vikingarnir longphort mount and blade warband viking

#Vikingarnir longphort mount and blade warband viking professional#

Weapons Knife īroken-back seax from Sittingbourne in Kent Some would also bring their hunting bows (mostly long bow or flat bow) to use in the opening stages of battle. The average farmer was likely limited to a spear, shield, and perhaps a common axe or large knife ( seax). Several layers of thick woollen clothing may have been used by poorer warriors.

#Vikingarnir longphort mount and blade warband viking professional#

The richest might have a helmet and mail armour these are thought to have been limited to the nobility and their professional warriors ( retainers). Much poetry was associated with Viking weapons. Swords were normally reserved for upper class and nobles. Battle axes were considered the 'normal weapon' for middle class Vikings. A wealthy Viking would likely have a complete ensemble of a spear, a wooden shield, and either a battle axe or a sword. Indeed, the Hávamál, purported to be sage advice given by Odin, states 'Don't leave your weapons lying about behind your back in a field you never know when you may need all of sudden your spear.' Īs war was the most prestigious activity in Viking Age Scandinavia, beautifully finished weapons were an important way for a warrior to display his wealth and status. Knowledge about military technology of the Viking Age (late 8th to mid-11th century Europe) is based on relatively sparse archaeological finds, pictorial representation, and to some extent on the accounts in the Norse sagas and laws recorded in the 14th century.Īccording to custom, all free Norse men were required to own weapons, and permitted to carry them at all times. Viking landing at Dublin, 841, by James Ward (1851-1924)