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morbidquestions @lemm.ee
Swordgeek @lemmy.ca

How much force does it take to cut off a head?

In anime, you often see someone getting their head chopped off by a single dagger strike. I can't believe that's feasible for a 'normal' human, but we also know that a guillotine will do the job handily, when the body is fixed in place.

So can a person with let's say a sharp bastard sword cut off the head of a standing person?

3 comments

  • Well, before I answer, I should warn you that this community isn't moderated currently, which means it may not be the best one to use long term. When communities aren't moderated, admins sometimes just lock them down, or the community gets requested by someone, that may not understand exactly what the point of the community is. !morbidquestions@sh.itjust.works does have an active moderator.

    Yeah, I'm that moderator, so take it with whatever size grain of salt you prefer.

    Yeah, most swords can chop off a head. There's been tv shows that have used close analogues and done exactly that. Forged in fire and deadliest warrior were the big two, but mythbusters did some similar testing, if not exactly with swords.

    A long time ago, on reddit, I did some napkin math on how much force would be needed, and it's within reasonable limits of an athletic human and a sword that's actually meant for slashing or chopping.

    Don't ask me to do the math again lol.

    Again, back on r/morbidquestions, I looked up some historical accounts, and it definitely happened.

    More anecdotally, the dude with samurai in his user name likes swords and knives and such. I've done cutting practice with a couple types of swords, and when used on analogues, it doesn't even take much strength, assuming all you have to go through is meat, skin, and maybe some bone. You need a cutting device that will get through bone without failing before the job is done, but most swords made for cutting (as opposed to looking pretty on a wall) fit that description.

    Since I know that a Japanese style sword can get the job done, and a bastard sword has more mass, then any person able to swing one accurately and with speed should be more than able. I could get through the equivalent of a human neck one handed with similar swords.