>> I thought that Glorantha already had stirrups in general use?
>
> The West presumably does, since (if I remember rightly) its difficult
> to perform the couched lance cavalry charge without them. However,
> this does not mean that anyone else has adopted the things.
You can do a cavalry charge with a high-backed saddle, too, but it's gonna be a bit more uncomfortable for the rider. At least, when they take the shock of the impact on their tush against the saddle, instead of through their legs into the stirrups.
Without stirrups, you balance on your tush, on the saddle, and are kept in the saddle by a high back (and usually a high prow, too). With stirrups, you can stand/crouch on your feet, in the stirrups, and actively use your leg muscles to maintain your position.
That's the thing that makes stirrups so useful: They transfer the impact energy to your legs, rather than into the back of the saddle. Your legs are evolved to deal with that sort of energy loading much better than does your tush, and lance-using cavalry becomes much more effective as a result.
Dan
--
"If you obey all the rules you miss all the fun."- Katharine Hepburn
Powered by hypermail