The Artisans: The weapons of Westeros

The video is a bit jumpy for me (doesn’t stream properly) and I can’t hear the sound – that’s because there is a mill going next to me.

Will try it again later.

But Conan shirtless! (we’ve seen this already?)

Oops forgot to link it lol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDH6XP96_TE

Uruk,

Awesome! Thanks. (:

Also. My first reaction while watching this: Ouch. Poor Sam….

Yeah, Sam was really getting the crap kicked out of him wasn’t he?

Johanna, which sword are you talking about? The only one in the video that’s identified as being anyone’s sword in particular was Gregor’s.

Man I think they look great. They found a good balance between real life weaponry and fantasy weaponry.

Also geekasm seeing Rory and Conan rehearsing. I forgot how big Rory is.

Johanna Schauerhofer: If this really is Ice I’m quite disappointed, because I am not at all impressed. I expected something more … I don’t know, actually. Something more unique looking. This ICE looks like any regular sword, imho. I think I’m generally going to be disappointed with the weaponry, in my head it was all a lot more shiny and “whoa” and yeah well. I’m a girl.    

Ice is the first weapon we got a look at with the second promotional shot HBO released for the series:

They’ve gone very simplistic with the design for the hilt, but if you look at the blade, itself, it’s pattern welded just like Valyrian steel.

I think simple makes sense for the Starks, though I would have assumed it would have been a BIT more regal looking – maybe a more simplistic beauty. I mean, even the Vikings made some pretty gorgeous weapons for their royals.

mummer: Johanna, which sword are you talking about? The only one in the video that’s identified as being anyone’s sword in particular was Gregor’s.    

The weapon beside Clegane’s Zweihänder is Ice, as seen in the promotional picture of Sean Bean as Lord Stark: http://i.cdn.hbo.com/assets/images/series/game-of-thrones/downloads/wallpaper-ned-stark-1600.jpg
Personally, I find it of very convincing design – Ice is an ancient ceremonial but also plain weapon without unnecessary ornament. And we already knew that HBO seem to have eschewed the novels’ famous Valyrian steel look (with ripples and odd colours). I can certainly live with that…

Herr Fick,

I suspect they will add valeryan “sheen” in post-production

I believe Loras just got knocked off his horse. The flower on his helm looks wonky.

Reading through Ran’s comments over at Westeros and he had it confirmed that the small sword sitting on top of the bigger one on the bench next to Dunne is Needle!

Brude,

Now that I look at a high-resolution picture, I can see it. It looks great, actually.
Well, who would have thought that anything in this series could get even more awesome? ;)

I believe, if you go by the notes on the sketch (0:16) that the blade shown (1:01) belongs to Ser Waymar Royce.

Many thanks to those kind souls who put GOT videos on Youtube. Being outside the USA (South Africa) this is the only place I have been able to buffer these videos so that they can be viewed in real time instead of a frame every 10 seconds or so.

I have to admit, I am pretty excited to see the brothers Clegane duking it out, can’t wait to see that in full make-up/costume/glory.

I’m sorry I forgot to mention that I think the sword next GREGOR’s was supposed to be Ice, since I think it looks similar to what Ned wields in the PromoPic and the first Trailer.

I know that HBO need to keep a balance between keeping it real and letting the weapons look as “oooomph” as they’d deserve (imo).
I know, simple works fine with the general Stark agenda, I only thought that this Ice doesn’t look particularly important or old or special – which I always imagined it to be. I mean, Ice is supposed to be recognised the instant it is seen. There ought to be a more regal air about it. I can’t even describe what I mean exactly.
This is not a sword-gate or weapon-gate for me. I was just wondering how they could have done it differently. And tbh I didn’t really come up with an idea.

I really love all the artisans videos, and in general I can say I’m really excited about the swords and armour, because it simply looks awesome. But yeah, well. Ice didn’t really turn out the way I was thinking of.

