[masan's saddle]

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 01:59 PM, said:

masan, on 11 May 2011 - 12:13 PM, said:

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 10:12 AM, said:

One of the guys in my Welsh class is sword master or whatever they are called. I'll ask him next week what his thoughts are.

Well i'm Welsh and a master swordsman (Porcine level1), you could just ask me....

Okay

What do YOU think?

Hmmmm foil, epee or sabre ?

I'm more of a broadsword man myself.

[Loki]

masan, on 11 May 2011 - 03:24 PM, said:

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 01:59 PM, said:

masan, on 11 May 2011 - 12:13 PM, said:

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 10:12 AM, said:

One of the guys in my Welsh class is sword master or whatever they are called. I'll ask him next week what his thoughts are.

Well i'm Welsh and a master swordsman (Porcine level1), you could just ask me....

Okay

What do YOU think?

Hmmmm foil, epee or sabre ?

I'm more of a broadsword man myself.

GAH! And I prefer a longsword and shield but that's not the question

[Gothos]

Sword'n'board wins!

[masan's saddle]

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 03:40 PM, said:

masan, on 11 May 2011 - 03:24 PM, said:

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 01:59 PM, said:

masan, on 11 May 2011 - 12:13 PM, said:

Loki, on 11 May 2011 - 10:12 AM, said:

One of the guys in my Welsh class is sword master or whatever they are called. I'll ask him next week what his thoughts are.

Well i'm Welsh and a master swordsman (Porcine level1), you could just ask me....

Okay

What do YOU think?

Hmmmm foil, epee or sabre ?

I'm more of a broadsword man myself.

GAH! And I prefer a longsword and shield but that's not the question

Ahh, a shield maiden eh ?

Have no fear I try to keep my blade sheathed in the presence of ladies, accidents tend to happen otherwise.

What was the question again ?

[Knapper]

Wow. Thread really exploded since I was around. Glad there are some Swordmaster Erikson fans out there.

Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast, on 10 May 2011 - 08:50 AM, said:

His duel scenes give the impression of an epéeist to me but then again, his preferred weapon probably doesn't have much of a bearing on how he writes a duel.

That's what I thought too. There is a scene where Murillio is talking to the younger Nom kid at his duelling school. He mentions something about a stop hit to the toe. When I read that, I realized he must be a fencer and he must fence epee. I confirmed that he fences from some online interviews, just not epee for sure. I fence epee, so that's why I wanted to know.

This post has been edited by Knapper: 13 May 2011 - 12:38 AM

[Knapper]

Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast, on 11 May 2011 - 10:07 AM, said:

No one's really certain about the origins of the sabre but i've read in places that it's decended from the sabres used by cavalry...somewhere.

Pretty much bang on about everything regarding the three weapons. In regards to saber, my original coach is a big sabre buff, and he discussed that there is actually a dueling school of sabre that is somewhat divorced from the calvary aspect. I think it was an italian school, and the guy's name was Radaelli. Modern sport sabre is derived from this I think.

[Captain Petepants]

I couldn't describe the evolution from cavalry saber to sport-saber, but yes there is certainly a marked difference.

For starters, a lot of the old saber manuscripts assume that you are atop a horse, and warn the student of the very real risk to said horse's ears. Apparently our (England's) cavalry was legendary at one point for 'inflicting more injury to themselves and their horses than to their enemies'. If I remember next time we train, I'll try and get the actually reference for that, rather than paraphrasing and no doubt mangling it.

But yes, there does seem to be a sort of murky cross-over between combat and sport-saber that we can't quite agree on. Perhaps this is due to the saber not being as popular as the rapier/smallsword in custodial duels? A rapier thrust would kill more surely but a good saber cut would disable more quickly, at least in the earlier systems, making it more use to the soldier than the duellist. Duelling grounds seem to have been an important stage in the transition from combat to sport.

Radaelli seems to have been a millitary man, so Knapper's coach may have the right of it. Or at least a sensible guess, which is often as near as you can get with these things.

[Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast]

Fenced this evening and I feel rather unfit and out of practice!

[Knapper]

Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast, on 13 May 2011 - 09:06 PM, said:

Fenced this evening and I feel rather unfit and out of practice!

I find that with fencing, I've got to fence at least once a week to keep at the same level and more if I want to improve. I improved the most when I was fencing four nights a week, but I can't do that any more since we've got a young kid at home. Twice a week is about as good as it gets.

On the other hand, I think you can come back fairly quickly to your old level after a break if you practice, but general fitness definitely helps.

[Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast]

I used to fence twice a week until my coach had to cut down due to his health so I was back to once a week, then he was in and out of hospital for about a year and rarely able to fence so I wasn't getting lessons and I didn't fence much at all over that period, to be honest. It's only since he died this time last year that I've started making the effort to go again, though as I say, I haven't been over the last three months just because I can't afford it at the moment. As soon as I'm able to, though, I want to start going regularly again.

