Research and Discussion Forums

Matt, that is an amazing resource, thank on behalf of the entire martial arts community for providing all this information for free. I hope to see many more follow suit and share our resources with the world.

Derek, the way I have interpreted and performed the duplieren, I get a something between a weak hau and strong schnitt. I know, its an ambiguous answer, but there is that satisfying sound of a solid hit to the helmet most of the time I drill it. Maybe it would involve a hit to the head followed by a...

I had the same problem, but I fixed it in another way: I stopped wearing gloves when I practice. I get warm fast when I exercise, so warmth is not an issue for me. And when I look at the manuals, I see bare hands every time, well, every time that comes to memory. I say ditch the gloves and just make...

Sal, we were happy to host. We dont get nearly enough visitors up in the great Pacific Northwest so we get excited about any and all. The rondel is such a fun and crucial part of the fighting curriculum as it so closely relates to ringen and as we all know, alles fecthen kommt aus ringen. I think I ...

Benjamin, I think you point out something awfully important. As an historian in training, I have learned to become very careful about citing my sources and being aware of associated pitfalls. I feel ARMA members pride ourselves on being warriors as well as scholars and knowing the source of any teac...

Sadly I believe ARMA Portland will unrepresented at the IG. I have a full schedule and no money so I am no good, I think most everyone else is in the same boat. I am personally holding out for another year or two.

Are you headed there?

Thank you Steve for the kind words. I know we from Portland had a good time helping you three in Eugene get off to a good start. I would hardly call our day a 1.0, more of a truly basic crash course in what we know. I would heartily recommend an NTP 1.0 from one of the senior ARMA members to flesh o...

It's not rocket science. Yep, its history. Any historian worth his salt cites his sources, formally or informally. If you don't cite, then you are just pulling out random, unsubstantiated factoids. I do not mean to critique, but I just finished a healthy sized research paper on the Mongolian Empire...

I have not personally read any documents that point to armored men swimming with any real success. Most descriptions tend to come out telling a chaotic and terrifying scene. It becomes a thrashing mass of bodies, sharp weapons, spooked horse, blood, mud, and debris. If you don't drown, you are likel...

Ooops, double post.

It was good to have you sir, you are welcome anytime. Let me know if we can help your wife convince you to move to the area, Portland is a beautiful town! Enjoy the rest of your stay.

I agree with you Francisco and Shane, mental preparation is probably as important as physical preparation. When I was younger I remember my dad talking to me about this. I had always thought that I would want to shoot the guy in the leg to wound him. But I had to ask myself, what would the intruder ...

Sal, we would love to train with you. We train on Saturday mornings from noon to two at an indoor facility in SE Portland. Its not too far from Vancouver, well, a little ways but I hope it would be worth the drive. It probably takes twenty or thirty minutes depending on exactly when and where. So De...

I am on Jeremiah's side with this one, I like the idea of a longsword too. I think many of us show a bias for the longsword, but hey this is ARMA. However, there is a reason for this bias. The longsword is the most versatile melee weapon I know of. If you have the room, you have the advantage over a...

As a historian, Mr. Knight is clumsy and flabby. By the looks of him, his swordsmanship is probably both as well. I have read multiple essays on his blog and noticed that many of his articles are sloppy from a technical point of view. I have read him trying to make broad generalizations about the su...