That said. This is a work in progress so bear with me here. If theres a specific weapon you want details on, or a particular style that compliments a weapon, let me know and i'll throw out what I know.
This topic is for martially-inclined characters and the concepts behind weapons and weapons theory in general. The point of this is to give players a little more information that they can use to add a bit of detail to their own characters.
Table of Contents (will be updated as I go)
I. Weapons: Your ex lied. Size totally matters.
-A. Small Weapons
-B. Medium Weapons
-C. Large Weapons
II. Shape
-A. A General Rundown
I. Weapons: Your ex lied. Size totally matters.
Going as far back as bronze-age weapons to modern day firearms, a weapons size and shape can and will play a huge role in what a weapon is designed for. Yes, size does in fact matter. Its quite important actually.
A. Small WeaponsTiny and small weapons aren't very well suited as primary weapons. A physically powerful warrior can wield heavier, more damaging weapons just as easily. Inferior reach meant they were difficult to use when facing against weapons with more approriate weaponry, and were very ill suited for defense. Even as a sidearm, things like daggers made poor weapons (i'll get to suitable sidearms later)
There are some styles/concepts that favor getting really up close and personal with small weapons, exploiting the blind spots of larger weapons. Doing so requires a tremendous amount of stamina, and is often regarded as being a highly inefficent means of fighting. This is due to several concepts; focusing on gaps between attacks from an opponent can create a sense of entanglement and tunnel vision on a single opponent, for example.
Their light nature and short length also meant they weren't suited for penetrating armor or other defensive layers (thick hide or fatty/muscular layers of large animals, for example). Go ahead; go stab a bear and see what happens.
Knives and daggers were however, easily carried and just as easily concealed. Even in cultures where weapons possession was prohibited, small weapons were socially acceptable for even some of the lower castes to carry around. The light nature mean these weapons were easy to handle and use; even a physically frail person can stab using a knife or dagger without much exertion.
The benefits of concealment, an inconspcious nature, and ease of use mean daggers and knives were most often used as self-defense or covert weapons. Skilled knife fighters fight by severing blood vessels and stabbing vital organs. Since knives lack weight and power, you often need to capitlize on the weapons easy handling to make accurate attacks.
As a side note; throwing knives are very much something that were used. However, throwing knives are very poor weapons of choice. Throwing a dagger is usually considered an even worse idea; you are literally throwing away your weapon. Worst case scenario; you've disarmed yourself for no reason (you missed!) or gave your opponent your weapon (he picked it up after it bounced off his armor!) Best case scenario, your opponent is dead, but you've still disarmed yourself. Going back a bit, they lack the penetration power of other weapons, so armor is likely to negate thrown knives.
Throwing weapons are considerably more difficult to carry en-mass compared to say...a quiver of arrows. Proper technique is important; seriously. There are two ways to throw a weapon; end over end or by slinging it. End-over-end requires precise timing and accurately calculating the distance between you and your target. Slinging a weapon requires excellent form and followthrough. Both are exceptionally difficult to do in the heat of battle, and are notably less effective than simply shooting someone with a bow. Again; its not a very efficent means of fighting. Usually, such weapons are used for covert means when even a shortbow is too noticable, or as a desperation attack.
B. Medium WeaponsBelieve it or not, most of what NWN labels as "medium" weapons were most typically used as sidearms. A balance between size, weight, handling, and destructive force, these weapons were typically meant to compliment larger, heavier primary weapons (polearms, primarily).
If you need a modern day comparison, swords were the equivalent of a handgun for modern day soldiers; they can be used, and certainly have killing potential behind them, but aren't nearly as efficent in doing so as the primary weapon of choice (long guns/polearms). Part of the reason famous swordsmen were so famous was because it took an incredible amount of skill to utilize a sword with equal or greater skill as a lancer. Kind of like matching a rifleman shot for shot with a handgun.
Even as sidearms, swords did not do very well smacking against other hard metal objects. Often times, swords were paired with shields as an additional means of defense. Direct blade-on-blade contact often did not bode well for the longetivety of your weapon. Offensively, soldiers going against armored foes would use blunted weapon. Flanges could be used to strike around a shield, whereas mace's and other blunted weapons could dent or collapse plate armor. Most armored-troops that died as a result of wounds died of blunt force trauma as their armor was forcibly pushed in against their bodies.
In the early and mid Middle Ages, swords were usually owned only by affluent officers, nobles, or wealthy individuals. It takes a crapload of time, effort, resources, and labor to make a single sword. It wasn't until around the 1500's that swords began to become a bit more widely used, but were still far more expensive than a spear or bow. You need to find the ore, mine it, transport it, smelt it, then find the skilled labor to shape it. Forging alone took something around 30-40 hours to make a blade alone. For ONE sword. Pouring molten metal into a mold is bronze-age style of forging, and wasn't really done much afterwords for swordsmithing.
Since affluent or important military figures were the only ones that could reasonably afford a sword earlier on, swords became as much a status symbol as they were a weapon of warfare. Some cultures would go so far as to straight out outlaw lower classes from carrying swords (ex: Japan and the ban on non-samurai carrying a katana or daisho set). Keep this in mind if you're making a character with a commoner background.
Large WeaponsMost of the weapons that NWN labels as large weapons would have been considered primary weapons, and were probably the most commonly used by footsoldiers and infantry. Most large weapons were used as thrusting weapons. Pike and spear formations were essential when facing off against mounted opponents or large masses of charging enemies. Weapons such as greatswords were often used as a countermeasure against pikes; soldiers armed with greatswords were expected to literally hack through pike formations at times (ex: Landsknecht mercenary tactics).
Spears were easily the most commonly used weapon around the world. They were easy to make, easy to use, and cheap enough to supply to armies en-masse. There length gave them an advantage against shorter weapons. Thrusts in general require less motion than slashing attacks, and focus the brunt of the attack on the weapons tip, giving them exceptional thrusting power. This meant most swordsmen would be at a distinct disadvantage when fighting a skilled lancer.
Larger weapons were more cumbersome however, and sometimes, confined quarters meant they just weren't feasible or practical. They could also be a bit more physically demanding than lighter weapons. However, despite what nwn and Hollywood might suggest, these weapons weren't stupidly heavy; a scottish claymore weighs around a grand total of 5 pounds. 5. POUNDS. The way the weight is distributed and designed, rather than a high number, contributed to a weapons destructive power.