[88160] in tlhIngan-Hol
RE: How Many of Them Can We Make Die!
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Steven Boozer)
Wed Aug 11 09:36:42 2010
From: Steven Boozer <sboozer@uchicago.edu>
To: "'tlhingan-hol@kli.org'" <tlhingan-hol@kli.org>
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 08:18:25 -0500
In-Reply-To: <B1E68CA8-FFFE-4E16-927F-981FD8A9BB73@gmail.com>
Errors-to: tlhingan-hol-bounce@kli.org
Reply-to: tlhingan-hol@kli.org
ghunchu'wI':
>>>> pe'chu' yan 'ej SIj 'obmaQ,
>>>
>>> My only thought is that {SIj} (slit) conveys too fine a cut to
>>> attribute to an axe. So I reckon {pe} and {SIj} might need to
>>> be swapped somehow.
>>
>>I put them that way on purpose, and I'm glad someone noticed. I like the
>>idea of a sword cutting completely while an axe does more "delicate" work. I
>>think it implies a thorough mastery of weapons technique.
lojmIt tI'wI' nuv:
>A sword is nimble, light, sharp, and has a long reach and can cut
>anywhere along its length. It cuts because of the extremely high weight
>to surface area of its cutting edge. It can maintain that cutting edge
>because the metal is extremely hard (to the point of being brittle)
>metal. Try chopping down a tree with a sword. You'll break the sword.
>The sword is also badly suited to piercing heavy armor. But it is
>excellently suited to fighting anyone as nimble as you are, unfettered
>by armor.
Klingon swords may be more multi-purpose and have been used for carving:
KGT 60f.: The word {'etlh} is used for sword in general, but it really means blade of any kind. The {'etlh}, then, is a component of a knife and could be part of a spear as well. [...] A {'etlh}, even if primarily a weapon, may be used in other activities as well, such as hunting and even sculpting. Indeed, to restrict the use of a {'etlh} to combat is to minimize the flexibility of its design.
KGT 80: In addition to the specialized tools, any blade ('etlh), even if designed for other purposes, may be used as a sculpting tool. Kahless himself is said to have used his *bat'leth*, the original "Sword of Honor," to carve a statue for the woman he loved, presumably Lukara.
--
Voragh
Canon Master of the Klingons
