OMFG, this article took me a whole FREAKING day to create, that includes finding all the screenshots (which was the hardest part) and writing about it! Hope you enjoy!!!!
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Wuxia and Ancient Chinese Series are full of kickass fighting, and to fight, one would need weapons! Or, at least weapons make the fight a lot more interesting and fun, and often heaps more dangerous. But, did you know that fans and zither can be used as weapon? This list of weapons used in shows will show you just the versatile weapons being used in those times to fight.
Fan
What are fans for? Cool us down in the heat of course! That but more! Fans are often used as a weapon. Often used by very reserved, yet skilled martial artists, fans can block swords or very sharp items and makes a person look really cool while he’s using it. Two examples of characters who used fans are Ouyang Ke in Legend of the Condor Heroes and Xiao Mei in Strange Hero Yi Zhi Mei.
Double Edged Sword
OH MAN, does Sanniang look freaking amazing holding this sword or what! She’s probably the only Wuxia heroine in history to be wielding such a badass weapon and uses it to slay through the bad guys! She is really a skilled fighter, and of course, a skilled fighter needs a great sword to represent herself. The most amazing thing about this sword is, it can also separate and become two swords, which allows Sanniang to completely scrape the other person’s butt when it comes to battling.
Flute
Flutes are pretty popular for a weapon! You may think this lovely thingy is good for music, but music can do so much more than sooth your spirit and mind! Music can mess with your balance, make people lose focus if they’re concentrating, and drive people weak and crazy. Some of the characters who used flutes as weapons include Huang Yaoshi in Legend of the Condor Heroes, he was able to make anyone dizzy and in pain when he blows his flute. Yu’er in Xuan Yuan Sword also used it, but more of a melody to control/calm the sprites she had. Xuenu in Qin’s Moon used it as her unique attack alled White Snow. Shui Ruohan often played the flute in Treasure Venture, which was able to create illusions in people’s minds. Oh, all the things music could do!
Bamboo
How could a mere bamboo be a weapon? Well, it may even be more powerful than your average sword. Used in Treasure Venture, there’s even a whole philosophy behind the usage of bamboos as weapon, included here:
“Look at how slim and soft this bamboo is. It can be bent at will, but to break it is by no means easy. If the force passes from the arms, it can become a bamboo sword, which turns into a weapon. It can pierce through flesh and blood of the human body. Its limit and tolerance absolutely does not fall below a steel knife and a metal sword. Ancient people often compare bamboo to a hero. This is because the centre of a bamboo has a great capacity. This is just like a hero’s heart, which should be open minded and wary. The Bamboo joint is just like the ambitions and moral courage. A hero would follow way and have control over the actions they do. The sharpened bamboo can protect yourself but also kill. When the point of the bamboo touches the skin of the other side, you still have enough time to consider the value of the other’s life. Life for any person can only happen once.”Staff
Be careful, Ouyang Feng in Legend of the Condor Heroes has the most deadliest snakes hidden in his snake-shaped staff. Not only can he whack people with it, he can call those snakes out and kill anyone in an instant.
Dagger
Daggers are smaller swords that look absolutely awesome on some characters. Legend of the Condor Heroes had two daggers which belonged to Guo Jing and Yang Kang, who were destined to become sworn brothers. They even had their names etched on the dagger. Too bad Yang Kang turned out to be an asshole and stabbed Guo Jing with it. In other instances, Yu’er has a really curve shaped dagger which suits her exceptionally well. Also, I noticed Sanniang in the beginning had one of those, where she used it to break Li Gexiao out of the wooden jail thing.
Bow and Arrow
Bow and arrow are most often used by a group of people, such as guards of the palace to attack people who are a) invading the place, b) rescuing someone from the execution grounds or c) attacking in general. This is usually used by a lot of people at one. Of course, highly skilled martial artists could always dodge them with their swords. Arrows on their own is usually not lethal, so baddies often think up an evil plan, smear poison on the arrow. Then, it would be deadly if one gets shot by it. In a few instances, a main character has used a bow and arrow, including Guo Jing in the beginning of Legend of the Condor Heroes to save the white condors. Another example is Red Longkui’s attack is a bow that shoots out red arrows.
Spear
I’ve noticed that spears are usually used in war situations. However, some Wuxia series does include the usage of spears, such as Yang Kang and his father, who were descendants of the Yang Warriors, that had a special technique called the Yang family Spear. In Qin’s Moon, spears are often used against fighting the Qin Empire in war situations, especially by Shao Yu.
Zither
Believe it or not, a zither isn’t just a musical instrument that brings calming and peaceful music! It can be used as a weapon in a simialr way to the flute. The music wavelength can be used to mess people’s minds up. It could do anything from forcing a person go down the wrong path if they’re training, or turn someone evil (Fuxi Zither in Xuan Yuan Sword). Don’t mess with the Zither, otherwise Ningke might use it to turn you evil! Xuezi also used a zither in Treasure Venture to try and distract Jianping while she’s training, causing large amounts of internal injuries.
