Long swords were developed both as a result of and in response to the rise of plate armor.
Plate armor made cutting and slashing ineffective, so piercing vulnerable areas such as joints became more important.
It also made shields redundant and this freed up a hand.
The result was a longer sword with a sharp tip that could both slash with more force and pierce.
A hand-and-half sword, or more poetically bastard sword, was a weapon that could be wielded with one or two hands.
Two hands allowed for more powerful attacks, though one handed use left the other free for grappling, wielding a side-arm or holding a shield.
Wielders of bastard swords often used half-swording, alternating between one and two hands, sometimes placing one hand not on the hilt but on the blade.
Other swords were so long and heavy that they could only be wielded with two hands: the two-handers.
These were not aimed at defeating plate armor.
Their primary function was to push and cut openings in ranks of enemy pikemen.
The long reach and cutting power made them suitable for this task, though it remained a dangerous one, as dealing with one pike always brought danger from others.
Bastard swords were generally 1.2 to 1.5 meters long; two-handers reached from 1.3 to 1.8 meters or more.
Bastard swords were only slightly heavier than shorter battle swords, saving weight by tapering into a sharp point.
Two-handers were significantly heavier, up to 3.5 kilograms.
Examples are the German zweihänder and the Scottisch claidheamh-mòr a.k.a. claymore.
In Asia long swords were not straight like in Europe, but curved and single-edged.
Examples are the Japanese ōdachi and the Chinese zhanmadao and changdao.
War Matrix - Long sword
Late Middle Age 1300 CE - 1480 CE, Weapons and technology