Scythes are great, and here's why

[TheOne]

The Scythe is my favorite type of weapon. And I really dislike the amount of hate they get, because of how "Impractical" they are. Scythes are great weapons to use in combat for both offense and defense.

What are Scythes exactly?

There is two major types of scythes. First are Agricultural Scythes which is the most famous version of a scythe.

Definition by Google. A tool used for cutting crops such as grass or wheat, with a long curved blade at the end of a long pole attached to which are one or two short handles.

And the second type are War Scythes.

Definition by Google. A war scythe or military scythe is a form of pole weapon with a curving single-edged blade with the cutting edge on the concave side of the blade.

Why are they hated?

People, more specifically, Blacksmiths and Weapon Historians say Scythes were impractical weapons to be used in battle because of their unorthodox shape and weight distribution. Which is false. Scythes were useful weapons and they unintentionally replaced more popular weapons that were used in military combat.
For example: The Man Catcher.

"This pole weapon was used in 18th-century Europe to pull people off of horses and drag them to the ground. The victim would typically be wearing armor, so the prongs wouldn't kill them." This something that both Agricultural and War Scythes excelled at, because of their unique shape. Scythes also were commonly used to break the defenses of shielded opponents.

Notable Achievements

The first notable achievement that comes to mind is The battle of Racławice.

The battle of Racławice is an event that took place in 1794 between Poland and The Russian Empire, in which scythe wielders successfully charged and captured Russian artillery. The victory was subsequently promoted in Poland as a major success and helped in spreading the Kościuszko Uprising to other areas of Poland and instigating the Warsaw Uprising of 1794. Also, the participation of peasant volunteers was seen by many as the starting point of the political evolution of Polish peasantry from serfs to equally entitled citizens of the nation.

Scythes in Anime

The most common type of scythes seen in anime are the Agricultural ones. The most popular scythe users in anime would be:

Ruby Rose from RWBY

And Maka from Soul Eater

I will admit that Scythes are definitely harder to use than most melee weapons, such as swords, axes, and spears. But they're NOT impossible to use in real life.

Anime is another big reason why Scythes are hated. It's because of their unrealistic fighting style.

But the thing is, more practical weapons also have unrealistic styles.

Such as:

Zoro's Three-Sword Style

Killer Bee's Seven-Blade Stance

And Escanor's Divine Axe: Rhiita

Conclusion

I just think Scythes get undeserved hate. Just because there are more useful weapons, it doesn't mean that Scythes aren't useful.

There is so much I can cover but I don't know if Tapas has a word limit. So it'll be terrible if I tried to post this just to have it deleted Cough Cough Discord

Also Scythes just look badass:

What are y'all thoughts on Scythes?

[silverraven0]

They're cool.

I don't Hate them, I do like how they look when it's stylized. Just don't know much about them to make a better opinion.

[IndigoShirtProd]

I dig them. Scythes are cool.
I agree that scythes are typically an underappreciated blade weapon. A sword or dagger are usually a more likely option though scythes can give a more interesting silhouette to a character.

[Kiweevil]

Very awesome post you made here, I loved reading it! Because a few characters in my comic are reapers, naturally there are scythes. However in my comic, scythes are built into the reapers like claws....er, more like eagle talons....

I remember having an old scythe as a kid when I lived out in the country side and used it to cut weeds or something. It was pretty badass, but it gave me splinters.

[skicoak]

Unless they have a topper for thrusting, their large limited arc attack is indeed impractical in numerous combat situations.

In fiction, that's not an issue because you set the stage but in real world combat, it's not optimal to lug around a limited use weapon.

[DualDragons]

I dunno, they're alright but they have to be executed well in a show or comic if they are used in combat. Otherwise it looks kinda weird
Like you've got to keep in mind how you attack with it.

(Also unpopular opinion i like axes better but that's personal taste)

[AllynCrowe]

Halberds are the severely underestimated crossbreed between scythe and axes, and actual, y'know, weapons.

Prong for pulling, spear for poking, axe for chopping. It's the swiss army knife of weapons, literally, it's Swiss.
Don't be the dumbass wielding a scythe to what's clearly a halberd fight.

[Darkstrong]

War scythes as presented in most games and animes are horrifically ineffective weapons and are only redeemed by the rule of cool. A scythe of such design is basically a huge pickaxe as using the cutting edge is almost impossible in such a configuration.
Shadivercity has a pretty good video on the matter btw

[AllynCrowe]

I feel the issue with a scythe is that it's only proper offensive capability (pulling people closer, sharp edge on the inside) is also exactly what breaks their defenses, namely, someone being closer than the exact reach of the blade and stabbing you.
Basically your only attack ruins your defense.