I got to say I LOVE how they made Ice. In the books I mean to recall that from afar Ice look just like a ordinary sword, it was just the blade that was Valyrian steel and stood out. If they had made Ice looking like a circus sword it would go against the Starks is my opinion.

Awesome sutff!

It is shame, I can not re-watch the video untill afternoon.
I just managed to notice that John Bradley West (Sam) has been beaten by Luke McEwan (Rast).

dizzy_34,

Yeah, best thing about this video in my opinion. Rory doesn’t look that big compared to Conan, but gods they look like brothers!

Love to see the Clegene’s fighting!

Porcupine TreeI really like the filigree work on the sword at 1.00, is this the sword you referred to, Mormegil ?

,

Yes, that’s the one. Has to be a Dragons head I think though if anything it looks like Cthulu ;) Maybe the Great Other is really Cthulu and Robert is a secret worshiper.

According to Ran over at Westeros a lot of the more fancy swords seen in the video were made for the pilot (such as Waymers). When produciing swords for the series itself they toned down the fanciness a bit.

Fat Tom,

I think that looks like the sword Viserys is holding in one of the earlier videos. The clothes on the figure in the drawing sorta matches him I think. Maybe it’s a Pentoshi sword, something he was given by Illyrio?

Mormegil,

I’m wondering if the scabbard drawn behind is for an arakh, it seems to be curving, but not due to the paper?

Porcupine Tree,

It’s in the shots of him being interviewed. Sitting on the bench off to his right. It looks to be in a scabbard. All you can really see is the hilt and the general size to it.

Some thoughts on the swords (http://yfrog.com/new0bp) in HBO’s latest video:

Lord Eddard’s Ice (http://yfrog.com/mthslp) looks pleasingly stark. ;) The tips of its cross-guard and the pommel work fine together; very simple and elegant – for a Zweihänder. It is shorter than described in the novels, but that’s okay. Following Brude’s comment, I can also see the steel’s ‘Valyrian’ pattern more clearly now. The fact that Ice’s hilt is not wrapped in leather underlines that it serves ceremonial functions mainly, is seldom used in battle (the last time during the Greyjoy rebellion, I think) and not carried around by Eddard Stark all the time.

Clegane’s Zweihänder (http://yfrog.com/5hxjhp) looks brutishly practical. The pommel’s design is cool, because it’s not fancy but also not bland. The dark brown hilt is neat, but I am not sure whether what we see is wood or very tight leather wrapping (at 1:42 it looks like wood to me, but I’m not sure). 64 inches (162cm) long, the sword is not unnaturally large, considering that Mr Stevens will most likely wield it two-handed (not one-handed and with a shield, as in the novels). In fact, there are Zweihänder that exceed 180cm in length, although it is sometimes difficult to determine if they were used for actual combat or just for ceremonial purposes. Be that as it may, the wooden sword with which Mr Stevens ‘fights’ Mr McCann is, I believe, much shorter than his prop weapon. Being a lay person, I find that odd (would you not use a matching weapon for practising your choreography?). Furthermore, I have a question concerning Mr Dunne’s statement at 1:39. Does he really say that Clegane’s sword weighs 12 to 16 (!) pounds? That would be absurdly heavy…

On the table behind Mr Dunne some additional swords can be seen. Ran of Westeros.org already spotted Arya’s Needle among the pieces (www.tinyurl.com/3yedha9). I believe, it is the slender weapon with the dark hilt, brass-coloured pommel and ring guard lying atop King Robert’s sword. If so, the design is very different from Mr Martin’s description as adopted for the weapon’s official replica by Valyrian Steel (www.tinyurl.com/35hhhtb).
Personally, I think HBO’s design is neat and adds to the settings cultural diversity.

