Arbalest Arbalest The arbalest (also arblast) was a late variation of the crossbow coming into use in Europe during the 12th century. A large weapon, the arbalest had a steel prod ("bow"). Since the arbalest was much larger than earlier crossbows, and because of the greater tensile strength of steel, it had a greater force. However, the greater draw weight was offset by the smaller powerstroke, which limited its potential in fully transferring the energy into the crossbow bolt. The strongest windlass-pulled arbalests could have up to 22 kN (5000 lbf) of force and be accurate up to 100 m. A
Pole weapon feature of the weapon was its long haft. A fauchard is a type of pole arm which was used in medieval Europe from the 11th through the 14th centuries. The design consisted of a curved blade put atop a pole. The blade bore a moderate to strong curve along its length; however, unlike a bill or guisarme, the cutting edge was on the convex side. A guisarme (sometimes gisarme, giserne or bisarme) was a pole weapon used in Europe primarily between 1000–1400. It was used primarily to dismount knights and horsemen. Like most pole arms it was developed by peasants