Viking Berserkers, long hafts and all

When I popped these Gripping Beast  Berserkers out of the box, I noticed the axe hafts were very long, with one axe being taller than the figure.  It didn't look right to my eyes so I considered clipping the hafts down.

Fortunately, I didn't do that because the Bayeux tapestry clearly shows axe hafts nearly as long as the axemen.  Plus, there's a theory that a longer haft was reflected social status or ranking.  It will surprise no one that men have been worrying who's longer since at least the Dark Ages!

"A guy on the internet says I can make this longer."

Hurstwic is a wonderful website loaded with background information on all things Viking, including the use of axes in battle.  As it turns out, a long axe was useful for:

• hooking an opponent's ankle, throwing him off balance.
• hooking the shoulder or neck to pull an opponent out of position.
• hooking the edge of a shield, pulling it away from the defender.

The haft can be used to parry and strike, much like a fighting staff. The video HERE shows how an axe-armed Viking might have fought and defeated his sword & shield armed foe.  It's fascinating to watch and once again, shows my imagination is limited by my modern experiences. And here is a YouTube video of a History channel demo of the Danish axe worth a watch as well!

I tried to share my new-found knowledge with my family at the dinner table.  When I asked if anyone knew how to use a two-handed axe, my son replied "With two hands?"   That was pretty much the end of Professor dad's history lecture for the evening.

These Gripping Beasties come with LOADS of character.  I bent the arms on the fellow in the grey wolf cloak so he could wield a 2-handed axe like his mates.  I spent extra time making these shine since they are the killer unit in any Viking warband.  Throwing 4 dice per figure (rather than 2) in melee makes you belle of the ball in a Dark Ages mashup.

I'm loving the Foundry skin triads and mulling over investing in a full set of Foundry paints.  Their system takes the guesswork out of color jumps for 2-tone and triad painting.  I just have to figure out the paint pot versus dropper bottle angle. And the price. It always comes down to money, doesn't it?

Next week, it's back to the Welsh with a post-up of the warriors.  If you look closely,you'll find the Welsh warriors in this picture.  Waaay, way in the back. Farther.  Keep looking...yea, those guys!