Disregarding and generally ignoring Asher is for the best. Slings, well, maybe. It would depend on when. I supposed my Timbers used them once, when they lived in a less densely forested area (they migrated from a central point of the continent to the west, and the east, but the east is so culturally different that I'm sure if they're relevant in this discussion), but I can't imagine that slings would be much use in dense forest. However, forests have clearings and glens, so it's worth throwing slings in there as a 'poor man's bow'. Hunting knives they use frequently, to the point that it's common to gift a timber a knife for their 16th birthday, or any other birthday, it differs between families (I probably should've mentioned that earlier). Javelins they actually used for hunting before their synonymous longbows came round. Though longbows for hunting are- overkill? I guess it would depend on the animal. Believe me, the only reason the Elves are still there is because I haven't come up with an alternative. Making up entirely new species is hard, and if I could replace Men in my little world I would, but again, I have no alternative. EDIT: To clarify, My mountain folks are the stoneworkers. The timbers are the hunters and tree-choppers.
Don't forget in heavily forested areas you can also have your people up in the trees and that is one of the places where ranged and throwing weapons shine. You have already created a new species simply by basing your characters off of Eastern Elementalism. All you need now are names. Ex: I have a species of deadly characters that are based on the Nightshade family (very poisonous/medicinal plants). For their species I call them the Layethnador (Nature's Warriors- I took the Gaelic words and Americanized it). For their race (I have different families of poisons and non poisons) I went with Ala Noctis which is Latin for Night Wings (Nightshade family I was inspired by the leaves of the plants) and of course Night part comes from the fact that they are based off of Nightshades and their variety. --------- You did that hard part in coming up with a new species, now all you have left to do is name them. I recommend googling it. Ex: Type "Night" in Latin and hit enter Noctis will come up along with 8 other translations. It also has a sound button above the word and to the right a little so you can hear the word, or you can look up how to say it. ------------------------- Food for thought
Funny you mention that, the original name for my timbers? Treeclimbers (don't judge me, I was a kid when I originally came up with them). My mental image of them is a warrior with a bow looped round their body standing at the peak of a tree and watching the sunset. Or couched on a bough with a pipe in their hand. (In terms of narcotics, I'm not holding back. If it feels good to smoke/drink/eat, then folk will do so.) One thing I don't know though... Is it feasible to fire a longbow from a tree? It must be a pain to even get the bow up there unless you carry it up unstrung. Even then, how would one plant their feet? This is one for Google. You're my new favorite person. The mountain folk actually popped into existence slightly after the tree-climbers did, so they've been running around my head for awhile. They've evolved from half-trolls (that opposed my timbers)- to squat, crystal like creatures that lived underground- to what they are now. That'll certainly help with the names, but it won't help me otherwise. I do appreciate the suggestion, truly I do, it could spark a start, a beginning. But this is- I won't say different, I'm not a snob. The thing is, I can't just look at something and have a race, I need to feel them, I need to touch them, hear their voices, hear their songs and stories. I need to eat their food, hold their weapons, dance, sing with them. I need to feel their pain, their loss, their triumph. I must build their cities, plant their gardens, sow their crops, hunt their meat. I refuse to have a race unless it is a part of me, something I know as well as I know myself. That's why I would take the elves out if I had a chance, I haven't connected with them, they aren't part of my blood, nor my flesh. They aren't connected to a memory. They're generic, they're bland to me. They're supermodels with pointed ears. So, yeah, rant over, I guess.
One of my friends sells military grade sling shots for a living. With the absence of guns, a slingshot is a great way to hunt small game. You might want to research hunting more. I assume they fish too? A common aspect to both fishing and hunting is using nets. If you boar/bear in your world you'll have to have heavy spears. How about a weighted net, maybe with a pull system, for a weapon? Even if they can cut through it those few seconds would result in being stabbed a few times. A warrior with a light leather vest, a few light javelins, a long hunting knife, a sling (refillable ammo), a survival pack, and a weighted net would be a very versatile warrior. In their own territory, slaughter would commence.
An admirable suggestion, especially since I've never even gone hunting. While slings are good for small game though, so are several other things, like snares, or smaller bows. Though slings would probably keep the meat fresher as they do their killing through blunt force trauma? I dunno. just a theory. (And I know this because I read). One question though, how many pounds of force do military grade slings dish out? I've heard and read about boar spears, heavier weapons meant to kill the tougher animals like boar and bear (my little nation has both). And yeah, they fish, they have a long coast on their western side. That is very interesting, that could be a good idea for a trap, perhaps? Maybe a weighted net held by a tripwire or some other mechanism. Leather/Mail, knives, light bow/ longbow, hatchet, some traps, would I think be more their style, but it's something I'd have to give more thought. One thing thats a basic truth though, is that politics sometimes takes precedent over militaristic sense. It's why the M-16 was a thing.
Well, your people would probably not have elastic or vulcanized natural rubber... So probably around 45lbs. Few other things to mention. You can create a buckshot affect for hunting game birds. You can design a slingshot that fires arrows which can hunt medium game. You can usea slingshot for angling by using the buckshot affect to disperse bait which is a form of chumming. Shield walls are a hard military tactic to beat without calvary.
Very interesting. I had no idea hunting could be so versatile. It makes sense of course, necessity is the mother of invention, and nothing is more essential than food. Projectile weapons are good against dense formations like the shield wall as well. Thanks for the feedback!
If they're being invaded in their own territory they're going to have home field advantage. This will including having a network of calls to signal positions which are similar to surrounding wildlife. Different bird calls for scouting which would include position, how many enemy encountered, when to attack, etc. Traps, snares, pitfalls, etc. The easiest tactic to destroy a forest guerrilla warfare type-people is to entrench and burn. Shields, armor, axes, and fire. It minimizes losses while vastly increasing damage to the environment. Depends on the reason for the war I guess. It may be worth it or it may not. If they want to just kill them, sure. If they want their resources/land, no.
The timbers love their forest ambuscade, believe me, that's a specialty of theirs. The mountain folk really, really, want the timber in the land of the tree climbers. It's one of the most valuable commodities in the western half of the continent, and burning it would be akin to money being incinerated. So what they do is bring some really big axes, and chop down as many trees as they can (occasionally that's a solid rationale for the mountain folk to cross the river).
Lol! If you are of the earth shouldn't you know how to plant your feet? Just saying.... What about whips? These versatile weapons can function like a rope and also be used to inflict severe damage if accessorized the correct way. At it's most basic your Earthen folk can use it to themselves into the trees quickly. They can whip it around an enemy's neck and when they jump off the branch the weight of the enemy slows their descent while and kills the enemy. 2 birds one stone, woot! As far as sling shots go ( @ToBeInspired ) , white not go with a more primitive version, the sling, spears, and javelin and club? You may have to skip through some parts but it gives excellent info about the sling. Here are some other weapons
