problem-solving inventiveness?

[Wulf]

What bothers me about Gauls is that they used a big shield like that with a simple central handgrip. Where's that pragmatic Celtic problem-solving inventiveness?

What's wrong with that? Shields should be used dynamically, sweeping your opponent's weapon away, blocking his view, slamming into him, or using the edges against his legs or sides. They're just as much a weapon as a defence. A centre-grip shield is far more useful to a mobile individual warrior.

[FierceKitty]

Mechanically weak against a strong blow, that's what's wrong with it.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Even weaker when there is a Roman pilum embedded in it!

[Techno]

Presumably worse than having no shield at all, if the balance was so 'boggered' ?
Cheers - Phil

[Wulf]

Mechanically weak against a strong blow, that's what's wrong with it.

Only if you stand there & let him hit you - the centre-grip shield of the Celts, Gauls & Vikings was designed to sweep away an opponent's weapon, not block it. The weight of the shield - and it was pretty weighty - and sweeping movement would deflect the blow well. You could - for short periods - hold your opponent at arm's reach, so he couldn't swing at you at all, it was never designed to be held close to the body (except in the Shield Wall, and that was purely defensive, unlike the Romans')

Speaking of which, if the large single-grip shield was so bad, how come the Roman Empire conquered the known world with it?

[FierceKitty]

...or despite it. Beware the intoxication of rhetoric!

[Ithoriel]

...or despite it.

It would never have become so widely used if it didn't have it's advantages. The Romans were great adopters of other people's good ideas, if there were better options out there for their style of combat they'd have filched them in a heartbeat.

[get2grips]

It would never have become so widely used if it didn't have it's advantages. The Romans were great adopters of other people's good ideas, if there were better options out there for their style of combat they'd have filched them in a heartbeat.

Agreed.  Until, of course, tactics or technology advance.

[dopplebockdunkel]

Is there any news on the Gauls and Early Imperial Roman releases? It has been very quiet

[Leon]

Is there any news on the Gauls and Early Imperial Roman releases? It has been very quiet

It has indeed been very quiet on these, they've been bumped down the pecking order unfortunately as we had so many other things that needed releasing.  I do plan on getting them master moulded in the coming weeks, and then we can hopefully see them production moulded and released before the end of summer.

[Matt J]

Yeah!