Heavy Battlefield Arms: Polearms, Maces & Steel Smelting

guide

Heavy battlefield combat demands superior reaching polearms to control enemy spacing, crushing blunt maces to defeat armored knights, and advanced steel smelting to outmatch iron metallurgy. Mastering steel production and polearm forging equips warriors to conquer fortified bastions and withstand heavy hostile charges.

Smelting Steel via Blast Furnaces

Steel represents a substantial technological leap over standard iron, boasting higher durability, damage, and armor ratings. Producing steel requires specialized chemical charges:

Steel Charge: Crafted by combining one Iron Ingot, two Charcoal, and one Clay Ball in any crafting grid. The clay shell encases the iron with carbon fuel.
Blasting: Place the Steel Charge into a blast furnace. The high temperature converts the charge into one refined Steel Ingot.
Storage and Nuggets: Nine steel ingots craft into one Block of Steel, which breaks down back into nine ingots. One steel ingot can also be broken into nine steel nuggets for delicate weapon work.

Full steel armor sets can be assembled on crafting tables: Steel Helmet (five ingots), Steel Chestplate (eight ingots), Steel Leggings (seven ingots), and Steel Boots (four ingots). A full suite of tools, including Steel Pickaxe, Steel Axe, Steel Sword, Steel Shovel, and Steel Hoe, can also be crafted using steel ingots and sticks.

Forging Infantry Polearms

Polearms combine a long wooden haft with specialized spearheads and axe blades, keeping enemies at bay:

Spear: Forged on the forge with a metal ingot, a metal nugget, and one Stick. The spear delivers piercing damage with extended reach.
Pike: A long infantry weapon forged with an ingot, a nugget, and a Stick. Its extreme reach allows players to strike enemies well outside their counterattack range.
Halberd: Forged from an ingot, a nugget, and a Stick. The head features both a broad axe blade and a top thrusting spike, alternating between sweeping cleaves and piercing strikes.
Guisarme: Forged with a curved hook on a long Stick, designed to control enemy movements and dismount mounted targets.
Naginata: A curved Japanese polearm blade forged onto a long Stick, delivering flowing slashing cuts across a wide forward arc.
Yari: A straight double-edged Japanese spear forged with a Stick, optimized for rapid forward lunges.

Crushing Impact Weapons

When facing enemies clad in heavy plate, sharp edges lose effectiveness compared to concussive blunt impact:

Flanged Mace: Forged using an ingot, a nugget, and a Stick. The radiating steel flanges focus impact force onto a small surface area, crushing through armored defenses.
Morningstar: A spiked bludgeon forged with a Stick, combining blunt trauma with armor-puncturing spikes.
War Hammer: Forged from an ingot, a nugget, and a Stick, featuring a heavy striking hammer balanced by a rear piercing beak.
Lucerne Hammer: A pole-mounted hammer forged onto a Stick, extending the armor-piercing power of a war hammer across polearm reach.
Bearded Axe & Dane Axe: Heavy chopping axes forged with wooden sticks, cleaving through shields and unyielding armor plates.

Investing in a dedicated blast furnace line to supply constant steel ingots ensures your heavy armory remains fully stocked for any major siege.