WEAPONS

"Poison is the weapon of women."
Marauders of Gor, pg 18

The Tuchuk moved towards me, swiftly yet not seeming to hurry. I saw the slender line of his light lance against the sky, strapped across his back.

I could see he carried a small, round, leather shield, glossy black, lacquered; he wore a conical, fur-rimmed iron helmet, a net of colored chains depending from the helmet protecting his face, leaving holes for the eyes. He wore a quilted jacket and under this a leather jerkin; the jacket was trimmed with fur and had a fur collar; his boots were made of hide and also trimmed with fur; he had a wide, five-buckled belt. About his throat, now lowered, there was a soft leather wind scarf which might, when the helmet veil was lifted, be drawn over the mouth and nose, against the wind and dust of his ride.
He was very erect in the saddle. His lance remained on his back, but he carried in his right hand the small, powerful horn bow of the Wagon Peoples and attached to his saddle was a lacquered, narrow, rectangular quiver containing as many as forty arrows.

The mount of the Wagon Peoples, unknown in the northern hemisphere of Gor, is the terrifying but beautiful kaiila.

The Tuchuks are a warrior society. Much like the Plains Indians of Urth, Tuchuk parents expect mastery of weapons and mount from their sons even before granting a name. Without this Mastery, a Male Tuchuk cannot earn the Red Courage Scar, with all the ramifications of not achieving Manhood that that entails. The weapons of the Tuchuk are those most readily usable from kaillaback, such as the horn bow, the lance, the bola, and the quiva. The Tuchuk feels the sword is awkward from the back of the kailla, and so it is seldom used, and in general must be learned elsewhere. Additionally, tharlarion cavalry, such as that of Turia, is generally not reachable by sword, while the bow and the lance are quite adequate for the task.

The Bola

The bola is a weapon peculiar to the Wagon Peoples. Tarl Cabot describes it thus:

It consists of three long straps of leather, each terminating in a leather sack which contains, sewn inside, a heavy, round, metal weight. It was probably developed for hunting the tumit, a huge, flightless carnivorous bird of the plains, but the Wagon Peoples use it also, and well, as a weapon of war.

The bola is generally thrown low and hard, aiming to entangle and possibly break the victim's legs. With its ten-foot sweep, and the swiftness of the throw, it is almost impossible to evade. The leather straps strike the victim and immediately tangle around the legs, the weight of the metal balls pulling the leather tight. The force is such that the victim's legs can actually be broken by the clinch of the straps. Once entangled, the victim is easily captured or dispatched by the Tuchuk Warrior.
Of course, the Warrior can also aim to strap arms to sides, or to crush the windpipe, or to wrap the head, using the stones in the last instance to strike the victim's skull, thereby ending his life.

The Lance

The lances of the Tuchuk are black and are made of the wood of young tem trees. They are so supple that they can be bent almost double without breaking. A mounted warrior holds the lance lightly in his fist, using a loop of bosk hide to strap it securely to his hand. It is used like a saber in hand-to-hand combat, and can be handled very deftly. Tuchuks seldom throw their lances, but do carry three or four. They are used for short thrusts, not for long charges at full tilt, and are never couched against the saddle. When not in use, they are carried on the warrior's back in their own quiver.

The Quiva

The quiva is another weapon specific to the warriors of the Plains. These are balanced throwing knives, coming seven to a set. The kaiila saddles of the Tuchuks have seven sheaths for the carrying of these knives. The foot-long blades are double-edged and tapered, honed to a razor sharpness and mounted in handles of bosk horn or bone. The Tuchuks do no metalworking of their own and most of their blades are forged in the smithies of Ar. It is important to note that each of the Tribes uses quivas with their own standard embossed on the hilt. No Warrior of the Wagon Peoples would consider using any other. A quiva can be thrown with deadly accuracy, but it can also be used as a hand-held weapon for slitting, thrusting and piercing. Although primarily a Warrior's weapon, a single quiva is also carried by most Tuchuk freewomen.

The Horn Bow

The Wagon Peoples are skilled with a small, powerful bow made of bosk-horn, and reinforced with strips of leather from that animal. They carry as well narrow, lacquered, rectangular quivers in which some forty arrows are kept at the ready. Each Warrior may carry three or four of these quivers, and thus a single Hundred, or Orlu, is capable of raining devastation on the massive, ponderous tharlarion cavalry of Turia from a distance of a half passang or more. Trained in the use of this weapon from earliest childhood, a Tuchuk can hit his target as easily from a running kaiila at full gallop as he can when standing on the ground.

Miscellaneous

The Tuchuk Warrior also carries a braided bosk-hide rope coiled on his kaiila saddle, and a small round shield of leather, lacquered black, the preferred color of Tuchuk warrior leathers and clothing. The Tuchuk Warrior also wears a conical steel helmet, with a multicolored face chain for protection.

Although some Tuchuks have mastered the art of swordsmanship, through mercenary service in some of the great cities of Gor, the sword is not in general use on the Plains. Neither is the saber. It must be remembered that the prime consideration for warriors of the Wagon Peoples is the efficacy of a given weapon in mounted combat. Another peculiarity of the Tuchuks is their preference for weapons that can be used at long range; hence, lances, bows, throwing-knives and bolas. The sword and saber are short-range weapons, and reckoned to be unsuitable for the wide expanses of the open plains.

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