Quote Originally Posted by MarkusWolfe View Post
Meh, just want to practice in public and look totally badass doing it, as well as be prepared for the zombie apocolypse.
As one who teaches swordfighting...
And with all due respect...
I do foresee you hurting yourself or someone else.

You really do want to learn on a smaller weapon first. Something the size of a Gladius, or slightly larger, and then work your way up. Even start with a wooden waster, before you go out and buy a potentially expensive sword, particularly one of the quality to actually practice and or fight with.
Conversely, the other way to go about this is learn how to use a quarterstaff (6 feet) first, then practice 2 handed sword forms with a quarterstaff, and then work on 2 handed sword techniques.

And lastly, swinging around a sword in public trying to look 'totally badass' is a great way to have the cops show up and spoil your fun. I speak from repeated and comical experience. You really do want to learn with a more official group.



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No really, I do speak from repeated and comical experience. I know all the cops in my neighborhood on a first name basis as a result. They typically play pranks on the rookie cops by sending him down to bust us. They call ahead so we play along. It's great fun. Especially fun because we're all trained to take hits and make them look real too. So the rookie comes and puts one of us in an arm bar and starts to cuff him. And thats when the non-rookie cop comes up and says, "no no no son, you got it all wrong, you're doing that the hard way, it's like this" and then pulls out the baton and clubs someone in the gut with a phantom hit, and then proceeds to cuff us. Good times.