I would say not for full contact because maille is great for protection against edges, but not so great for protection against a club. And when you're doing full contact, you're basically using a club. Generally, you want something a bit less flexible, with padding underneath. Note, this coming from...

I've played a bit with his broadsword system. Got one local guy (Washington, PA) who does it. From the bit I saw, it's fairly simplified, and based on Angelo's Hungarian Sabre work. Simple, and pretty effective. Also, from what I understand, Chris does like to "take it to the market" to fi...

Well, you know, it seemed like a good idea. Fasten one of those really big firecrakers I got from that old wizard fella to an arrow and shoot it at those orcs.

Guess I shouldn't have waited for a good shot once I lit the fuse...

I chose Mirkwood. It offers a larger area and fits my preferred tactical style better. And it's also close enough (with a bit of travel...) to provide support to Lorien or Dale, if needed.

But, dang, my feet are gonna hurt...

Beautiful work, Peter!

LOL You know, this discussion gets me thinking back to George Silver, disparaging the thrust as that fancy, newfangled Italian stuff, in favor of the downright blow. Of course, he didn't actually regard the thrust as useless, just the methods and practices of the Italian school.

My condolences on your loss, Andy, and may you and his family find peace.

I'll raise a glass of mead in his honor.

Ah, that's good actually. If you review some of those techniques, with a knife in one hand, you might get a whole new perspective on them. Such as, say, self defense techniques against someone who grabs one wrist with both hands. Now why would anyone grab one wrist with both hands? Maybe because tha...

As for books on knife fighting, there are quite a few of interest. For a good survey of all of them, I'd recommend Jason Vail's "Medieval And Renaissance Dagger Combat". He brings in techniques from several of the old manuals. And some of those manuals are the ones by Meyer (can't recommne...

Oh, yes, and starting with the longsword is a good approach for taht very reason. Meyer does the same in his "Art of Combat", and that book is pretty much an entire martial arts system. No question, the longsword is a good place to start. I get a kick out of how you see the same things, th...

LOL That, my friend, will start all kinds of arguments, with passions running very high. In general, you want to block with the flat. Trying to block with the back would be pretty awkward. That being said, there are a lot of times you'll block with the edge, simply because things happen so fast. And...

I love the short sword and dagger combination, no doubt a legacy of much escrima work. But sword and buckler works much the same way, as far as body movements. And as Gareth says, shield punching is a lot of fun...er, except when being done by your opponent. Then it sucks. :lol: Oh, and the edge of ...

Yes, very well said, Greg. I train in WMA (and EMA) about 3 days/week. Much of this is sparring. We use lighter rattan, as it's a bit easier on the body, and wear the minimum of protective gear to (hopefull) prevent injury. And, let me tell you, those hits HURT. We get some nasty bruises, but it's m...

Siani makes a good point. The SCA form of combat is a good bit removed from historical fighting, due, in good part, to safety concerns. It has become more of a sport than a true fighting art. I can say this with long experience doing it. It's a lot of fun, too. But it's limited as to areas that can ...

Yeah, the SCA has plenty of battles. Wars in a number of locations, actually, mostly a good excuse for people to get together and have a good time. One of the things I enjoyed was the opportunity, at the Pennsic War, in Pennsylvania, to act as a scout in the woods battle. An opportunity to creep aro...