Spears would be very usefull for fighting dragons.

Sort of, they didn't function well and they looked even worse, clipping issues and all.

But they were added to the already existing number of weapons from FO3. Obsidian had time to work on them because they could copy/paste 80% of the weapons.

Just look at the game jame 2011 video, Bethesda could add spears. With a whole team they could probably add them in a week or two. The questtion is: should they?

I believe they should, but than again I am no developer. They might be aware of other issues besides clipping issues that would hurt the balance of the game (for example).

Perhaps, but those complains are mainly fueled by the fact that each new TES game has less options. Less Guilds, less weapons, less quests, less NPCs. Of course quality rises as quantity diminishes so it isn't all bad, but peopel have a right to express their concern for this direction.

If Skyrim had all the weapon types of previous games than complains would gather less support. But until spears and throwing weapons have been restored I think we'll see strong support for these complains.

Not necessarily, take the College of Winterhold for instance, which has one of the weakest quest lines in the game, even though there's only one Hogwarts as opposed to one for each city in the previous games.

OP, your attempt at starting a flame war fails...for the infamous Game Jam video pretty much displayed everything that the mod community will provide in the near future. They showed what was possible, now the mod community will make it so. As for why anyone would want a spear in combat follow this formula: Proximity + ability to inflict significant Damage = Win. (W = [P]rox over [D]am)

In the event of a zombie apocalypse, I'd rather have a spear than a firearm. Why? Re-read the previously-stated formula. Spears will happen....and I can't wait.

You can actually find a kitchen table knife and fork (I know the knife has a damage value and can be used as a weapon - don't remember for the fork) in a Dwemer ruin. But I'm off topic.

I want new guild stuff... more content.. new,large areas... [censored] spears... save that [censored] for the next elderscrolls... or make it a small part of a dlc that provides an entirly new province...

" ooooh spears "

[censored] spears

I think its two fold, it would be a fun addition to combat and also that both historically and culturally spears have been widespread. It would add both elements of reality or reinforcement to the world of Skyrim as well as just be fun to have the option.

I don't get the point here. If it was in earlier games it should be in all subsequent games?

I am not upset about not having spears, but if you go to Youtube, you will see Bethesda staff making players with spears for fun. The fact that they've made them but not put them in the game is a tad annoying. Spears would be cool. But hey, maybe this is experimenting for the DLC? Ya never know.

I think the answer is because some people just enjoy playing with spears. It's as simple as that. Asking why is like asking why someone likes cake.

That said here's a video of what devs did when invited to add what they wanted for a week. Spears are there...:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zxIHPfi-yI

Hey spear-lovers tell me this... there are 3 weapon trees, 1 handed, 2handed and Marksmen, where would spears fit in? 2handed right... or should they get their own tree? but if spears get there on tree why not 1handed maces?

So, the crossbow is a one-shot, heavier-hitting bow that warrior types could use to soften up a target before melee ensues. Fine with me. I'm not 'against' crossbows, I'd be glad to see them. But they are still niche weapons. Full-time archery specialists couldn't use them all the time due to their slowness, and melee specialists would only get to use them once during a fight. And they still remain similar to the bow in that they are purely a ranged bolt-casting weapon. Spears, on the other hand, have a blend of both ranged and melee use, and could be entirely specialised in, if one wanted to. Dual capabilities that no other weapon in the game has. And as others have said, spears and their later variations (polearms, halberds, etc.), have been around longer than anything but clubs and rocks, and were a fixture in combat everywhere until the age of gunpowder.

the new spear animations in that game jam video looked so awsome, id love spears to be put in the game

A spear is just a staff with a pointy end. Staves, and spears, can easily be used to block when gripped in both hands. If you can realistically block something with only a short, one-handed weapon, it would be even easier to block the same blow with a properly wielded spear. Spears are also usable with a shield, at the same time. The greeks, and others, were adept at this. There could be heavier, longer spears that do more damage but can't be used with a shield, and smaller, lower-damage spears that work with a shield, and can be thrown farther. Lots of interesting, and realistic, possibilities.

I can imagine the fun I would have playing a character with a spear in one hand and a flame spell in the other.

They're upset that spears were in Morrowind, but dropped in Oblivion and Skyrim. Even though they weren't in Arena or Daggerfall either.....

Granted. I don't have a problem with crossbows being in the game, I just find the "They were in Morrowind, therefore it's absurd that they aren't in everything. There's never a good reason to do things differently than Morrowind" argument a trifle absurd.


