Age of Sigmar: Real World Origins of New Stormcast Weapons – PRIME
Taking a look at the Stormcast Eternal’s new arsenal, it looks like Grungni knew his history…
The new Stormcast are landing on the battlefield officially this weekend, with a massive new battletome and two gorgeous new kits. Sigmar and Grungni the Smith have combined their talents to create a brand new style of Stormcast clad in updated Thunderstrike armor and wielding powerful new weapons bearing a strikingly Dwarven design.
However, as with all things, the weapons wielded by these new reborn champions have their origins in the real world, and their design is important for how they are meant to perform on the battlefield. Grungni is a master smith, and he doesn’t make anything without purpose, so it’s no doubt that the weapons he made for Sigmar’s champions are designed with battlefield role in mind, just like the weapons wielded by the warriors of our world.
Stormspear
The combination of spear and shield is not a solely Stormcast arsenal, as almost every race in the game brings these weapon options to bear, however the specific description of HOW the Vindictors fight with them calls to mind an ancient military tactic. They form a shieldwall with their large heater shields, bracing their spears either on top or in the notch at the side and allowing the enemy to shatter against them. This calls to mind the Greek phalanx and Roman testudo, which protected the warriors from arrows, cavalry charges, and enemy infantry, allowing them to strike back from a position of relative safety. Combined with the powerful lightning that arcs off their weapons, this makes the Vindictors an immovable object, much like the Hopolites from which they borrow their tactics.
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Soulguard’s Halberd
The noble Praetors are tasked with guarding prominent Stormcast champions, and the halberd they wield is the perfect weapon for just such a task. The long polearm is topped with an axe blade and long spear point, allowing the wielder to make a powerful downward swing and immediately follow it up with a chambered thrust. This allows the Praetor to engage multiple foes at once or eliminate a particularly dangerous enemy (or monster, as the case may be). The halberd was also the primary weapon of Swiss armies in the 14th and early 15th centuries and is still the traditional arm of choice of the Swiss Guard in charge of defending Vatican City. It allowed them to fight against almost any type of opponent, with longer reach and more power than a traditional pike, the heavy force to slam through armor or shields, and a hooked rearblade to unseat enemy horsemen. Makes sense that the guards of essentially angelic warriors would mirror the weaponry of the guys looking out for the Pope.
Stormstrike Axe
Wielded by the driver of the Stormstrike Chariot, the stormstrike axe is the perfect weapon for wielding from the back of a speeding chariot. Unlike a sword, which relies mostly on the sharpness of the blade, the power of an axe comes from the force behind the swing, as it is essentially a giant wedge. By combining the speed of the chariot with an arcing swing from the axe, the warrior can slam through heavy armor or drive the wedge with even more force. It also helps that unlike a sword, which has sweet spots called the forte and foible where the swing can be weaker, an axe is just as deadly across its entire blade. Several cultures that made use of chariots, such as the Chinese Shang Dynasty or the Romans wielded axes as their primary chariot-bound weapon for this reason, and they were a devastating combination.
Terminus Greatbow/Great Stormbow
Wielded by the new Knight-Judicator, the greatbow is a massive ranged weapon that turns the warrior into essentially a walking artillery piece. While nothing of the same size exists in the real world, as a bow of that size would have a ridiculous draw weight, the curved design is reminiscent of a standard recurve longbow, the weapon of choice of most ancient military archers. While the English standard longbow was a deadly weapon in its own right, the recurve traditionally has a smoother draw, a more even draw weight, and the ability to shoot faster (though there are always exceptions to the rule). The bows wielded by the Stormstrike charioteer are closer to how recurves were initially used, as they are favored by mounted archers and provided a deadly and mobile weapon with extraordinary accuracy and stopping power. I cannot imagine the draw weight of a bow half again as tall as a Stormcast, but I imagine it could put an arrow into a different zip code.
Which of the Stormcast weapons is your favorite?
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