Weapons
Staff (Gun) The Gun (棍; gùn) refers to a long Chinese staff weapon used in Chinese martial arts. It is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the spear, broadsword and the straight sword and is called "The Father of all Weapons". It is also known as the Cudgel.
Traditionally, the staff is made out of a material called wax wood, rather than bamboo as many people might think. Wax wood is strong, yet flexible, making it ideal as a material for the staff. The staff is fashioned with one thick end as the base and a thinner end near the tip.
Qiang (枪; qiāng) is the Chinese term for spear. Due to its relative ease of manufacture, the spear in many variations was one of the most ubiquitous weapons of the pre-modern Chinese battlefield. It is called "The King of Weapons" and is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the staff, broadsword and straight sword.
Common features of the Chinese spear are the leaf shaped blade and red horse-hair tassle lashed just below. When the spear is moving quickly, the addition of the tassle aids in blurring the vision of the opponent so that it is more difficult for them to grab the spear. The tassle also served another purpose, to stop the flow of blood from the blade getting to the wooden shaft (the blood would make it slippery or sticky when dried). The length varies from around 7 feet (2 meters) long, commonly used by the infantry, increasing up to the length of 13 feet (4 meters) favoured by the cavalry. The spear is typically made of wax wood, a strong but flexible wood. It bends to absorb impact preventing breakage. The bending motion combined with the horse hair tassle makes the spear tip very hard to follow.
Halberd (Ji) The Chinese Halberd or Ji (戟; jǐ) was used as a military weapon as early as the Shang dynasty (1766 - 1122 B.C., 商朝) until the end of the Qin dynasty (255 - 206 B.C., 秦朝). They are still used for training purposes by many Chinese martial arts schools. The halberd resembles a Chinese spear for the most part, with a small crescent blade attached to the both sides of the spear head and a red horsehair tassel where the spear head is fixed to the shaft. It was a relatively common infantry weapon, especially in its common bronze age variant known as the dagger-axe, although it was used by cavalry and charioteers as well. This weapon is also known as the Sky Halberd or Fang Tian Hua Ji (方天画戟)
They have several sharp points of attack, the two side blades and the tip, plus often a rear counter weight that could be used to strike the opponent. The way the side blades are fixed to the main spear pole differs, but usually there are empty spaces between the pole and the side blade. These "slots" could be used to trap an enemy's weapon and then the wielder of the halberd need only to jerk his weapon to disarm or even break the opponent's weapon. The wielder could strike with the shaft, with the option of then pulling the halberd back to hook with a side blade; or slap his opponent with the flat side of the halberd blade to knock him off his horse.
Broadsword (Dao) Dao (刀; dāo) is a category of single-edge Chinese swords primarily used for slashing and chopping, often called broadswords in English. In China, the dao is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the spear, staff, and the straight sword, and referred to as "The General of all Weapons".
The broadsword is a weapon which historically saw use most often as the hand weapon of military foot soldiers in medieval China. It has a wide, curved blade with a single sharp edge and is wielded with one hand. While the width and weight of the blade make it more appropriate for slicing and hacking attacks instead of thrusting attacks, both are used. Because the back edge of the sword is dull, the blade can be supported against the free hand or body in various movements.
Dao is actually a generic word used to denote any member of a family of single-edged, broad-bladed cutting or slicing tools, but in common, everyday usage means knife.
Straight Sword (Jian) Jian (剑; jiàn) is a double-edged straight sword used during the last 2,500 years in China. In folklore, it is known as "The Gentleman of All Weapons" and is considered one of the four major weapons, along with the staff, broadsword and the spear.
Historical one-handed versions have blades varying from 0.45 to 0.8 meter (17.7 to 31.5 inches) in length. The weight of an average sword of 0.7 meter (28 inch) blade-length would be in a range of approximately 700 to 900 g (1.5 to 2 pounds).
A guard or hilt protects the hand from an opposing blade. The shape of the guard can be described as short wings pointing either forward or backward depending on the era and region of manufacture. A handle behind the guard can accommodate the grip of one hand. Grips are usually of fluted wood or covered in rayskin, with a minority being wrapped with cord.
The end of the handle was finished with a pommel for balance, to prevent the handle from sliding through the hand if the hand's grip should be loosened, and for striking or trapping the opponent as opportunity required—such as in "withdrawing" techniques
Fan (Shan) The Fan or Shan (扇; shān) were made of wood or metal. The outer edge was extremely sharp and often spring-loaded darts were hidden in the ribs. The fans were the most easily hidden weapons because they could be kept in plain sight. Fans with their razor sharp edges could be used to cut, strike or slide. Spring-loaded darts were utilised for surprised attacks