Not so. For one thing, there are spears for throwing and spears for hand-to-hand combat, and ne'er the twain shall meet. A mounted lance or the heavy spears of the Greek hoplites were utterly unsuitable for throwing, and the Roman pilum was designed purely for throwing. I'm certain there was nothing impossible about hitting somebody with it in your hand, but it wasn't strong enough to withstand hand-to-hand repeated use; it was designed to be heavy and penetrate the enemy's shield when thrown, then bend and be hard to extract, forcing him to drop the shield. Once the two or three pila were thrown, they switched to the gladius for hand-to-hand.

Specialization in spear combat just isn't feasible; it isn't a self-sufficient weapon, and it's of limited use in one-on-one combat. Go ahead and put them in, but spear combat should reflect that rather specialized nature. They would be good for fighting dragons and maybe mammoths - but you would always be at risk of your enemy batting the spear out of the way and charging in close, or a mammoth grabbing it with its trunk and disarming you, or even a dragon doing so. Put them in, but I already hate the idea that a guy can run around a battlefield running backwards and shoot the onrushing enemy repeatedly; it's just dumb. I found a Briarheart annoying as hell last night when he was running at probably ten miles an hour, backward, while shooting fireballs at me. It's just dumb. Try running backward as fast as you can over uneven ground sometime and see how good you are at fighting, and see how long it takes before you wind up on your ass.


They looked absurd for a spear. A spear is not a bo staff.


Nope. Not even close. Not a spear that's useful against armored opponents, anyway. I'm sure a spear people used for boar-hunting might fit that description, but not the spears used in Greek phalanx warfare, not the Roman pila, and not the lances of medieval mounted warfare. They were all very specialized, and not one of them suitable for that bo-staff stuff.


A spear held like that won't reach very far. Also, a spear the thickness of a bo staff that can be swung around quickly probably won't hold up to repeated beating by axes and maces. Let go and hold it one-handed to get reach, and you lose the ability to block.


Quite true.


Actually, the Greeks used very heavy spears with shields. The classical Greek spear used by the hoplites were about eight or nine feet, I think, but eventually, after Philip of Macedon enacted some military reforms, they adopted the much longer sarissa, which could getup to 21 feet or so. Very deadly in formation warfare, but obviously useless in one-on-one combat.

I agree there are many possibilities with spears, but I think they're no more a self-sufficient weapon than bows are, or than bows should be, rather. Hell, even in fantasy terms, Legolas had to pull out that shortsword or really long dagger he carried sometimes.

I agree that's probably where half the complaints or more originate from. Some people just think they'd be a cool addition, and the rest seem to think that saying "They were in Morrowind" sort of ends the debate.

Zeios is popping with a red herring, do you want them to discontinue Imps and Orcs because they weren't in Arena or Daggerfall either?

no?

ah I thought so.

stop using Morrowind as a spear point to jab at people.

Well, to be honest, I'll be glad to stop doing that when people stop making the argument that it's stupid for something to be in Morrowind and then not be in Oblivion and Skyrim.

Who cares what game they use, if people want Options I don't see the crime. to many rifts made through stupid reasons, its like its crime to like certain games now. point and case something that add options for players was discontinued and now its a problem to want them back. and yet the very same folks saying "stop whining" are beating the "progression drum"

Spear would be great with

1) massed combat for pike/phalanx like effect

2) mounted combat

3) adding immersion as it looks tad bit more convincing to see ordinary guards armed with spear than swords

But yeah, without the first two I mentioned above, adding spear would be aesthetics change, and I think Bethesda's time could be spent on more meaningful gameplay elements that are harder to mod in.

Nobody's saying there's anything wrong with liking any game at all. The reason people say "stop whining" is because too many people are saying spears should be in the game, and when you press them, it's because they were in Morrowind, and they act like it's just dumb for something to not be in Skyrim if it was in Morrowind. I've run into people that absolutely cannot stand the fact that Skyrim so obviously bears a resemblance to places in Earth. These are the same people that have problems with humans being more common than elves, kahjiit and Argonians.


Well, I think they could do something with spears that would be more than an aesthetic change, but I think that spears, if they're really gonna be spears and not just bo staffs with a pointy end, will have some limitations on them. They'll have strengths and weaknesses that mean that they won't be entirely self-sufficient as a weapon.

I think people shouldnt be so emotionally involved with these tugs, all I see is bickering and nothing getting done, its a Wonder why the additions are near minimal imo because of the sheer miguided sniping that goes on. thats all I'm reading of your post Gram (no this post isnt directed to you but just in general) is this focusing on people and their views unless you're told by a shadow beth employee or conversing with an Orange/Blue/Red named poster chances are they aren't making/have anything to do with Skyrim/TES games in general. so who aim cannons at them from their preferences?