This post has been edited by Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast: 14 May 2011 - 02:45 PM

[Rhand]

3 years ago I got interested in fencing and took one of those free introduction classes. Even though the only thing I did for more than an hour was to learn how to slide properly back and forwards I loved it.

Unfortunately, the cost of the material and stuff was approx. 1.000 € and I didn't have that money at the time.

[Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast]

Yus, it is rather expensive. Clubs will usually have kit for you to use though; you shouldn't need to buy everything straight away.

[Loki]

Because I said I would.....


I asked the gentleman at my welsh class and he said that in his experience a foil is the better sword to use if you are just starting out. He said something about it being easier to move on from a foil to another sword then it is from a epee or saber....he did give reasons but I forget what they were now. Sorry.

[Jade-Green Pig-Hog Swine-Beast]

Indeed, from my experience, beginners normally start out with foil, and then move on to other weapons if they wish to.

[Pig Iron]

This looks real fun. I like that grappling seems to be allowed. Lots of similarities to what the Dogbrothers are doing but with other weapons.

http://youtu.be/ZQMrbj3Ukws

[Captain Petepants]

Pig Iron, on 26 May 2011 - 07:31 PM, said:

This looks real fun. I like that grappling seems to be allowed. Lots of similarities to what the Dogbrothers are doing but with other weapons.

http://youtu.be/ZQMrbj3Ukws

That's what we do It is awesome, and certainly worth trying if there's a club you can get to.

[LinearPhilosopher]

Gothos, on 11 May 2011 - 09:24 AM, said:

Just asking here:
1. What are the most important differences between the three in build and handling?
2. Why is the valid target zone different for the three weapons?

#2 was answered quite thoroughly cept for sabre. Sabre's target area is basaed around cavalry duels , hence why the target area is the arm (that would presented to you), the chest and the head. You never striked to hit the horse (PETA would be on your ass in an instant).,

1. In terms of build, height is a definite advantage, but more so in epee than in sabre or foil. Short people are usually faster then tall ones so it gives them an egde in foil/sabre to get around an opponents' reach. Also in terms of handling, Epee has the most thinking going into it, foil a little and sabre next to none due to the speed of the sport. Epee is very slow and laid back, It isnt unsual to have bouts finish at the time limit rather than by points. Sabre on the other hand rarely takes more than a minute to decide a few points.

Also, EPEE Represent!

Loki, on 26 May 2011 - 11:45 AM, said:

Because I said I would.....


I asked the gentleman at my welsh class and he said that in his experience a foil is the better sword to use if you are just starting out. He said something about it being easier to move on from a foil to another sword then it is from a epee or saber....he did give reasons but I forget what they were now. Sorry.

Foil is the inbetween fencing style. It has right of way involved so it is very easy to move into sabre. You also score with the point so it is easy to move into epee. In terms of strategy and pace it is also in the middle, so if you want less thinking more action you can easily go into sabre, or switch to epee. Going Epee to sabre is very very hard (im not talented in fencing so i struggled). It is possible to do it, but it requires talent, something the vast majority of people do not have. Getting good in fencing is possible, but it takes years of dedication.Now personaly, fencing is my love in life, havent been doing it for very long but it is my life's passion. The only thing i regret is that i keep injuring myself in this sport since i never know when to quit. I now wear knee braces whenver i fence.

This post has been edited by BalrogLord: 30 May 2011 - 12:32 AM

[Pig Iron]

@ Capt Pete:

Nice. Wish fight choreographers looked up your stuff more. Even in GoT its more "lets hit each others swords as hard as we can".

[Captain Petepants]

Pig Iron, on 02 June 2011 - 02:12 PM, said:

@ Capt Pete:

Nice. Wish fight choreographers looked up your stuff more. Even in GoT its more "lets hit each others swords as hard as we can".

It'll get there, in time
The arts themselves are still in the "revival" period as we get a better understanding of the old documents etc. The main mistake in mainstream stuff is, as you've picked up on, misinterpreting the sword as cumbersome and somewhat lacking finesse.

It would be awesome to see proper representations in choreography, as you say.

[Azathmaster]

Knapper, on 10 May 2011 - 02:22 AM, said:

Hey all,

First post here. Why is it in the sports forum do you ask? Well, after making my way through the Malazan series, my biggest question for Steve is, what weapon do you fence? (not that I'm expecting him to answer right away, but maybe someone else knows?)

I am a big Malazan fan, but an even bigger fencing fan. I was pretty stoked upon learning that Steve is a fencer (and a Canadian one at that!), and I can definitely see the influence in his writing.

So does anyone know the answer? Also, any other fencers here? I know it is a niche sport, but maybe there is a higher ratio of fencers that are fantasy fans?

Cheers.

I fenced for a few years as an epee, i liked it! Havent gotten back into it For a year or so... I should do that.



Revival!