The knife is the first melee weapon option available, as the most basic of all melees.
However, due to the different needs for every armed force, combat knives can come in many different shapes and sizes. Knives provide useful non-combat functionality, from cutting open rations to field surgery to even cutting wire in some cases.
A sharp knife, when mixed with proper hand to hand combat training, makes a soldier without their firearm a credible threat. However, in a military situation, a combat knife is an essential piece of equipment for any soldier. Police forces generally do not carry full size combat knives, rather they usually carry simple pocketknives for most situations where a small blade would come in handy. Knives have existed since time immemorial as a simple implement for both self defense and as a cutting tool.Ī knife is issued by virtually every armed force in the world - whether for police or for military forces, a knife is a handy tool for slicing, dicing, or otherwise splitting things in half.
