Equipment/Proposed/Hurley
Description
A hurley is the stick used in the Irish national sport of hurling, as well as in the Scottish equivalent shinty. It is a heavy ashwood stick with an axe-like head with a metal band on it. Hurling is itself a truly ancient sport, and the stick used in play to hit the small ball, the sliotar, has changed little. While both games are, as such, most popular in Ireland and Britain, Irish immigrants, and later the Gaelic Athletic Association exported it to North America, as well as parts of South America such as Argentina, South Africa, and Australia and New Zealand.
Battle Implications
A hurley is a large, heavy piece of shaped ashwood. If a man is struck with a hurley well, it may well break a bone. Accidental deaths in games have even been reported in earlier centuries, though with the standardization of the game it became less of a problem. All the same, it may have value if intentionally used to kill something, though the actual effectiveness against a resisting target is dubious if they're remotely prepared, as the awkward shape of the stick would make it awkward to use swiftly unless it was held in two hands for the purpose of a fight.