Why Doesn't DT Have Polearms?

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide General Discussion
1

They exist 40k - and VT2 had many that were quite well-received, with a variety of functions. So it seems likely there’s some specific reason they aren’t in DT. I’ve never seen a real suggestion about why this must be. All I can think is that the reach of most weapons in DT seem to be extremely exaggerated, and perhaps a polearm, if likewise lengthened enough to feel like a “reach” weapon might start to feel absurd. Or perhaps that quality would just feel like it’s not working well due to the massive numbers of enemies on-screen at once.

Any other thoughts on this? Is there a more likely reason?

2

I feel like the Borovian Pickaxe is the closest we have to the ole Halberd, but it’s also probably the least-used of the 3. Could be that the requisite complex movesets – to balance out the reach and damage – aren’t seen as priorities by the team.

It sure is a priority for me though, where polearms (on all classes)???

3

Just use the staff special attack if you wanna poke something with a stick

4

The small indie company doesn’t have the manpower to make polearm weapons work in Darktide so they were forced to make 20 versions of one-handed swords

5

Fatshark

Gib flamethrower chainsaw halberd plz :folded_hands:

Truth be told, my current conspiracy theory is if it ever happens, it’ll be on a dlc class.

6

My guess if we ever get polearms FS would give it to the vet because:

  1. Giving them class-specific guns seems to be banned
  2. There’s an actual Deathworld Veteran model with a polearm
7

They’re saving them for the eventual gland warrior class dlc

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8

Don’t forget the 20 shovels as well.

9

Because it doesn’t make sense in the fast-paced game. VT2 was slow in comparison. If you are going to run and fight in tight spaces/locations it doesn’t make sense to bring sth this long.

10

I dunno man, if a bunch of enemies are running at you down a tight hallway, a spear doesn’t seem like a worse option than a greatsword to me. A halberd, sure, that might be a bit unwieldy, but I don’t really buy that realism for fighting in tight, urban environments has at any point factored into Fatshark’s decision making here. I mean they let us slash things through walls…

11

2H weapons that are in the game are already long you’re right. I would be ok with spears it’s just Polearms and Halberds would be ridiculous.

12

Cause Warhammer fantasy has a larger variety toward melee weapons that 40k does.

Even looking at the Empire’s melee weapons, you end up with:

  • Great Sword (Empire Greatsword)
  • Halberd (Empire State Troop - Halberd)
  • Sword (Various, Empire State Troop - Sword)
  • Sword&Shield (Empire State Troop - Sword&Shield)
  • Hammer (Empire Captain)
  • Mace (Empire Captain)
  • Mace&Shield (Empire Caprain)
  • Mace&Sword (Militia)
  • Tuskgor Spear (Empire State Troop - Pike)
  • Spear&Shield (Empire State Troop - Spear&Shield)

On the other hand, going by miniatures, 40k is more so going to lean on swords, with axes and Maces on a lesser amount and sometime you’ll see various Hammers, Flails…

Like consider the Veteran, by miniature it could get Hunting Lance (though other than OW strictly mounted weapon), and the Catachan Hunting Glaive, but isn’t in the Imperial Guard roster (Imperial Agents)

Then there is also the fact that unlike fantasy where you basically only have 2 categories of weapons (Normal vs Magical[1]), while 40k will at the very least have 5 (Normal, Force, Chain, Shock, Power, Arc, Thunder, Transonic, Exotic…).

So you end up with Vt2 having 5 1h-Swords (1 Kruber, 1 Kerillian, 1 Saltz, 2 Sienna), vs 8 (Duel, Catachan, Heavy, Force, Chain, Power, Falchion, Omnisian).

And some cases in Vt2 they were just copies of each other (I remember that Saltz and Bardin have the same animations for Dual Hammer).

  1. while most weapons used hy the U5 have some manners of Runes or Magick on them, only Sienna, Kerillian and Saltzpyre have active magic with some of their weapons ↩︎

13

You can ask this about 100 weapons really. They just haven’t made them yet.

14

I’ve been hoping for a spear from day 1 of this game. Kerillian’s spear was one of my favorite weapons in VT2 back in the day, along with the glaive.

15

Because they can’t be bothered to put in the work, next question

16

Btw, are there any Force Spears or Force Polearms in the wh40k, used by some combat-oriented Psykers may be? :smiley:

17

There are the Grey Knight ones, but for normal human Psyker, there aren’t any named/shown one, but they explicitly can exist like any other melee force weapon that can exist in normal kind (So Billhook, Glaive, Halberd, Battle Axe, Flails, hell you could probably run a Psyker with an Urumi or a Kpinga if you wanted to without it being outright impossible in lore)

So they’re not the most likely due to lack of precedent.

The most likely weapons still remain Force Axes and Deamonhammer[1] (Usually shown as 2h, but I think there is art of a 1h one in FF’s old rpg), then depending on what is allowed, more swords (Precedents on Biomantic Swords; Wyrd Swords[2], melee staves, rods[3], Telekine blades…

List of precendence (made manually, haven’t updated it in quite a while, haven’t added OC’s Rogue Trader nor Dark Heresy)

Summary

Table Top:

  • Force Axe
  • Force Hammer

Necromunda (Delague gang):

  • Serpent’s Fangs (Blade Gauntlet)
  • Shivver Blade (Force Katana)
  • Psychoteric Blade (Force Blade Gauntlet)

Necromunda (Other):

  • Spirit Stave (Ash Waste Nomads, Asun’ ghar)
  • Stormcaller Stave (Ash Waste Nomads, Wy’tari)
  • Pyrotechnic Sword (Wyrd Pyrotechnic)
  • Force Axe (The Caller)

Inquisitor Martyr:

  • Force Rod (Smaller Force Staff)
  • Aetheric Sword (Aether Strike: Basically a teleport melee attack)
  • Biomantic Sword (Force Smite)

Lore:

  • Any mundane weapon as Force:
    • Axe
    • 2h Axe
    • Flail
  • Telekine Knives

Rpg:

  • Psykana Mercy Blade

For the Grey Knight ones:

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It’s called a Halberd, it’s a Glaive though

  1. It’s a Force Hammer ↩︎

  2. It’s a Force Fire Sword ↩︎

  3. It’s a shorter staff ↩︎

18

Don’t worry, guys, you’ll get it in the next Sororitas class DLC.

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19

I wouldn’t complain.

20

By “tabletop” your list implies weapons spacemarines use, though? So some big arse chunk of metal no normal human (even psyker) will be able to wield?