We get a glimpse of Ser Waymar Royce’s sword (http://yfrog.com/5x3mbp) as concept art first. The hilt looks oddly ceremonial, studded with gems of some sort. Later, at 01:01, these gems appear to be pieces of amber in its warm colours from bright yellow to dark red. I don’t know of any connection House Royce has with amber, except that Runestone, their castle, stands by the shore north of Gulltown. The amber thus is a well-thought-out design feature, in my opinion.
Additionally, the sword’s hilt sports golden ornament and an ivory-coloured grip. Somewhat contrary to this pomp, the cross-guard is of a simple and elegant design. But all in all, Ser Waymar’s weapon (or at least its hilt) looks neither modest nor practical, which at the same time fits his somewhat pompous character and contradicts his obvious martial prowess and diligence. But as a statement of style as well as character, a sword like this one should work very well on camera – especially since the other brothers in Ser Waymar’s band are equipped so much more plainly.

Viserys Targaryen’s scimitar (http://yfrog.com/hqqdcp) is initially shown as concept art, too (at 0:32). We have already seen this weapon in the behind-the-sceens feature (at 0:33). It has a slender, curved blade, gilded, upwards-pointing hand guards, a dark (wooden?) grip, a golden orb at the top of the hilt and a dragon’s head pommel of somewhat oriental design. All of this fits with the weapon being a gift from Magister Illyrio to a deluded Targaryen would-be king. I’m not able to determine from the video, whether the concept art already features the dragon pommel or another (bird-like?) design.

King Robert’s sword is a mystery to me. The hilt is fashioned from bright wood, the silver cross-guard decorated with golden scrollwork and distinct golden tips – it looks quite nice and regal (http://yfrog.com/jvirmp). But the interesting thing is… Cthulhu’s head. ;) (http://yfrog.com/mg9j2p)
I have no idea what it is that adorns the sword’s pommel. It doesn’t look like a dragon (at least I hope so!) or any other heraldic animal associated with Robert Baratheon for that matter. And because my first reaction was, indeed, “Cthulhu fhtagn!”, I came up with only one – very far-fetched – explanation: The pommel depicts a kraken and the sword belongs to the Greyjoys of Pyke, from whom Robert took the weapon after he crushed Lord Balon’s rebellion.
Well, that is some outlandish theory, but hey, it’s some outlandish pommel, too! :)

Another mystery is the pale coloured sword (http://yfrog.com/nedgdp) in the gilded scabbard we can see laying beside Visery’s sabre at 0:13 to 0:15. It has a very flashy grip, made of ivory or bright wood. The cross-guard is entangled by twisted strands of metal and tipped with golden discs. The scabbard sports a lot of gold, too, as well as two ornaments shaped like sun discs or chrysanthemums – oh no, Lannister samurais again!– ;)
At the very last moment of this shot we get to glimpse at the pommel which seems to be quite big and distinctly shaped – it could well be a lion’s head with a curly mane. I’m guessing, that this is the Kingslayer’s sword, but after comparing it to Mr Coster-Waldau’s weapon in the Entertainment Weekly photograph, I am not sure.

All in all, my impression is one of awe and approval. The craftsmanship is stunning, the designs very diverse, telling (in terms of culture and character) and – most importantly in my opinion – not in the line of common fantasy kitsch.
Great work, Mr Dunne! I’m really looking forward to see your weapons in action. :)

Winter Is Coming,

Thanks, Winter! While I’ve read my share of books about the subject and had the chance to inspect some historical weapons, I’m not an expert.

I believe, that when it comes to Game of Thrones, we should not obsess too much over issues like ‘historical accuracy’ or ‘authenticity’. A certain suspension of disbelieve will be necessary, regardless of how ‘realistic’ or ‘gritty’ the novels and (hopefully) the series are. But when we look at the designs of Mr Dunne (as well as those of his colleagues) there are almost no major blunders or instances of obvious fantasy kitsch, in my opinion.
Even the more ‘imaginary’ or ‘eastern’ looking props like Viserys’ scimitar or the Lannister armours and helmets look well-made, never cheap. And as long as they blend in with their respective contexts (the Free Cities, the Lannister family and bannermen), everything should be all right. The swords, for all I can tell, just look great. :)

12 pounds would be absurd in practice; it would be too heavy to use in realistic conditions. Conan (Gregor), however, is not going to use the sword in battle — or even in mock battle. The video explains that the steel sword is for carrying around and close-ups.

