A boar spear is a somewhat specialized variant of an ordinary spear (wood shaft and steel point). See the link. In the woods, should a boar charge at you, you could place but butt-end of a spear into the dirt, and lower the spear to a quite-shallow angle, and let the boar impale himself upon it.
The problem with an ordinary spear is that the boar is a quite- massive animal, and can often traverse the full length of the spear and reach you with his tusks, despite being mortally wounded. That's not so good for you. A boar spear has a special cross-piece to prevent the boar from traversing the length of the spear-shaft.
Since a spear is mostly equivalent to a spear in other circumstances, it would be easy to imagine throwing a boar spear at an enemy. But the weapon is rather outdated in today's world, full of guns as it is. So, let's update the weapon!
Adding a few steel rings at various points along the shaft would let us use an electromagnetic launching system for a boar spear; it could probably be made to travel for a mile, or even a couple of kilometers. As mentioned in the subtitle, the explosive acceleration of bullet-propellants would likely be too damaging to the spear, so a slower but longer-lasting acceleration can be used instead. This may also increase the chance that the spear can be re-used (especially if it hits a soft-ish target, like the body of an enemy). We could even add a twist to the cross-piece, making it a bit propeller-shaped, to encourage the spear to spin in flight.
Now let's truly Half-Bake this, and imagine a large array of electromagnetic boar-spear launchers. In the old days large groups of archers would loose "flocks" of arrows; here we want to launch large numbers of boar spears at once. Any enemy in the area where the spears arrive will be less able to dodge getting hit.
Sun Tzu wrote a significant amount about how psychology can be used to influence warfare. This Idea was inspired by something stated by a recent terrorist in France, "We want to die like martyrs." Well, suppose we made every effort to ensure they died like pigs, instead? That might take some of the zest out of the desires of others to be terrorists!-- Vernon, Jan 10 2015 Some boar spears https://www.google....&sqi=2&ved=0CCoQsAQAs mentioned in the main text. [Vernon, Jan 10 2015] An old old variation on this Idea http://www.nukees.com/d/20020614.htmlI often think of notions independently of others. Recently I started reading my way through a webcomic's archives, and lo and behold, here is something very similar to my Idea here, only posted more than a decade earlier. Wow! [Vernon, May 16 2018] //increase the chance that the spear can be re-used// by your opponent.-- pocmloc, Jan 10 2015 Might it not be simpler to use the old-fashioned spear-in-the-ground technique, and simply launch the enemy at it? Most soldiers will have a fair amount of ferromagnetic metal on their persons, so they should be accelerable.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jan 10 2015 Electromagnetically Launched Britney Spears-- popbottle, Jan 10 2015 might allow a new bed of sniper for spearfishing with sonar.-- wjt, Jan 11 2015 How about reactive boar spears, to mostly . . .err. . .disrupt (yes, that's the word) the boar before it contacts the spear?-- AbsintheWithoutLeave, Jan 12 2015 laser spear: by the time the boar gets to you it's bacon.-- FlyingToaster, Jan 12 2015 I suppose that if there is such a thing as Electromagnetically Launched Boars, then always having a suitable spear nearby to deal with the menace would only be prudent.-- AusCan531, Jan 12 2015 If you ran Brian Cox along a maglev track, he would be an Electromagnetically Launched Bore, shirley ?-- 8th of 7, May 16 2018 Erm, I think boars are dangerous enough without giving them spears.
{wanders away singing "I talk the trees...." that's why they put me away....}-- not_morrison_rm, May 16 2018 I suspect his lordship would agree that spears are only sporting when used from horseback in the veldt.-- normzone, May 16 2018 Thank goodness this is not the invention of Electromagnetically Launched Bear Spores.-- MaxwellBuchanan, May 16 2018 Yes, you'd have ursines springing up like mushrooms ...
Electromagnetically Launched Spare Beers, a sort of ultra-fast ballistic beverage delivery, would be well worthy of many croissants.-- 8th of 7, May 17 2018 random, halfbakery