08-04-2003, 03:20 PM
Depends on the barbarian and the period. Some barbarians were unafraid of death and longed for death in battle. Against a Roman who feared dying, this is an advantage.<br>
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Also barbarians were big into personal honor and individualism. Honor duels over percieved sleights were commonplace. So you could expect a barbarian to be much more aggressive in a one-on-one bout. And from my own experience, being aggressive can be an advantage against someone with more skill and training.<br>
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I think IMO that a germanic warrior of average caliber was more than a match for a average legionary *one-on-one*. Mileage may vary.<br>
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Problem is that the individualism causes big problems in any team activity: like an army. Cohesiveness and discipline are not high priority and against a team/ group/ army which *is* disciplined, it should be pretty much one sided in favor of the disciplined side.<br>
<br>
Caius Livius Varus Germanicus<br>
<br>
<p>================<br>
"Self-Pity"<br>
I never saw a wild thing<br>
sorry for itself.<br>
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough<br>
without ever having felt sorry for itself.<br>
<br>
D. H. Lawrence<br>
<br>
</p><i></i>
<br>
Also barbarians were big into personal honor and individualism. Honor duels over percieved sleights were commonplace. So you could expect a barbarian to be much more aggressive in a one-on-one bout. And from my own experience, being aggressive can be an advantage against someone with more skill and training.<br>
<br>
I think IMO that a germanic warrior of average caliber was more than a match for a average legionary *one-on-one*. Mileage may vary.<br>
<br>
Problem is that the individualism causes big problems in any team activity: like an army. Cohesiveness and discipline are not high priority and against a team/ group/ army which *is* disciplined, it should be pretty much one sided in favor of the disciplined side.<br>
<br>
Caius Livius Varus Germanicus<br>
<br>
<p>================<br>
"Self-Pity"<br>
I never saw a wild thing<br>
sorry for itself.<br>
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough<br>
without ever having felt sorry for itself.<br>
<br>
D. H. Lawrence<br>
<br>
</p><i></i>