Your First Sword

  Finding the right sword for you is still a trial despite living in an age where it hasn't been easier to become a swordsman. Ever since swords were aged-out as tools used for executing the law they have become little more than stage props and decorations to the average person. The Internet provides a vast catalogue of swords for purchase but many of them will disappoint the novice swordsman looking for an authentic blade to train with. Build qualities can vary due to swords being marketed as house decorations which can lead to issues such as imbalanced blades or weakened steel. As authentic swordsmanship has become more popular we see sword makers offer swords which are of martial art quality within the hoard of ornamental swords. In this article I will give guidance on choosing your first sword. 

  Novices should not look at buying a sharp sword to train with, nor should they consider a blade with a pointed tip. There are many dull, rounded blades that will be good for developing expert handling of the sword before you can safely wield a sharp one. The things you want to consider for a training blade is handling, build material, blade quality, and profile. You may find it difficult to train with a fully authentic dull medieval longsword because you haven't been conditioned to the weight of such an object. For these situations some training blades are made thinner or from lighter material than steel so that you can train techniques without straining yourself. 

  If you are new to swordsmanship on a budget I highly recommend a plastic synthentic blade to start you off. Many of them can be purchased easily online for under $100 by googling "Synthetic [blade name]". These trainers are often made with a profile to match their historical counterparts and come with flexible blades for added safety. Sparring can be a challenge with plastic blades as a good amount of safety gear is still required. The main drawback is that the dull blades are very slippery when they bind together. Plastic synthetics are best for absolute beginners on a budget. Red Dragon and Black Fencer offer high quality and affordable plastic synthetic swords.

  The ideal training blade is a historically accurate sword with a dull and flexible blade. This held true for the time period as well with the prominence of federschwerts/ "featherswords" as popular training tools. Feders have thinner blades and added hand protection above the crossguard known as the schilt/shield. The weight of a feder is comparable to an authentic sword which will give you a real-feel for the blade. If you plan on fencing a feder is necessary as it is the sole standard for acceptable tournament equipment. Of course maximum protection is needed as well before you spar with a steel blade. Manufacturers like SIGI and Regenyei offer excellent feders for purchase. 

  There are plenty of steel blades offered for reenactment as well. You assume the most risk because you'll have to sort through the piles of trashy blades to find one that will fit your swordsmanship but some of my favorite swords for training come from this category of available swords. You will need to do extensive research and find as much advice as you can on the sword that caught your eye before purchasing as many swords in this category have considerable drawbacks. The main drawbacks you will find is the quality of the steel, the lack of blade flexibility,  pointed tip, and improper balance. Some blades make great purchases on sale. I've been very happy with my Hanwei Tinker arming sword for drilling and sparring. I'm also interested in purchasing other reenactment blades such as the Red Dragon Hand and a Half Sword. If you're an absolute beginner I still recommend going with a feder or synthetic to make life easy for you but if you have done thorough research you may find yourself happy with an reenactment blade. 

  Keep in mind your first sword won't likely be your only sword. Your first sword is supposed to help walk you on the long path of swordsmanship. The best advice I can give before you buy your sword is try out as many blades as you can to find what you like. That's why it's important to connect with other practicing swordsmen in your area and try out what they have collected to see if a similar blade is right for you. You do not need to rush this process either. Be patient and the correct blade will find you! 

Edge on Flat pt. II

Edge on Flat: Part II 

 A few months ago I wrote about my exploration on the concept of parrying edge blows with the flat of your blade. I was turned onto the idea whilst researching how swordsmanship was being taught in the early stages of its revivial in the modern era. A common practice I witnessed was this idea that parries were actually performed with the flat of the blade instead of the edge. Doing so meant that the quality of your edge would remain preserved and it allowed your opponent's blade to slide downwards when using a hanging guard. I perked up from this lesson because this was a concept never taught to me.  I tested the idea over the following weeks and today I will leave my final thoughts on this. 

  First of all, the Liechtenauer commentaries heavily discourage intential parrying with the longsword (my sword of choice). Purely diffensive movements leave wide openings that can be exploited if your opponent outtimes you. Therefore, better defensive tactics utilize disciplined footwork alongside switching between the four positions (vier leger). By doing so, you will always be threatening the opponent whilst protecting yourself. Therefore, intentionally parrying with the flat wouldn't be the smartest tactical decision to make. 

  There is also the issue of your opponent's sliding blade. It seems like a big advantage at first but when I tested it I found that I lacked sufficient power in these maneuvers. It's almost as if the technique worked too good. I had zero control of the opponent's sword nor my own. When you bind edge on edge, you engage your whole body into a solid structure which allows you to make split second decisions from the bind whilst keeping their sword under control. 

  There's also the issue of the crossguard. Flat parrying doesn't keep my crossguard in the correct alignment to meet my opponent's sword. The crossguard requires prudent control in order to maintain its effectiveness or otherwise it is useless in protecting my body. 

  Based on my experience in testing I cannot condone flat parrying as a serious tactic in a duel. It may still be something that will manifest on a moment's notice, but the benefits do not justify the risks in using them. 

Liechtenauer: Four Primary Guards Quick Review

 Vier Leger

Four guards alone hold
and disdain the common
Ochs, Pflug, Alber,
vom Tag should not be unknown to you.
-Johannes Liechtenauer

    Sword fighting has a lot more to do with guarding than one would think. The four primary guards of Liechtenauer's Kunst des Fechtens fighting system are a key expression and are intertwined with the vier versetzen (four attacks). Guards are both starting and end points of cuts. If you pay close enough attention, you'll realize that the guards are a mirror of another guard. The technique of guard changing is to cut into the guard rather than simply move to it. This article contains a brief summary (and personal notes) on the four primary guards. 

Vom Tag[From the Day]: The most common of the Liechtenauer guards. Your sword arms are aligned with your strong side (the direction your chest points towards). Hold the sword with the cross-guard parallel to your pectoral region. Relax the muscles and face your knuckles forward (check by seeing if your index finger on both hands can be pointed forward). Your long edge faces your opponent or to the sky to enter a "high vom tag" guard. 

transitions: 

cut downward with a passing step to change into alber.

perform a zwerchau with a passing step to change into ochs.

cut downward and stop a hip area and raise point to change into pflug.

Alber[Fool]: The mirror of vom tag. Lures opponents to strike the head. Excellent option for lunging attacks. A useful guard when performing disengages. Masters recommend you have the left foot. Chamber the sword at your right hip. Point your sword to the ground to make the short edge face the sky. 

transitions: 

cut upwards with the short edge to arrive at vom tag.

raise knuckles to face the sky to reach ochs (left), or cross wrists, passing step, and cup upwards with the long edge to reach ochs (right). 

raise point to reach pflug. 

(see: Fencing from the Sweeps) 

Pflug[Plough]: Works best against thrusts and lunges. Chamber pommel to the right hip and raise point. Thrusting position. Holds center line. 

transitions:

raise knuckles to face the sky and point short edge downwards to transition to ochs. 

lower point to transition into alber. 

raise point to the sky to transition into vom tag. 

Ochs[Ox]: Works great to deflect downward cuts from the opponent. Very useful in winding. Easily countered by krumphau. Chambers a downward thrust. Cross wrists and face your long edge to the sky and point downward at the opponent's face. 

transitions:

face long edge to the opponent to change into vom tag.

lower knuckles to face the ground to transition into pflug

cut fully downwards with long edge. 

    Keep in mind while training that the guards are merely one half of a more whole coin. The primary cuts are the movement between guards. Through performing the cuts, you will naturally find yourself switching guards as a result. It is never recommended to excessively change guards out of measure as that allows the opponent to target openings.