If you guys think this looks fun, you should check out this scene that seems semi-*related=http://videosift.com/video/Inside-Competitve-Longsword-Fighting

http://www.kronmartialarts.com/

Inside Competitve Longsword Fighting has been added as a related post - related requested by artician.

Is it strictly for knife protection?

What if dude pulls out a gun? Or a longsword? Or a bow and arrow? Or a trebuchet?

Im moving to Connecticut at the end of this year. I am looking forward to joining (one of) the local groups there, now that I know of the sport. Fencing and Kendo have always been too 'restrained' for me. This is most likely due to not understanding certain, set customs on my part, but from my perspective if my nature, and what I perceive as natural, oversteps some organizations predefine ruleset, I can't see it as a test of actual ability. You can most certainly find examples for and against that, but that's how I look at a particular structure prior to empirical evidence.
If I were to translate that to human understanding it would probably be: In the majority of competitive events throughout my life, when questioned on the 'why' of rules, 'just because' has been the overwhelming answer, rather than a rational understanding/explanation of the sport.
Anyway, I'm going to longsword some mother-fuckers in a few months, and I can't wait for that final joust and the claiming of the princess, silhouetted against that raging castle fireplace (Defender of the Crown reference, FYI).

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I agree. Normal/medium sized two handers seem to pretty much all be designed to allow you greater control rather than to add power (an axe or mace is always going to be better for that).

Wieldyness is much more important for them than power. As Lindy himself mentions in another vid swords like the Katana and longsword are backups and personal protection weapons not primary weapons of war. Convenient to carry around, and handy for parrying blows & grappling but second fiddle to almost any dedicated battlefield weapon (Spears, Naginata, maces etc.).

The most notable exception that springs to mind is the Roman Gladius, but it could be described as a glorified short spear with bonus cutting abilities rather than what most people think of as a sword. Rapiers and scimitars could also be thought of as more like spears and axes respectively in this sense.

And then there's the huge specialised warswords like claymores and Zweihanders but as lindy suggests in yet another vid they are a specialised tool for berserker charges and maybe advancing through a pikewall. Certainly not something you'd want to have a duel with or carry around at your waist.

Longswords and Katanas are like modern pistols. Good side-arms, but almost never a primary weapon of war. (Hollywood fails again)


Also.....Longsword totally > Katana. A well made longsword can hold just as sharp an edge as a Katana, has quillons to hook and lever an opponent and a straight focused point that can puncture steel plate. Katanas can maybe dismember someone easier, but that's about it.(all IMHO obviously)

The Bastard sword-
Wield that longsword well and you are pretty much the bad-boy on the sword-fighting block...Last thing to be uttered from the reciving-end of one was most likely, "You BASsstard!" many a time...

>> ^my15minutes:
>> ^BillOreilly:
Morrowind > Oblivion
for the most part, yeah. except for the obvious rendering and physics improvements, and the additional voice talent.
> My Argonian Scout was so much fun to play...
Khajit. my bootless brother-in-arms! also a (slightly modified) Scout. heh.
'McCoy', named after my favorite of the X-Men. (The Beast of Balmora!)
> ... full glass armor,
same. which looked positively kickass on those two races.
> enchanted Daedric longsword,
i went with the Katana. > scrolls and potions up the wazoo...
self-enchanted items, and potions up the wazoo...
> Too bad I got that cursed sword when I was about level 35 and my light armor went down to 0, that was it for that character...
heh. that's about how far i got with him, too. then i rolled another character and started all over again. and with that toon, did literally every quest in the entire game, that wasn't prevented by previous quests. plus Tribunal & Bloodmoon, which were both great extensions.
took about a billion screencaps, which were on that hard drive, when it essploded last month. except for the 50 i had uploaded to a FB page album, for a friend who had never heard of the game.


My second character was a custom Wood Elf, but he was overpowered by level 15. Took him into Tribunal, however, and that was a riot. Could never get into Bloodmoon for some reason, don't know why.

>> ^BillOreilly:
Morrowind > Oblivion
for the most part, yeah. except for the obvious rendering and physics improvements, and the additional voice talent.

> My Argonian Scout was so much fun to play...
Khajit. my bootless brother-in-arms! also a (slightly modified) Scout. heh.
'McCoy', named after my favorite of the X-Men. (The Beast of Balmora!)
> ... full glass armor,
same. which looked positively kickass on those two races.
> enchanted Daedric longsword,
i went with the Katana.
> scrolls and potions up the wazoo...
self-enchanted items, and potions up the wazoo...
> Too bad I got that cursed sword when I was about level 35 and my light armor went down to 0, that was it for that character...
heh. that's about how far i got with him, too. then i rolled another character and started all over again. and with that toon, did literally every quest in the entire game, that wasn't prevented by previous quests. plus Tribunal & Bloodmoon, which were both great extensions.
took about a billion screencaps, which were on that hard drive, when it essploded last month. except for the 50 i had uploaded to a FB page album, for a friend who had never heard of the game.

Morrowind > Oblivion

My Argonian Scout was so much fun to play, full glass armor, enchanted Daedric longsword, scrolls and potions up the wazoo... Too bad I got that cursed sword when I was about level 35 and my light armor went down to 0, that was it for that character...

The trouble I have with medieval style films is the American accents (I mean no offence). I mean, there were just never in history any of our fine friends from the West adorned in plate-mail and longswords. It just makes the suspension of disbelief a little rocky to ride on.

I'm sure he'd have to use less force if the longsword was actually sharp.

Has nothing to do with Quality of the sword, see this..

http://www.videosift.com/video/Blunt-European-Longsword-cutting-a-tatami-mat

I would really like to see a vid of a test cut with a samurai sword that can cleave through a carcass. Once I see that I'll believe the Katana through a body story.