For action scenes they use plastic, carbon, etc which are much safer. It would be nice if these were of realistic weight, but in truth we as viewers don’t really care about the actual weight of the prop swords. As long as Conan swings them in front of the camera a vaguely realistic way, why do we care how much they precisely weigh?

It’s also important to no expect realistic fights — for a good reason (nicely explained by Conan in 2006). Basically, actual fighting doesn’t look good on camera, and so theatre, film and television have developed an alternative which does look good, at the cost of not looking like the real thing.

Lior,

Not that I expect anything like that, but it would actually look very impressive and stylistically distinct if historical fencing and close-quarters wrestling techniques from the high middle-ages were to be used in a quality television or cinema production. I know of no such production (although there was an attempt at this in Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven) but I would not rule it out. The reason why those techniques are never used, is not their lack of action, style or ‘observability’ but the lack of people actually familiar with them (especially, since actors are trained in stage fighting techniques only). Furthermore, in his weblog piece, Mr Stevens talks about hand-to-hand combat, of which we will not see that much in Game of Thrones.

Ollie, Porcupine Tree, Raynette Schroeder,

I think four is a nice round number to start with. Consider the FOGOTWASTGCS officially founded!

clue for Wedding Guest!! http://grrm.livejournal.com/184176.html

Beyonder,

That’s great. Just think how awesome it will look if they do the scene with Sandor and Tyrion, you know the one where Sandor makes the spirits of air joke

Porcupine Tree,

I fit between Sandor and Hodor (way closter to sandor)

here is a quote from an interview of Peter Dinklage

“What do you mean? I’m a dwarf, man?” the 4-foot, 6-inch actor wails, staring down at his stubby legs and flailing his hands in mock horror. “Oh, my God! Whoa! I thought it was a part I played! I thought he was the dwarf, not me! I was acting, right?”

yeah he is going to be a great Tyrion

Inkasrain,

im joining :(

Damyrn of Dorne,

You got it, man! FOGOTWASTGCS membership is now up to five.

Steve Hugh Westenra,

Wait, there may be hope– Dunne says Gregor’s sword is about 64 inches. I’m literally the most mathematically incompetent person on the planet, but my calculator indicates that that’s about 5″3, in which case you would still be eligible for membership!

ogbebaba,
According to your link, I would be the tallest person in a room with an average of one person in it……. lol

Damyrn of Dorne,
Why so sad? I don’t mind being short, there are lots of advantages (but I’m female)

Inkasrain,
Welcome to the club!

I wasn’t convinced by the choice of Dinklage, but that hi-res picture of him and Mord has made me more hopeful, and his quote re height is very good. They just gotta sort out his eyes though…

Great video. For all that it doesn’t count, HBO has my full approval on the weapons department based on this video.
At 4′ 10″ with little likelihood of growing any taller, I am definitely in.

P.S. A friend and I have been watching a cute show called Merlin that has been on air for a while now. One thing that drives me crazy about it is that the those that work on the armor have done an excellent job and put in the effort to make chain-mail hoods with lining and everything, yet the actors, while wearing the armor, almost never bother to pull the hood up before putting on their helms. It drives me insane (did I mention this yet). Hoping that HBO has sense enough to either leave such pieces out or incorporate them correctly, even though it is admittedly a small thing.

Raynette Schroeder,

Awesome! (I do not do math, lol!) You’re in, Steve Hugh Westenra!

SJGIM,
Glad to have you! We may not be growing much in height, but our numbers are swelling.