The name of this site is Bearing Arms. One of the things our readers seem to enjoy are stories about people using their weapons to defend their home or their lives. It’s always nice to hear about the good guys winning the day. It’s kind of epic.

Of course, usually, when we use the term “arms” on this site, we’re talking about firearms. Guns are the ideal tool for the job of self-defense these days, so of course we focus on those.

However, some people don’t have a gun. They have to use what weapons they have.

Sometimes, the weapons they have can make for a pretty epic story.

A man is alive and well after he used an ax to fend off a convicted criminal who broke into his Oshtemo Township apartment late Wednesday night.

Ben Ball, 36, used a replica battle ax to keep the intruder at bay.

The 33-year-old suspect, Alex Lavell Rawls, is now in jail facing a charge of first-degree home invasion, which could put him in prison for a maximum of 20 years.

Ball says that the suspect dated his former roommate who left to get away. The suspect showed up at the apartment around 11:30 p.m., thinking she was there.

The suspect knocked on the door repeatedly, then kicked it in, while Ball was in his apartment playing video games and watching Rick and Morty.

Ball said he had reason to believe the suspect had a firearm.

“(The) door opened, (I) grabbed the ax, (then) step, step, hit.”

The ax hit the intruder at least once in the torso and then the two started grappling in the apartment destroying the place.

“There was a bloody mess everywhere,” Ball said.

I’m sure there was.

That said, my inner barbarian approves of Ball’s use of the battle ax. While I definitely think the firearm is a more useful tool for self-defense, you have to use what you have. It’s just much cooler when what you have is something with a little style.

Ball, however, is someone who understands weapons like this a bit. The article reports that he’s part of a group that hosts “events where people compete in ritualized combat.” That probably means the Society for Creative Anachronisms or a similar group. For the record, I’m a former SCA member myself, so this also gives me a chuckle.

Look, I wouldn’t leave my gun at home to carry a battle ax, but you use what you have to use. If that’s all you got, so be it.

Ball is still fortunate that if the suspect did have a firearm, he didn’t have a chance to pull it. I don’t care how good you are with an ax, you’re not going to stop a bullet, so don’t anyone look at this story and think it means a firearm isn’t necessary to defend yourself. If you do, ask yourself which side of the fight would you choose to be on, the guy with the ax or the guy with the gun?

That’s what I thought.

With that said, good on Ball for taking care of business with what he had on hand. Good on him also for having something seriously cool on hand.