Sword



A sword (刀剣) is a long-edged weapon used in different forms by various civilizations.

Strengths and Weaknesses
A sword fundamentally consists of a blade, with one or two edges for striking and cutting, a point for thrusting, and a hilt for gripping. Swords are a very commonly used weapon in the world of One Piece. Many people wield swords, but there are those who train hard, and learn to use swords exceptionally well. These people are known as swordsmen. Even in the real world they were considered some of the most prized weapons of any army.

One of the reasons for swords having so much value compared to other weapons were because they also often expensive to make; the metal for a single sword might have been able to be used for a dozen spearheads. In some armies officers normally carried swords as a sign of authority as much as a weapon. Added with the time needed to produce some varieties of swords and the amount of possible fighting techniques that some verities allowed to be offered to their wielders, the sword itself often was also a social status. As a consequence of its popularity, the sword appeared in many cultures throughout the world and its design varies more than most other melee weapons.

A sword's blade serves its primary function, most were designed for cutting, blocking other bladed weapons or thrusting, although not all swords relied on being able to cut a wound to be lethal, a few were also designed with small indents in them helped fight other melee weapons. Some verities of the larger two handed swords used the force of the swing from their wielders as more of a bludgeon action then a cutting one. A swords weakness was its quality and its lack of range, as well as the fact that unlike other weapons they relied more on the skills of the one who used them. Unlike the axe, a sword did not always deal a lethal blow as depending on type and fighting style they sometimes could not have enough force put behind them to do such a thing; the action of stabbing was often their most effectively form of dealing damage.

Some varieties of fencing swords, were also not designed for multiple uses and due to the thinness of the blade could break quite easily. Their quality also had some impact on their combat effectiveness, and good blades were not always easy to come by.

Types of swords
Within the series, a great variety of swords are used, depending on the user's personal preferences.

Katana
The katana (刀) is a type of Japanese sword. It is a single-edged, curved blade that was used by many samurai. Pronounced as "kah-tah-nah", both katana and katanas are acceptable as the plural forms. Zoro's Wado Ichimonji is a katana. The katana length is between 60 to 73 centimeters. High-ranking Marines, mainly Vice Admirals, use a katana or swords that greatly resemble them.

Kogatana
The kogatana (小刀) is a very small version of a katana. It is more like a hand-sized knife, and is usually used for backup when samurai fight. A kogatana would logically be from the size of an average person's hand to about a small dagger's size. Dracule Mihawk uses this to fight weak opponents, and sometimes in order to eat with.

Daito
Rather than a specific weapon, the daito (大刀) is actually a category of blade under which both katana and tachi fall. To qualify as a daito, the sword must have a blade longer than 2 shaku (approximately 24 inches or 60 centimeters) in a straight line. In the case of Roronoa Zoro, all three swords that he uses for his Santoryu are all confirmed as daito katanas.

Nodachi
The nodachi (野太刀), sometimes referred as odachi (大太刀) is a large two-handed Japanese sword. Compared to the katana, the nodachi was more difficult to wield due to its size and weight, but - like any weapon - could be extremely deadly if the warrior wielding it was skilled. The length of the nodachi's hilt varied between twelve to thirteen inches (30 to 33 centimeters). Its cutting capability and range exceeded that of a katana, due to its weight and size. Nodachi's length can reach the 1.50 meters. The captain of the Heart Pirates, Trafalgar Law, wields one of these, to be used in combination with his Devil Fruit powers. Shiliew, former Chief Guard of Impel Down, also wields one.

Cutlass
A cutlass (カットラス) is a short, thick saber, with a slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket-shaped guard. It’s best of known as the sailor's weapon of choice, the naval side arm. It's most likely because it was also robust enough to hack through heavy ropes, canvas, and wood in much the same manner as a machete. It was also short enough to use in relatively close quarters, such as during boarding actions, in the rigging, or below decks. Many low-ranking Marine soldiers and pirates are shown to be wielding one of these.

Saber
A saber (サーベル) is a type of sword with a single edge blade with a large hand guard. Its blade is usually (but not always) curved of variable length. Unlike a cutlass, the sabres is longer and thinner in design. Sabers are often seen being used by background characters. The most notable use of one is by Shanks, who seems to favor them over other sword types. His saber seems to be larger than a normal one. Vista also employs two sabers in combat. Vice Admiral Onigumo uses eight of these in combination with his presumably spider-based Devil Fruit, rather than the Vice Admirals' traditional weapon of choice, the katana.

Kukri
The kukri (ククリ) is a heavy, curved knife used for both as a tool and a weapon. It is slightly deflected at an angle of 20°, though some examples have a very steep angle. The kukri starts with 3 to 10 centimeters the length is 30 cm onwards, tapering towards the edge from the broad upper margin. It almost always has a single edge and almost never has a "false edge". It usually has a very thick spine and in many ways is a hybrid between a knife and an axe. The "Big-Knife" used by Sarkies resembles a kukri, and Helmeppo uses two kukri for combat.

Shikomizue
A shikomizue (仕込み杖) is a sword normally concealed inside a cane or walking stick. It became popular when katanas were outlawed. Kaku used a pair that also resembles shirasaya katanas, Roronoa Zoro used one in an anime-only flashback, and Brook uses a shikomizue as the main weapon for his sword style, as so does Issho. Brook named the blade Soul Solid after the timeskip due to his new ability to imbue his spectral energy into it.

Zanbato
A zanbato (斬馬刀) is a particularly gigantic, curved sword in comparison to the wielder, which makes it too cumbersome to be wielded properly, and is used typically in fiction. Real-life zanbato are actually overly long nodachi or odachi, and were meant to be able to slice down a horseman and the horse in one swing, hence the name. Arlong's Kiribachi is a zanbato with a saw-patterned teeth for blades, though he has no trouble wielding it due to his fishman strength. Dracule Mihawk's Yoru is quite long in length, being taller than the 198 cm Mihawk. Squard used a very large katana that can qualify as a zanbato. Even amongst giants, they use swords that are larger than themselves, let alone regular humans, as Bastille wields a cleaver-styled zanbato and Little Oars Jr. a gigantic butcher's knife; though in all fairness, any sword a giant wields can be considered a zanbato when being compared to a regular-sized swordsman.

Classified Swords
While there are a large variety of swords in terms of shapes and attributes, they are also classified by their qualities. The three known classifications are as:
 * Meito (名刀): A sword that has gained its own fame, that people would recognize it upon seeing it.
 * Kokuto (黒刀): A sword that possess a black-colored blade. Yoru and Shusui are both Kokuto.
 * Yoto (妖刀): A sword that carries a curse and brings misfortune to its wielders. All three of Kitetsu's creations, Kikoku and Shichiseiken are Yoto.

Named Swords of No Known Classification

 * Kiribachi: a cross between a saw and a zanbato.
 * Terry Sword: a giant-sized longsword.
 * Funkfreed: a western-curved sword that can change into a elephant.
 * Oto and Kogarashi: a pair of double-edged swords.
 * Franken: a giant, single-edged sword.
 * Soul Solid: a shikomizue.
 * Shichiseiken: a cursed jian, non-canon.

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