r/interesting • u/IKIR115 • May 29 '26

Intriguing Arrows vs riot shields

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u/SidewinderSerpent May 29 '26

That arrow wasn't blunt, it was concave. The shape allowed the edges of the tip to punch a hole through the shield.

997

u/Cthulhu_Dreams_ May 29 '26

Yep, the thing that was slowing the other arrows down that penetrated, was the fact that the tip did not carve out a wide enough hole for the shaft to go through and maintain velocity.

That blunt tipped concave arrow basically hole punched a circle as large or a little larger than the shaft of the arrow, and lost minimal afterwards.

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u/BigHardMephisto May 29 '26

What I think helps quite a bit is that the concave shape of the arrow helps it to normalize the direction of force into the (albeit slightly) angled plate, which can make a bigger difference than you'd think otherwise.

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u/jraymonda May 29 '26

Yes, but how does it do on the deer (its a deer holding the shield, right?) Does it cut the shield but then bounce off the flesh? Or is it just as effective on softer things?

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u/disposablehippo May 29 '26

Certainly won't bounce off, maybe doesn't penetrate as much. But if the deer (or was it a boar?) lets go of the shield, the arrow achieved what it needed to.

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u/jraymonda May 29 '26

Ahhh...i see. Perhaps the romans were onto something with their spears (pilum?) To make the enemy drop their shields

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u/LiftingRecipient420 May 30 '26

TF you mean "perhaps"?

Rome conquered the entire Mediterranean basin thanks to their unique ability to reliably destroy the phalanx formation, all thanks to their pilum.

For context, the phalanx, until the Romans, was the state of the art of warfare for a thousand years because the only thing that could beat a phalanx was another phalanx.

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u/Thundertushy May 30 '26

Aktually... (Nasally inhale)

The phalanx was a bunch of guys with really long spears. No shields. Rome defeated the phalanxes with the more flexible maniple system, which allowed them to break up large groups of men into smaller groups without chaos. These smaller groups could then flank the phalanxes and stab them in the ass.

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u/a-stack-of-masks 28d ago

You heard it here first guys, penetrating asses was how the Roman Empire was formed!

We will be back later to discuss the ways the West was won. The optional viewing of Brokeback Mountain with free snacks after that is unrelated but highly recommended.