Troper Fencing Academy

Philistine.

I kind of disagree with the odd view that the prequel duels were souless.

I mean the only duel I can think of having no dramatic weight at all is Grievous vs Obi-Wan in ROTS.

In TPM, the are two duels, Maul vs Qui-Gon and Maul vs Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. Both of them are very dramatic because (aided by Duel of Fates) they carry the vibe "holy shit the Sith are back" and basically everyone in the movie agreeing to that sentiment.

AOTC had Dooku vs Obi-Wan and Anakin which is fairly impacting as Anakin's first true display of power, even if ends badly for him, and then Yoda vs Dooku which is basically Yoda going Let's Get Dangerous! for the first time in the franchise.

ROTS had Dooku vs Obi-Wan and Anakin which serves again as Anakin's first display of his Darth Vader nature and is fairly dramatic, Grievous vs Obi-Wan as I said is pretty eh, but the same movie has Palpatine vs Yoda and Obi-Wan vs Anakin, which are fucking tremendous in terms of dramatic torque (Fallen Hero vs The Mentor, and the respective Archmages of their arts squaring off for the first and only time).

The fencing is evidently absurd, but I felt the absurd fencing (particularly in Palpatine vs Yoda) enhances the feel we're dealing with these insanely powerful creatures.

I got my new practice sword today, after a month of waiting. It cost more than my TV. I love it so.

Such a nice shiny steel practice blade.

A hexagonal tsuba? Interesting. Looks nice though.

I have an unrelated question. What advantage do curved blades such as that of the kopesh have over straight ones?

For the kopesh in particular, nothing. That specific weapon is more like an axe than a sword— the curved bit is actually blunted on the outside, and to my understanding, does damage more through mass and force than through cutting. It's primarily curved because of the hooked bit at the end that can be used to grab an opponent's shield or weapon or limb.

For other weapons, it depends. Cavalry swords in the west are curved because it's easier to draw a curved weapon on horseback than it is to draw a straight weapon. Curved sabres have a similar reason behind them.

The Chinese Dao, according to this article, is only a little bit curved because it makes thrusting easier, and that broad, flat blade is really going to fuck someone up if you stab them with it.

For the katana and its predecessor, the tachi, it seems to have been curved not for use as a cavalry weapon, but simply because it can be drawn easier from the waist compared to other weapons. This is why you generally see iaijutsu done with a katana, and not, say, a claymore. Or a spear.

Most of that is speculation on my part, though, and some of it may be based on apocryphal evidence, so if anyone has a correction, feel free to offer it.

On the Kopesh it is a sword and is referred to one in old texts. However it is true it is derived from a type of axe. It would be reasonable to call it a transitory weapon. It was sharpened along the curved edge only. The rest was blunt and reportedly those blunted bits made for good beat down weapons.

As for Western Blades for a long time many cavalry blades were straight. These straight edges have some origins in the Roman Spatha which is a long straight blade used by Roman cavalry. They worked quite well throughout the medieval era as one of the key weapons of knights.

Curved blades offer better slashing because the effectiveness of a slash is all about surface area contact and how the attack is made. A curved blade contacts a smaller surface area and most slashing cuts tend to draw the blade through keeping the surface area contact comparatively small to straight blades. Straight bladed swords are typically better for thrusting attacks because of how the swords mass is lined up behind the point. They can also slash but cuts are usually more shearing action compared to the slashing with a curved blade.

Western Cavalry have used a mix of both straight and curved swords. A really good example of the mix of not just swords but also lancers with other fire arms is the Napoleonic wars. This is epitomized in the Pattern 1796 Heavy and Light Cavalry blades. The two blades are very different from each other. The heavy sword was pretty much a basket hilted back sword with slight curve at the tip. The Light cavalry sabre is roughly similar in weight with a notably more pronounced curve you expect in a sabre.

The Heavy 1796 was based off of an Austrian blade and the Light 1796 was based off of blades used by the Polish, Hungarians, and other Austrian blades. Both were used to good effect in the Napoleonic wars.

And everybody knows curved swords look cooler.

"See those warriors from Hammerfell? They've got curved swords. Curved. Swords."

True.

They do look cool but sometimes I just have to go with the simple this looks like it is meant to hack someone to pieces look.

Indubitably.

Some of those blades have some wicked hooks.

Anybody have any ideas how to get ankles and knees to stop hurting so much after work? At the end of my shift it's hard for me to put a lot of weight on my left foot because there are shooting pains going through it from dashing around on concrete/tile all day. I've tried putting some inner soles in my shoes, but they don't really help. It's a bitch walking some days, let alone doing any meaningful sword practice.

What do you guys think of this?

Interesting. About as practical as you can make an iai duel without severely injuring or killing your opponent. I'd like to try it sometime.

0/10 no dead people.

UWM just had a series of fights to test their Mk II armor It looks less bulky and more flexible now. They will be uploading a vid before too long.

Killer.

I don't even want to imagine how much a suit of this armour costs.

I know how much. A lot.

Sebastian Stan training for the knife fight in Captain America: Winter Soldier.

Of course, it makes you wonder why Bucky didn't just slash Steve's arms. It's not like he has a strong healing factor.

Cross post from the Martial Arts Thread:

I recently came back after three years since I moved from Vancouver to Manila to live with folks... That aside, I did four months in a local kendo club and today I did my second shiai. My opponent was a new guy, who happens to have an aggressive stance. Although both of us had initial problems getting good hits in before he did. The second hit was kinda my fault since I don't know why I stood for a few seconds like an idiot to allow a hit to be scored.

Any pointers to improve on perhaps the third shiai?

So anyone hear anything more on Samantha Swords since her big 2013 win at the International Invitational?

Okay, this is freaking awesome.◊