Copyright (c) 1996 by Discord <tina@huitzilo.tezcat.com>

For a bullwhip, strength is actually fairly close to irrelevant -- it's
dexterity that determines how well you use a a bullwhip, IMO.  So I can
see the point that a bullwhip might be "thrust" damage by GURPS rules,
because of that.  On the other hand, for a scourge or other flogger-style
whips (i.e., whips with multiple falls, especially longer falls),
strength definitely comes into play.

This is probably how I'd go about rating whips.

Bullwhip/single-whip (DX-7) [They're DAMN tricky to use to cause
actual damage].  A bullwhip might do crush damage, but on the other hand,
it might do cutting damage -- this would depend on materials.  A thin
single-whip would probably do cutting damage, whereas the thicker braided
bullwhips do impact.  I probably would go with thr-2 with a cap of 1d-1
or 1d.  You might want to tie the cap to the dex of the wielder.

Scourge (DX-6) (kinda like a flail).  Cutting damage. sw-1, max 1d+1.
Scourges are nasty.  You could fiddle with that max based on materials --
a wire scourge could kill someone in one or two good blows, but a scourge
of rope wouldn't be as likely to (and actually might do crush instead of
cutting damage).

Flogger (DX-4).  Crush damage, sw-2, max varies.  The distinction I'm
making here between a flogger and a scourge is principally material and
width of falls... scourges tend to have thin falls of leather, rope, and
(in extreme cases) wire, and also might have less falls.  Floggers have
leather falls as well, but they tend to be wider, sometimes thicker,
and also more numerous -- some big whips I have seen that I'd put in this
category include a kangaroo-leather flogger with falls the length of my
arm which are about half an inch wide!  THAT sucker could do a shitload
of impact damage if someone swung it hard enough.

> (BTW, I have no idea whether the nails'n'glass combat model can be
> "cracked" like a bullwhip, though I'm inclined to guess no.

No.  What makes a bullwhip "crackable" is typically that it is long,
lithe, thin, and light.  Glassnnails isn't going to be thin and light.