How long will it take before someone sees this and says 'GO FIND OUT IN GAME!'
Oh.... I just did.
They are actually kinda the same, if you train with maces more, you are better with maces. If you train with short swords more, you are better with short swords.
Mace will raise your concussion skill.
Sword, your slashing.
While I in no way endorse skill building (had to get that in there ), if you plan on battling skeletons, a good concussion skill is needed, to smash up their bones.
Sess'sth is absolutely right, these kind of questions we prefer not to see on the boards, as they can be easily asked in game. This is one of the reasons why characters in Illarion are able to talk. Otherwise we would have made them mute.