History Main / NationalWeapon

* The ''Landsknecht'' were sixteenth century German mercenaries who largely usurped the Swiss as the premier warriors of Europe. Like the aforementioned Swiss, Landsknecht were formidable pikemen, and quite capable with early firearms as well. However, their most iconic weapon in their era and to this day was the ''Zweihänder'', [[{{BFS}} a two-handed sword that was massive even by German longsword standards]]. Up to six feet long, it was ideal for breaking pikes and smashing through enemy formations, but [[DifficultButAwesome required extensive training and condition to use properly]]. Despite being the most recognized and celebrated piece of their arsenal, only a minority of Landskencht could wield them. These men were payed as much as double the normal rate because they fought as vulnerable shock troops who led the charge to enemy lines.

* The pike and, to a lesser extent, the halberd for the Swiss.

** Sisters of Battle: More like, Sisters of [FireBreathingWeapon Fire]].

* In ''Franchise/StarWars'', the Jedi and Sith Orders use [[LaserBlade lightsabers]].

** The M1 Garand rifle was a weapon the US Marines didn't want, due to a plethora of false rumors that sprang up during its acceptance tests. Then they got to try a few of them out on Guadalcanal. The M1 was the first semiautomatic rifle adopted for general issue by any nation, and was accurate, powerful, reliable, well-balanced, just as suited to bayonet fighting as shooting, and is generally considered superior to the contemporary Russian SVT and German ''Gewehr''-43. The Marines loved it so much that ever since 1954, every enlisted Marine above the rank of PFC wears a silhouette of two crossed Garands on his rank insignia. The Silent Drill Team also uses beautifully chrome-finished Garands as their ceremonial weapon.
*** Millions of surplus Garand rifles have been sold on the American civilian market through the Civilian Marksmanship Program. They are extremely popular among civilian shooters and collectors, rivaled only by the AR-15 and possibly the Winchester lever-action family of rifles as ''the'' iconic American rifle.

** Even more than the ''pilum'' was the ''gladius'' shortsword. The sword that conquered the world in Roman hands, it was the weapon of the legions, a gladius and shield combination, discipline, and good old fashioned numbers are the 3 key factors of the Romans being the massive military power that they were.

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' had "Weapon specialization" racials for certain races, as a result of this. Humans had Sword, Hammer, and Mace specialization, Orcs had Axe and Fist weapons, Dwarves had Guns, Hammers, and Maces, Trolls had throwing weapons, and Gnomes had Daggers and Shortswords.

->''"Did you see those warriors from Hammerfell? They've got curved swords. [[PunctuatedForEmphasis Curved. Swords.]]"''

* Most nations/regions in ''Webcomic/MyLifeAtWar'' have a national melee weapon that is scaled up for their HumnongousMecha. Dhuvalia favors the axe, with the mech version having plasma jets along the blade, while the Free Marketers seem to use knuckledusters with proximity mines in the studs.

** The [[TheKingdom Federated Suns]] loves their ''[[JackOfAllTrades Centurions]]'', ''[[MoreDakka Jagermechs]]'' and [[KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter autocannons]]. They also use heavily the ''Enforcer'', ''Valkyrie'' and ''Dervish'' 'Mechs.

* ''WorldOfWarcraft'' had "Weapon specialization" racials for certain races, as a result of this. Humans had Sword, Hammer, and Mace specialization, Orcs had Axe and Fist weapons, Dwarves had Guns, Hammers, and Maces, Trolls had throwing weapons, and Gnomes had Daggers and Shortswords.

* The High Guard force lance in ''Series/{{Andromeda}}''.

* In ''Literature/PrincessHolyAura, Tempest Corona uses a [[spoiler:khanda, a traditional Sikh and Indian sword]].

->''"Did you see those warriors from Hammerfell? They've got curved swords. Curved. Swords."''

