In the turmoil of battle, where hand-to-hand fighting is the rule, the Amlicites, fearing that their allies might mistake them and think they were Nephites, then slay them, marked themselves with red on their foreheads that they might be distinguished from their late compatriots. The Lamanites had adopted this same ruse, and besides they shaved their heads, went naked, except for a small cloth fastened about their loins. Altogether the Lamanites presented a fearsome array. They armed themselves with every weapon they could invent and which were known to warfare. They also girded about their bodies the armor they hoped would fend off any blow aimed at their vital parts.
It is to be noted that the ancient forefathers of both the Lamanites and Nephites used the same weapons as were used by them in their military campaigns; their historian mentions "their bows and arrows, and their stones, and their slings." It is easy to recall the scene when David met Goliath in single-handed combat, and slew the giant with a well-aimed stone from his sling. The warriors of Israel and also their frequent antagonists from Chaldea, Babylonia, and Egypt, were expert in the use of the sling, they being trained to use it accurately and with deadly effect.