SBG Fantasy Sword Design Competition!

How many entries/designs are allowed per person?

To answer your questions:

1) There is no entry limit - you can enter as many designs as you like. If we happen to choose more than one of your designs, each one we make will be sent to you.

2) It doesn't need to be a Kit Rae styled fantasy design, historically plausible is fine, but it should have some kind of fantasy elements to it. Understated fantasy is fine, as is over the top. Daniels sample designs are fairly representative of what we are aiming for - but less or more fantasy elements is good. Any type of crossguard, etc is okay - the guys at BCI can make pretty much anything. No limits except those imposed on us by our worlds physics.. ;-)

Well i'll start then.
This is a sword design that I envision to be a light and fast one-handed cut and thrust sword that would be at home in the hands of an individual trained in the use of the saber, sidesword and even rapier.
It has a single edged blade with a straight spine to aid in thrusting, and gentle increase in width at the COP for decisive cuts. A fuller helps to lighten the blade and ends just before the COP to prevent unnecessary friction in the cut.
The forward swept quillons and knucklebow provide good hand protection, and encourage the use of point forward guard positions often seen in saber fencing. The grip is canted for a natural thrusting grip, and features a finger choil for the index finger, the feel of which should be reminiscent of "fingering the guard" for rapierists. It also aids in retention of the weapon during cutting motions. The sword ends off in a pommel shaped as a flattened sphere, decorated with writhen twists. 
Im thinking of a 35 inch blade length on this one

My first few entries:



The first is a simple design that, in most fantasy tales, would probably be referred to as a broadsword. Because of its stoutness and relative simplicity, it's the type of sword I could see a city guardsmen being issued as part of his standard equipment. With the broad, flat face of the pommel, it could easily be stamped with a particular magistrate's or baron's insignia, indicating that particular guardsman's jurisdiction. The measurements, as taken from the original post in my design thread:

Overall Length: 37"
Blade Length: 30"
Blade Width: 2 1/2" @ base; 1 5/8" @ profile taper (7 5/8" from tip); 1/2" @ 1" from tip
Grip Length: 4 1/16"
Guard Width: 5 3/4"
Pommel Dimensions: 2 1/2"L x 2 1/4"W



The second is a bit more fantastic, a claymore hilted backsword with a curved blade. A cleaving, slashing weapon, it's best suited for use against lightly armored targets; this is a sellsword's weapon, plain and simple. Its blackened furniture and brass ring all speak to something meant to be used hard with minimal maintenance, only fitting for a man who would depend on his sword above all else. The measurements, again, taken from my design thread:

Overall Length: 51 3/4"
Blade Length: 39" (10 1/4" false edge)
Blade Width: 2 3/8" @ base; 1 7/8" @ profile taper (4 1/2" from tip); 3/4" @ 1" from tip
Grip Length: 8 3/8"
Guard Width: 11"
Pommel Dimensions: 2 1/8"L x 1 3/4"W



Lastly, we have the blade used by the vicious necromancer... Will. He has a twisted sense of humor and so calls his blade Will'o'Wisp, because its serpentine shape calls to mind the spectral fire that leads unwary travelers to their doom and what better way for a necromancer to build his army of undead? Its worn bronze fittings exude an age completely at odds with its seemingly untouched grip with its half-wire wrap.

Overall Length: 46"
Blade Length: 36"
Blade Width: 2 3/8" @ base; 3/4" @ profile taper (4 7/16" from tip); 1/4" from tip
Grip Length: 7 1/2"
Guard Width: 8"
Pommel Dimensions: 2 1/8"L x 2"W

I would very much like to see a good two-handed viking sword. It is a fantasy sword because, as far as we know, two-handed viking swords didn't exist. This design has proven to be very popular, as can be seen by the number of beautiful examples of this sword type created by custom sword makers. 

Please forgive the crude drawing (I'm no artist), but this Microsoft Paint drawing captures the elements that I would like to see in this fantasy viking sword:



I took a photo of a normal viking sword blade and stretched it to the proportions of a two-handed sword. The blade length could be around 36 - 38 inches. I would personally like to see the grip length be around 9 inches. I have seen other designs for this type of sword where the grip was 10 or even 12 inches, which is a bit too long in my opinion. So, with a 36 to 38 inch blade, I would think the overall length of the sword would be somewhere between 48 to 50 inches. Perhaps we could call it a viking greatsword.

