Galley tactics were the dominant form of
naval tactics used from
antiquity to the late 16th century when
sailing ships began to replace oared ships as the principal form of warships. Throughout
antiquity and the
Middle Ages until the 16th century, the weapons relied on were the ship itself, used as a
battering ram or to sink the opponent with
naval rams, the melee weapons of the crew, missile weapons such as bolts from heavy
crossbows fixed on the bulwarks, bows and arrows, weights dropped from a yard or pole rigged out, and the various means of setting an enemy alight. The latter could be done by shooting arrows with burning tow or by
Greek fire ejected through specially designed
siphons.