Chain
Chains can be really useful and strong! I’ve seen it used in a few cases. First, the Crimson Chain is the trademark weapon for Crimson Snake in Qin’s Moon. She uses this all the time when she battles, and the chain is shaped as a snake to represent her personality. Other times I’ve seen chain used are in Princess Returning Pearl, when Xiao Yan Zi decided it was time to teach Ziwei and Jinsuo martial arts so they don’t get bullied. If used poorly, this can wrap around your neck and, oops!
Dragon Saber
Dragon Sabers are these huge, badass looking swords that I think would weigh a tonne and not sure how anyone would be able to carry on their back. It is primarily used in Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. In other shows, Jing Ke’s sword in Qin’s Moon also uses a saber known as Canhong, translated as Ferocious Rainbow.
Light Saber
HELL YEAH BABY! Let’s get the show rolling with light sabers, dudes! Light sabers is actually rarely used, probably the only instance of it being used was in the Dreaming of the Deer and Cauldron game promo because one of the females came from the future in Russia and she brought those light sabers for the heroes to use. They look so fun, look at the guy’s face as he’s trying to wield it.
Blunt Sword
Blunt swords can be wooden words or swords with a blunt blade. Usually, there’s a message behind these swords, such as a sword can still be powerful with being sharp. Momei is a great example that goes by the teachings of the Mohist School, Anti-war and Universal love. Anti-war means to be against the concept of wars. All wars, no matter what their reasons are, as long as there’s war, it will cause the common people to suffer. Universal Love means that people should love and take care of each other. Those with powers should use it to help others. Those with wealth should share the money with others.”
Dart-Like Weapon
These dart-like weapons totally reminds me of shurikens and kunais. They are usually thrown at the enemy and if you’re not careful and get hit by it, it could cause a lot of damage. These were used a lot by Xiao Mei in Strange Hero Yi Zhi Mei and Legend of the Condor Heroes by various characters.
Dog Beating Stick
Probably the only show that has such a cool weapon is Legend of the Condor Heroes. Used by the chief of the Beggar Sect, there’s a special martial art skill that comes along with the Dog Beating Stick. This was imparted to Huang Rong during the middle of the series. A dog beating stick works similar to a sword would, but you can also use it to lean your whole body on it, or give people some good whacks and beatings.
Firelock
These are amazing. Yes, they represent guns but they’re not the same as what you’d see in the modern world. They’re usually designed in a very “ancient” way that makes it feel like an Ancient weapon. This was actually used in two shows that I’ve seen so far: Treasure Venture when the assassins were after Jianping and Ruohan, in Strange Hero Yi Zhi Mei, used by Ying Wuqiu and in an online promo game, Dreaming of the Deer and Cauldron – which this weapon was brought by the Princess of Russia from another time. Usually when these are used, it somehow represent an “advancement in technology” of that time period.
Needles
Needles can be used in a similar way to dart-like weapons, thrown at the enemies. If thrown accurately, it would really hurt. In rare instances, needles can be used as torture device such as in Princess Returning Pearl, Rong Momo stabbed a giant amount of needles in Ziwei’s body to force her to confess. Indeed, a very cruel method. However, needles as a weapon was mostly used by Huang Rong in Legend of the Condor Heroes. She even practiced aiming for the leaves with Hongqi.
Leaves
How could those fragile, beautiful leaves be weapons? Oh yes they can! They can also be powerful weapons too, especially used by someone who could manipulate leaves. I’ve seen this in an Wuxia series that I don’t know the name of, but the person who uses it best from what I’ve seen is Shao Siming from Qin’s Moon. She’s able to control the leaves and use it to attack anyone! Next thing, feathers and cotton will be weapons too.
Sword
This is probably the most common weapon ever used. Swords are EVERYWHERE, in every show. You would never find a single Wuxia series without at least one sword. People carry it on their backs most times. Swords are crucial if you want to travel the Jianghu! There are big swords, little swords, fat swords, skinny swords, even swords that can move and think on its own, such as Fifteen from Xuan Yuan Sword. Series from RPG game adaptations such as Chinese Paladin 1 and 3, Xuan Yuan Sword uses sword as center part of the story.
Giant Sword
These swords are much bigger than your average sword and look freaking amazing. Don’t let it slice anything, especially a bridge, because if it does, the bridge will fall apart! This particular giant sword is used by Shenqi in Qin’s Moon.
Other weapons which I didn’t include as it was hard to find info and pictures are: Umbrellas – they can shoot out energy or be a form of protection, whips – used to whip people, hairpins to stab people with, scissors, and even paper and material swords, which are all stronger than a normal sword!
Original Article posted here: http://www.ancientchinese.net/blog/20-exceptional-and-interesting-battle-weapons-in-wuxia/
