Deadliest Warrior: Legends Quick Facts:
- Vlad the Impaler ruled the Transylvanian princedom of Wallachia during the time that the Ottoman Empire was trying to expand into Eastern Europe. His reign was bloody and treacherous.
- At age 11 Vlad and his brother Radu were taken captive by the Ottoman Turks. They were used as leverage to prevent their father from warring against the expanding Ottoman Empire.
- While held captive, Vlad was instructed in the ways of Ottoman warfare. This included being forced to poke out the eyes of another prisoner who had sent unfavorable letters to his home country.
- Vlad is most famous for his forests of impaled foes. He stopped a revolt by impaling its leader and later took revenge on families who plotted to kill his father by working them to death as slaves.
- Vlad's anti-crime measures included placing a gold cup atop a fountain, then impaling hundreds of suspected criminals when it went missing. It was returned the next night and stayed there unguarded.
- Vlad lost the throne when his generals refused to support him. He regained his crown for a short time, but died fighting the expanding Ottoman Empire. The details of his death remain a mystery.
Kilij and Shield: The kilij was a curved saber with a notable flare over the last third of the blade. This flare adds weight, and combined with the curved edge allows for devastating slashing attacks.
Unlockable Weapon: The Turko-Mongol saber had a steeply curving, long narrow blade that slightly tapered down the entire length. They were light and fast, and the curve allowed more edge to make contact.
Military Fork: The military fork was an adaptation of the pitchfork. Most commonly it had two straight prongs, sometimes a third and some examples have axe heads below the prongs.
Unlockable Weapon: Ranseur: The ranseur generally resembled a spear with a crossguard. There were many variations, the most popular barb designs were crescent shaped. The barbs were pointed, but not sharp like a blade.
Steel Crossbow: Crossbows evolved from limbs made of simple wood, to laminates and finally to steel. The heavy spring-steel required a set of cranks and pulleys to arm the weapon, which could pierce most armors.
Unlockable Weapon: Javelin: As warriors became more heavily armored, throwing weapons had to evolve as well. The heavy javelin was designed to be used by a foot soldier against ever-heavier armored knights.
Wallachian Robes: Vlad was the supreme ruler of Wallachia, which was near the silk road. As such, he demanded the finest silks be woven into the finest cloth to make robes suitable for a bloodthirsty prince.
Chain Mail Coat: Made of interlocking rings chainmail was effective against slashing attacks, but not bludgeoning weapons. It was also of limited usefulness against piercing attacks.
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