Originally Posted by
Camcolit
So it occurred to me that the Thracians are, I think, the only people in the game who employ more or less dedicated two-handed weapons (not counting pikes), namely the falx and rhomphaia and variations. A shield is a big deal, and until the advent of heavy plate armor that could compensate two-handers were probably not especially efficient. A shield is (can be) also cheap, whereas a big piece of forged metal generally isn't.
On the other hand (!) these two-handed weapons were obviously used to some good effect, and became quite notorious. So my question is does anyone know a) Why these warriors simply didn't use a sword/spear and board like everyone else if that was more effective and/or b) If it was actually advantageous to use two-handers in some situations why other people didn't use them? What would be your guess? I know most of these weapons developed from farming implements but that goes for one-handed versions also so the question remains.