The Armour Archive

James B.

Anyone have the link to that French site with books put to PDF like the original Battle of Wisby books?

James B.

Stahlgrim wrote:All this talk about swords but who would have the advantage when it comes to maces?

The guy with better grappling skills, there is a reason why they were mostly used on horseback and poleaxes for foot combat by knights in the middle ages

James B.

Why do you think JC said he was surprised by the effectiveness of a half swording pommels strike to the head? Isn't that called a Mordhau (murder stroke) for a good reason? -Ivan JC comment that it was harder than he thought to fight unarmored against an armored guy; I think that is what Winterfell...

James B.

One thing I have noticed from something like MMA for example is that one guys kung fu might be better than the other guys kung fu but a greco roman wrestler doesn't care if his kung fu is lacking and will tie a kung fu guy in knots in less than a second. Funny I have noted in the UFC that wrestlers...

James B.

James, Most of your replies and been simply another form of talk - mine is better than yours, with no discussion. Your view on SCA fighting is from the outside in as much as you claim some of these people are looking in from the outside on the WMA activities. I disagree, I have only pointed out tha...

James B.

This thread had info on those type of purses: http://forums.armourarchive.org/phpBB2/ ... hlight=rus

James B.

As a smart-aleck side-note, I love that people are listing Olivier's Henry V when it's the movie that gave us "knight onto horse by crane". Hey man I said better than most You have to admit the costumes and armor look way more medieval than the majority of "medieval" movies out ...

James B.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQGTyolEuBA Watch the tatami bounce away from the sword blow and into the rubber tires! Its like a cutting board backing up the cut. I'd believe it if he were cutting the tatami in open air like any other cutting exercise. Tatami test cutting doesn't require "bac...

James B.

YMHoward wrote:Thanks!

Another question, is one position harder to draw from?

thanks
YMH

Blade length is a factor. It works great for a Roman blade but a bit harder for a medieval short sword.

James B.

Do you think that a fighter who is confident in his abilities would stand back and say "Hmm I probably couldn't beat that guy."? Do you think John Clements would look at me and say "that guy would kick my ass." I don't think he would. If he is really confident in his abilities h...

James B.

Thanks for bringing up the racing analogy, James. You prove my point. Top drivers move from one to the other and are quickly successful, because driving is driving. They don't change from one to the other and become incompetent. They don't switch over and start from the beginning like someone new t...

James B.

For you guys who have worn blades, which would be easier in general, worn on a slant like I see most times I see anyone wearing a blade or hanging straight down the side of the leg? I can see that the first would be easier if mounted, but wouldn't the second be easier if on foot? I find slant in an...

James B.

Thing is it is similar but again not the same. James, what you are stubbornly refusing to grasp is that the differences are less than the similarities. Even with things people argue are unique properties of steel and that don't happen in SCA fighting, it can be demonstrated that those things do hap...

James B.

Thing is it is similar but again not the same.

James B.

This all leads back to my core training ideal. Learn to really fight. Then adapt that to the game you are playing. When in Rome. It has served me VERY well in a wide variety of instances. The adaptation time to new rules is very short with this philosophy. Yep. You're one of those people who qualif...

James B.

As I said it is dick waving and talk. It is like watching Kimbo slice talk about how he was going to dominate in the UFC; didn't happen at all. sigh. ok, yours is bigger. Is that really how you wanted to take this ? I am not claiming I am going to go around kicking anyone's ass or that one fung fu ...

James B.

As I said it is dick waving and talk. It is like watching Kimbo slice talk about how he was going to dominate in the UFC; didn't happen at all. sigh. ok, yours is bigger. Is that really how you wanted to take this ? I am not claiming I am going to go around kicking anyone's ass or that one fung fu ...

James B.

Recognizing range is critical, but not dependent upon your weapon, or theirs (what effective ranges are certainly depends upon the weapons and a competent fighter adjusts for whatever weapons are in play). Range is far different in the SCA realm that the HWMA realm; SCA folks tend to fight close be...

James B.

Oh and John Clements? Yeah I would kick his ass. While he has been "studying" fechtbooks for years I have been fighting and competing full speed full power for over 20 years. He has not. It's not that my "kung fu" is better. It's that I am used to the speed and power of an actua...

James B.

Blade dynamics that work in steel often don't work in wood or rattan because it is too thick. Look at all the windings in historical combat, it only really works with thin steel.

That is just one example of the differences.

James B.

There is this weird misconception that a heavy fighter in the SCA would be lost if someone were to hand him a steel sword. Where on earth does that come from? It is a very stupid assumption. Because it happens alot at HWMA schools and events just like the HWMA guy cannot instantly adapt to SCA comb...

James B.

Oh and John Clements? Yeah I would kick his ass. While he has been "studying" fechtbooks for years I have been fighting and competing full speed full power for over 20 years. He has not. It's not that my "kung fu" is better. It's that I am used to the speed and power of an actua...

James B.

I am more concerned about I could kick his ass statements. Here I will answer in kind with my experience in the SCA. I started in the SCA by going to one event in 2001 then going back tot he same one a year later. At the time I was practicing historical Fencing (rapier) with Winterfell and started p...

James B.

Oh geez has this thread really devolved into whose Kung Fu is better?

James B.

Ingvarr wrote:Not long into my SCA involvement, someone said to me, "The only people who wear swords at events are knights and douches. I'm not a knight yet, so I don't wear one."

Hmm this sounds like someone that takes the rank of knight in the SCA too seriously.

James B.

A long dagger for the better off or a knife for the common person seems fairly typical in art. Many depictions of feasting include daggers on the servers in the 15th century and the only ones with swords off the top of my head are those of the Duke of Warwick visiting the Middle East somewhere. Many...

James B.

Leo are you going to use a barbute or are you going to use the proper armet for that suit of armor?

James B.

Addressing 14th century and the Bocksten bog man tunic; I have not seen any art to indicate such an arrangement from the 14th century. The reason you see them in 11th century reenactment (like Duke Camric) is that the Bayeux Tapestry has figures with different colored gores. Is it artistic license, ...

James B.

Movies that are better than most for medieval: Henry V- Laurence Oliver version Richard III - Laurence Oliver version Joan of Arc- Bergman Alatriste - Resent Spanish movie with Viggo M. in it. The Advocate - Good 15th century men's clothing. Beowulf and Grendel - Gerard Butler (2005) - Ignore the co...

James B.

I would like to join the English again, been in it since the 2nd one.

James B.

I am fairly sure full circle cloaks are in use in this time frame especially with the crusading orders.

James B.

Fearghus Macildubh wrote:Pics from the Victoria and Albert Museum. I can't say enough about this place. Completely awesome if you are an art or design geek.

Amen. That place is huge too.

James B.

Leather and Leatherworking in Anglo-Scandinavian and Medieval York: Craft, Industry and Everyday Life (The archaeology of York) has some cool knifes and scabbards but not nearly as much as the MoL book. It does have more sword scabbards than the MoL book but still there are only maybe ten. I've hea...

James B.

Not far off from how I did my knife scabbards.

James B.

Has anyone made any attempt to correlate analyze some of that factoring the forensics analysis from Wisby? Or going to other non-fighting manual manuscript sources (e.g. Mac Bible)? If you mean is there evidence of sword cleaving through armor and splitting skulls or clefting torsos under CoPs then...

Looking for site with books on PDF