Research and Discussion Forums

Sorry I got to this late, I was once a beginner (heck, still am :p) much like yourself. Wasters will vary in cost and quality, as will steel blunts (non-sharp swords), but what was linked is pretty much the be-all end-all of both categories. New Stirling Arms wasters are top of the line material (I'...

I've seen a destruction test on an Albion one-hander before (I forget which one and if it was official or not). They basically put the pointy end in a vice clamp and pulled it over until the pommel was facing the same way as the point, and it still returned true. At about 190 or 200 degrees of bend ...

"For Western sources I don't have a specific reference, but the amount of half-swording techniques would not be nearly as large if they kept their swords at a razor honed edge. I've never seen the CS people do a half sword technique, and I'm confidant that I never will as long as they keep the...

I may as well update this since my purchase a few months ago. It seems in my experience that any reasonably padded set of lacrosse gloves affords sufficient protection for sparring with wood and likely by extension steel (I've no steel to try it with at the moment unfortunately, though I've heard it...

Well, I have access to a wind tunnel at school, though it's meant for models of things a bit smaller than swords (I suppose I could test a section of each type of blade?) If they'd let me anywhere near the thing with a hunk of sword, at any rate

Well, I've seen a video of an ARMAteer puncturing a 16 gauge steel helmet with one once (historical literature often mentions helmets being "cloven through" or some such, so it doesn't seem so far-fetched), though whether it could penetrate a breastplate is up for debate.

I apologize in advance for the wall of text, but I just stumbled upon this site and I want to make the most of such a powerful resource, so I have a ton of questions to ask. I am an amateur writer, and my current project is fantasy-inspired, but only loosely. Definitely not Middle-earth, with the e...

Keeping a formation of running horses together is tough, I'd assume keeping a formation of running people together is also pretty tough. It seems likely that there'd be a marching pace, a double-quick marching pace (read: jogging or thereabouts) for use when under duress (missile attack of some kind...

Steven, In my head there's the image of a rapier fighter; nimble, fast, and flexible. I'm 0 for 3. So the question is mildly a case of "accept the obvious" or is it "realize you're going to have to work a lot harder at this"? Physical dexterity and strength are trained feats, no...

Yeah, Stacy more or less got it. You learn the techniques to understand how they work, then all other technique, both those given and those improvised, comes naturally since you understand the basis of WHY they work.

I am new to this site and it got me reading about WMA. I'm most of the way through "The Marial Arts of Renaissance Europe" and had a question some of the practitioners here could answer. Much of the swordplay from the historic manuals appear to show options of what to do in particular sit...

It depends on what you're trying to penetrate. The physics of stabbing are really pretty simple, the more slender the piercing object, the less mass it has to set aside and the easier it will slide in. Needles are pretty much the ultimate if you're stabbing soft flesh, followed by stilettos and oth...

Well, the triangular point is definitely more efficient in at least one way: it has to displace less mass. Contrarily, the larger the point's displaced mass, the more difficult it is for the wound to heal. I've only a rudimentary knowledge of the damage mechanics from stabbing, though (and primarily...

If/when you do, could you post up his/her opinion to let us all in on it, too? Good stuff to know!

The two swords are a lot rarer, and if it was such a great idea why have none of the people with parrying dagger and rapier mentioned it? That's exactly the thought process I would use. If it is so good, why does nobody use two swords? Chances are that over the last four thousand years it would've ...