Samurai: Weapons of the Ultimate Warrior

Samurai are one of the most known warriors of ancient history, on the same level as the Vikings, Spartans, and gladiators of Rome.  These samurai came from an elite warrior class, and only after years of intense training.  With the weaponry that the samurai could field, these warriors were feared wherever they went.

The most commonly known weapon of the samurai was the katana, the traditional sword of a samurai.  This approximately 3 foot long blade was made with the ancient technique of sword folding.  Through literally thousands of folds, this blade is comparable to none, it has a diamond-hard edge, with the ability to cut a hair in half in the air.  This is probably the most well known weapon, debated by experts of being the most deadly close-quarter weapon ever invented.  With the fine craftsmanship and in expert hands this was a sight on the battlefield.

For extreme close-quarters were the sai, daggers, derived from the principal of a pitchfork, but with the ability to stab quickly, as well as catch an enemy blade.  These took special training, but with the folded-blade technique these too were awesome close-quarters weapons.

The naganata was the spear of the samurai.  With a 2 foot long folded-blade, attached to a 8-foot long pole, this was able to keep multiple opponents at bay.  With the obvious reach advantage, this weapon was very deadly to use, with the ablity to slash like a katana, as well as stab like a sai.  These were the favored weapons of the warrior monks of Japan.

The yumi was the bow of the samurai, and orginated the art of kyujutsu.  This bow was 7 feet long, much like the famed British longbow, made of bamboo, leather, and wood.  This weopon was also able to be fired from horseback, and something that the longbow never could, have an incredible accuracy.  Unlike the longbow that took decades to build the muscles required to pull the string, the yumi was one of the first compound bows, a bow that gave the same amount of force as a longbow, but with less than half the effort.  This art of archery on horseback created yabusame, a tradition that is still practiced in Japan today.

The last and most important item that samurai possesed besides his sword, was his armor.  The richer samurai could afford the iron-scaled armor, while most made do with wood-scaled armor.  In either case, this armor was very good at stopping arrows, as well as most sword blows, barring a direct hit.  The helmet, however is probably one of the greatest of the samurai inventions.  This helmet usually had the crest of the family, but the interesting part of the helmet was the face shield.  This face shield depicted the face of a demon and invoked fear in their opponents.  With the weapons and training these warriors were the best of the best, the creme of the crop.