Find the pulse. An impromptu lesson after lunch by the Taiwan Martial Arts Team head coach and his assistant. So much more skill is involved to not let your swords touch.
The only "accomplished" swordsman I ever had a chance to train under wanted a bunch of money (fair enough) and for me to wear tights and a medieval sun dress looking thing while playing squire (and probably worse) at Renaissance fairs for he and his wife around the country. Yeah, F' that....
I suck at blade work, i'm too damn big and unwieldly, but put an ax in my hands and I'm gonna put a hurtin on ya! Love watchin the foot work, the setup and follow through, that's the real skills, keeping your eyes moving and looking for the tells, I always did well in hand to hand, and with the mixed marital arts, especially the Krav, I could really use my size and mass to great advantage! I carry a really slick Tomahawk/ Boarding Ax for this reason, it's really the best of the stand off tools outside of a gun, and i'm absolutely deadly with it!
I played a lot of baseball and slow pitch, I’m only going to hit a guy with a bat if I want him ded. On the other end of a bat I’m shooting. Yikes!
Anything in your hand can become a weapon. But I prefer a pistol at close range. I'll be that old fart that surprises people trying to assault me by whipping it out (my pistol). or maybe something else!
Always have a gun no matter what kind of fight you're in, especially a knife fight...and a sword is just a big knife!
HEMA practicioners are pretty good with blades and other medieval weapons. Look up Skallagrim on YouTube for some honest evals and demos.He is a little different, but he knows his stuff. Jim
My son and I took fencing, part of a parks and recreation thing. Long after we would spar from time to time and had a lot of fun, of all the things I've sacrificed I kept the swords, I still enjoy practicing with. I so wish we had taken this up much earlier in life.
