Tactics of the death frisbee

[TheManicMonocle]

So, I was wondering, suppose there was a weapon that was basically a razor sharp frisbee, It's thrown the same way but for different reasons, whatever.

Firstly, was this ever a weapon in history?

Assuming it wasn't, discuss the viability of this "death frisbee" in,

1.) One on one combat, (such as a duel)
2.) In a battlefield situation (assuming you have many death frisbees in a kind of quiver)

[GloatingSwine]

You mean a Chakram?

They were used as a throwing weapon in India, particularly convenient for throwing from horse or elephant.

You throw them vertically, not like a frisbee or discus though, because they're less likely to hit people either side of you that way. (Discus style throwing handaxes were a hunting tool)

[Miraqariftsky]

Yes, there was, and it was known as the "chakram". Came from ancient India, it is a small steel wheel, sharp on the outside, no edge on the inside. Was a staple weapon of their warriors. And no, it's not a solid disc like a frisbee or discus in that the hollow space on the inside helps generate lift and stability, as well as accuracy.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chakram
https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=Ed0DAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA1&pg=PA593&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=true
https://web.archive.org/web/20000409191623/http://www.whoosh.org/issue8/rudnick6.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20100921001257/http://webprojects.prm.ox.ac.uk/arms-and-armour/o/The-Art-of-War/1906.64.1/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hCfrW3tF7w&t=620s


Based on what the articles above said, in a battlefield situation, it appears chakram were used during charging, right before engaging in melee. For longer-range work, you've got spears, muskets, bows. In one on one, it might be a larger, deadlier version of the shuriken, in that it could have had a distraction value, but it was far more able to achieve a kill than its Japanese counterpart.

EDIT: Brass chakram, due to their better airfoil, had an effective range of 100 meters--- one-third that of an English Longbow. Pretty respectable, I daresay.

Quoting Duarte Mendoza, Portuguese chronicler, 1516, "And they carry seven or eight of these each, put on the left arm; and they take one and put it on the finger of the right hand, and make it spin round many times, and so they hurl it at their enemies, and if they hit anyone on the arm or leg or neck, it cuts through all. And with these they carry on much fighting, and are very dexterous with them".

I hasten to add, the above research was casual and hasty. If any who know better come to correct me, they are welcome to do so.

[Bohandas]

Since this is a heavily RPG centric forum, I'd like to point out that stats for chakrams in D&D can be found in the 3e Arms & Equipment Guide pg.7

[Jay R]

The best equivalent in adventure movies is Oddjob's hat (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXZL2fmptkU), in Goldfinger.

[Vogie]

In relation for actual viability, it really depends on the design of the chakram.

The traditional chakram that is only a blade around a ring, you can only use it as a short to medium ranged weapon. They'll be hard to carry multiples on person, so it would likely be used on some sort of a mount. Because there's an edge all the way around, you wouldn't be able to use it well in a dueling capacity, as it would dig into whatever armor on your hands. IRL, they would not be able to ricochet effectively.

There are, however, chakram that have a handle on the inside of the ring. These would work similarly to the above, but have the additional use as a hand-to-hand slashing weapon like a double-sided Arbelos or double-sided Tekko. Theoretically, one could even have one that folds along the handle (into the position of a normal Tekko) for easier access/storage. The fighting style would be similar to those using "brass knuckels" but with a blade around the hand, or a variation on the Japanese or Korean "Fighting Fans". It could be single or dual wielded, and possibly even attatched to a cord or chain, changing the Chakram's alternate from a one-time throwing weapon to a Meteor Hammer/Flying claws/Rope dart style weapon.