I left the guard and pommel unadorned, which would look good in my opinion, or it could be further improved by adding engraving similar to period viking swords such as this dragon design from a sword found in Suontaka, Finland:




The backstory for this fantasy viking sword could center around Surtr, a fire giant from Norse mythology who leads his kin into battle against the Aesir and Vanir gods during Ragnarok, the cyclical destruction of the cosmos. His particular destiny is to kill the god Freyr and to be slain by him in turn. He arrives from Muspelheim, the extreme southern region of heat and fire, bearing his weapon of choice of a burning sword, with which the world is razed before it sinks into the sea.



Here is an excerpt from the Wikipedia entry for Surtr:

"Surtr is mentioned twice in the poem Völuspá, where a völva divulges information to the god Odin. The völva says that, during Ragnarök, Surtr will come from the south with flames, carrying a very bright sword:


Old Norse:


Sutr ferr sunnan

með sviga lævi:

skinn af sverði

sól valtiva.


English:


Surtr moves from the south

with the scathe of branches:

there shines from his sword

the sun of Gods of the Slain.


Following this, the völva says that "stone peaks clash", "troll wives take to the road", "warriors tread the path from Hel", and the heavens "break apart". The next stanza relates that Odin is to be killed by the wolf Fenrir, and that Surtr will go to battle against "Beli's bane", a kenning for the god Freyr, who slew the giant Beli. No further detail is given about the fight between Surtr and Freyr in the poem. In the stanzas that follow, a number of gods and their opponents are described as doing battle at Ragnarök, and that the world will be consumed in flames, yet afterward a new world rises from the sea, fertile and teeming with life, and the surviving gods will meet again."



This huge viking sword could be a representation of the flaming sword of Surtr. The guard and pommel could be engraved with a dragon design as shown in the photo above, possibly also incorporating flames, as this is a typical representation of Ragnarok.

So here is this sword again with a more red grip color and a metal spacer. (I think it would look good with or without the metal spacer).  We could call it the "Sword of Surtr". Or perhaps the "Flame of Surtr".



From the proportions shown in these drawings, the base of the blade would be 2.75 inches wide (only a quarter of an inch less than the Albion Alexandria and Principe blades). With a wide fuller extending nearly the length of the blade, this type X blade would be very impressive!

And here is the "Flame of Surtr" with a bronze hilt that is engraved with the design from the original period viking sword:

43" over all with a 36 1/2" blade and a 4" handle, approx. The exact measurements aren't too big a concern with me, but this sword is meant to function like a cut and thrust side sword.

I call it the sword of providence, based off the pyramid eye thing in the USA currency. But name it what you like

Also the knuckle bow doesn't need to be connected to the pommel if that's hard to do.

Story: The sword of providence is said to be the sword of an Angel, who used it to defeat a mighty dragon. Legends say, when held by one with a pure heart, it would burst into divine flames. Many believe the Eye motif symbolizes the forces of light forever watching these lands against the dark forces.

We have so many fantasy medieval swords, and most ancient sword replicas are so far removed they might as well be fantasy.

Why not a fantasy sabre or yataghan? I'll try to draw a design when I'm home.

 

This one is a cross between an arming sword and a jian, with the blade being 30" and the overall length being 36". A broad blade is specialized for cutting, and the majority of the weight in the hilt, so it is easy to handle. As you can see by the side picture, while the guard looks giant and bulky, it is quite thin to reduce weight, along with the fuller in the blade.

I call this the Cloud Cutter

It was meant to be longer, but I ran out of paper space

Story: A sword carved from the bones of the last windfish was passed down generation to generation. Light, flexible and easy to wield, it seemed to glide in the wind when it was swung. A strong enough warrior could create a big gust of wind with this sword, and if thrown, it always sailed true to its targets, like an arrow. 

I have no skill or ability to take part but I love this thread and it should be great! Mad thanks to SBG for doing this.