Are Katanas just simply Overrated?

Claymore seem to be more effective.

@xcalibur: Depends on how you use them.

I think the Rapier is best

It depends on the situation, and the reason for using them.

Using a claymore on horseback is stupid. Using a Katana against a Knight in full armor is less effective. It all depends on the usage.

Depends, though, katanas are my personal favorite swords.

In capable hands either one should be pretty effective. I'm from Scotland, so the claymore is huge over here, and I still favor the katana. Lighter, quicker, sneakier and just as deadly.

Rapiers are the best swords.

Certain swords are made to a perform certain role in fighting, rapiers for example are best suits for thrusting attacks.

Zatoichi for me

I have a fondness for mortuary hilt cut-and-thrusts.

i love katanas they are my fave brand of swords, but it depends on the user more than likely.

They are situational, they are ment to kill by surprise or first draw

Katana sounds tHe coolest and looks tHe best so it is suppose to be overused or "overrated."

The twin dao are my favofavorite.

-ABstract4$$#073-

this

By movies/comics and the uninformed public, yes. The light curved design of a Katana makes it well suited for slicing flesh. It is not so great against heavy armour, which a is best countered by a heavy two-hander with a straight tapered blade.

In fact, European weapon design and and martial arts in which they are used was just as advanced as that in the east; it is just that European martial arts has largely been lost to time, unlike eastern fighting styles.

See the documentary, Reclaiming the Blade or books by John Clement for more info on European Middle-Ages martial arts.

If we're just talking about Japanese swords, I prefer the ninjato (whether or not ninja actually used them).

Fix'd.

Both Katanas and Claymores are useful in certain situations. But neither can defeat this!

As said above, it all depends on what you want to use them for, since curved swords are most effective against flesh and leather armors. But overall: yes Katanas are highly overrated... I honestly don't see what makes them better than a Scimitar or a Falchion (since a Scimitar could also be used for thrusting, while the Falchion has strength comparable to that of an axe, and both could be used along with a shield, while the Katana is a two-handed sword...)

Katanas are not as a heavy nor as "cloggy" as claymores and generally speaking need less effort to cut a human in half (if forged correctly).

Katanas can slice bullets in half, they are awesome and iconic.

They're the most badass swords.

Eh I prefer dual dao swords personally.....

The Turco-Mongol Saber/Scimitar is the best sword. There is a reason why cavalrymen continued to use sabers for hundreds of years. Perfect for slicing, hacking and heavy enough to inflict damage but not too much so that it is a burden.

A butter knife can do the same actually, It's caused by the bullet's velocity not the Katana's sharpness. lol

Well, this video pretty much Proves who wins...

@nyas: That was awesome and informative. Katanas are still awesome though.

Yes they are, especially their look. :D

@nyas: I have a Hattori Hanzo replica in my room :)

If you're looking for purely slashing damage, with limited piercing capability, katanas are great. The thing people forget about katanas is they are actually fairly large and heavy, and require a great deal of training and endurance to use effectively. Essentially, to be good with a katana pretty much requires Samurai training.

Personally, I prefer tomahawks and knives as far as blades go, but if we are talking strictly swords I prefer the scimitar or short-sword. I don't need a long blade to kill, and scimitars are exceedingly light without sacrificing durability. They are primarily slashing, however, whereas the short-sword is deadlier on the thrust. Thrusting is typically the deadlier and quicker attack, so it depends on what you're looking for. Certain scimitar designs incorporate less of a curve to make thrusting more viable however.

You lucky b*stard... D:

I've spent a lot of time studying history and anthropology, one of my favorite subject being weapons, and I'd have to say yes, they are not very effective in combat. They are very good at cutting, but not very practical in battle. The media has really hyped them up, mainly because they look cool. There are some great documentaries on swords, and this is a really good one:

Katanas are the best for slicing

Don't even get me started on this...

Everything is overrated.

@thecheesestabber said:

@nyas said:

@rogueshadow said:

@nyas: That was awesome and informative. Katanas are still awesome though.

Yes they are, especially their look. :D

Cool Story, bro.

They're all worthless scraps of metal if you don't know how to use them.

@nyas:

@rogueshadow: ...?

@nyas said:

@thecheesestabber said:

@nyas said:

@rogueshadow said:

@nyas: That was awesome and informative. Katanas are still awesome though.

Yes they are, especially their look. :D

That's just impractical.

@thecheesestabber said:

@nyas:

@rogueshadow: ...?

That's even more impractical, while you're stood hugging your huge phallus I'll be gutting you like a fish. Mwahahahaha.

@rogueshadow said:

@nyas said:

@thecheesestabber said:

@nyas said:

@rogueshadow said:

@nyas: That was awesome and informative. Katanas are still awesome though.

Yes they are, especially their look. :D

That's just impractical.

You say its impractical now but when your megazord looses its sword you'll be glad someone thought ahead.

Haha, yeah. I wonder what the creator was trying to make up for, by making them so large lol

@rogueshadow: Then you get crushed as the sword falls on you :P

@nyas

Dragon Slayer is better.

I DARE YOU....I DOUBLE DARE YOU!

This ain't Prometheus, I'll just move out of the way, then viciously murder you and wear your entrails while whistling Bohemian Rhapsody on your corpse like a boss.