** The [[JapanTakesOverTheWorld Draconis Combine]] relies on the ''[[LightningBruiser Dragon]]'' and ''Grand Dragon'' [[note]so much so that fluff has entire companies composed solely of the design[[/note]], and typically have either a [[LightningGun particle projector cannon]] or [[MacrossMissileMassacre medium range missiles]]. They are also the heaviest users of the ''Jenner'' and ''Panther'' designs as well.

** The [[TheKingdom Federated Suns]] loves their [[JackOfAllTrades Centurions]], [[MoreDakka Jagermechs]] and [[KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter autocannons]].
** The [[ProudMerchantRace Lyran Commonwealth]] have a fondness for [[MightyGlacier assault mechs]] - especially the [[SkeleBot9000 Atlas]] - and later begin slapping [[MagneticWeapon Gauss Rifles]] on anything they can find.
** The [[TheFederation Free Worlds League]] favors the Orion and Awesome battlemechs, and while they do not have a favorite weapon, they use ''all'' forms of armored vehicles heavily.
** The [[JapanTakesOverTheWorld Draconis Combine]] relies on the [[LightningBruiser Dragon]] and Grand Dragon, and typically have either a [[LightningGun particle projector cannon]] or [[MacrossMissileMassacre medium range missiles]].
** The [[ChinaTakesOverTheWorld Capellan Confederation]] uses the hodgepodge Cataphract and [[FragileSpeedster Raven]] extensively, and often rely on [[BeamSpam lots of lasers]] combined with advanced sensor suites.
** The various [[ProudWarriorRace Clans]] all share similar fighting styles and weapons, but each has their own favored mech - Jade Falcon loves the [[StoneWall Summoner]], [[HornyVikings Ghost Bear]] has a fondness for the outdated [[AnimalMecha Kodiak]], and so on. To the Clans as a whole, they like sending out Timber Wolves.

** [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement For better or worse,]] being the only country to actually fire them in anger has given the United States a likely-irrevocable link with [[NukeEm nuclear weapons.]]
* The AK family of rifles used by the Eastern Bloc, to the extent that there are still debates over which is the better gun. To sum up, the M16 is more accurate and has a longer range, but the AK is much more durable and reliable, being designed to be simple to produce and to fire under any conditions.

* In [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlertSeries Command and Conquer: Red Alert]], there are two each for the Allies and Soviets: [[ActionGirl Tanya]] and the Chronosphere for the former, [[TankGoodness Apocalypse Tanks]] and the Iron Curtain for the latter.
* [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSeries Command and Conquer: Tiberian]]: GDI and Nod have theirs as well: for GDI, its the Mammoth tank, Orca, and the [[WaveMotionGun ion cannon]]. Nod have their stealth units, flamethrowers, and nuclear missile.

* More like National Armor than weapon, the unofficial emblem of the Romanian Army since 1938 has been [[http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j170/peter_suciu/romanian_m34_big1.jpg the Dutch Helmet]], based on the Dutch M28 and M34 steel helmets. It was adopted back in [[TheThirties the late 1930s]] for some reason, and due to local production and German shipments of captured Dutch equipment during WorldWarTwo, became ubiquitous enough to remain in production during the Communist years and saw regular use until [[TheNineties the mid-1990s]].

** Traditionally, the Imperials of Cyrodiil (with their heavy [[FantasyCounterpartCulture cultural basis]] in AncientRome]]), have Imperials Swords in this role. They are the primary weapon of the [[BadassArmy Imperial Legions]], who've forged three empires spanning much or all of Tamriel at different points in history. They are modeled after the Roman Gladius, though in practice and appearance, they come closer in function to the Roman Spatha instead.

* The source of the trope's page quote, scimitars are typically only found on Redguard from Hammerfell in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim.''

* The Aiel in ''WheelOfTime'' use knives and bows, but prefer the short-spears, and will not touch a sword under any circumstances. This is revealed as a plot point in the backstory, as there is a specific reason for this reluctance. Also, Two Rivers folk are known for their very effective use of the longbow.

* In ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', the warriors of the nomadic Dothraki have the arakh, a curved form of sword, as their favorite weapon.