Most Destructive Hand-To-Hand Weapon?

[The_Other_Waldo_Pepper]

@wickedwolf6

in therms of hand to hand combat the topic should be with weapons no larger than daggers or large knives if you want a blade. swords and the like are considered melee combat. but the weapon that would be most devastating in H2H combat is the trench spike. yes spike is the word I’m using. the original trench spikes were designed with a triangular spike for a blade that extended between 6-8 inches along with a spike knuckle guard and half inch spike emerging from the bottom of the grip. this caused severe casualties in the world wars where it seen the most grueling H2H combat in recorded wars. the triangular spike has the unique ability to inflict wounds that could not be stiched up like a knife blade or bullet hole. this was perfect for penetrating the thick wool coats of German soldiers. the half inch spike emerging from below the grip proved reliable at cracking the steel helmets especially when jumping down into the trenches on top of an enemy combatant. the knuckle guard explains its self. if you ever used a decent set of knuckle dusters you know they pack quite the punch.

IIRC, Mack Reynolds relays that reasoning in a novel where such a trench knife is the weapon of choice for a modern-day gladiator. (Who promptly loses, one-on-one, to a guy wielding a boar spear, but, hey, it was a pretty good plan.)

[Reverend_Meade]

Obviously the most powerful hand to hand weapon is a shark stick. Powerhead (firearm) - Wikipedia

[blindboyard]

The most powerful weapon of all is training.

[BrotherCadfael]

@glee

What about a quarterstaff?
It combines defence and attack, and is jolly cheap (for those peasant armies).

Ith’ actually a buck-and-a-quarter thtaff, but I’m not about to tell HIM that!

One thing I haven’t seen mentioned in the thread is the classic sling. In the hands of a skilled user, very deadly at a significant range. David basically brought a handgun to Goliath’s knife fight.