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The practice of throwing darts has long been a popular pastime amidst many cultures, but whether or not this hobby originated from the dart’s previous use as thrown weapons, or the other way-around is unknown. Whatever their beginnings, darts have always been considered a very straightforward weapon… aside from practicing one’s aim and hand/eye-coordination, there is little technique involved in using darts to skewer opponents. Darts intended for combative purposes are built like miniature javelins, averaging between 2’-5’ in length, with slender, lightweight shafts. Jarakina feathers are often tied around the dart’s end to help stay the flight when thrown, and the point is usually reinforced with iron to ensure penetration. Proficient warriors are especially feared for releasing rapid volleys of darts in quick succession, each hurled with a seemingly blind precision.
Use and techniques
Darts are straightforward weapons, held halfway along their shaft and are generally thrown with a circular motion. As disposable weapons, darts are thoroughly stocked-up on ahead of time, often clustered together in a short quiver hanging from a user’s belt. After a battle, most users don’t waste their time trying to recover their thrown darts unless an ammunition shortage is imminent; wooden darts tend to break when landing, and a firmly-penetrated dart is difficult and messy to dislodge from a corpse’s flesh. Darts are also useful for holding poisons upon their tips, and since they’re easily concealed inside one’s sleeve or pockets, they make perfect weapons for surprise attacks and assassinations. Galagi tend to prefer light, simple weaponry that’re easily applied with venoms, so darts are an exceptionally common choice-of-weapon for many galagi.
Composition
Darts must be light and aerodynamic, as heavier materials laden down the dart’s flight when thrown. Wood, chitin and bamboo are the only rudimentary materials that’re both light and strong enough to form a dart’s shaft. Most darts are reinforced with steel arrowheads, which are slender enough to add additional penetration without weighing down the dart’s flight. Jarakina tail feathers are a popular augmentation to staying the weapon’s course, and many darts are plumed with neatly-trimmed feathers to enhance accuracy (although whether or not they actually influence the dart’s precision is as-yet unconfirmed).