[DokiDokiTsuna]

Wow, the consensus of this topic did a full 180 real quick...6.6;

I guess the criticisms of the scythe as a weapon are warranted, but I think it's worth noting that most of the uses of scythes in fictional combat, especially the giant ornate ones, take place within media that's already ridiculously fantastical to begin with (AKA 90% of action anime). =/

Like, really, Fighter One basically teleports 50 feet into the air because they're just that fast, and Fighter Two blocks a fiery explosion that razes the ground around them with their bare fists, and the only aspect of realism you're worried about is that Fighter Two's scythe is an impractical weapon...?

Honestly, in a super-over-powered environment like that I'd think the sheer force of the scythe swing would do more damage than any aspect of the weapon itself. Whether you throw a rock or a knife at 200 miles per hour, your enemy is not walking away unscathed.

[Darkstrong]

Well, "It looks cooler" is the Doylist explanation and you always need a Watsonian one too. For example you do have more practical and normal weapons in Soul Eater, but there is and the only justification for scythes even existing is because they are the Grim Reaper's signature weapon and he is just is stronger with them, thus some people still work with such impractical weapons-in-training, to provide the Grim Reaper with a scythe-type Death Scythe. It is worse for them, but better for him.
But you do need a good Watsonian explanation. If both Watsonian and Doylist just say: "Cause it's cool" - that's plain lazy.

[DokiDokiTsuna]

But you do need a good Watsonian explanation. If both Watsonian and Doylist just say: "Cause it's cool" - that's plain lazy.

...To be honest, I'm not really sure what that means. ._.

But my explanation within my example wasn't actually 'cause it's cool'; my point was that if everyone is so freakishly strong that their power outweighs any benefits that the actual construction of melee weapons provides, then it doesn't really matter which one you pick.

[Darkstrong]

Oh, that is basically a concept in literature that says, that there are to types of explanations for anything happening in the story: "Doylist" (From Arthur Conan Doyle) the explanation from the author's perspective "The Masters in soul eater use scythes because it looks helluwa cool, and the readers will dig it"; and "Watsonian" (from Dr. Watson) the explanation from the character's perspective "We use scythes, because they specifically increase the Grim Reaper's power and we want him to be stronger"
Doylist explanation can be basically anything, but Watsonian needs to make sense in-universe.

[TheOne]

But I don't think that Watsonian explanation can be used for Soul Eater (for this situation anyways). It's not like they can just choose whichever weapon they want to use. Maka uses a scythe because Soul just so happens to be one. And the same can be applied for her parents. So it's more of a coincidence than anything else. And even if meisters had to use scythes, wouldn't there be more than just 2?

Plus, as long as your Soul Wave Links match, you can never be bad with a weapon.

I hope this makes sense, cause I'm sleepy.

[Darkstrong]

Well, yeah, that is another Watsonian explanation. But if I remember correctly, it is stated that scythes are very hard to use there. And as the masters can actually choose their weapon (you can have a good soul link with several people. Like Steiner who has perfect sync with literally anyone, but still chose Spirit), I bet most Masters who go with scythes do it mostly for the prestige of actually creating the ultimate Death's weapon and not just a backup one.

[azzy-m]

Scythes are... cool. They're really fun to draw, and if you're an animator, it seems like one of those things that's realy fun to animate???

[Azifri]

I use a scythe every year to cut the grass in my parents lawn xD They are more environmentally friendly than lawnmowers because you don't kill all the insects and critters that live there, and once your lawn adapts to it you have this soft and diverse layer of grass that you never get with a mower. A few times we have played a scythe vs sword (stick) fight and the scythe sucks. Not sure how different a war scythe would be, but there is probably a reason they weren't popular. Still, I would totally give my imaginary characters a scythe as a weapon because they look so cool

[TAMAnnoying]

Scythes have a practical use for battle but the use of very “the farm is being attacked grab the closest pointy object and kill them”

Scythes in the use of an actual one on one battle or even a put right war zone is not going to last long in comparison to people with pikes and Spears, and if there are horses, your gonna get run over long before you can put that thing to use.

The grim reaper for example is not a fighter, he is a farmer. The scythe is not a weapon is a farming tool he uses to collect souls. So even the symbolism used in shows and tv is still a bit off when you imply it’s a perfectly decent weapon.

Of course you can use it as a weapon and of course it’s a big stick with a pointy part at the end, which most farmers used to defend their farms when attacked by idiot children trying to harass the love stalk or steal it. But just like a hammer or a wrench, they are not practical when your up against actual weapons and actual fighters.

There’s a reason why in most table tops the more common weapon is a sickle and is usually used by rouges or assassins. They are - for the most part - harmless farm tools that can be used to kill. People are less likely to have questions for you wandering around with a sickle in comparison to a sword when you hold no ranks. It’s a tool first and a weapon second, which is why it makes for a >decent< (not good) assassination tool or a weapon for self defense if your planing on trying to rob someone. It’s not a weapon for battle.

On that note, it’s still ok in the sense of bringing fists to a knife fight, if your the only one with a weapon and your weapon is a scythe.... your still gonna have an advantage, but be carful of monks.