Ever wondered how you'd stack up against...?

to be honest I think i'd do reasonably well (as in, perhaps i would survive) if I had a sword I'm used to. i've got 7 years martial arts experience (not bad for 20 years old, though some ole timers on here probably have my lifetime beat for their martial experience) and practice with my favorite sword almost an hour every day. on top of that i've done numerous crash courses and regular lessons in escrima, and a rather intense year of haidong kumdo. my instructor trains for realism, and our sparring can get intense (not lethally so, but breaking a finger or getting a concussion are certainly possibilities if you aren't focused). that is, i'd do well barring bad lack or an opponent far better than me. you never know.

ironically, i think i'd be dead in a sec if it were a gunfight, unlike most of the posters here with plenty of firearm experience. i'm just now learning how to use shotguns safely and with the right stance. pistols make me nervous though, i think because they're so mobile in terms of aim. you can just whip them around too quickly for my jumpy nerves...

with regards to adrenaline and taking hits, i got a hairline fracture to my ankle during a sparring match in TKD, but kept going 3 rounds without noticing until the adrenaline wore off...it took 6 months to heal, and still makes funny cracking sounds sometimes. that said, bodies are much more durable than medical ads and health care corporations would have us believe. history is replete with stories of men with terrible injuries fighting valiantly long after they should be dead. i've read many accounts (true or not? i don't know but I believe them) of samurai being beheaded and briefly continuing to fight. frankly, i think it's true, the body responds on its own once you reach a certain level of martial arts. it doesn't even need the brain.

oh well, sorry for the ramblings, it's a late night!

I don't recognize any of them...but the guy doing the shooting MUST be at least a distant relative.

At a recent MSR event we did a "fight a knight" for $3 donations. It was mainly geared towards kids who got to come out with a rattan sword and tried to hit us. After blocking the blows we would let them get a few shots and win. A few adults came out too. Of course we could not hit back but it gave people an idea of how hard it is to hit a trained fighter. I got a few crazy PMSing women after me too. You will not see this sort of thing with kids in the SCA because of insurance concerns.

But if you guys are really serious about getting an idea of were you stand, you can go to your local SCA practice. People there will lend you armor.

I've done quite a bit of sparring with many friends. Some with SCA experience or real training, and some without. I typically do fairly well, and I have much more stamina than many people my age. I'd have to say that I'm above average, but I'd probably get beaten pretty quick by someone with more experience than me. I typically focus on defense, and look for a good opportunity to counterattack.

I learned some useful moves and techniques from MEMAG. I actually had the chance to meet them, along with some friends, and have them teach us some stuff. Most of the techniques I learned can easily be applied to saber, which is my weapon of choice. Aside from that, I do teach myself, which isn't really all that difficult. I've managed to disarm my friends a few times as well, which would certainly help in a fight.

I figure in a sword fight at best I would come out with some serious wounds, and at worse I'd be dead. I just can't see how you would escape being wounded, unless you are lucky and kill your opponent with your first strike.

3 years between posts

I would cut my enemy to ribbons and scatter the bloody fragments to the 4 winds! (attitude is 60%)

I actually want to see someone with a sword approach me and do a good ol' babe-ruth-Aragorn-hows-your-father mittlehau swing at me. Displace with a Krumphau, then give him the good news in the face/head.

If you had no idea about the master strikes and you were completely new to swordsmanship, being displaced in such a way is a bit of a shock!

Master strikes are awesome

Real swordfight, I think I would do ok depending on how trained up the other guy is. I've been studying for close to 20 years, if the other guy has 21 years in I'd be screwed.