Bardiche — Weapon Guide & Four-Edition Statistics

Bardiche: the long-bladed polearm

A bardiche is a two-handed polearm with a broad, elongated axe blade. It can hold enemies at reach and deliver powerful cutting blows; Pathfinder 1e also gives it the brace property, making it particularly effective against an advancing foe.

At a Glance

Weapon family

Polearm / long axe

Handling

Two-handed

Attack

Slashing

Battlefield use

Reach and line defence

Exact properties, damage and weight vary by edition; use the tabs below.

Weapon statistics by edition

D&D 5.5e (2024)D&D 5e (2014)Pathfinder 1eD&D 3.5e

Glaive — published equivalent for a bardiche
Weapon	Cost	Damage	Weight	Properties	Mastery
Glaive (bardiche equivalent)	20 gp	1d10 slashing	6 lb.	Heavy, Reach, Two-Handed	Graze

The standard 2024 weapon table does not name the bardiche separately; these are the published glaive rules.

Glaive — published equivalent for a bardiche
Weapon	Cost	Damage	Weight	Properties
Glaive (bardiche equivalent)	20 gp	1d10 slashing	6 lb.	Heavy, Reach, Two-Handed

These are glaive rules; Weapon Mastery is not a standard 2014 weapon property.

Bardiche — Pathfinder 1e weapon statistics
Weapon	Cost	Damage (S)	Damage (M)	Critical	Range	Weight	Type	Special
Bardiche	13 gp	1d8	1d10	19–20/×2	—	14 lb.	Slashing	Brace, Reach; +2 CMD vs. sunder

Brace and reach use Pathfinder 1e rules; the CMD bonus applies specifically to attempts to sunder the weapon.

Glaive — core rules equivalent for a bardiche
Weapon	Cost	Damage (S)	Damage (M)	Critical	Range	Weight	Type
Glaive (bardiche equivalent)	8 gp	1d8	1d10	×3	—	10 lb.	Slashing

The core 3.5e weapon table does not name the bardiche separately.

Historical form and battlefield use

The bardiche’s defining feature is its substantial axe-like blade fixed along a shaft, often with a second attachment near the lower part of the blade. Its weight and length reward deliberate positioning and room to swing. It is associated particularly with eastern European and Russian infantry; later depictions of streltsy show bardiches alongside firearms. Such illustrations help explain its later use, but should not be treated as proof that every earlier bardiche had the same form.