Some tips would be nice.

[alexwalczak]

I am new to Renaissance Martial Arts and was looking for a couple of pointers for the new guy on the block.

The closest that I have had to sword fighting would be a couple of plastic star wars lightsabers. I have read some of the tips on ARMA and have found them helpful . Any advice would be nice. <img src="/forum/images/icons/cool.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/icons/cool.gif" alt="" />

Thank you.

[Jaron Bernstein]

Get John C.'s book Medieval Swordsmanship and read it. Start reading the manuals (see the reading section on this page). Get thee a waster and maybe a pell and spend some quality time with them. Burn some vacation time and go to a 1.0 seminar. Find people to practice with and do so on a consistent basis (minimum once per week).

Good luck! <img src="/forum/images/icons/grin.gif" alt="" />

[Matthew_Anderson]

You also might want to stop by one of our practice sessions, Saturdays at 10:00am in Chesapeake City Park. We can start you from the basics and we have equipment you can borrow.

[leam hall]

Yeah, I'd suggest doing some training with the Va Beach guys *before* you buy anything. Well, almost anything. Get a cup! <img src="/forum/images/icons/shocked.gif" alt="" />

That will let you see some of the options and get recommendations from people who know.

[Matthew_Anderson]

This is a good article on the basic guards. A good practice routine to start with is simply moving from one guard to the other, with proper footwork.

http://www.thearma.org/essays/StancesIntro.htm

If you don't have a waster yet, you can even practice with a sawed off broomstick or a 1" dowel about 48" long.